Michael Guglielmucci

A friend from church emailed me the news about Michael Guglielmucci.  In his email my friend says, "When I read the article today, I wondered what effect it would have on the young people in our church".  Because some of our young people have significant contact with Planet Shakers, I decided to check out the revelations - the web has exploded with comments!!  From wikipedia to this excellent piece by Mark Conner.

 I am not surprised by deception and I wouldn't try to guess the true reasons behind it. I know the brokenness of people, the pain that often lies hidden within, the issues of pride and ego, the downward spiral when one lie leads to another. 

If some of the blogs are correct and Michael Guglielmucci claimed to have been healed of several maladies in the past, did the attention lead him to fake the big one?  Is this a form of hypochondria?

I am sad for Michael, his family, his friends, the people who have trusted him.

But where were the people who know him well?  How can deception of this scale continue?  (It seems Michael not only claimed that he had advanced stages of a blood cancer, but that over 30 of his bones had subsequently been broken).  Where were his friends, his confidants, his mentors, his spiritual advisors?

I miss my friend and mentor, John Sweetman (John blogs here).  He arrives in Melbourne tonight to spend a few days with us.  I am so pleased that for the seven years I was in Brisbane John took me under his wing and modelled accountability, vulnerability and authenticity. 

Such relationships are priceless - find them.

If you enjoyed this article, or found it interesting, vote for it at  PlugRug so others can read it as well.

Comments

[Jon]

This is a sad story. I was astonished when I heard it on Thursday and it has been the topic of conversation out at college since the news broke. It is just amazing.

What saddens me the most is the possible consequences of this sin. It just stings. To think of how many young people, including people at our church, who have looked up to him. The effect this will have on the Melbourne church, particularly the charismatic movement is mind-boggling.

Upon reflecting on this over the past couple of days I am just driven back to Christ and His Word. It just reminds me of having to put my whole trust. The Christian life is a war and it is only Him who sustains us and helps us persevere. I pray that the Lord will use this situation for good, even though it seems very very bad.

I think it's really wise of you David to comment on this. Many people are hurting now and I for one am praying for guidance in how to help those affected. May the Lord be glorified.

[Paul]

Disappointed but not surprised.

During my lifetime, there have been at least six occasion when prominent men in my life, all leaders in the church or para-church, have disappointed big-time.

I clearly remember one of the first of these when my father awoke me in the morning to discuss with me what I would soon read in the news or hear on TV about a YFC leader who had become sexually involved with teenage girls after youth rallies. I had look up to this married man as being really cool - a guy who spoke my language. He was, I must confess, a hero to me.

But there it was, spread out in the headlines - wow! What a phoney.

Fortunately, my father was a wise man, so he took the time to underline the importance of remaining focused on Jesus. It wasn't God that had let me down, but a man that had let God down.

And that was only part of the lesson he taught me; I was in the same camp as this fallen leader. I, too, was a flawed person whom God loved in spite of my sinful nature. So he warned me about feeling superior to this man that had let so many down. God still loved him in spite of his wicked behaviour.

He challenged me to examine my own life, confess my sin to God, accept His forgiveness and put aside false heroes. We then prayed together and I can still hear my father's words, "Father, I know you have already forgiven our fallen brother, help us to do so also".

That advice has stood me in good stead. But I must confess I am still saddened when prominent Christian leaders disappoint.

David, I like your insightful question, "But where were the people who know him well?"

This challenges me to to reflect on my community. Are there those within it that are hurting, damaged, confused, and perhaps trapped in a quagmire of their own making?

God, give me a more sensitive heart for others.

[Stuart]

What a tragic story, but as you said Paul, this is not the first time that prominent Christian Leaders have been exposed for committing an "unthinkable" sinful act. Who knows why exactly Michael has appeared to deceive everyone, including his wife, that he had cancer. As a result of such situations and poor examples, how are we to look at our own Church leaders?

I heard a frightening statistic the other day whilst listening to a Podcast of Focus on the Family. In a book named "Men's Secret Wars" written by Patrick Means, an anonymous survey was done of Clergy and church lay leaders which said that 64% of the men struggled regularly with sexual issues and 24% of men had an affair after they had become a Christian!! These incredible stats say to me three things:

1) Church leaders are still sinful human beings that need the grace of God daily more then ever to do their work
2) Church leaders, no matter how good they may be perceived by others to be, still have sinful struggles and therefore it's absolutely critical to have a support network around them
3) That it's God alone that enables us to do anything good for His kingdom.

This reminds me of how much we need to support and get behind our church leaders. Their commitment to God's call, which is arguably tougher then many, is one we should all respect and support them in (Heb 13:17). However they have struggles like anyone else, but given their level of influence, the stakes for them are so much higher. Most importantly we must always remember to praise God for the good that is done through our leadership because it is only by His grace and equipping that they, along with any of us, can do the good work that God calls us to do.

As tragic as this situation is, the good that can come out of it is the firm warning that we are ALL susceptible to sin, no matter how immune we may think we are. If we don't perceive to have struggles in our Christian walk, then there's a very good chance that we are not walking closely with the Lord. Struggles are inevitable given the radical call to all of us to take up our cross and deny ourselves and follow Jesus' example. This is why it's critical that leaders in particular have support networks around them, encouraging them and keeping them accountable, because the stakes are so high! We all need a core group of people or a person that we can be completely vulnerable and open with, ensuring that we are kept from going off on the wrong path. The beauty of these types of relationships is that we walk the journey with others and don't have to carry the burden alone. There is far more shame in putting on the brave persona and not admitting to any struggle, only to come crashing down later, then to admit to 'embarrassing' struggles and allowing the help from God and trusted others to help prevent us having a tragic spiritual fall. The irony is it takes a lot more courage to make ourselves vulnerable and expose our struggles to trusted friends, then to hide them and tackle them on your own!

Although God is gracious and a god of new beginnings, His natural law of reaping what we sow, means there are always consequences to sin (or blessings for obedience to God). Secret sin will lead to lost blessings and more often then not hurt others, whether it be directly or not. We mustn't take God's grace for granted and think we can choose to sin and not expect consequences. Rather we must humbly admit our frailty and rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to change us and the help from others to become the men and women God calls us to be!!

[jose Guillermo]

ok aah does anyone know how i cant contac mike guglielmucci if he have an email address or something i would be very thankful God blees you all and heres ma mail if yo can answer rvd816@hotmail.com