case study on christian leadership

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Christian Leadership 3 - Group Case Study Exercise

We will divide into work groups and assign one case study to each group. You have 25 minutes to reach a conclusion. Record your rationale for the decision or plan you're recommending, and appoint one of your members to give a 3-5 minute report to the class.

Case Study 1 : This boy was won in Dwell high school group and walked for a few years. He left the Lord, then came back and is now your disciple in college. He seems to be growing, but doesn’t witness, even though he has an out-going personality and is well-liked. You sense he is afraid to try witnessing, and he confirms that he is afraid of what people think about him. He gets defensive when you bring it up. For a number of months now, you have made no progress. He still doesn’t witness.

Devise a plan for creating motivation and getting him to witness. Include a follow-up plan if he does witness, imagining several scenarios.

Case Study 2 : This guy is a long-standing believer in your home church, but often a negative force. He is cynical and rebellious, often shooting holes in directions suggested by leaders. He also talks smack about some leaders. He doesn’t invest in others, seems selfish, and is never around at the ministry house. You worry that he may be negatively influencing younger brothers because a couple have shown up saying similar things.

On the other hand, he hangs out with non-Christians and occasionally shows up with one or two. A couple have received Christ. He even meets with a guy he reached, although you naturally wonder whether any true discipleship is going on. His discipler (a fellow leader) seems soft because this pattern has been going on for a year and a half, and they still meet every week, but no change. You’ve suggested the fellow leader take a strong stand with him, even threatening to end discipleship and take other measures, but he is reluctant.

After discussing and analyzing the variables in this case, devise a plan to motivate this trouble-making brother and his soft discipler.

Case Study 3 : You are a co-leader in a girls’ cell group (9 girls) that is struggling. They don’t witness much, often squabble, lack unity, and some of them drink and party too much. They could all live in the ministry house, but several prefer not to move in for vague reasons. Sometimes a number of them don’t come to cell and give lame excuses. After cell, the girls often have things to do and don’t hang out together. Several girls seem like they could be good, but you don’t sense that most of them are really putting out to progress in ministry. One or two seem to be progressing better than the others, but they don’t seem to have much ability to influence the others. Recently, a leader from another home church asked if your girls aspire to become leaders in their own right. After reflecting a moment, you said “No, maybe in a loose sense, like ‘I might do that someday,’ but not in any strong sense.”

Analyze this group of girls and determine what is probably wrong with them. Form a plan to respond victoriously.

Case Study 4 : You are consulting a home church that had good success at one time but has been unsuccessful for the past year. Not surprisingly, it turns out that the leaders in this group have a fairly dim view of each other’s competence in ministry. Through discussions with individual leaders, you see that each can easily itemize real failures in the others but find it hard to describe significant successes. Leaders’ meetings are weak in communication, and they apparently have suspicions about each other in terms of the motivations for comments made. They feel reluctant to share openly because they feel they will be criticized or misunderstood. Leaders commonly tell other leaders, “you need to do a better job with so and so on this or that,” but it’s hard to take because the same ones giving the admonition have problems just as serious or even worse in their own ministries that they don’t seem to be doing much about. Low-key pessimism seems to be slipping in.

Analyze this group. What is the heart of the issue(s) leading to this behavior? What are some possible insights, steps, etc. that you are going to recommend to this group?

Case Study 5 : Lori has been coming to your group for the past three months on and off. She was brought out by Jeanne, another new person, but Jeanne has disappeared, and you hear she is moving to New York for a job opportunity. Lately, Lori has become more regular and more excited, and women in the church now have determined that she has received Christ. In your leaders’ meeting, you are going to discuss who should be put on Lori as the point person for ongoing follow-up and discipleship. Since she is a neutral person, several people are plausible for this role. Leaders’ meeting is tomorrow, and you need to consider who you will favor to get this assignment.

• Kate is a leader who has done good discipleship, but two of her disciples were sent off in the last church plant as leaders. She is trying to disciple a fairly low potential gal now, but she has pointed out before that she can’t get this gal to move, and is skeptical about her chances.
• Becky is a sit-in leader who needs a disciple because she just lost a woman and her other woman isn’t doing too well and could be lost at any time.
• Suzanne is a younger member who has done good work in the initial follow-up with Lori. She had coffee several times with Lori outside the meeting. They seem to hit it off. Suzanne has no disciples, so this would be her first.
• Elaine brought the new person who in turn brought Lori. She has another disciple, but she probably is assuming that Lori should be her disciple because she was the bringer.

All four women would be happy to get this assignment, and all four have had positive interaction with Lori during the past few weeks. Also, you have detected that your leaders are going to have different opinions about who to choose. For each woman, list factors that would be positive or negative in terms of assigning that person to try to enlist Lori as her disciple. To make this decision, you also need to weight the factors—is this factor highly important, or not so important?

Based on these factors, each of you should list the women in priority 1, 2, 3, or 4 as your opinion for who should get this assignment. Explain your reasons. Try to agree as a group.

• GTSH1 – The Jesus Model – Exploring Leadership in the Kingdom
• GTSH1/1 The Kingdom is Different
• GTSH1/2 Servanthood: the Essential Kingdom Model
• GTSH1/3 Christ-Centred Servant Leadership
• GTSH1/4 Exploring Leadership Conclusions
• GTSH2 – The Jesus Model – Reflections on Leadership
• GTSH2/1 Leadership Myths and Realities
• GTSH2/2 Leadership Is…
• GTSH2/3 Organisational Culture and Leadership
• GTSH2/4 Six Leadership Behaviours That Establish Culture
• GTSH2/5 Christ-centred Servant Leadership in View
• GTSH3 – Leading with Insight – Part 1
• GTSH3/1 Introducing Emotional Intelligence
• GTSH3/2 Emotional Hijacking
• GTSH3/3 Insights into Thinking and Responses
• GTSH3/4 Developing Self-Awareness
• GTSH4 – Leading with Insight – Part 2
• GTSH4/1 Developing Awareness of Others
• GTSH4/2 Enhancing Our Relationships
• GTSH4/3 Feedback
• GTSH4/4 Developing Self-Management
• GTSH4/5 Summary and Conclusions
• GTSH5 – Gaining Cultural Insight
• GTSH5/1 Introducing National Culture
• GTSH5/2 Examining Power Distance and Individualism
• GTSH5/3 Examining Masculinity and Uncertainty Avoidance
• GTSH5/4 Examining Long Term Orientation and Indulgence
• GTSH5/5 Summary and Conclusions
• GTSH6 – The Effective Practices of a Servant Leader
• GTSH6/1 Reviewing Leadership
• GTSH6/2 Modelling The Way
• GTSH6/3 Inspiring a Shared Vision
• GTSH6/4 Challenging the Process
• GTSH6/5 Enabling Others to Act
• GTSH6/6 Encouraging the Heart
• GTSH6/7 Nurturing the Character
• GTSH6/8 Considering the Individual
• GTSH6/9 Situational Leadership
• GTSH6/10 Coaching and Instruction
• GTSH6/11 Summary and Conclusions
• GTSH7 – Leading Teams with a Servant Heart
• GTSH7/1 Independence or Interdependence
• GTSH7/2 Foundational Considerations
• GTSH7/3 Groups and Teams
• GTSH7/4 A Clear and Common Purpose
• GTSH7/5 Crystal Clear Roles
• GTSH7/6 Accepted Leadership
• GTSH7/7 Effective Team Processes
• GTSH7/8 Solid Relationships
• GTSH7/9 Team Roles
• GTSH7/10 Summary and Conclusions
• GTSH8 Communications: A Core Competency for Servant Leaders
• GTSH8/1 Biblical Pesrpectives
• GTSH8/2 The Challenges of Effective Communication
• GTSH8/3 Verbal Communications
• GTSH8/4 Responsible Verbal Communications – Listening
• GTSH8/5 Responsible Verbal Communications – Speaking
• GTSH8/6 Facilitating Communications in Meetings
• GTSH8/7 Emailing and Responsible Communications
• GTSH8/8 Summary, Conclusions and Next Steps
• GTSH9 Encouraging Vision and Leading Change with a Servant Heart
• GTSH9/1 The Journey
• GTSH9/2 Biblical Perspectives
• GTSH9/3 Vision Building

GTSH9/4 A Biblical Case Study of Change

• GTSH9/5 The Servant Leader and Change
• GTSH9/6 Eight Steps to Change
• GTSH9/7 Summary, Conclusions and Action Plan
• GTSH10 The Servant Leader’s Guide to Creative Solutions
• GTSH10/1 Biblical Perspectives
• GTSH10/2 The Wonderful but Lazy Brain
• GTSH10/3 Blocking New Ideas
• GTSH10/4 Scoping the Need for New Ideas
• GTSH10/5 Stimulating New Ideas
• GTSH10/6 Synthesising New Ideas
• GTSH10/7 Collaborative Generation of New Ideas
• GTSH10/8 Refining New Ideas
• GTSH10/9 Summary, Conclusions and Next Steps

Aside from Creation one of the biggest and most significant processes of change we see in the Bible is the Exodus, the birth of Israel as a nation. Israel was in slavery in Egypt and God called them out to become his chosen nation in fulfilment of his promise to Abraham.

This topic briefly reviews the first 15 or 16 chapters of Exodus up to Israel’s crossing the Red Sea. The goal is to see what we can learn from how God led 600,000 men plus women and children through this most significant process of change.

This reflection may take a little time to complete so I couldn’t really label it  “Take Moment” but it’s well worth the effort to see how God brought about change.

Read Exodus chapters 1 to 16 and as you do so fire up your curiosity, look for answers to the following questions and note them down for future reference. You will probably need to read the chapters twice; once to a get an overview of what is going on and then once to take specific notes. We are after the big picture so it will be best to do this in one sitting.

As we will see later, these questions reflect some of the factors which are important in leading people through the process of change. Of course, this is exactly what God did in the Exodus and the subsequent establishment of the nation.  So, unsurprisingly, there are things we can learn about change from God. Because the record of the Exodus is focussed on the important aspects of the story which are relevant to God’s plan of redemption. From the perspective of our study there is missing information, but given our understanding of human nature we can reasonably surmise some of the missing detail.

• Why was there a need for a change in Israel’s situation?
• What did God do to prepare Moses to be the agent of change?
• How did God make Moses credible as a leader of change?
• One man cannot do it all so who did Moses engage to help bring about change?
• What were the characteristics of the vision and how did Moses gain the buy-in of the people?
• Who else did the change affect and why did they need to change too?
• How was an urgency to bring about the change established?
• What obstacles to change were removed and how might they have prevented Israel from making the change?
• How were the people of Israel empowered to act to help bring about the change?
• What “wins” were achieved and what effect did they, or might they have had?
• How was the momentum maintained?
• What did God do to establish this change in the culture of Israel and why might this have been important?

In the next section of this topic we will consider these questions further, so if you prefer to complete this unaided then stop this topic here and come back to it later.

How God brought about change in Exodus

These are brief notes addressing the issues raised in the questions. As noted above, the book of Exodus was not written to be a manual on change and so some aspects of the story of change are missing. However, given that we have an understanding of how people are and can imagine the kind of things that would have had to happen, with care we can fill in some of the gaps.

The need for change

When we reflected upon Abraham at the beginning of this lesson we saw the establishment of God’s plan in his promise to make Abraham a great nation. In Exodus 2:24 we see God recalling his covenant with Abraham and that it applied to the Israelites who had been incubated in Egypt and now were being oppressed. God recognised that now was the time for the next step.

Preparing Moses, the agent of change

Reviewing Moses’ story we can see that he had a great deal of preparation for being God’s agent of change and leading Israel out of Egypt towards become a nation.

He had been brought up and educated in the court of the Pharaoh until he was “grown up” (Exodus 2:10&11). In Acts 7:23 Stephen tells us that Moses was forty years old when he fled Egypt.

After he fled Egypt for Midian, Moses became Jethro’s son-in-law and was responsible for Jethro’s flock. Jethro was obviously a significantly wealthy man and so his flock must have been large. Thus  Moses would not have been the sole shepherd but would have led a reasonable number of people who took care of the flock, some would have been tasked with looking after the group. We can also presume that the families of the stock man may have travelled with them. Moses would therefore have been concerned about their welfare as well as ensuring that the flock was well looked. This would have been a nomadic life style in which Moses became expert in the wilderness. In short he was equipped to lead a body of people through the wilderness.

Moses was eighty (Exodus 7:7) when God engaged him to lead Israel, so he would have had the wisdom of years.

God specifically briefed, envisioned and equipped Moses for his mission at the burning bush (Exodus  3:2-4:6).

Building Moses credibility

Moses credibility was established in at least three ways.

Moses’ lineage (Exodus 6:14-25) and age (80 years) would have been important in the Israelites’ patriarchal society. It made him at least of equivalent rank to the elders of the people. The people listened to him.

