Setting an appointment with our pastor, Bob, she limped into his office on her mangled right foot (while her damaged left leg bore the brunt.) As she sat quietly in his study, he stated, “Gracie, this room is off-limits to every other voice telling you what to do. My job is to help quieten the noise so you can hear your own thoughts – and God’s leading.”

“We’ve done everything possible to save this leg, all that’s left is amputation. When you’re ready, we’ll have that conversation.”
Those words came from my wife’s surgeon, following numerous operations to save her right leg – crushed and disfigured in her 1983 car accident. Everyone in Gracie’s life, including me, had an opinion about this – and Gracie understandably struggled mightily during this time.
The clamor of opinions combined with our self-doubts and fears created a “wall of noise” that felt like a stack of Marshall amps at a Van Halen concert – and, sadly, Gracie found herself amid a storm of speculation by family and friends. At twenty-five, with a toddler, her young heart felt the awful dread of having to look her surgeon in the eye and instruct him to amputate her right leg.
Setting an appointment with our pastor, Bob, she limped into his office on her mangled right foot (while her damaged left leg bore the brunt.) As she sat quietly in his study, he stated, “Gracie, this room is off-limits to every other voice telling you what to do. My job is to help quieten the noise so you can hear your own thoughts – and God’s leading.”
Gracie pondered for over an hour while Pastor Bob sat at his desk – no words passed between them. Finally, Gracie looked up with tear-filled eyes and said, “I’m terrified of doing this,” she whispered. Gaining strength, she continued, “But I can’t live this way any longer – it’s got to come off.”
Nodding somberly, he assured Gracie he’d be with her through the ordeal and kept his word.
Sometimes, the greatest gift we can give to others struggling with heartbreaking decisions is to clear the room, quieten the noise, and sit with them. Scripture reveals God’s explanations are rare, but His presence is constant. Pastor Bob allowed Gracie the stillness and time to be alone with her thoughts, but God assures us that even in our lonely hearts, He is always with us.
More than one hundred years ago, Pastor Cleland McAfee felt rocked when both his nieces died in the same week from diphtheria. Pastor McAfee labored over how to address this terrible grief that washed over the entire community. Working on his sermon, he wrote what would become one of the most beloved hymns in the world. On Saturday evening, the choir assembled and gathered outside his brother’s home and quietly sang the hymn to the distressed family.
There is a place of quiet restNear to the heart of GodA place where sin cannot molestNear to the heart of God. 
Pastor Bob modeled what that hymn affirms.
Gracie later stated, “I didn’t know what was on the other side of that operating room door – but I knew who waited for me there.”
That confidence came from her sitting quietly – near to the heart of God.
Gracie repeated the scenario four years later when she relinquished her remaining leg. I watched nurses push her from recovery to the ICU when she awoke. Lying on the gurney, she lifted her hands and sang the Doxology.
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;Praise Him, all creatures here below;Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!
The responsibility – and privilege – of pastors is to help quieten the room for others with terrible challenges and heartache. It’s in those quiet places, near the heart of God, that we gain the strength and resolve to trust Him with the anguish – while praising Him in the unimaginable.
Peter Rosenberger hosts the nationally syndicated radio program, Hope for the Caregiver. He’s served as his wife’s caregiver for nearly forty years. His newest book is A Minute For Caregivers.

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In thoughtful consideration for the safety of children, many churches in the PCA already perform background checks on individuals who help directly or tangentially with children’s ministries. Background checks help validate the qualification of every believer to “keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable,” (1 Pet. 2:12). The wisdom of the practice applies even more to the men who shepherd the church. They are to be “above reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2 and Titus 1:7) and “proven blameless” (1 Tim. 3:10).

