Youth Ministers

I recently read this post about some local youth ministers being charged with the sexual misconduct towards the girls they had been entrusted to minister.

I just couldn't help but think about something our Bishop recently said.

He told us of a story where a church leader went to visit a Stake Conference far away. The Stake leaders showed up at the airport in jeans and t-shirts and it went downhill from there.

On the leaders way out the Stake President asked him why he obviously wasn't impressed by his stake. The general church leader responded with, "I knew we were in trouble, the minute we got off the plane and couldn't decipher you and the other leaders from the rest of the crowd. You don't go down to the level of the youth to help them, you stand strong where you are at and they will want to reach up." Something like that...don't know if the story is even true; it was just repeated by our Bishop and things could have been added or taken away or tweaked along the way.

But, even if it wasn't true. I am a believer now of the fictional or non-fictional story. Look at these two Youth ministers. And, I had typed a few more sentences here, but I will just leave the post at this. I pray for the victims and the perpetrators.

And, I also pray for the leaders who wear suit and ties in public yet still manage to hurt children behind closed doors. I believe strongly in following my gut as a parent and being very careful with whom I trust. And by golly, if I ever find out that any one of the people that I chose to trust has hurt my child for life, I hope they have a very very good pillow for their cell.