His age and his Egyptian background and status as a member of the Court enabled him to freely gain access to the Pharaoh and speak with him on equal terms on behalf of Israel. Had that not been the case he would have been dealt with by the Egyptians. Pharaoh listened to him. (e.g. Exodus 7:10, 15, 8:1 etc.)

The powerful signs that God had given him and their execution causing the plagues underpinned his credibility.  God says “ See I have made you like God to Pharaoh ” (Exodus 7:1).

The result of all this was that Moses was considered “to be great in the land of Egypt in the sight of the Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people” . (Exodus 11:3)

Engaging others to help lead the change

Moses did not believe that he could do all that God was asking, especially when it came to speaking, and so God provided Aaron to help him (Exodus 4:10-17)

Large scale change cannot be brought about by one man, it is impossible. Moses engaged with elders (Exodus 3:16, 18; 4:28, 12:21) and recruited them to the cause.  The Israelites would only have engaged in the change if the elders endorsed it and were prepared to propagate the vision amongst the people. Undoubtedly there would have been some who would adopt the vision easily, some who would need convincing and some who would reject it completely. Some would probably have nothing to do with Moses as an outsider.

The organisation and management of the people for the Passover and the actual exodus would require the elders and others to enable it to happen. Organising 600,000 men, plus women children, large herds and flocks, possessions and provisions (Exodus 12:37 & 38) would not be a trivial task and would not happen magically.

Establishing the vision

As we have just seen God had declared his vision by making his covenant with Abraham around 450 years previously. Now he conveyed it to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:8) whose task included conveying it to the Israelites and the Egyptians. In this case the vision was God’s, Moses did not have to devise it.

Gaining buy-in to the vision

God made the vision compelling and used visual language and metaphors to convey ideas that would otherwise be difficult to explain.  He made it concise and capturing years and years of change to come in just a few words.  He conveyed the idea and the promise of a better future: “I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey ”…(Exodus 3:8) and that the Israelites would have favour in the sight of the Egyptians so they could plunder them without fighting (Exodus 3:21&22).

Moses gathered the elders and the people together and shared the compelling vision. The vision was made feasible by telling all the words that “God had spoken to Moses” and demonstrating the signs of power (Exodus 4:29-31), which illustrated God’s ability to bring the vision about. The people were so overwhelmed by God’s care for them and his promise to take them out from under their oppression and their affliction that they worshipped God. They became emotionally engaged.

Aaron may have been eloquent but God promised that the elders and people would listen to Moses. (Exodus 3: 18)

Overcoming complacency and establishing urgency

One of the big issues in effecting change is overcoming the inertia to keep things as they are. Once the change is in process this becomes a desire to return things to how they were. This is a natural response of people. Later on in this lesson we will see that in general a population can be grouped according to their attitude to change, and many people, for whatever reason, simply do not want change.

The book of Exodus records various occasions when the people wanted to return to Egypt. God was well aware of this challenge to the realisation of the vision.  Once Egypt had been physically left behind the Israelites looked back to Egypt (16:3; Deuteronomy 1:27).

God was concerned that the Israelites would want to return to Egypt so he chose the wilderness route rather than by the Philistines (Exodus 13:17). Under threat from the Egyptian army at the Red Sea Moses reveals that while in Egypt some had declared a preference to remain under affliction in Egypt (Exodus 14:12).

The change would also affect the Egyptians in that they would lose a huge workforce and so they were not particularly interested in change either.

God built the situation up to a crisis that caused the Israelites to be ready to go and the Egyptians to be “urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste.” (Exodus 12:32, 39).

We know from Exodus 7:13; 11:10 and Romans 9:14-18 that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart against the Israelites. We are not told precisely why, but we can be certain that God is loving and righteous, just and merciful, and so that it was necessary. What we can see is the outcome of the process of confrontations between Moses and Pharaoh through the plagues (Exodus chapters 5 and 7-13).

The Egyptians increased the burden upon the Israelites by making them find the straw they needed to make bricks, while still producing the same volumes. Thus the burden of affliction and oppression on the Israelites was increased so that they were ready and eager to go.

The final plague, the Passover (Exodus 11:1-10; 12:29-31) created a crisis in which forced the Egyptians hand, they were only too eager to expel the Israelites (Exodus 12;33). The Passover set an expectation and prepared the Israelites to go, perhaps fearful of God who worked such a terror on Egypt and who had protected them. Their complacency had been completely replaced with urgency, there was now nothing to do but leave.

A final crisis arose which forced the Israelites to take the final step, which was as irrevocable as birth, there was no going back. The Egyptians changed their minds and chased after them and we witness in Exodus the awesome and fearful events of the Red Sea crossing and the destruction of the Egyptian army. Despite the grumbling the Israelites were left with no choice but flee and end up with the sea between them and Egypt. The Angel of the Lord stood between them and the advancing Egyptians holding them at bay. The only way for Israel to go was on the dry land across the Red Sea.

It was God’s purpose not simply to free the Israelites but to do it in such a way that he was indisputably attributed with their great salvation not simply Moses, and that the people would cleave to him. The actual Exodus showed him to be their saviour (Deuteronomy 4:34 and many other references).

Removing obstacles to change

Often there are obstacles which stop even the most willing from being able to make the change. We see God dealing with some of these in the story of exodus. Most obvious is the obstruction of the Egyptians.

Other examples are:

They were also able to leave with flocks and herds (Exodus 12:38), presumably the milk provided drink and sustenance. How this came about or whose they were we are not told. Also, God made provision for food in the form of the unleavened bread from dough which they had prepared for the Passover (Exodus 12:39).

Organising this massive movement of people and flocks took organisation and Moses had engaged the elders who would have been the natural choice to manage this.

There will have been many of these which are details not recorded.

Empowering people to facilitate change

According to the oxford English Dictionary “empowerment” is when ‘authority or power is given to someone to do something’.

In the process of change people need to be empowered to do the things that are necessary to bring about that change. An example is the empowering the people to request silver, gold, jewellery and clothing from the Egyptians. (Exodus 11:2&3; 12:33)

Because of the size of the task, the elders of the people had to have been empowered to fulfil their part of the vision under Moses’ guidance otherwise it would have been impossible to move all of the Israelites and their flocks and herds. (Exodus 12:21)

Securing the change and maintaining momentum

There were victories on the way which have the effect of helping secure support and continued commitment for the change.

Each showing of one of the signs of power and the plagues demonstrated that God was at work, underwriting the vision and the plan. When Moses and Aaron first told the people and showed these signs they believed (Exodus 4:31) Although they didn’t change Pharaoh’s mind, his servants seemed to understand what was going on and their attitude would have given confidence to the Israelites. (Exodus 11:3)

The Passover brought a victory because it caused the Egyptians to expel the Israelites.

The angel of God in the Pillar held the Egyptian army at bay while the Red Sea was opened up for the Israelites to cross. This formed a significant victory which enabled the people to look back on the mighty deeds of God for the centuries to come as well as during the immediate aftermath. As did the destruction of the Egyptian army (Exodus 14).

These intermediate victories helped secure the process of change that was underway, the formation of God’s people into a nation. They heartened the people and Moses, building trust in God and demonstrating that change was feasible and realistic. They enabled the people to carry on, thus maintaining the momentum, without which the change process would have ground to halt. Later we see the momentum die away when the Israelites refuse to enter the Promised Land.

However, we must recognise that the people were fickle and frequently in the future they looked at their circumstance (small ‘r’ reality)  rather than this awesome God (big ‘R’ Reality) who cared for them, forgetting what he had done.

Embedding change in the Israelite culture

Huge victories having been won, they were celebrated. We have the Song of Moses (Exodus 15) and after that Miriam led the women in celebration of the victory over Egypt and the liberation from oppression (Exodus 15 20&21).

The big actions were over but as we know, the people were fickle and found it easy to forget the changes that had been made and the promises that were still to be fulfilled. Promises which God had proven himself able to fulfil. So God sought to embed the change by instituting the Passover as a celebration of the Exodus and all that this would mean. Thus the change was embedded in the Israelites’ culture.

Principles of Change

Shortly we will look at some principles of leading change set out by Dr John Kotter, and we will see them reflect all of the key things that God did, both directly and through Moses, to bring about this massive change.  This story of the Exodus provides an excellent Biblical case study of change.

The reason why Kotter’s principles reflect this Biblical story so well is because of the common factor: people. God was dealing with real people and knew them inside out.  Kotter has researched how real people react to change and what it takes to successfully establish change.  Even then, Kotter recognises it is a difficult thing to do on the large scale. I think we can see that God, who chose not to impose himself on the Israelites, wanting them to responding willingly, had to deal with the same kinds of difficulties that Kotter observed.

Take a Moment:

• Reflect upon the story of the Exodus and how God brought about change.
• What are the key things that you have learned about change?
• How might you be able to apply them?

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The Good Book on Leadership: Case Studies from the Bible

Digital Logos Edition

The Bible is full of leaders, and whether good or bad, each of their stories provide valuable insight into what is needed to be a strong leader.

The Good Book on Leadership examines each of these leaders individually in order to give readers a biblical model for leadership. This model is not just for pastors or those in leadership roles within the church, but also for anyone who finds themself in any poisiton of authority.

Key Features

• Contends that the greatest need of the church is biblical, effective and spiritual leadership
• Presents a case study of leadership in the Bible by considering people who used a variety of strengths and resources to accomplish God' work'
• Explores how leadership can be expressed and adapted in various ways, taking into account the leaders' personality as well as the needs of its followers

Top Highlights

“Many leaders also fall victim to the ‘Peter Principle Curse.’ They tend to rise to a level of competence and then stagnate. The only way to break the curse is to continue growing. Growing leaders continue to achieve personal growth throughout their tenure as leaders. As they grow with each new task they undertake, they continue to stretch the natural limits of the Peter Principle and not fall victim to it.” ( Page 145 )

“Step one involves changing the way you think. When you change your thinking, you change your beliefs. It does make a difference what you believe. The Scriptures use various words to describe belief. When examined together, these words outline the normal steps to developing biblical belief.” ( Pages 130–131 )

“When we come to that point in the growth of our faith, we have moved into the realm of conviction. Ultimately, belief is the conviction that something is true.” ( Page 131 )

“Blackaby reminds his readers that God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.” ( Page 179 )

“Next, identify your personal strengths as a leader. Growing leaders know what they do best and build on those strengths to become more effective.” ( Page 151 )

Product Details

• Title : The Good Book on Leadership: Case Studies from the Bible
• Authors : John Borek , Danny Lovett , Elmer Towns
• Publisher : B&H
• Print Publication Date: 2005
• Logos Release Date: 2021
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language : English
• Resources: 1
• Format : Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects : Christian leadership › Case studies; Leadership › Biblical teaching; Leadership › Religious aspects--Christianity
• ISBNs : 9781430075103 , 9781433674969 , 1433674963 , 1430075104
• Resource ID: LLS:9781433674969
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-06T20:47:11Z

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Home > Graduate School > Doctoral Dissertations > 977

Doctoral Dissertations

Servant leadership in christian schools: a case study.

Christopher F. Morgan , Louisiana Tech University

Date of Award

Summer 8-2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

First Advisor

Bryan McCoy

This study used a biblical leadership theory theoretical lens and a qualitative single-case study design to investigate servant leadership in a Christian school. Data were collected from (a) 33 participants via interviews, (b) eight field observations, and (c) documents, and the data were analyzed using thematic coding via MAXQDA. I found that service was perceived as a fundamental component of a dual-domain paradigm of leadership consisting of a technical and a spiritual domain, and I found that descriptions of service as part of leadership included (a) motivations for service, (b) dispositions associated with serving, (c) acts of service, and (d) effects of being served. I developed a conceptual model to describe these findings and described implications of the model for practitioners in Christian schools, including using the model to inform (a) revisions to mission and vision statements, (b) professional development, and (c) student instruction in leadership. Additionally, I noted that practitioners in Christian schools could use the findings (a) to inform internal studies of spiritual development among staff and students and (b) to understand the complementary relationship between spiritual and technical domains of leadership. I proposed that future research could focus on (a) determining the degree to which Christlike leadership is espoused in Christian schools, (b) developing a comprehensive framework for Christlike leadership, (c) testing my conceptual model in other Christian schools, (d) studying Christian leadership paradigms using a grounded theory approach, and (e) studying the prevalence of and nature of a dual-domain paradigm of leadership in Christian schools.

Recommended Citation

Morgan, Christopher F., "" (2022). Dissertation . 977. https://digitalcommons.latech.edu/dissertations/977

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Ethical dilemmas in church leadership : case studies in biblical decision making

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The Most Daring Case Study of All

Great Leadership , Healthy , Personal Leadership | Case study method , Evaluation , Improvement , Inspirational Leaders

Christian Leadership Reflections

An exploration of Christian ministry leadership led by CCCC's CEO John Pellowe

Today I’m going to tell you about a tool that will turbocharge your own development as a leader , the case study method , but with a twist that I’ll explain below. The usual format of a management case study was developed by Harvard Business School, which has no lectures, just real-life situations to analyze, solve and learn from.

