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There is Hope for the Fallen Christian Nonprofit Leader
Brian Kreeger • Jul 07, 2022
This article has a specific audience. The audience is so specific it probably would not find approval among most editors.
It is written to those Christian nonprofit leaders who have fallen. But the audience is even more specific than that. It is written to those Christian nonprofit leaders who have fallen, who have recognized the errors of their ways, and are looking to do whatever they can to find reconciliation and restoration.
This article is written to encourage them, because sometimes it is difficult for them to get there- to find hope to move on.
Those of you reading this who are not a fallen leader may want to forward it to someone who is.
Now let me be clear- I do not write this to justify the actions of the fallen leader; I do not write it to shift blame to anyone beyond the leader themselves. This is a common theme in my previous writings.
Leadership falls can be very emotional, wrought with a lot of collateral damage and sometimes lifelong consequences and pain.
If you are part of the collateral damage and find it difficult to recognize reconciliation and restoration as goals, I recommend you skip by this one article.
This article is the second part of an article I began last week, so you may want to go back and review the setup article.
(This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book,
The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.)
The fallen leader who knows they messed up and is working to repair what they have damaged has looked into the disappointed, teary eyes of those closest to them as they attempted to explain what happened.
By all accounts, this leader was at the top of their game and now has a deep paranoia in walking down the street of their hometown, or even attending church. This leader is so embarrassed by their actions they struggle to leave home.
The ironclad credibility this leader once had was destroyed by one poor decision after another, and there are now few people who believe a word that flows from their mouth.
The fallen leader’s mind plays terrible scenarios of where they will end up in their life. This person struggles to see relationships reconciled, restoration taking place, and perhaps even organizational survival.
I know this all firsthand. I once was this fallen leader, but God showed me a way out of the despair.
Fallen leader, there is absolutely nothing you can do about the facts of what happened in the past—the hurt you hurled onto others or the hurt you experienced. But while working to repair the damage, you can draw a line in the sand and work to discern how God wants to use all of your junk to benefit Him.
God wants to use you and all the trouble you chose, but you have to recognize the fall as a comma (a marked separation) in your life and not a period. Frankly, it was this recognition in my life that inspired me to write my book and has me sitting here writing this article.
T. D. Jakes puts it this way: “When you begin to realize that your past does not necessarily dictate the outcome of your future, then you can release the hurt. It is impossible to inhale new air until you exhale the old.”
Cory Asbury puts it another way in his song The Father’s House: “Failure isn’t final when the Father’s in the room.”
God is knocking on the door. Are you going to let Him in the room?
Pastor and author Jentezen Franklin once said, “Impossible odds set the stage for amazing miracles.” And God is in the miracle business. You have no idea what miracle is being whipped up in your life.
It is entirely possible that the journey following your fall could propel you further than you could have ever gone in your own spiritual life. It is also possible that the impact you might have in the lives of those in your sphere of influence may be multiplied because of the experience of your fall.
Pastor Steven Furtick says that “your rejection in one season can lead to your destiny in the next.”
Whatever you allowed to bring you down is a blip on a screen, if you allow it to be.
If you plan to play the victim and live in a world of despair where every challenge of life relates to what happened, then it won’t be a blip.
But like so many things, it is your choice. Accepting God’s grace and forgiveness is your choice.
Don’t let your fall form a period in your life.
Allow God to use it.
As I’ve heard Dr. Bryan Chapell say, “Do you see that the Bible takes care to tar virtually every biblical figure but one?” God gave us a tremendous number of examples in scripture of imperfection that was used by God for His glory.
Most people reading this article will find familiar the stories of David, Joseph, Moses, Abraham, Peter, and Paul as examples of people who fell in scripture, but who God used mightily. All of them messed up, yet we are still learning from them thousands of years later.
I ask with reverence: Weren’t there probably better Christian examples for Jesus to have chosen? Maybe, maybe not. It’s not for me to judge. But one thing I do know is that Jesus spent His time with the downtrodden, the imperfect, the religious, and the outcasts of society, and He used them for the advancement of the Gospel.
You and I fit much of that description.
God knew your human frailties and imperfections before you fell, just like those biblical heroes listed above. He knew you were going to mess up, but used you anyway.
He is God. He knew even before you were born, and definitely before you took your position or founded your organization, that you were going to fall. He allowed it anyway because He has a greater purpose for your life.
While I will never minimize whatever you did or the damage you caused, the picture we have of it is very limited. Our line of sight is simply only human in its view. God sees the ramifications of your actions long into the future, and you must recognize that.
So, what are you going to do with all of that? Are you going to waste the pain?
I would recommend spending time in prayer, scripture reading, and meditation in order to determine how God wants to use your junk. But we have to set ourselves—our emotions and our pride—aside and allow for that revelation.
There are people that want you to remain stuck. The spiritual battle you find yourself in wants you to remain stuck. If you are stuck, you are making the choice not to allow God to use the pain of your former circumstance, the “sin that so easily entangles,” for His glory.
There are people you may not even know that need to hear your story, so what they are humanly feeling is validated. These people need someone to walk through their pain with them. Who better to do it than you?
