<\/p>\n
In the past couple of months, I\u2019ve wrestled with disillusionment toward the Church, particularly with regard to its leaders. At my own church, one of our pastors made some bad decisions and was put on administrative leave. After seeking counseling, he was reconciled with the congregation and restored to the pulpit. But then, without warning, he resigned. It rocked our church.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another one of our pastors was named in a lawsuit involving a former member accused of sexual misconduct with one of our church\u2019s youth. Then came the devastating confession of Philip Yancy\u2019s eight-year affair with a married woman. I admired Yancy and read his books, finding much godly wisdom and insights to apply to my own walk with the Lord. I was heartbroken when I heard the news.<\/p>\n
All three of these spiritual failures happened within a year. I became disillusioned. Although I\u2019ve been a believer for more than 30 years and have served in many ministerial capacities, there were moments when I asked, Is this worth it? Is this what Christianity is all about? Why am I even going to church if our leaders can\u2019t even seem to walk with integrity?<\/em><\/p>\n I know I\u2019m not alone. Others are witnessing the moral collapse in their churches and becoming disillusioned. Some may even be considering leaving the church altogether, or, worse, walking away from their faith entirely.<\/p>\n I understand this temptation. But in all honesty, leaving a church\u2014unless it is for theological error and widespread spiritual abuse\u2014or abandoning one\u2019s faith seems like the easier path. The harder, more Christ-honoring choice, however, is to remain faithful and persevere. Jesus, after all, warned us that our walk of faith would be marked with trials and temptations (John 16:33). We shouldn\u2019t be na\u00efve in expecting that the visible church\u2014led by fallible men and women\u2014is a bed of roses. It has its thorns and prickly side, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n What are we to do, then, when the urge to walk away is overwhelming? How do we cultivate a faith that endures? How do we remain engaged with the church and its imperfect people and still hold fast to our faith?<\/p>\n Acknowledging our pain and disillusionment is an act of honesty, of pouring out our hearts, like a wounded child to their loving Father. God understands our hurt, our doubts, and our grief, and he invites us to unburden ourselves so that he can begin the healing process (Psalm 31:9). \u201cWhen it comes to disillusionment with others and ourselves, [God] gives us space both to reel and to heal in his presence,\u201d writes Aimee Joseph.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is important to turn your focus away from the people involved and the church itself and identify the root cause of your pain, turmoil, and disillusionment. Honestly identify what you are feeling,\u201d says GotQuestions.com. \u201cFind out what is at the core of your hurt\u2014not what someone said or did to you, but what is really causing your pain? When you truly identify the root of your pain, God has a balm of wisdom, compassion, and love to heal your wounds. If you call on Him for help, your focus shifts to Him and off of other people and their actions.\u201d<\/p>\n Like David, a man well acquainted with grief, who repeatedly cried out to God in anguish. His prayers, like that of Psalm 102:1-2, act as a model for our own\u2014\u201cA prayer of an afflicted person who has grown weak and pours out a lament before the Lord.\u00a0Hear my prayer,\u00a0Lord;\u00a0let my cry for help\u00a0come to you. Do not hide your face\u00a0from me when I am in distress. Turn your ear\u00a0to me; when I call, answer me quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n Remember that God is near to the brokenhearted, as David reminds us in Psalm 34:18.\u00a0<\/p>\n It is easy to look at the situation and the people involved and pass judgment. I did at first. \u201cThey should know better. They\u2019re pastors, after all!\u201d But they are also human, saved by the same grace that saved me. They are just as vulnerable to temptations and the weaknesses of the flesh (James 1:14).\u00a0<\/p>\n Satan knows this and loves to use our flesh against us. He will especially target those in positions of spiritual leadership, tempting them just as he did Jesus, with the desire for money, power, authority, and sexual gratification. And when he succeeds, their sins often go unnoticed for months, weeks, and in Yancy\u2019s case, even years.\u00a0<\/p>\n When church leaders\u2014or any believer\u2014fails to be vigilant regarding their faith and does not daily depend on the leading of the Holy Spirit, they will\u00a0<\/em>become vulnerable to sinning. This is exactly where Satan wants God\u2019s children: fallen, humiliated, and disgraced.<\/p>\n Yet Jesus\u2019 words in Matthew 16:18 offer great comfort, \u201cI will build my church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it,\u201d are a comfort. Satan may have his day, but Jesus will have the last say. \u00a0<\/p>\n One verse that has sustained me these past months is Psalm 118:8, \u201cIt is better to take refuge in Jesus than to trust in man.