Now, I admit that sometimes I feel sorry for the poor soul in the case who doesn’t know as much as I do, but most of the time I’m just as baffled as he or she is and I breathe a sigh of relief that I’m not the one in the hot seat. It’s far less stressful to be an arm-chair coach!

Well, I had to slide out of the arm-chair and climb on to the hot seat during my doctoral studies. In the Christian leadership track of Gordon-Conwell’s Doctor of Ministry program, they have taken the case study method and adapted it so that you are your own case study. Instead of reading about some other poor soul’s problems, I had to feature my own! Each year I had to select a real unresolved issue, write it up and present it so the cohort could pick me apart for a couple of hours. I know what it is like to be in the hot seat and I can say from experience that the most daring case study of all is…you!

Since this blog is called Christian Leadership Reflections ,  I’d like to help you get started reflecting on your own leadership by giving this overview of how to write a self-referential case study.

How to Write a Case Study about Yourself

1. Pick a real-life situation you are faced with right now.

It must involve you in your leadership role and you must be responsible for what happens next. For example, in one of my cases I selected a meeting I led that did not go as well as I would have liked. The subject of the meeting would likely make an interesting case too, but to make it a leadership case the story had to focus on my actions as a leader in the meeting.

If the situation you select has been drawn out over time, pick one particular episode (“the crisis” or “moment of decision”) as the focus of the case study (you can include the background when you get to step two). Once you have the episode, write it out as a story in the third person as though you are a dispassionate observer. Include any actual verbal exchanges that took place. Don’t do any analysis, just tell the story.

You might be tempted to skip this stage as unnecessary (after all, you already know the story), but writing the story is essential to removing yourself from your own perspective and detaching yourself from the situation. It was while writing the story that I consistently had the greatest insights. It forced me to think about it in moment-by-moment detail as I decided what to include. I usually wrote about six double-spaced pages and then with very tight editing got it down to two pages. The discipline of getting the whole story into two double-spaced pages forces you to focus on the essential elements of the story.

2. Provide any background that others would need to fully understand what it going on.

What led up to this event? Describe the environment and the backgrounds of the people involved. Provide whatever details you need so that anyone reading the case knows exactly what is going on (do this even if you never show the case to anyone – it still helps you). This might be another two double-spaced pages. It was while writing this part of the case that I had great insights into the contributing and causal events and circumstances. When I finished the background, I always had a better insight into my leadership even before moving to the analysis. When you are done the background, your role as the narrator is finished. The background to my meeting case included the (largely self-imposed) pressures I was facing from several fronts that were quite unrelated to the meeting but which were on my mind.

3. Now you do the exegetical work—understanding the situation as it happened.

At this point you switch roles from the author to the analyst, so your analysis must be based entirely on what is written, not what you remember. Identify the issues, the turning and decision points in the story,  and do the same kind of exegetical work you do in sermon preparation. Look for themes, compare and contrast the characters and so on. Also pay attention to personal traits and behaviours. What motivations are apparent? Compare what people say to what they do.

4. Next comes the hermeneutical work.

Now that you understand what happened in the event, the question becomes what the event means today in terms of what the star of the case should do next. Start by writing a rich colourful statement summarizing everything you learned about the leader in the exegetical portion of the case and your understanding of what the real issue is (which might be very different from what you thought it was when you selected the critical situation). In my example, I wrote “This case is about a CEO who genuinely wants to live up to his ideal leadership style but who fails to do so under conditions of stress.” I should say that this statement is not as colourful as my faculty advisor would accept. I did this particular case on my own, but I’m sure he would add about ten adjectives, such as “middle-aged, male, new, optimistic….” The benefit of having so many adjectives is it gives you many choices about which aspect of the leader’s quandary to research. From this statement one could take many avenues of research, such as the role of temperament or gender in leadership.

Note also that this statement generalizes the issue so you can apply the solution in other situations as well. This is very, very important because it prevents you from too narrow a focus. You will come back to the specific case in the next step. For now, you are researching a category of problem rather than a specific problem.

Now you are ready, based on the rich statement, to define the key researchable issue. Rather than temperament or gender, my researchable issue was how to align action with intention. Once you have a topic to research, set aside the specifics of the case and hit the books and journals to find out everything you can that will answer the research question. As a Christian leader you will also do biblical-theological research.

In this particular case, my research led me to some fascinating work by Argyris and Schön about espoused theories versus theories-in-use, and double-loop learning. They coined the term Action Science to describe their model.

5. Finally, take the research results and apply them to the situation in the case.

Now you can get back to the specifics of the case. Is the leader on the right course or should a change be made? You can either work on solving the case yourself (you’ll be amazed at how objectively you can pick apart your own performance) or  you can give it to a group of peers for other perspectives. I’ve done it both ways and both work well.

Congratulations! When you are finished you should know something you didn’t know before. You have learned from your own experience and research and are now better equipped to resolve the critical situation!

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Thoughts on The Most Daring Case Study of All

Hi John, Thanks for the insight. I added a link to this post from “The Church Office” Group on LinkedIn since I believe the article and your entire blog offer valuable insight to the group ( http://bit.ly/Church_Office ).

Press On, Jose

Thanks Jose. It is affirming to hear that the blog is providing value to ministry leaders. Thanks for the encouragement!

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Case study: Building a culture of servant leadership

Mark Deterding March 5, 2018

Building cultures of servant leadership is energizing. The impact runs deep and extends on so many fronts. Profitability goes up. Sales increase. Employee turnover improves. Lives are changed. The positive impact isn’t just immediate; it also carries down through generations. Employees take servant leadership home with them and become better spouses, parents, friends and community leaders . I have seen these results firsthand time and time again. 

My first experience of getting intentional about building a servant leadership culture was when I became President of the Banta Catalog Group in 2003. Upon my arrival, I found an organization that was not maximizing its people’s potential. 

Profitability, operations performance, quality output, schedule fidelity and employee morale were all well below what a high-performing organization would be delivering. A silo structure mentality that had been fostered by previous leadership amplified problems and prevented teaming, process improvement, innovation and customer focus. We were like many other companies today, who focus solely on the bottom line at the expense of customer service and employee satisfaction. 

Our problems were not uncommon, yet our stakes were higher than most. We were challenged with issues of overcapacity in an uncertain market. Moreover, our entire industry was changing; shifting from traditional web offset printing to digital and web-based solutions. We couldn't afford not to begin drawing out the best performance from our people and fast.

The challenge

Our challenge became to create an energized and empowered workforce that could drive and sustain culture change, create a compelling customer experience and align the organization around shared purpose and values.

I knew the best solution was to embark on a significant culture shift towards a journey of servant leadership. It would be a radical move. Our current culture was based on positional authority, nearly a command and control environment. We definitely had our work cut out for us.

Fast-forward through 18 months of focused culture work…

Key indicators affirmed that we were on the right track:

• Employee engagement had increased 20 percent

• Employee retention had increased by 17 percent

• Profitability had improved by 36 percent

How did we do it? And how do companies that I work with today drive a culture of servant leadership?

The process

Our first step was to recognize the need for culture improvement. We started by asking team members throughout the organization to articulate what they perceived as our core business, our purpose, and our values. Answers were all over the place. There was no consistency other than we are here to “print catalogs” and “make money.” 

It became clear that to create lasting change we would need to get intentional about creating a culture where team members were aligned; not just around a common purpose, but also around a set of values that guided actions and created a compelling customer experience. This initial work rested on the shoulders of leaders. We knew our culture change effort was too important to delegate. 

As senior leaders, we set out to build the foundation. We began by discerning common ground around our individual personal values. This process provided a strong foundation for aligning the organization’s values. We also discerned our true purpose, which shifted emphasis from an internal focus to an external, servant-minded focus. Our foundation, then, consisted of our purpose as well as our values, each of which was defined behaviorally.

Our foundation created a baseline for behavioral and cultural change. In sharing it with the entire organization, we could support people to behave in ways that would support the organization’s values and servant purpose.

Our foundation:

“To deliver quality, on-time merchandising solutions that drive our customers’ success.”

• Employee well-being—“We have a safe environment where no one goes home hurt. We foster stability and opportunity for all employees committed to our purpose and values.”

• Mutual respect and trust—“I work with my customers, internal and external,  openly, honestly, sincerely and ethically. I follow through on my commitments and assume and expect the same from others.”

• Commitment to excellence—“I pledge to continually strive to exceed my personal best and to exceed my customers’ expectations, internal and external.” 

Modeling the way

It was important at this stage for the leadership team to first model our values and behaviors, and start getting comfortable using our new purpose for all decisions made. We invested several months in this modeling. After the team got comfortable in the new desired norm for the culture, I stood in front of all 700+ team members and shared that this foundation was our new “Boss.” I asked them to hold me accountable “walking the talk” of our purpose, values, and behaviors. It was my job to model this Foundation through my, and my leadership team’s, actions.

Our next step was to intentionally drive our new culture throughout the organization. This process is a journey—not a project or an event. To help team members understand what the behaviors looked like in action, we conducted extensive training that included videos illustrating what it meant to fall below, meet, and exceed performance on each of the values. Our foundation became part of all discussions with employees as we continually educated them on the servant culture we wanted to build.

We provided employees with T-Shirts that illustrated our values in graphic fashion:

We also printed brochures that were given to each employee that listed all of our behaviors and what good performance looked like for each.

We then utilized a team charter process. Each department in the organization developed their own “Team Purpose” to illustrate how their specific work advanced the overall organization’s purpose. 

Here are a couple of examples: 

Pricing / Contract Administration Team:

“Our purpose is to provide competitive, accurate, timely, and innovative pricing solutions to our internal and external customers to enable their success.”

Maintenance Team:

“Our purpose is to provide world-class maintenance solutions that support customer needs within budgetary commitments.”  

In addition to team purpose, these charters also included norms, goals, responsibilities, and how we would treat customers in each area. 

Accountability

Our final step was to incorporate these new values and behavioral expectations into our employee evaluation system to embed accountability. These values became our compass. They guided each and every decision we made and every action we took. 

Significant impact

The results that I mentioned earlier speak for themselves. 

But the real benefit was the positive impact our new servant culture had on all employees. Rewarding innovation and focusing on the behaviors that made a difference had a dramatic impact on the personal and professional lives of each of us. We started out talking about culture and how we needed to treat people. We then discovered how our culture work translated beyond the organization—into our homes and relationships with family and friends. 

That’s when you really see the power of this process beyond the factory floor. Building a culture of servant leadership is among the most spiritually rewarding journeys you can take.

This is just a brief account of what it looks like to build a servant leadership culture. For a complete step-by-step how-to guide, please consider reading Leading Jesus’ Way: Become the Servant Leader God Created You To Be .

Photo source: istock 

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3 Christian Leadership Articles | Latest Insights & Case Studies

Explore Christian leadership articles hailed as the best this week. Empower yourself and shape inspiring leaders.

Introduction

In today’s fast-paced world, the need for impactful Christian leadership articles has never been more appreciated. Immersed continuously in the exploration of spiritual intellectuality, we endeavour to highlight three captivating articles that stood out in their presentation of Christian leadership . Each piece we examine here, brimming with wisdom and insights, provides fresh perspectives on the ever-challenging landscape of leading with values and ethical Christian teachings.

In this quest for knowledge, we engage with authors who speak eloquently on Christian leadership and its vital role in not just the church but every facet of life. The three ultimate articles we illuminate, strewn with rich narratives and relatable anecdotes, picture the reality of Christian leadership and its importance in today’s society. Selected with careful consideration, these pieces strike a balance of practical and spiritual advice, leading to awe-inspiring outcomes for personal development and growth.

It’s about the voyage of navigating leadership , the journey of self-discovery, and more notably – the embrace of Christian virtues. Our selection promises to enlighten, inspire, and offer solace to leaders in every field. So, let’s together immerse ourselves in this critical dialogue and elevate our understanding of Christian leadership through these sagacious articles, poised to transform the way we perceive leadership and its responsibilities. After all, every voyage begins with a single step, and this step could metamorphose the reader’s perspective of Christian leadership .

Table of Contents

This week’s great christian leadership articles:, how to use 3 simple questions to go from setback to success by scott cochrane.

“Turning a missed goal into a dynamic opportunity for growth and learning is a matter of intentionality. And it begins by asking 3 critical questions: Because when a project has been unsuccessful, the fault always lies with one of these elements that went wrong…”

10 Ways To Have A Difficult Leadership Conversation And Succeed by Lolly Daskal

“Leaders play a vital role in guiding, motivating and directing their team members to achieve common goals and objectives. However, leadership is not always easy and leaders are often faced with difficult conversations they must have. In order to be an effective leader, it’s important to learn how to stay in control during these emotionally challenging conversations. Here are ten ways to have a difficult leadership conversation and succeed”.

