You may not know Laurie Nichols, but if you were a part of the GC2 Summit, you saw her work. She would not let me have her stand and be recognized, but the summit was her idea, and she made it happen.
You may know that this was not a long-planned event. We announced the summit just two months before over 700 people gathered in Wheaton and thousands watched online. While our whole team pitched in, but it was Laurie who made it happen— our communications director, a suvivor, and part of the ministry team at New Name, working against trafficking.
I’m thankful for her courage, and she is a hero in all this, but she wants to tell you about some other heroes. -Ed
There is much to lament in the church today. While God’s commands remain steadfast and true, we have looked away long enough to have been conformed to the world. This ought to be anathema.
In moments of honesty, we must confess we have become a generation of Christians far from God. We have strayed.
But that’s not the end.
Last Thursday reminded me—and many others—of that. Over 750 people attended our Reflections GC2 Summit on Responding to Sexual Harassment, Abuse, and Violence. Nearly 50 livestream sites and hundreds of individuals participated with us remotely.
It was a good, hard day. The admonitions of all of our speakers, including Max Lucado, Beth Moore, Christine Caine, York Moore, Laurel Bunker, Lindsay Olesberg, Kelly Rosati, Nancy Beach, Eugene Cho, and others were a powerful reminder of how far we slipped and how far we have to go. You can read a good recap of the day here.
But, really, what breaks me is this: all of the speakers weaved in this truism—God hears and heals. He HEARS the cries of all, and wants to HEAL the pain of all. No amount of work on our end, without the power of the Holy Spirit, is sufficient for the healing that must take place. As a survivor myself, I have discovered this to be so very true in my own journey to healing as well.
Every survivor who spoke did so with the proverbial finger pointed upwards. It is God divinely working through his word, his people, and his Spirit to straighten what is out of joint, to care for the flickering wick.
But how is that reflected in us, his people?
Let me share just a few thoughts as I reflect on the summit, and they revolve around one word and one concept: heroes—those with great courage that compel us to do more and do better.
First, the true heroes are all those who bear the scars of pain and break their silence.
I am immensely grateful to both Max Lucado and Kelli Rosati for breaking their silence yesterday. And I am convicted that for every Max there are 10 more stories of heartbreak and for every Kelli there are 20 more stories of silence. Those who have endured violence at the hands of others—whether verbal, physical, or psychological—hold a special place in God’s heart. The reminder in Matthew 20 that “the last shall be first and the first last” bears heavily on me today.
It takes tremendous courage to keep pressing forward when you have been beaten down. I am amazed by you.
To all those who have been hurt at the hands of others and yet keep moving forward, we honor you. To God and to us, you are a hero.
Click here to read more.
SOURCE: Christianity Today, Laurie Nichols
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