Where Churches Are Vulnerable
Richard Bergstrom
Too often churches, because they are communities of faith built upon trust, inadvertently place opportunities for temptation in front of their members.
—Richard L. Bergstrom At the annual meeting of Euzoa Bible Church on October 8, 1985, our 42-year-old youth pastor, who had been with the church eight years, stood before the congregation and read the following confession: I have sinned against God, my wife, my children, my family, and the body of Christ here at Euzoa. For almost six years I have been stealing from the general offerings of this church. I have taken cash and checks and deposited them into the youth checking account. I then wrote checks for cash on that account and used the money for personal use. I have lied to many of you and have deceived you. The depth of the deception is so ingrained, I do not know the amount of my stealing. I am dependent upon the elders and their audit to know the scope of my sin. Further, I have not filed federal or state income tax for eight years. While my wife knew of my failure to file with the irs, I hid the extent of the shambles of our personal finances from her. She persisted in praying that I would be responsible and from time to time attempted to confront me with questions regarding our financial affairs. But I lied to her, and she, because of her trust, accepted my lies. I have been moved to confess my sin through the fear of God, through fear of the growing pressure and presence of the irs, and through fear of being found out. God has also used Pastor Dick, who became aware of problems in our finances and persisted in seeking to love and help me. Mine are the sins of stealing, lying, and deceit. Those are the symptoms of a deeper sin of a lack of trusting God and a lack of inner ...
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