10 Characteristics of the Best Preachers I’ve Known by Chuck Lawless

“First, a caveat: determining what constitutes an effective preacher is subjective, so you and I might differ here a bit—but, I also suspect that we can agree that we know good preaching when we hear it. Based on my interactions with pastors for almost 30 years, here are characteristics of the best preachers I’ve known”.

After meticulous consideration and examination of various Christian leadership articles, it becomes abundantly clear that these provide a wellspring of wisdom , guidance , and practical advice for those seeking to deepen their understanding and practice of Christian leadership . The insights drawn from this week’s selection highlight the richness and relevance of such articles to contemporary leadership scenarios. This collection of articles not only reinforces the values essential to Christian leadership but also kindles thoughtful reflection on leadership roles within church communities.

Taking into account the profound teachings from these Christian leadership articles, opportunities for personal growth , development, and effective leadership within Christian communities continue to expand. While each article carries its own unique resonance, they collectively enrich our comprehension of Christian leadership principles – a testament to the necessity of consistent reading and engagement with such enlightening resources.

To summarise, the Christian leadership articles dissected this week underscore the integral role of leadership within religious contexts. They provide practical insights to navigate challenges, bolster collective efforts, and foster a harmonious progression of Christian communities. As such, devoting time to the reading and analysis of these articles will invariably enhance your grasp of Christian leadership and its unique dynamics. Through these lines, we invite you to regularly absorb the content of Christian leadership articles and delve into their valuable lessons – they are bound to deepen your understanding of leadership within the Christian context.

Key Takeaways

• Firstly, reading Christian leadership articles is an enriching experience that can shed light on new perspectives. This week’s selections were particularly insightful, offering valuable wisdom on the practices of effective Christian leadership .
• The takeaway from one of these stirring Christian leadership articles involves the significance of humility. True leaders recognise their infallibilities and are open to growth, reminding us of the key foundations of Christian teachings.
• Another enlightening aspect unearthed through these Christian leadership articles was the importance of demonstrating compassion . One article explored it deeply, uncovering different ways leaders can show empathy in challenging situations, ultimately enhancing their connection with their community .
• Grappling with conflict is often challenging, as another one of these Christian leadership articles poignantly revealed. It provided practical strategies for effective conflict resolution, underpinned with Christian faith values, a major takeaway for any leadership role.
• Finally, one of the most valuable takeaways derived from these Christian leadership articles was the emphasis on continuous learning. Irrespective of one’s level or experience, the quest for knowledge and understanding remains vital, mirroring the Christian ethos of wisdom , enlightenment and ongoing spiritual growth .

Photo by  Matt Botsford  on  Unsplash

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Leadership Succession Done Right: How The Crossing Church Revamped Their Culture

The Crossing Church in Costa Mesa, California was launched in September 1988 with Tim Celek as the founding pastor. The church grew and thrived over the years. In 2010, Tim was participating in a mentoring group with other pastors. The leader of the group had recently completed his succession from a large church. As Tim saw his mentor go through the process, he started to evaluate his own leadership and intentionally started learning more about succession. He considered when and how to prepare the church leadership, staff, and congregation for their next steps.

By 2016, the groundwork for succession had been laid and The Crossing Church hired Andrew Brownback as Senior Associate Pastor. The plan was for the two leaders to work together for two years, and then complete the succession process on the 30 th anniversary of the church in 2018.

Tim Celek continues to be a champion of the church. He never wavered in his belief that the best days for The Crossing Church were ahead. He was committed to handing off the church to the next generation of leadership. He also had the insight and courage to know that during the transition, it was important to assess the health of the staff team. The Crossing Church utilized Best Christian Workplaces’ Employee Engagement Survey starting in early 2018, before the final transition. The scores on that first survey were in the “toxic” range.

Focus on Improvement

In full transparency, Andrew shared the results with the whole staff and committed to working on improving the culture. He knew it would take some time to move toward a healthier workplace, and he was honest about the effort involved.

As the leadership team and staff came together to implement changes, they used the robust action planning tools that Best Christian Workplaces offers as part of their service to Ministry Partners. To keep a unified focus on the culture of the church and the work environment, Andrew and the leadership team integrated the workplace health action plan into the overall strategic plan for the church.

From day 1, The Crossing Church has been focused on reaching people who are unchurched. For many who became part of the church community, this was their first experience with church and following Jesus. Keeping this vision in the forefront during the transition, and combining the vision of the church with uplifting the staff experience created positive synergy.

The senior leaders of the church wanted the staff to know that Best Christian Workplaces wasn’t just a vendor they used for survey work, but a trusted partner on their journey toward flourishing. In 2019, Tara VanderSande, Senior Engagement and Talent Consultant with Best Christian Workplaces came onsite for a staff training. As the senior leaders worked on building trust with the staff, the staff were also willing to grow in their trust of leadership. Tara observed, “Trust is a bridge that is built from both sides. As the senior leaders are putting bricks into the bridge, the staff are also participating by giving the benefit of the doubt to leaders and being open to positive change.”

While underlying trust was important in the process of moving toward a healthy workplace, the church took a number of practical steps to equip the staff to manage their areas of responsibility, including working with volunteers. Training included how to set expectations, how to create a growth path for people, and how to connect individual roles to the vision of the church.

In the first few years of the transition, the church also had financial constraints. Rewarding Compensation is one of the FLOURISH factors identified by Best Christian Workplaces, but for many churches, compensation is a hard area in which to compete. Andrew was honest about the limitations of the church budget and also informed the staff about the value of their overall benefits package. Best Christian Workplaces provided connection to other churches and Andrew took the initiative to network with other leaders to learn from their best practices in this and other areas.

The Fruit of Flourishing

The Crossing Church has now used the Employee Engagement Survey for 6 years. After two years of focused effort, they moved from unhealthy to a Certified Best Christian Workplace. Then in 2022, they achieved a Flourishing designation.

A flourishing culture doesn’t just happen, it is the result of committed leadership and coordinated actions by the whole team. Recently, Andrew Brownback reflected on the importance of the commitment to a healthy culture:

If you want to improve your culture, the senior leadership team needs to be 100 percent on board and involved. This is especially true of the lead pastor. You cannot delegate staff culture. You can empower other leaders to help, but ultimately the senior leader has to be the champion of staff culture.

An important aspect of their growth as a thriving workplace is celebrating their culture and keeping the link between each staff role and overall health at the forefront. When asked what advice he would offer other organizations on the journey toward flourishing, Andrew shared: “Utilize your staff meeting to celebrate the kind of culture you want to be.  Early on there was a disconnect between our mission as a church and staff understanding of how their roles contribute to our overall mission. Now we spend time celebrating stories of life change at EVERY SINGLE staff meeting. The more we celebrate the type of culture we want to be, the more ingrained it becomes for people.” 

With the integration of a flourishing workplace and a clear focus on the mission of the church, the church community is growing both numerically and spiritually. From 2022 to 2023 they saw a 14 percent growth in attendance, and then another 31 percent growth in the last year. They are making a positive impact on their community with the love of Jesus.

Take the Next Step Toward a Healthy Workplace Culture

A leadership transition is a great time to assess workplace health through an Employee Engagement Survey. This information from the survey can provide a baseline and roadmap for the next leadership team to make positive forward movement.

Ready to get started? Request a sample report here .

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Case studies and scenarios of ministry situations

• This webpage offers a collection of global case studies and scenarios for applying principles in real situations.
• The case studies cover missionary work, cultural conflicts, religious practices, economic aid, and personal dilemmas.
• Effective case study use requires an understanding of the context, identification of the central problem, consideration of multiple perspectives, and the development of viable solutions.

Looking for a case study to use with a class or group?

What would you do in this situation? What does it mean to put your faith into action?

Case studies -- examples of thorny situations -- are very effective in a problem-centered learning approach. Case studies help students practice applying principles and concepts in real situations. These real-life case studies and scenarios -- used by Howard Culbertson as classroom teaching/learning aids -- are available on this site:

Missionary case studies: The links with an asterisk (*) are situations in which a foreign missionary is directly involved.

Case studies: Aids for problem-centered learning

Seven steps to effective case study use

• Mixed drinks: A prank backfires -- unity on a multicultural mission team
• * "Don't tell Shari": Conflict over entertainment choices by a short- term mission group
• * Giving Jeff a thrill: Flirting on a short-term missions team
• Reentry from short-term mission
• Salvage job -- short-term mission team problems during a summer mission experience
• Battling racism in a congregation -- a church divided by prejudice
• * Breakup of a missionary team -- Tough times
• Bowing at the ancestors' tombs -- Korean celebration of Chuseok (or Chusok)
• * Ancestral feast in Africa -- Should Christians participate?
• * Communal feast -- protection from evil spirits in Java
• Group conversion -- a village wants to become Christian
• * You must purify this house — Demands to a missionary who killed bees
• Sacrifice to the smallpox goddess -- What should new Christians do?
• * Buddha pedestals in Thai church leaders' homes. Should the missionary say or do anything?
• * Buddhist parents' objections to a young lady's baptism
• Should I accept? Food that has been offered in worship
• * Bible translation: Choosing a word for God
• Can a Christian celebrate Diwali? -- a clash between Christianity and Hinduism
• Food offered to idols: Should food offered to a Hindu shrine be eaten by Christ-followers?
• Hindu/Christian marriage proposal
• * Roberto de Nobili: A case study in accommodation involving a missionary in India
• How should Bashir be buried? Islamic versus Christian funeral for the infant of new Christ-followers
• * Neighborhood event at a Shinto shrine -- a Japanese Christian faces ostracism in her neighborhood
• U.S. President visits a Shinto shrine -- Japanese believers offended
• Helping without hurting -- a U.S. congregation wants to subsidize a pastor in Mexico<>/a>
• * Onions and wives -- becoming a successful change agent
• Conflict during the Lord's Supper -- cultural change polarizes a church and even tears a family apart
• * Kidnapped missionary: Should the ransom be paid?
• Male stripper -- attempted joke at a youth group sponsor's birthday party
• * Obi's death -- missionaries in New Guinea
• Pastor under attack -- dealing with hidden agendas
• * Peacemaker or patsy -- Missionaries caught in the middle of to tribal warfare in Papua New Guinea
• Sunday school class in decline
• They only knew my name -- An outsider tries to plug into a church
• To drink or not to drink -- a teetotaler in France finds himself in over his head
• Walking away: Witnessing/soul winning
• When trust erodes -- a congregation loses faith in their pastor
• Inappropriate touching -- Is it sexual assault or just funny improvisation during a skit?

Seven steps to case study discussion Several of the above cases also have specific study guides linked to them.

Brief scenarios or examples with less description than a typical case study

• Cultural anthropology scenarios: Gulliver's travels and ethnography in a McDonald's restaurant
• Theology of missions scenarios: Are the heathen really lost?
• Witnessing scenarios: How would you respond?
• Using case studies as a learning tool

What's the best way to use a case study?

Case study exploration guide

Case studies are effective educational tools whose use was pioneered by Harvard University's business school. The best case studies are not made-up, one-upon-a-time stories. Rather, even though names and places may have been changed, these are descriptions of real situations.

For Christian workers heading into situations where they will be cultural outsiders, discussions of case studies can stimulate and hone critical thinking skills for situations where they will be carrying "foreigner" baggage.

How to use a case study

Seven steps to transforming a case study into a learning experience.

• Get acquainted with the cast of characters.
• Who is involved?
• What are their historical relationships?
• What constituencies do they represent?
• What might be the agenda of each character in this narrative?
• How did the problem arise?
• Is there a deadline for a decision?
• Determine from whose perspective the events are described.
• What values or interests are being challenged?
• What should be the central or focal question?
• List factors relevant to comprehending, facing, and resolving the issue.
• What ingredients have compounded the problem or perhaps have even created it?
• Which area has some negotiating room in it?
• Can some of the negative concerns be re-framed positively?
• In your initial reading, some facts, elements, or issues may not have seemed very important. As you reflect further on the case, are there items that have grown in importance in your mind?
• What details need clarification? In order to effectively process the case study, will you have to make some assumptions about some unstated details?
• What feelings did you and others have after the initial reading of the case study?
• Consider the case study from different angles. A jewel's facets show up best as it is turned to let light hit those facets at different angles. Approach the case study in the same way. Look at it from several different angles. That is, consider it from the point of view of each person involved. What solution would each lean toward?
• What assets are available to resolve the problem?
• Are there opportunities to partner or network in some way?
• What ought to be going on?
• What needs to happen to set that in motion?
• To implement the most viable solution, what must be done and by whom?

Afterword: What can using case studies do for you?

