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The term “church hurt” has grown in popularity over the years, I think, because so many people have realized that others have been hurt in the church. When we suffer something, we can often isolate ourselves and think we are the only ones who have gone through those situations. But being hurt in the church is, unfortunately, not a rare situation. Jesus said doctors were for the sick and not for the well, indicating that ministers and churches were for broken people, not perfect ones (Matthew 9:12). Those who are broken can be the very ones who lash out in hurtful ways, and they may cause others to retreat from them. People are flawed, and when we get together, someone will eventually mess things up. Sure, there are little missteps that irritate us, but this kind of church hurt is not about someone sitting on your pew or frowning at you from the choir loft. Instead, church hurt involves things that flawed humans do to other flawed humans that may cause them to leave a church, or even Christianity. I searched “church hurt” on Amazon.com and found over 1,000 books. I haven’t read any of them, so I can’t suggest any titles, but there are books about church hurt connected to leadership, leaving the church, ministries that have come from church hurt, and so many more. I was surprised to find many that are denominational specific. Do you find that as sad as I do? That there is such a call for church healing by denomination that authors pen books directed at it? Did you know that JSM has a course on Church Hurt? We do! The Joanna Snow Ministries Church Hurt course is a self-paced interactive journey. Each day’s segment includes a video and a companion worksheet. Worksheets can be opened on your phone, tablet, or computer with or without a Dropbox account. This video course covers many issues and is designed to help people find the roots and the sprouts that hurt in the church has caused. If you think you could benefit from the course, check it out here! It is available with our mid-level membership. And, if you know of someone else who might benefit from it, please send them our direction.
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