Is It Futility?

In Ecclesiastes 1:2 (CSB), we see some of the most pessimistic words of the Bible: “Absolute futility. Everything is futile.” 

There are continual articles about church leaders being caught up in some sort of abuse allegations. On December 12, a Baptist Press article talked about a youth minister who took his own life while part of an abuse investigation. (https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/youth-minister-takes-his-own-life-amid-abuse-investigation/) The article talks about this youth minister passing a background check and the church using a robust child protection policy. Then, there is an article about a pastor charged with stalking. (https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/virginia-pastor-faces-stalking-breaking-and-entering-charges/) We might look at stories like these and wonder if all of our efforts for trying to keep our churches safe is just a waste of time.

Let me assure you, the efforts are not a waste of time. Background checks are useful in making sure anyone who has a criminal history cannot slip through the cracks into a church related position they ought not be in. The difficulty with background checks is they only identify people who have been caught and have something on their record. Many predators will have well over 100 victims before they are caught the first time. If a legal process fails, then the charges may not show up on a background check. This seems discouraging. We ought not allow it to be. This is part of the due diligence churches can perform to keep predators at bay. Just the request to perform a background check might cause a predator to backpedal away from the position they are seeking. If there is hesitation from a candidate to have a background check completed, this can serve as an immediate red flag. This should stop a church from placing a person in a role in the church, whether it is a volunteer position or a leadership position. In 2018, when I was submitting information for a background check to serve as the pastor at Cornerstone Community Church in Mobridge, I let my supervisor at the time know where I was in the process and started the process of submitting my resignation. He asked if I should wait until the background check comes back. I laughed and said, “I work security…If I fail this background check, I need to resign anyway.”

The New Hampshire article shared above states the church used a robust child protection policy. Policies protect the church and those who are in the church. Policies lay out the expectations and the penalties for violating the expectations. These policies are vitally important. Included in these policies ought to be training on protection. The protection needs to include all forms of abuse. A key piece of information these trainings provide is helping churches understand a hard truth. This hard truth is predators don’t just groom their targets. They also groom the gatekeepers. The gatekeepers are those people who stand between the predator and the target. The gatekeepers can be pastors, volunteer coordinators, ministry department leaders, or even deacons. The grooming process involves an attempt to show how trustworthy the potential predator can be. We see the end result of this after an allegation when someone makes a statement like, “I never expected something like this from him. He was such a great guy and was always willing to help out.” 

It is very easy for us to become complacent over time. Renewing training often and performing follow-up background checks periodically following placement is vital for maintaining safety in our ministries. When I was being trained as a university security officer, I was told the job was 99.9% boredom and .1% excitement. It is easy to “fall asleep at the wheel” during the 99.9%, which can cause us to miss the .1% which might be right in front of our face. 

Before we wrap up here, allow me to get gritty for a moment. We need to remember the words of Peter in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.” No one is above temptation. 1 Corinthians 10:13 (CSB) teaches, “No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity.” Temptation will come our way. There is a promise in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that we will be able to endure temptation and there is a God-provided escape so we can get out of the situation. Jesus tells His disciples in Matthew 26:41 “Stay awake and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We can find strength in accountability with our brothers and sisters in Christ. In Life Together, Bonhoeffer wrote, “He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone.” Let me exhort you to not be a lone wolf. If there is a walk with Christ, there can’t be a lone wolf. Our believing hearts long for community with fellow believers. We are called in Galatians 6:2 to “carry one another’s burdens…” As the Body of Christ, when one member hurts, the whole body feels it. When I broke my ulna in a taekwondo tournament nearly a decade ago, I felt the shock of the bone breaking all throughout my body. After all these years and two surgeries, my body still feels the effects. Let us lift up one another and carry one another’s burdens. This is what it means to be the Body of Christ. 

The Dakota Baptist Convention utilizes MinistrySafe for background checks and child protection trainings. If you are interested in participating in a training or utilizing the background check feature, please reach out to me at everett@dakotabaptist.com or 605-848-4065. 

“It is very easy for us to become complacent over time. Renewing training often and performing follow-up background checks periodically following placement is vital for maintaining safety in our ministries.”