Using a case study can offer various valuable insights and lessons, including:

• Real-world application: Case studies provide a glimpse into real-life situations, allowing individuals to see how theoretical knowledge is applied in practice.
• Problem-solving skills: Analyzing case studies involves identifying problems, understanding their root causes, and developing effective solutions. This helps people enhance their critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
• Decision-making: Case studies often present decision points where individuals must weigh various options and make informed choices. This helps hone decision-making skills, including assessing risks and considering trade-offs.
• Understanding complexities: Many real-world scenarios are multifaceted and involve various stakeholders, constraints, and dynamics. Case studies offer a platform to comprehend these complexities and appreciate the interconnectedness of different factors.
• Learning from mistakes: Case studies frequently highlight both successful strategies and failures. Studying failures can be as valuable as studying successes, as it allows individuals to understand what went wrong and how similar mistakes can be avoided in the future.
• Contextual learning: Case studies provide context-rich learning experiences, enabling individuals to understand concepts within the framework of specific industries, organizations, or situations.
• Communication skills: Presenting findings and recommendations based on case study analysis requires effective communication skills. People using case studies can thus enhance their ability to articulate ideas, justify their perspectives, and engage in productive discussions.
• Empathy and perspective-taking: Engaging with diverse case studies allows individuals to empathize with different stakeholders and understand varying perspectives. This fosters a broader worldview and enhances interpersonal skills.
• Continuous improvement: Case studies can serve as learning tools for continuous improvement. By reflecting on past experiences and considering alternative approaches, individuals can refine their strategies and practices.

Overall, using case studies can provide a rich learning experience for you that goes beyond theoretical knowledge to offer practical insights, skills development, and opportunities for reflection and improvement.

You might also like these

• Cultural bingo icebreaker
• Bwanda Fusa game
• Christianity and culture
• Verbal and Non-verbal Communication
• Iceberg, concentric circles, and an onion: Understanding culture
• Enculturation versus Acculturation
• Light bulb illustration: What is it?
• Christsian missions and culture
• Contextualization
• My own culture shock expereince
• Christian mission and anthropology
• Can you survive coming home?

Equipping believers to integrate a Biblical worldview through a case-study approach We are non-profit. There is no cost to downloading the cases. We look forward to your feedback on this form of Bible study.

These cases are intended to serve as a snapshot of all such challenges faced by Christians today. By being placed in a varied set of circumstances through the cases, you will develop your own specific approach to employing Biblical insight in everyday life.

All the cases are based on real situations.  The cases are written in a manner that avoids any violation of privacy concerns and enhances the learning experience of the study group.

The primary issues however, remain intact. You won’t find neatly compact problems with an obvious resolution. Cases are messy and often difficult to examine because of all the issues/decisions that come into play.

Examining the cases can be done personally or in a group discussion format.

Explore the different cases by category. preview and download individual cases., add individual cases to your bible study cart that appeal to you and build your own customized bible case study ., case categories.

Cases Listed Alphabetically

Personal Focus: Becoming like Christ

How should i relate to the holy spirit.

Sam accepted Christ as his savior earlier in the year. His big question now in broadening his faith is how to include the Holy Spirit in his daily Life.

How Do I Live In Expectation of The Lord’s Return?

Go and live in the expectation of Christ’s imminent return.

Growing My Christian Faith

How do I continue to grow in my Christian faith? This is the question that Yian is currently asking himself…

Idleness or Ambition

What scriptural foundation would you provide to help shift from towards healthy ambition and a balanced lifestyle?

Retire to What?

Given chance at early retirement, Luke is weighing the options of committing to a new career that he has always wanted or choosing to use his free time to be more active in his church.

A Potentially Wasted Talent?

With empty nest rapidly approaching, Jennifer confronts the question of whether she should return to the professional career she had left years earlier.

A Lifestyle Balance

How should Steve reconcile a Biblical perspective on life’s goals with his successful but very demanding professional business career?

Need for a Revitalized Faith

While having been excited as a youthful believer, hearing the personal statements during a recent baptismal service has compelled Collen to rethink his passion for his faith.

What is Enough?

Having done extensive planning during their married life, Mary and Steve now face the concern that perhaps their direction has taken Christ out of the picture.

Can We Overcome Our Past?

Jane has the opportunity to counsel friends with difficult personal backgrounds in their search for a religious faith.

What is a Calling?

Unable to fulfill their combined passions for missionary work, Maggie and Bill must reorient their lives.

Family Relationships

Divorce: the only option.

How does one advise a couple considering divorce in a manner that deals with short-term issues but also their long-term relationship?

A Dilemma in Family Financial Planning

Mary and Phillip must reconcile their Biblical commitment to financially helping their daughter with concern over her lifestyle choices?

“A Small Sin”

Tony and Linda are considering how to correct the behavior of an exchange student that cannot be condoned as believers but still recognizing the cultural background she comes from.

A Challenge to an Adult Christian Faith

How can Sally counsel her niece Beth during their brief upcoming lunch date after receiving a note from her to say that she has decided to no longer attend church?

Educating Your Child: Love and Judgment

Ruth must help her young son navigate between compassion and judgment in a way that he will understand.

What Should I Pray For?

Given Andy’s new medical problem, Jake is concerned about how to relate to his non-believing brother on the role of prayer.

A Believer’s Role in Society

Is my light shining.

A perfect opportunity for Simon to build on the scriptural command to glorify God with his actions came soon after that church service.

Take on the Authorities?

You are a full professor with tenure. What are you waiting for? This is a great opportunity to stand up as a follower of Christ.

Judging Fellow Believers?

Maria is anxious about how to approach fellow Bible study members about practicing their faith without sounding judgmental.

What Have We Learned From This Crisis?

Ramon recognizes that this unforeseen crisis has created a unique setting for the men to apply scriptures both to the current situation but also as a foundation for handling future ordeals.

Laying the Foundation for a Christian Fellowship

Manju and Sekar started a Christian fellowship group for students from southeast Asia seven years ago. With the growing number of group members over this period, maintaining a meaningful group environment has been a challenge.

A Lonely Vigil

Jeremy needs to determine if he is doing God’s will when he finds no support from his church for his activity.

Resolving a Conflict between Believers

Broader than a business setting, the issue Allan must address is about how to settle differences among believers.

Coaching the Coach

How do Ben and Erin communicate with a lifelong Christian that his behavior is unacceptable?

Being a Good Neighbor

Ann and Jack find that loving your neighbor can be more complicated than the well referenced scriptural passage.

Priorities in a Challenging World

Compare two references that examine the topic of expressing one’s faith in the secular world.

How Should I Help the Poor and Needy?

While no dedicated believer rejects the concept of helping those in need, how does Sarah decide who is really in need of help?

A Moral Dilemma in the Workplace

Kayla faces a real challenge of expressing her faith and possibly jeopardizing her career.

Effective Witnessing

Are we being salty enough part 1.

The small group of young officers of the bank Susan works at met yesterday for their regular lunchtime and the inevitable topic came up, Sunday brunch.

Preparing a Potential New Christ Follower

The Bible study group has an incredible witnessing opportunity to help Amy ask and answer the questions needed to solidify her newly found Christian faith.

Witnessing in a Different Cultural Setting

As Christ followers, we all have multiple opportunities to witness for our faith. These opportunities can range from family, co-workers and even strangers we randomly meet.

Returning Home: A Chinese Christian’s Dilemma

Abbie’s friend, Wei Liu, is a student at the same college as Abbie. He is set to graduate in three months and had been planning on returning to China to begin a job he accepted earlier in the year.

Forgiveness

Jan has been angry for a long time. He would be the first to admit it has become very emotionally tiring.

What is the Basis for Your Faith?

Sarah faces the quandary of maintaining a relationship with one whom she sincerely loves but who is adamant in his refusal to even hear the gospel.

The Last Word to a Dying Friend

Jake faces a possibly last chance to witness to a friend who is dying and has never expressed an interest to find Christ.

An Intergenerational Witness

An older athlete has the opportunity to witness to another athlete who is both young in years and new to Christ.

A Complex Witnessing Opportunity

A straightforward prayer focus on a young woman’s health becomes more complex as Andrew interacts with her unbelieving father.

Is He Really a Believer?

You attempt to witness to an individual who professes that he has accepted Christ but not knowing where he truthfully stands in his faith.

Witnessing Among Friends

Bill needs help on deciding how to relate to his long-time friends in a setting (a retreat) that is not conducive to sharing God’s word.

Witnessing to a “Believer”

John faces a unique challenge when considering how to witness to Seth who professes to follow Christ but is not active in his faith.

Witnessing in a Hostile Environment

Jill wishes to witness for Christ in one of the most hostile environments – the college campus.

What Can I Offer?

Sally has the opportunity to step out of her comfort zone to reach a wider audience but worries that she has little to offer.

Church Affiliation

Are we being salty enough part 2.

This question from your friend Ann catches you by surprise. You are still at step one – persuading a committed, nonbelieving group to accept Christ.

How Much for Missionaries?

Given the growing number of new missionaries needing support, Max and Jean must decide how to ration their limited financial means to mission work in the context of their commitment to their local church.

Sacrificial Giving

Given their financial resources, Andy and Jennifer wish to be very specific in their giving amount.

Finding a Church Home

Following the death of her husband, Anna is presented with the occasion to decide whether to move to a different church.

Issues Facing Christian Youth

A young believer’s worry: who am i in christ.

What she did not realize at the time is that the situations of both of them illustrate a common issue among young believers – how to stay strong in your Christian faith when challenged by non-believing friends.

What to do with my Summer?

A young man must decide between what is good for his career path and the necessary investment to establish his faith.

Has a Friendship Gotten Out of Hand?

A young believer must deal with the increasingly difficult task of maintaining a Christian influence in the context of his friends’ changing values.

Fraternity Mission

A college student is examining how his possibly joining a fraternity on campus could lead to a new faith outreach for him.

A Social Dilemma

Sarah is debating how to witness to an international student who has considerably different values.

Issues Facing Student Athletes

What’s next.

An athlete must cope with the end of a sports career and all of its attendant motivation.

Coping as a Believer

How does an athlete deal with an environment that is largely made up of non-believers and behavior that is troubling?

Identifying What God Wants for Me

A high school student-athlete needs guidance for one of the most important decisions of her life.

Defeat Effect

Barb sees an opportunity to witness to an athlete whose whole life has been so committed to her sport that it may be influencing her outlook on life.

Could I Sell a Christian View of Planning?

As a planning consultant, Wayne sees an opening to use scripture in his approach to a planning project with a non-believing client.

Managing A Company Cultural Shift

Jack must administer a new organizational structure that could drastically change a traditionally run business.

Overseeing A Company Change in Strategy

An upcoming retreat provides the opportunity for Dave to mediate a contentious management shift.

Who Should Manage the Family Company?

How can Bill orient management around a productive planning process in a challenging environment?

How to build your own study

Explore the different cases by category above. Review cases that look interesting to you.

When you find a case you’d like to read, click Add to Bible Study Cart. Add as many cases as you’d like to your cart.

Go to Build a Bible Study Cart and you’ll see a cart full of your cases.

Email the cart to yourself or your group or download a zipped file of the cases you’ve chosen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are there any requirements or prerequisites to participating in this bible study.

The only requirement for this study is a willingness to practice using the Bible as a primary source of insight. There is no formula or correct structure for engaging in Biblical research.

How much time should I devote to preparation for the case study?

You will need to study the case until you have arrived at a resolution based on scriptural analysis. This will vary for each individual, and may vary from one case study to the next. This approach does require a commitment to engage in the case study reflection and discussion consistently over time.

Is there one “right answer” or correct sets of scripture to each case study?

The case studies are designed to be complex, and are not designed to have one right answer, but to foster critical thinking and healthy discussion about what it means to live out your faith from a Biblical perspective. The Lord speaks to each of us individually. The insights you uncover may be only relevant to you, or it may be of benefit to others in a group interaction.

What tools or resources can help me prepare my response?

Each participant will develop his or her own unique approach to studying the cases, however it is recommended that the Bible be the first point of research for a study. Some additional tools that believers use to help them engage with topical scripture study include:

• Concordance: A verbal index, or alphabetical listing of Biblical words, allowing you to find passages of the Bible relating to specific topics. Most study Bibles have a concordance at the back of the Bible. You can also find an online concordances, such as Bible Study Tools.com
• Multiple Translations: Reading the same scripture in a couple of different translations can provide nuance and added insight. BibleGateway.com provides a wide variety of translations to easily compare.

Commentary: Commentaries analyze and expound on passages in the Bible, chapter by chapter, as well as verse by verse. Most interpret a certain passage in light of a systematic theology. As they are written by a variety of authors, it is important to note that all commentaries will reflect the certain beliefs and perspectives. There are many excellent commentaries on the market. Research and choose one that works for you.

Who is this Bible study for?

Anyone who has a desire to see the Bible as the word of God and a willingness to apply it to today’s issues can engage in this Bible study. Mature Christians seeking to integrate their Biblical understanding, believers seeking to grow their faith, or even men or women with doubts about Christianity will find this Bible study approach helpful.

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Best Practices in Leading Organizational Change in the Local Church: A Multi-Case Study

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Dissertations

Ethical analysis of abuses of power in christian leadership - a case study of "kingly power" in the seventh-day adventist church.