\u201d While the church is meant to be a place of love, support, and nonjudgment, there are times when it fails us. It too falls short of the glory of God. But we are not without hope. Jesus is our safe haven, a sure anchor.<\/p>\n Aimee Joseph writes, \u201cDisillusionment reminds us there is only one relationship that will never fail. Rebuilding relationships requires us to place our trust in God, not man.\u201d<\/p>\n Remember that Jesus is \u201cour [only] refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble\u201d (Psalm 46:1). And that means any kind of trouble.<\/p>\n Over the past year, I have taken time to refocus, to remind myself of the biblical truths of the Church\u2014what God intended:\u00a0<\/p>\n Forgiveness is an act of obedience, not contingent on emotions (Matthew 6:15). Even when you don\u2019t feel<\/em> like forgiving your church or the member who offended you, it is a step you must take\u2014sooner rather than later, lest you fall into sin yourself (Galatians 6:1b). It does not necessarily mean you need to engage again with the offender or remain in that church, but forgiveness is a biblical command. And through forgiveness, you will experience peace, unity within the Body again and with God, and continued spiritual growth.<\/p>\n I take great comfort in Janet Yancey\u2019s choice to forgive her husband.\u00a0<\/p>\n She writes: \u201cI, Janet Yancey, am speaking from a place of trauma and devastation that only people who have lived through betrayal can understand. Yet I made a sacred and binding marriage vow 55\u00bd years ago, and I will not break that promise. I accept and understand that God, through Jesus, has paid for and forgiven the sins of the world, including Philip\u2019s. God grant me the grace to forgive also, despite my unfathomable trauma. Please pray for us.\u201d<\/p>\n She acknowledges the pain and devastation, affirms her commitment to her vows, and pleads for God to \u201cgrant me the grace to forgive.\u201d It will take time and likely professional and spiritual counseling to get there, but I have no doubt Janet will succeed in extending grace to her erring husband.<\/p>\n And so must we extend grace to those who have erred against us.<\/p>\n Again, Janet demonstrated the true meaning of faithfulness. \u201cI made a sacred and binding marriage vow\u2026 and I will not break that promise.\u201d Her commitment is ultimately to God, to the One before whom she pledged, \u201c\u2019til death do us part.\u201d The road ahead will be hard and she may even feel tempted to divorce her husband\u2014which she has the biblical right to do. Yet she declares that she will honor the vow.\u00a0<\/p>\n We can learn a thing or two from Janet here. The key to not quitting, either on the church or your faith, lies in honoring your commitment to the good and gracious God who saved you and welcomed you into his Kingdom. The church\u2014with all its imperfections\u2014is God\u2019s gift to his children for the purposes of community and unity, for spiritual growth, for worshipping him, for experiencing his presence, and for celebrating the ordinances of baptism and communion.<\/p>\n Yes, the temptation to disassociate yourself from the church and go into spiritual isolation may be strong, but resist it. Do not give Satan a foothold. Remain faithful to your commitment to follow Jesus, and in the meantime continue to gather with your brothers and sisters in Christ, \u201cnot neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near\u201d (Hebrews 10:25).<\/p>\n Photo Credit: \u00a9GettyImages\/Maskot\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n Denise is a former newspaper reporter and current freelance writer. She has been published in numerous online and print publications. She is also a former Women’s Bible Study teacher. Denise’s passion is to use her writing to bless, encourage, and inform others. She lives outside of Chicago with her husband and two children (another has grown and flown). You can find Denise at denisekohlmeyer.com.<\/p>\n Originally published February 19, 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the past couple of months, I\u2019ve wrestled with disillusionment toward the Church, particularly with regard to its leaders. At my own church, one of our pastors made some bad decisions and was put on administrative leave. After seeking counseling, he was reconciled with the congregation and restored to the pulpit. But then, without warning,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20088,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[82,348,4616,4547],"class_list":{"0":"post-20087","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-christian-living","8":"tag-church","9":"tag-faith","10":"tag-falling","11":"tag-hurts"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20087\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}1. Acknowledge the Hurt and Disillusionment<\/h2>\n
2. Understand That Satan Is at Work<\/h2>\n
3. Take Refuge in Jesus<\/h2>\n
4. Refocus and Remind Yourself<\/h2>\n
\n
5. Forgive<\/h2>\n
6. Honor Your Commitment<\/h2>\n