You can do it! But you can’t allow yourself to get stuck and focused on a temporary period of poor choices.
The reason to push on and not get stuck may be much bigger than you or in the temporary place you find yourself.
Dr. Martin Luther King said, “If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl. But whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.”
If you give up your fight, surrender, and choose to walk in God’s direction, you will pick up skills that only your unique situation could have given you. God has spoken to you in unique ways, and you are commanded to pass on the skills and the comfort God has given you.
But you can only unlock it by giving up and surrendering your will to God’s.
Again I say, leader, don’t give up. Successful real estate and Shark Tank investor Barbara Corcoran has said, “Every single failure has an equally great upside if you are willing to stay in the game.”
You do not know what God has out in front of you that you cannot see, even if you messed up. Whenever I get nervous about the future and insecure about what God has out in front of me, I remember He is already there waiting for me. I just need to be faithful in getting there.
Leader, this is probably the toughest period of your life. Although you may hate to admit it, the image other people have of you hangs heavy in your mind. You went from being everyone’s hero to….well, let’s just say you’re not anymore. That’s hard to take. You know you are a good person, but nearly every word that comes out of your mouth is fraught with ulterior motives in the minds of those around you. At least that is how it seems.
The vision people have of who you are is probably way different than the truth of your true identity.
Leader, you are beat up right now. You thought you were in the best shape of your life and, as author Steve Farrar puts it in his book
Finishing Strong, “You got ambushed.” Your focus was lost. Steve continues, “Your fall could have been the ambush of another woman, the ambush of money, the ambush of a neglected family.” But you are not who you used to be, and you appear to everyone else to be completely out of shape, off the rails, and down for the count.
Who you know yourself to be deep down inside, especially considering your identity in Christ, is who you are.
On the outside you may appear pretty beat up, but inside where the Holy Spirit lives and your identity abides, you are strong and able to outrun any judgmental and critical community around you in order to honor your commitments. The Holy Spirit gives you that power.
But are you going to do it? That is your choice.
God gave you this life because He knew you were strong enough to live it. He knew everything that was going to happen in your life. He knew your successes and your failures, but He gave you the life you have anyway. He gave you the level of influence you have anyway.
That potential to influence has not changed. How potential is to be applied has changed.
Some people may tear you up, some may sit back and skeptically watching your every move, and some may encourage you to get back on your feet. But they are definitely watching. In fact, more people may be watching you than before your fall.
Some would call that an opportunity. I would.
Yes, it’s going to take some time to get your head on straight and organize your thinking again. It is going to take some time to repair and reconcile relationships. It’s going to take some time to build trust again. And the list goes on….
But never lose sight of the incredible opportunities that are in front of you:
- The opportunity to impact even more people as they watch how you react.
- The positive use of your experience as you encourage others.
- The opportunity to show people they can be strong in adversity in Christ’s power.
- The opportunity to show people you are not perfect, and they don’t have to be either.
- Most importantly, showing everyone that this is how God works in a Christian’s life.
And that list also goes on….
It’s your opportunity.
It’s been given to you.
Take the opportunity and live it.
Be Courageous!
Be Proactive!
Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at
briankreeger.com. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My Story) of my book,
The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders.
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Executives -pastors or nonprofit executives in our context- are put on a pedestal. It’s not that the typical person necessarily believes they belong there or desires to put them there. But it is human nature that this happens. The general public often places much higher expectations on leaders than they do on themselves. Sometimes it is appropriate, and the leader has put themselves in that position. In some cases, it is simply scriptural. For instance, James 3 points out that those who teach will be judged more strictly, thereby heightening the expectations of those who lead and teach. But what about when we accept, and enact, those elevated expectations and forget the humanity of our leaders? Often a community heaps on a leader the expectation that they are to perform with the perfection of Jesus and not simply be a Jesus follower and disciple just like them, but with a unique calling and heightened responsibility. Too many times when a leader shows human imperfection, the respect we have for them is damaged. Leaders fall under strict judgment, and we forget they are no less fallible than us. The imperfection they have colors any positive experience we would have had with them otherwise. While most of us acknowledge this strict, hypocritical judgment and recognize it as not being how we want to treat our leaders, it is a difficult battle to fight in our own attitudes and minds. No matter who the leader is, they are not Jesus. But please allow me to reverently make some comparisons. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
You are the community, no matter what formal role you play in a particular organization, or if you play any role at all. My blog articles typically focus on the roles the leader and the board have in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. But I contend that the community that exists around organizational leaders and boards has a role as well. In fact, a community’s role can many times be much bigger. My next few blog articles will focus on the role of the community in preventing the fall of Christian nonprofit leaders. (This blog focuses on starting a conversation centered on preventing the fall of nonprofit leaders. I write it from a Christian perspective, but all leaders will benefit. Be sure to sign up to receive these articles via email every Tuesday at briankreeger.com as well as taking a look at previous blog articles. In addition to receiving these articles two days before they hit social media, you will receive the article "5 Early Indicators of a Christian Nonprofit Leadership Fall" along with the Contents, Introduction and the Appendix (My story) of my book, The Courageous Ask: A Proactive Approach to Prevent the Fall of Christian Nonprofit Leaders. )