Zorislav Plantak , Andrews University Follow

Date of Award

Document type.

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

Religion, Theological Studies PhD

First Advisor

Denis Fortin

Second Advisor

Darius Jankiewicz

Third Advisor

Jo Ann Davidson

Problem and Purpose

Methodology.

The ethical analysis in this study concentrated on only one aspect of leadership–the misuse of power. Since it is universally accepted that the abuse of power is a deviation from true Christian leadership and morally inappropriate, the ethical analysis did not include typical moral dilemmas such as discerning between good and bad, or right and wrong. Instead, the analysis in this study searched for the causes of the abuses of power.

As a case study, this study investigates the well-known “kingly power” incident in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which took place in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries and analyses the leadership of two prominent leaders involved in the controversy, John Harvey Kellogg, leader of the medical branch of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and Arthur Grosvenor Daniells, leader of the ministerial branch and president of the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists.

Conclusions

The analysis of the abuses of power is followed by some proposed measures for their prevention. Preclusion starts with the awareness that spiritual leaders are servants of God who are in service to His people. It requires transparency and well defined and limited mandate of the leader. Additionally, subordinates and leaders are supposed to act as checks and balances for each other. Leaders must be reminded that they are not irreplaceable. Practical solutions for the problem would include limiting a leader’s time in office, mandating changes or rotations in the leadership position, clearly defining the boundaries and limits of a particular position, and educating leaders regarding the extent and limitations of their position. Consequently, sharing responsibility, empowering the whole body of the church, and making decisions through committees have the purpose of shifting power from the hands of the individual to the whole church. The purpose of the election process is to elect a leader with the clear principles, one which practice them, and one that has the least amount of vices, since no one is perfect.

While the Seventh-day Adventist Church attempted to deal with the abuses in its leadership by implementing changes in organizational structure, the discrepancy between Christocentric theory and abusive practice proves that abuses of power depend on the personal conduct of the leader and on how much his subordinates allow that leader to exercise such inordinate power. The steps suggested in this study are a simple attempt to propose some potential solutions, with the goal of starting a constructive discussion of practical steps to prevent power abuse.

Subject Area

Christian leadership; Leadership--Moral and ethical aspects; Seventh-day Adventists;

Recommended Citation

Plantak, Zorislav, "Ethical Analysis Of Abuses Of Power In Christian Leadership - A Case Study Of "Kingly Power" In The Seventh-day Adventist Church" (2017). Dissertations . 1646. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/1646 https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dissertations/1646

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https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dissertations/1646

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Home > ETD > Doctoral > 5727

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A correlational study between spiritual bible reading and spiritual formation of leaders of pentecostal churches.

Mark Kwablah Buku , Liberty University Follow

Rawlings School of Divinity

Doctor of Education in Christian Leadership (EdD)

Timothy R. Cochrell

Bible reading or Bible engagement, formative reading, spiritual formation or spiritual maturity, interpretation, Christian leadership

Disciplines

Christianity | Leadership Studies

Recommended Citation

Buku, Mark Kwablah, "A Correlational Study Between Spiritual Bible Reading and Spiritual Formation of Leaders of Pentecostal Churches" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects . 5727. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5727

This study aimed to understand the nuances of spiritual Bible reading and how it connects to the spiritual maturity of Christian leaders. The lack of spiritual formation in Christian spiritual leaders motivated this research. Literature abounds with spiritual reading, biblical engagement, interpretation methodologies, and the spiritual formation of Christian leaders. However, only a few studies exist on how people engage with the Bible. There is no empirical data on how biblical interactions impact spiritual development. The theory that guided this study was Jack Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory. With a quantitative survey methodology and non-probability sampling, data was collected from 91 participants from a population frame of spiritual leaders who assist the head pastor in spiritual oversight of the Assemblies of God churches in New England. Two existing instruments, the Faith Maturity Scale and Christian Life Survey, which have proven validity and reliability, carried the data. The quantitative correlational study protocol analyzed the data using the Pearson Product-moment Correlation Coefficient (Pearson’s r). The study results showed no statistically significant relationship between Bible reading and spiritual formation in leaders of the Pentecostal churches. Other factors might have been necessary for the spiritual maturity of Christian leaders.

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Mastering the Mindset of High Performers

Here are some effective real-life practices to cultivate professional success..

Posted June 24, 2024 | Reviewed by Davia Sills

• What Is Motivation?
• Find counselling near me
• Understanding these foundational mental habits is crucial for achieving sustained success.
• High performers embody resilience and a growth mindset, both of which are crucial for navigating challenges.
• Practices like meditation and mindfulness can enhance mental discipline and cognitive abilities.

This post is Part 7 of a series in which I gather insights from leadership , diversity, and wellness experts.

Mastering the mindset of success involves understanding the fundamental mental frameworks and habits that support sustained achievement. To accomplish this, professionals, entrepreneurs, and leaders can find inspiration from a diverse range of accomplished figures across various fields.

For example, Jeff Bezos and Robert Smith exemplify resilience and innovation, attributes that have enabled them to accumulate substantial wealth and profoundly influence the world. Meanwhile, leaders like Oprah Winfrey, Barack Obama, and LeBron James embody discipline, determination, and the capacity to turn adversity into opportunities for growth. By embracing these diverse viewpoints, one can foster a resilient mindset that effectively navigates challenges and seizes opportunities.

In preparation for this post, I recently had the privilege of interviewing successful entrepreneur Iman Gadzhi, who shared invaluable insights on navigating the complexities of entrepreneurship and maintaining peak performance .

The High Performer’s Mindset

High performers exhibit a distinct set of characteristics that propel their success. Experts highlight resilience as a foundational trait, crucial for navigating setbacks and maintaining unwavering focus amidst challenges. For instance, Elon Musk, known for his resilience in the face of numerous setbacks with SpaceX and Tesla, once remarked, “Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.” This mindset not only underscores the importance of resilience but also reflects a growth-oriented approach that embraces learning from failures to drive progress.

Discipline is foundational for high achievers, who are defined by their intense commitment to goals and the rigorous routines that uphold them. One example of a professional who embodies this trait is Ken Chenault, the former CEO of American Express. Throughout his tenure, Chenault demonstrated exceptional discipline in navigating challenges and steering the company to sustained growth and innovation in the financial services industry. His commitment to strategic vision and operational excellence illustrates how discipline contributes to long-term success in corporate leadership .

Additionally, high performers embody a growth mindset, believing in their capacity for continual personal development and the ability to glean valuable lessons from every experience. As former President Barack Obama once stated, “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

Key Habits of High Performers

Exploring the essential habits of high performers provides critical insights into the factors that drive sustained success and exceptional achievement. Here are some key habits that highlight the foundational practices essential for achieving these goals:

1. Meditation and Mindfulness

“If you can learn to control your mind, you can control your reality,” emphasizes Gadzhi, highlighting the transformative power of mental discipline. Daily meditation plays a crucial role in enhancing mental discipline, improving concentration , and effectively managing stress . Experts suggest that just 10 minutes of mindfulness practice each day can significantly enhance one’s ability to remain composed and focused during challenging situations.

Scientific studies, such as those by Tang, Friston, & Tang (2020), indicate that mindfulness meditation promotes the growth of gray matter in the brain, thereby enhancing emotional regulation and cognitive abilities. Cultivating a regular meditation practice not only supports immediate mental well-being but also contributes to long-term cognitive resilience and emotional stability .

2. Quality Sleep

Quality sleep is essential for high performers, who typically aim for 7-9 hours of restful sleep per night to facilitate recovery from intense work phases. Maintaining good sleep hygiene, such as ensuring a dark and cool sleeping environment and minimizing screen time before bed, significantly enhances sleep quality. Interestingly, research suggests that exposure to natural light during the day can improve sleep quality and duration (Blume, Garbazza, & Spitschan, 2019). This emphasizes the importance of both environmental factors and daily routines in promoting optimal sleep among high performers.

3. Substance Moderation

Avoiding or moderating the intake of substances like alcohol and caffeine requires a mindset that values long-term benefits over short-term gratification. High performers recognize that while these substances may offer immediate boosts in alertness or relaxation, they can also disrupt sleep patterns and impair cognitive function with prolonged use.

Instead of relying on substances for temporary effects, high performers prioritize sustainable practices that enhance overall well-being and performance. They recognize that activities such as regular exercise and meditation foster enduring energy levels, sharpened focus, and mental clarity, all without the negative side effects associated with substances. Gadzhi succinctly encapsulates this approach with his mantra, “Sleep, Lift, Meditate, Work, Repeat,” illustrating a disciplined daily routine that supports a high-performance lifestyle.

Iman Gadzhi: A Case Study

Iman Gadzhi, founder of IAG Media and a self-made millionaire, embodies the mindset and discipline of high achievers. Beginning in post-Soviet Russia, he forged a successful digital marketing empire through mental resilience and self-confidence . Gadzhi maintains his performance edge through daily meditation for clarity, rigorous exercise for physical and mental fitness, and strategic relaxation for creativity and decision-making .

Key to Gadzhi’s philosophy is the belief that individuals can transcend their thoughts and empower themselves through positive self-belief. He emphasizes overcoming challenges with inner strength, which is essential for success in business and personal life. As Gadzhi wisely advises, “Realize that you are not your thoughts, and you don’t have to be a prisoner of them,” highlighting the importance of challenging unhelpful thinking patterns.

In today’s competitive world, embracing Gadzhi’s principles fosters resilience and perseverance, paving the way for lasting success. His journey inspires aspiring entrepreneurs and individuals striving to achieve their fullest potential.

Implementing Strategies for Success

Implementing strategies for success involves structuring your daily routine to optimize productivity and well-being. Gadzhi and experts recommend several key practices:

1. Plan Your Day: Allocate dedicated time slots for work and relaxation to prevent burnout and maintain productivity. Gadzhi emphasizes the importance of strategic relaxation periods, balancing intense work with rejuvenation to sustain long-term effectiveness. Set clear objectives for both work and relaxation phases to maintain focus and ensure that each activity contributes meaningfully to your overall goals.

2. Conduct Regular Health Checks: Monitor the impact of your daily routines, including meditation and exercise, on your physical and mental well-being.

3. Connect With Social Supports: Surround yourself with a supportive network that encourages a balanced lifestyle, providing both emotional encouragement and practical advice to navigate challenges effectively.

Bottom Line

Overall, achieving a success-oriented mindset requires adopting foundational habits and approaches that promote sustained achievement. Inspirational figures from various fields who showcase resilience, innovation, discipline, and the capacity to transform challenges into opportunities play a pivotal role in cultivating this resilient mindset. Practical strategies like daily meditation for mental clarity, establishing clear goals, and prioritizing self-care enhance productivity, creativity, and overall well-being.

© 2024 Ryan C. Warner, Ph.D.

Blume, C., Garbazza, C., & Spitschan, M. (2019). Effects of light on human circadian rhythms, sleep and mood. Somnologie , 23 (3), 147.

Tang, R., Friston, K. J., & Tang, Y. Y. (2020). Brief mindfulness meditation induces gray matter changes in a brain hub. Neural plasticity , 2020 (1), 8830005.

Ryan C. Warner, Ph.D. , is a sought-after speaker, researcher, consultant, and licensed clinical psychologist. He is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of RC Warner Consulting.

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Inside Project 2025's attack on reproductive rights: Mifepristone and alternative abortion pills

Special Programs Abortion Rights & Reproductive Health

Written by Sophie Lawton , Jacina Hollins-Borges & Jack Wheatley

Published 06/24/24 1:30 PM EDT

At least 31 partner organizations of the Project 2025 initiative have published written content, supported legal efforts, or had organizational leadership make comments against the use of safe and effective abortion pills, specifically mifepristone, according to a Media Matters review. 

Project 2025 is organized by conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, and has laid out a radical plan for governance during the next Republican administration. The initiative's wide-ranging policy proposals, including extreme anti-abortion policies, are laid out in its “ Mandate for Leadership .” 

The policy book includes a chapter on the Department of Health and Human Services written by Roger Severino, husband of anti-abortion figure Carrie Severino. The chapter lays out policies against the use and distribution of abortion pills, advising the next Republican administration to heavily restrict access to mifepristone and so-called “mail-order abortions” through various means. 

Later in the policy book, America First Legal’s Gene Hamilton recommends that the Department of Justice should take steps to enforce the Comstock Act as a way to limit the distribution of abortion pills. In these passages, Project 2025 lays out a plan for the next Republican administration to criminalize the shipment of abortion pills and cut off huge swaths of Americans from accessing this lifeline of reproductive healthcare. 

Anti-choice organizations have been waging a legal battle against mifepristone for years, culminating in the ongoing Supreme Court case, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , in which anti-choice groups challenge the FDA’s approval of mifepristone in 2000 and attempt to reinstate stricter rules around prescribing the drug that were in place prior to 2016. 