In 2019, nine presbyteries (10%) overtured the General Assembly for a study committee on domestic abuse and sexual assault. The assembly approved the formation of the study committee with amendments by the Overture Committee that restricted them from bringing recommended changes to our Book of Church Order.
Despite no formal recommendations, one of the most straightforward and essential pieces of wisdom from the report is protecting the church through background checks. The report specifically suggests the following:
“Presbyteries enacting policies to require background checks and abuse training for all ordinands and transfers, and policies to protect whistleblowers against retribution” (emphasis added, DASA Report, M49GA, p. 949)
And:
“Candidates for the gospel ministry and others employed for spiritual oversight (Sunday school teachers, youth leaders, etc.) should be examined carefully to determine their godly character. Presbyteries and Sessions are encouraged to carefully investigate a candidate for leadership roles including but not limited to the candidate’s knowledge of theology. Background checks, social media checks, and careful reference checks should be used to screen for abusive leadership.” (emphasis added, DASA Report, M49GA, pp. 1128, 1159, 1183)
In thoughtful consideration for the safety of children, many churches in the PCA already perform background checks on individuals who help directly or tangentially with children’s ministries. Background checks help validate the qualification of every believer to “keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable,” (1 Pet. 2:12). The wisdom of the practice applies even more to the men who shepherd the church. They are to be “above reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2 and Titus 1:7) and “proven blameless” (1 Tim. 3:10).
Officers of the church “watch over the souls” of the congregation (Heb. 13:17); and warnings against mistreating children and those with childlike faith indicate how seriously Jesus took this shepherding (Matt 18:5,6). Additionally, the Westminster Larger Catechism, when discussing the “sins of superiors” under the fifth commandment, warns leaders against the “careless exposing, or leaving [those in their care] to wrong, temptation, and danger,” (WLC 130).
In light of these things and in response to the advice from the DASA Report, a group of elders in different presbyteries crafted an overture to address this issue. As part of that group, I brought a version to my session which then referred it to South Texas Presbytery. The overture proposes an amendment to the BCO that church courts perform a background check on all potential officers (TEs, REs, & Deacons). This proposed amendment will come before the 50th General Assembly as Overture 6.
Some presbyteries already make provisions for background checks for all TEs by way of their standing rules. However, no such mechanism exists for REs and Deacons except that every congregation adopts their own policies. While specific policies within presbyteries and congregations can be further developed beyond background checks, this overture, and its recommended placement in the BCO, suggests that background checks should be viewed as an extension of the existing responsibility of church courts to perform “a careful examination” including “personal character” (21-4.c; 24-1.a) and “Christian experience” (13-6).
Background checks are not a new exam but a wise addition to existing requirements. The secular courts and agencies are not being brought into the evaluation process of potential officers. Instead church courts are utilizing all available information for the preexisting requirement to judge the character of officers. There may be cases in which exams contain information that is not disqualifying. There may be cases in which the exam contains information that pre-dates conversion and does not indicate a sinful proclivity in the potential candidate. Any performed background is not to be treated as a pass or fail situation but additional information to in wisdom evaluate the character of a candidate (more on this issue is addressed below).
That said, few overtures are sent to the General Assembly in perfect form. Overture 6 is no different. There are things that could eventually be added or removed to improve it. However, the amendment as it stands makes a clear declaration that protection of Christ’s flock is as important as protecting the Church’s doctrine. There is not likely to be significant disagreement on the underlying principles of the overture.
However, a straightforward writing and reading of such an overture still creates issues, questions, and concerns. The same questions that were anticipated by the authors of the overture and that were discussed on the floor of South Texas Presbytery will likely come up again during the debate of the Overture Committee. In light of this, it may be helpful to report some of the deliberations made in the drafting of the overture. I hope that a review of these issues will help the Overtures Committee further improve the amendment.
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Confessing the Faith: A Reader’s Guide to the Westminster Confession of Faith by Chad Van Dixhoorn. Historical and practical in its focus, this book provides a guide to the confession, considers its original proof-texts, and seeks to deepen the reader’s understanding of the Westminster Confession. Both advanced and general audiences can benefit from this book and have their hearts and minds challenged.

In a consumer-driven society, we can be tempted to think that newer is always better or that older is irrelevant. The world tells us that diverging from biblical instruction is evidence of enlightenment and progress. Yet believers know the truth: Our God is unchanging in His character, His purposes, and His will. And because of that, we find comfort in His enduring Word and look back in history to learn from summations of biblical truth penned by faithful saints.
The following resources, curated by the Ligonier editorial team, can help today’s Christian learn about the Westminster Confession of Faith, which is one of the most well-written and enduring confessions of the Reformed tradition.
Truths We Confess: A Systematic Exposition of the Westminster Confession of Faith by R.C. Sproul
In this book, Dr. R.C. Sproul walks through the Westminster Confession of Faith line by line, explaining what it means and applying it to modern life. Through this study, readers can deepen their knowledge of God’s Word and be better equipped to answer the question, “What do you believe?”
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