Project 2025 partner the Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF) is behind the anti-choice “Alliance” along with Project 2025 partner, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG). A number of other Project 2025 partner organizations have signed letters, filed amicus briefs, or otherwise supported these efforts. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the case in March, and reportedly appeared skeptical of the plaintiffs’ right to sue, which would suggest the justices could rule in a way that allows mifepristone to remain broadly available. 

Organizations affiliated with Project 2025 use misinformation and scare tactics to push for restrictions, if not outright bans, of abortion pills despite evidence that they are safe and effective , even after regulations on prescribing the medication were eased in 2021. Some of the organizations argue that expanded access to abortion pills will result in the use of the drug by abusive partners or sex traffickers. Mother Jones recently  debunked the claim that telehealth abortion facilitates intimate partner violence. There has also been pushback against the idea that access to abortion pills negatively impacts victims of trafficking.

At least seven of the organizations partnered with Project 2025 have also promoted and helped advance legislation to force doctors to offer bogus “abortion reversal” treatment. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists states , “Medication abortion ‘reversal’ is not supported by science. 

For the full report on Project 2025's attack on reproductive rights, click here .

Select a Partner Organization

The heritage foundation, 1792 exchange, alliance defending freedom , american association of pro-life obstetricians and gynecologists, aclj action, the american conservative, american family association, america first legal, american principles project, americans united for life, amac action, california family council, center for family and human rights, center for renewing america, concerned women for america, discovery institute, eagle forum, ethics and public policy center, family policy alliance, family research council, first liberty institute, the frederick douglass foundation, the heartland institute, dr. james dobson family institute, media research center, the national center for public policy research and project 21 black leadership network, students for life of america, susan b. anthony pro-life america, texas public policy foundation, turning point usa, young america’s foundation.

• In an article about the Supreme Court case on the FDA’s mifepristone regulations, senior legal fellow Thomas Jipping claims abortion pills are “dangerous drugs.” Jipping opened the piece saying that “abortion poisons everything it touches,” and goes on to argue that the FDA violated the Comstock Act, a 19th-century law considered “dead” by some in Congress who support its repeal. [The Heritage Foundation, 1/17/24 ; The Hill, 4/2/24 ]
• In a post on X, The Heritage Foundation wrote, “Think the abortion pill is safe? Think again.”  [Twitter/X, 12/13/23 ]
• The Heritage Foundation hosted a panel on abortion pills moderated by Perry that included Rep. Bob Good (R-VA), ADF senior counsel Erik Baptist, and CEO of AAPLOG Christina Francis. Francis claimed that mifepristone users visit the emergency room more often than those who get surgical abortions, even claiming up to 35% of chemical abortions result in an ER visit. These claims are the same as those from a retracted 2021 study. Francis repeated this claim later in the panel stating abortion drugs have “high complication rates.” [YouTube, 11/13/23 ,  11/13/23 ; Salon, 3/20/24 ]
• In a piece celebrating the U.S. District Court ruling against both the initial approval of the drug and the FDA’s relaxation of mifepristone regulations, Perry called Texas Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s opinion a “recognition of the dangers of mifepristone to both mother and child.” [The Heritage Foundation, 8/13/23 ]
• In a 2023 post on X, Heritage stated “FACT: The abortion pill poses serious health risks to women. The FDA should never have authorized it.” [Twitter/X, 3/20/23 ]
• In another article by Perry on the Heritage site, she claimed states can use “police power to restrict or prohibit abortion—including particular methods of abortion, such as by pill.” [The Heritage Foundation, 2/22/23 ]
• Perry wrote in a 2023 article that states should be working to ban abortion drugs, despite the FDA calling them “safe and effective.” She also claimed the Supreme Court overturning Roe means “states can close off chemical abortions altogether.” [The Heritage Foundation, 1/11/23 ]
• In an article on the Heritage site about the Biden administration allowing pharmacies to distribute mifepristone, visiting fellow Melanie Israel wrote that “abortion pills aren’t safe.” [The Heritage Foundation, 1/6/23 ]
• In 2022, The Heritage Foundation published a coalition letter to members of Congress in an effort to “legislate abortion policy at the federal level.” The letter called on the federal government to “limit the interstate flow of dangerous abortion drugs” and falsely claimed abortion pills put “women’s health and safety at risk.” The letter was also signed by other Project 2025 partner organizations including Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Americans United for Life, the Ethics and Public Policy Center, and Concerned Women for America. [The Heritage Foundation, 12/4/22 ]
• Right-wing nonprofit 1792 Exchange wrote in its corporate bias rating report on CVS Health that the company is “high risk” because it continued to dispense mifepristone at some pharmacies in spite of a related wrongful termination lawsuit from a former employee. 1792 Exchange also criticized CVS Health because it supposedly “pushes for the use of abortion-inducing drugs across the country.” [1792 Exchange, accessed 4/16/24 ]
• Along with other anti-abortion medical groups and doctors, Alliance Defending Freedom is a plaintiff in the lawsuit against the FDA to limit access to mifepristone. [The Guardian, 5/17/23 ]
• ADF has defended plaintiffs in at least 22 cases in 10 states and the District of Columbia which challenged the Obama-era requirement for employers to provide insurance that covers mifepristone and other reproductive care. [ADF, accessed  4/18/24 ]
• ADF intervened to defend a nurse practitioner named Chelsea Mynyk who offered abortion pill reversal in Colorado in spite of a state law barring the protocol, arguing that “by banning Chelsea from providing this care, Colorado is violating her religious freedom.” [ADF, 4/12/24 ]
• In a piece that criticized retail pharmacies dispensing mifepristone, ADF senior counsel Erin Morrow Hawley wrote that looser restrictions on the medication “all but ensure the abortion drug will be unsafe for many women, ubiquitous, and routinely mailed into states where it is unlawful.” She added that CVS and Walgreens have removed “important safeguards on abortion drugs.” [ADF, 3/26/24 ]
• ADF CEO Kristen Waggoner said that the data on mifepristone “suggests that it endangers women.” [Politico, 3/25/24 ,  11/18/22 ]
• In an article titled “The FDA’s Unforgivable Deceptions on Chemical-Abortion Drugs,” Hawley wrote that “no one should be okay with the FDA leaving pregnant women to take these high-risk drugs all alone.” She then urged the Supreme Court to “put the health and well-being of pregnant women first by reinstating necessary safeguards for abortion drugs.” [ADF, 3/15/24 ]
• In a piece titled “What the FDA Hasn’t Told You About Mifepristone,” ADF senior counsel Erik Baptist claimed that “the FDA has ignored” that abortion pills “can cause significant and serious complications.” [ADF, 3/14/23 ]
• The American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists is a plaintiff in the Alliance Defending Freedom’s lawsuit against the FDA to suspend the use of mifepristone. [Washington State Standard, 2/6/24 ]
• AAPLOG runs a program called “Abortion Pill Reversal” that invites “pro-life medical professionals” to “provide urgent care to women who regret starting medication abortions.” The idea of reversing an abortion pill’s effect with progesterone is not supported by science. A 2012 study on the protocol had just six participants and no control group, and was not supervised or reviewed. A later 2020 study was ended early “due to safety concerns among the participants.” In its statement on abortion pill reversal, the organization included statistics on serious complications from abortion medication and referred to reversal as “another reproductive choice for women facing the abortion decision.” It repeatedly emphasizes that abortions are reversed with a “natural hormone.” [AAPLOG, accessed  4/17/24 ,  2019 ; ACOG, accessed 4/19/24 ]
• In response to efforts to ban abortion “reversal” treatments in Colorado, AAPLOG released a statement which said: “Efforts by abortion proponents to outlaw progesterone therapy after mifepristone consumption are not based on science or good medical ethics.” [AAPLOG, 9/27/23 ; Reuters, 10/23/23 ]
• AAPLOG often attacks mifepristone as a way for “abusers and traffickers” to easily coerce patients into abortion. In a response to the Fifth Circuit of Appeals ruling to reinstate restrictions on mifepristone, AAPLOG wrote that the previous “deregulations have placed women and girls at greater risk of life-threatening complications, as well as coerced abortion by abusers and traffickers.” [APPLOG, 8/16/23 ]
• In a “Myth vs. Fact” piece on “maternal medical care,” AAPLOG wrote that “the dangerous push in recent years to dispense abortion pills through the mail or without a doctor’s visit presents a grave threat to women’s health.” [AAPLOG, 8/29/22 ]
• Now-CEO Christina Francis warned in 2021 of “mounting evidence of significant adverse events and maternal deaths” from mifepristone in a piece originally published by Deseret News. [AAPLOG, 5/18/21 ; Salt Lake Tribune, 11/18/23 ]
• Throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, AAPLOG argued through letters, press releases, and articles that mifepristone is dangerous. [AAPLOG, 1/25/10 ]
• ACLJ’s Jay and Jordan Sekulow called mifepristone “deadly abortion pills” while describing the organization’s position in U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. [ACLJ, 6/22/23 ]
• In a piece explaining why the organization filed an amicus brief in that case, ACLJ senior counsel Walter M. Weber wrote that “mailing abortion pills is an act of racketeering that violates the federal RICO statute.” The ACLJ’s brief asked the court “to uphold an injunction against federal approval of abortion pills and against federal loosening of restrictions on abortion pills.” [ACLJ, 5/12/23 ; U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 5/09/23 ]
• The American Conservative celebrated U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , saying that banning access to mifepristone would be “a major blow to abortion activists’ cause” and would create precedent to change “an untouchable federal agency.” Contributing editor Carmel Richardson wrote that the anti-abortion movement “has been all but apologizing for” overturning Roe v. Wade “at the ballot box ever since,” but the possibility of a mifepristone ban is a “positive step forward.” [The American Conservative, 5/19/23 ]
• After the Supreme Court said that mifepristone should stay broadly available as the case is litigated, Richardson called on Congress to ban abortion, “including a ban on drugs prescribed for the purpose of inducing the death of a pre-born child.” [The American Conservative, 4/28/23 ]
• Richardson has also claimed that mifepristone is dangerous for patients, writing that “the lives of unborn babies, and those of several of their mothers” are at stake in the mifepristone case. [The American Conservative, 4/14/23 ]
• American Family Association’s news outlet, American Family News, published an article on the Louisiana law categorizing mifepristone as a controlled dangerous substance that called the drug “Fetus-killing abortion pills” and failed to include that the law will likely inhibit access to the drug and ensure harsher penalties for people who obtain it without a prescription. The piece misleadingly implies the new law would mainly be used to punish people for “misusing” the drugs by coercing a pregnant person to take them or slipping it unknowingly to a pregnant person. [American Family News, 5/28/24 ; CNN, 5/24/24 ]
• Jordan Chamblee, a writer for American Family Association’s publication The Stand, claimed that the Biden administration paving the way for retail pharmacies to dispense abortion pills is “prioritizing the interests of the abortion industry over women’s health and safety.” He claimed that “chemical abortions are dangerous,” as they “can result in serious complications such as sepsis, hemorrhaging, and even death.” Chamblee also promoted The Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN), which offers abortion pill reversal. [American Family Association, 4/10/23 ]
• After the FDA allowed mifepristone to be dispensed by mail, AFA Executive Vice President Ed Vitagliano said that this promoted “an agenda of wanton destruction eliminating tens of thousands of people who would become innovators and creators.” [American Family Association, 12/20/21 ]
• An AFA article criticized abortion clinics for not advertising the existence of abortion reversal, and claimed that they “fail to inform their patients about what to expect after they take the pill and leave the clinic.” [American Family Association, 7/15/19 ]
• Project 2025 contributor and vice president of America First Legal Gene Hamilton, who wrote the section of Mandate for Leadership on the Department of Justice, pushed in that section to enforce the Comstock Act, which could be used to restrict abortion medication nationwide. [Rolling Stone, 12/22/23 ; Teen Vogue, 2/7/24 ]
• The American Principles Project backed the bill of Reps. Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) and Kevin Hern (R-OK) to tighten restrictions on mifepristone, with the APP's President Terry Schilling arguing that easier access to abortion pills means dispensing “dangerous pills online” and “empowering abusers by making it even easier for them to get their hands on abortion drugs.” [Website of Rep. Diana Harshbarger, 1/18/23 ]
• On Twitter, APP shared an article promoting abortion pill reversal: “#Abortion Pill Reversal: When ‘Pro-Choicers’ Don’t Support a Woman’s Choice.” [Twitter/X, 9/14/17 ]
• During the Obama administration, APP celebrated the fight against what it calls “the abortion pill mandate,” the Department of Health and Human Services requirement for employers to provide insurance that covers abortion pills. [Twitter/X, 3/6/13 ,  7/10/12 ]
• Americans United for Life federal policy director Jesse Southerland told Politico that fighting against “chemical abortion” is a “priority” for the organization. [Politico, 3/27/24 ]
• AUL drafted a model law for anti-abortion lawmakers to restrict or ban telehealth prescriptions for abortion pills. [Politico, 3/27/24 ; Stateline, 1/30/23 ]
• In February, AUL filed two amicus briefs in support of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine in its case against the FDA. [Americans United for Life, 2/29/24 ]
• AUL listed the court battle to re-restrict mifepristone as one of its “top ten developments in the Life arena of 2023.” [Americans United for Life, 12/20/23 ]
• Chief legal officer and general counsel of AUL Steven H. Aden said that loosening regulations on mifepristone “has been a healthcare disaster for women and has normalized the wholesale destruction of human life.” [Americans United for Life, 12/13/23 ]
• AUL filed multiple amicus briefs to the Fifth Circuit asking the court to uphold the U.S. District Court’s suspension of mifepristone’s approval. Aden, the counsel of record on the brief, explained that abortion pills are “dangerous drugs,” and suspending them “is in the interest of patient welfare.” AUL has made similar arguments in several pieces on its amicus briefs regarding this case. [Americans United for Life, 5/16/23 ,  4/18/23 ,  4/12/23 ]
• Carolyn McDonnell, litigation counsel at AUL, accused the FDA of “promoting its radical abortion agenda at the expense of patient health and safety” by relaxing mifepristone restrictions. [Americans United for Life, 2/13/23 ]
• AUL submitted testimony in support of Wyoming’s attempt to ban abortion pills partially because it was “consistent with the American legal tradition on abortion.” In its related explainer on mifepristone, AUL emphasized possible complications resulting from consumption of the drug. [Americans United for Life, 2/9/23 ; The Associated Press, 6/22/23 ]
• AUL wrote that receiving mifepristone through the mail is the “new back-alley,” as patients are receiving pills “from a stranger on the internet.” The piece emphasized that “women have died taking chemical abortion pills.” [Americans United for Life, 12/17/21 ]
• In 2021, AUL celebrated South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s executive order to ban abortion pills from being prescribed via telemedicine, calling it a measure “to protect South Dakota women from the threat of chemical abortion drugs.” [Americans United for Life, 9/7/21 ]
• In the same piece, the organization attributed relaxed restrictions on mifepristone to “corporate greed.” Similarly, in 2016, AUL said that “abortion industry profits” were the motivator behind the updated guidelines. [Americans United for Life, 9/7/21 ; 11/1/16 ]
• After the FDA loosened restrictions on mifepristone in 2021, AUL accused the agency of “playing politics with women’s health.” In another piece on the issue, it said the FDA was “abandoning women to suffer through the physical and psychological impact of chemical abortion without medical supervision or support.” [Americans United for Life, 4/13/21 ,  1/12/21 ]
• In 2017, AUL’s vice president of legal affairs, Denise Burke, testified in favor of a Colorado law that would require abortion providers to tell patients about abortion reversal, which it calls “informed consent.” According to Burke, because they are not told about so-called abortion reversal, “many women are physically and psychologically harmed by the abortion process.” [Americans United for Life, 2/9/17 ]
• AUL called on state lawmakers to repeal what it called a “discriminatory rule” and an “unconstitutional abuse of power” from the Washington State Board of Pharmacists that required pharmacists to keep abortion pills stocked. The organization joined an amicus brief in support of pharmacists against “drugs misleadingly called ‘emergency contraceptives,’ specifically Plan B and ella.” [Americans United for Life, 6/28/16 ]
• AUL has been involved in multiple cases related to state laws seeking to restrict mifepristone, with AUL's president referring to looser restrictions as “patient abandonment.” In a press release celebrating an Arkansas law restricting mifepristone, AUL wrote that “the abortion industry consistently puts profits over people.” [Americans United for Life, 3/23/15 ,  10/4/13 ]
• The organization filed amicus briefs in support of embattled North Dakota and Oklahoma bills that restricted access to mifepristone. [Americans United for Life, 10/4/13 ,  8/21/13 ,  10/9/12 ]
• In a 2023 article on the Association for Mature American Citizens website, author Ben Solis repeated false claims made by Fox News host Rachel Campos-Duffy that “40 percent of abortions are chemical abortions that are likely to end with complications.”  More than 60% of all abortions are performed with the abortion pill and around 2% of all abortions have complications. [AMAC, 4/8/23 ; Guttmacher Institute, 3/19/24 ; Pew Research Center, 3/25/24 ] 
• AMAC hosted an interview with Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life, to talk about how chemical abortions are supposedly “dangerous.” In the interview, AMAC CEO Rebecca Weber claimed the expansion of abortion pill access is really pro-abortion activists “taking advantage of frightened young women.” Mancini argued that access to mifepristone is “dangerous in a lot of different ways” claiming the drug is “actually much harder on women's health than surgical abortion.” [YouTube, 11/9/22 ]
• In a story on its site, the California Family Council (CFC) wrote about the recent Supreme Court case regarding mifepristone, saying that “true reproductive freedom includes access to comprehensive information about fertility, pregnancy, and the support available for women experiencing a crisis pregnancy.” CFC Vice President Greg Burt remarked, “This case is not merely about regulatory oversight; it’s about reaffirming the foundational values that respect life and prioritize genuine healthcare that serves both mothers and their children.” [California Family Council, 3/29/24 ] 
• On its Instagram account, the group declared, “The abortion pill is not a form of contraception; rather, it is an exceedingly hazardous drug, particularly when used without medical supervision.” The post added, “The abortion pill leads the death of an unborn baby and potential dangers to the mother.” [Instagram, 12/13/23 ]
• The group fearmongered that “Mifepristone and misoprostol put women at risk for infection, injury, loss of fertility, depression, and other life-threatening complications.” It concludes that “women deserve to know about their options and have access to life-saving medication,” referring to abortion pill reversal. [California Family Council, 9/25/23 ]
• In at least two other publications on its website, the group pushed misleading information about the safety of the abortion pill, calling it “dangerous,” and “highly controversial.” [California Family Council, 11/29/22 ,  2/7/22 ] 
• In a 2023 article on the Center for Family and Human Rights (C-FAM) website, director of research Rebecca Oas wrote that “period pills” or medication used to “induce menstrual bleeding or early pregnancy loss” are used for “the intentional destruction of an unborn life.” [Center for Family and Human Rights, 2/10/23 ; PeriodPills.org, accessed 5/15/24 ]
• In an article complaining about expanding access to abortion pills during the COVID-19 pandemic, Oas called use of mifepristone a “dangerous procedure.” [Center for Family and Human Rights, 5/8/20 ]
• C-FAM published multiple articles condemning the World Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders for supporting the distribution of abortion pills. In one piece C-FAM argues “mail-order abortion pills” put patients at risk of getting an abortion “without [their] consent by abusive partners, parents, or others, such as human traffickers.” [Center for Family and Human Rights, 6/28/19 ; 2/28/20 ]
• In an article for Pacific Standard on the WHO’s endorsement of mifepristone, Oas is quoted repeating her argument that expanding access to abortion pills will result in the use of the drugs by “abusive partners” for nonconsensual abortions. [Pacific Standard, 7/15/19 ]
• In a policy issue primer published on Center for Renewing America’s site, the organization supported the Fifth Circuit's ruling against the FDA’s interpretation of the Comstock Act, and claimed the “weaponized agency is willing to violate the law to advance its abortion agenda.” CRA also suggested Congress attempt to “prohibit chemical abortions at the federal level.” [Center for Renewing America, 5/2/23 ]
• In a piece on its website, Concerned Women for America noted its support for stricter abortion pill regulations alongside other anti-abortion groups, against the FDA in the ongoing Supreme Court case. The piece describes the agency’s actions as “reckless disregard for women’s safety.” [Concerned Women for America, 3/25/24 ] 
• CWA wrote a piece directly focused on the case heading to the Supreme Court, calling mifepristone “dangerous” and the FDA’s approval of it “reckless.” CWA CEO and President Penny Nance said, “Let’s be clear; there is nothing safe or effective about allowing people to perform their own DIY abortion.” [Concerned Women for America, 12/13/23 ]
• On CWA’s podcast, Nance said supporters of the medication “want there to be abortion, as I’ve said before many times, any time, any reason, in any number, all paid for by you.” She continued, “They don’t want a girl to even leave her dorm room to have it. They’re happy for her to struggle for several days to actually miscarry this baby alone and to be traumatized and maybe, you know, have consequences that render her sterile later or maybe even death.” Later on, she added, “This is not nearly over. We have a lot of work to do. We are winning.” [Concerned Women for America, 4/19/23 ,  4/19/23 ] 
• CWA’s Deanna Drogan wrote for the website, “We can see that increasing the ability to perform DIY abortions results in many health risks for mothers (known and unknown) and an increasing number of babies innocently murdered from abortion.” [Concerned Women for America, 4/23/21 ]
• In an opinion piece for Newsmax, Nance wrote that there is “nothing safe about DIY abortion.” She added, concerning the Texas case, “Americans who are concerned for the safety and well-being of young women should be grateful that this judge had the courage to make this decision.” [Newsmax, 5/15/23 ]
• Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism fellow Arina Grossu Agnew appeared on The Lars Larson Show to discuss “How many babies do abortion pills like Mifepristone kill?” In the interview, Grossu claimed the FDA “looked at flawed studies, irrelevant studies” when approving the drug “and there are a lot of complications that can happen.” She went on to call mifepristone “a very dangerous abortion drug.” [KXL, Lars Larson Show , 5/1/23 ]
• Senior fellow of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence Michael Egnor wrote in an article for The Stream that abortion drugs “cause significant physiological and behavioral harm.” Egnor’s article is based on a study by Dr. Stephen Sammut, whose research also pushes the unsupported science of “abortion-pill reversal.” [The Stream, 7/10/19 ; Franciscain, Accessed 5/15/24 ]
• President of Eagle Forum Kristen A. Ullman published an article in March arguing against use of the abortion pill. In the article, Ullman called mifepristone “dangerous” and repeated unverified claims that the abortion pill has a notably high number of documented negative effects. [Eagle Forum, 3/24/24 ]
• Eagle Forum joined a coalition of anti-abortion groups who called on Congress to send cease-and-desist letters to pharmacies mailing abortion pills. [Eagle Forum, 3/12/24 ]
• In an article fearmongering about mifepristone titled “Danger Lurks in Local Drug Stores,” Ullman called the drug a “dangerous pill that not only kills an unborn child but causes serious side effects and even death to countless women.” [Eagle Forum, 3/4/24 ]
• Ethics and Public Policy Center fellows submitted two amicus briefs for the Supreme Court case on mifepristone supporting Alliance of Hippocratic Medicine in its case against the abortion drug. The briefs claimed the FDA and Biden administration are in “violation of federal and state law” by expanding access to mifepristone. [EPPC, 3/1/24 ]
• President of EPPC Ryan T. Anderson, previously a visiting fellow at The Heritage Foundation, published an article with National Review titled “Making Abortion Illegal and Unthinkable,” in which he argued, “We’ll need laws to prevent cross-state transportation of abortion pills.” [National Review, 6/11/22 ; The Heritage Foundation, accessed 4/19/24 ]
• Focus on the Family's lobbying arm, Family Policy Alliance, submitted an amicus brief for the Supreme Court case on mifepristone in which it argued the FDA’s current mifepristone guidance is “dangerous for women” and claimed, “Medical Emergencies Caused by Mifepristone are Increasing” and cites the declaration of Dr. Christina Francis, the AAPLOG CEO. [U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 2/28/24 ]
• After Biden supported access to mifepristone in January, FPA called on its audience to push back against the dispensing of abortion pills in pharmacies, seemingly citing a now-retracted study that led FPA to falsely claim that “women who use abortion pills are 50 percent more likely to visit an ER than with a surgical abortion.” [Family Policy Alliance, 1/24/23 ; National Library of Medicine, 11/9/21 ]
• FPA also called on pharmacies to refuse to distribute abortion pills. The FPA director of government affairs claimed in the statement, “Abortion drugs are a health and safety threat to women and their children.” [Family Policy Alliance, 1/6/23 ]
• In an episode of Family Research Council’s Washington Watch with Tony Perkins , Senior Vice President Jody Hice interviewed Louisiana state Sen. Thomas Pressly about his legislation to classify mifepristone as a dangerous substance in Louisiana. Hice called the passing of the law “good news” and called it a “model” for other states. Hice went on to congratulate Pressly and claimed the “abortion industry” is “fearmongering” over the legislation. [Family Research Council, Washington Watch with Tony Perkins , 5/24/24 ]
• FRC’s affiliated blog The Washington Stand published a piece similarly praising the Louisiana law, which claims abortion pills “are not safe.” [The Washington Stand, 5/28/24 ]
• FRC filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case over mifepristone claiming that the FDA was “reckless” in approving the drug and that use of mifepristone creates “long-lasting psychological and spiritual distress.” [Family Research Council, 3/5/24 ]
• In 2022 FRC published an issue analysis on medication abortion, which it called “The Next Abortion Battleground.” The analysis summarized FRC’s issues with abortion pills, leveling claims that there are “profound dangers such poorly supervised medical care poses to women’s health” and that “the abortion industry” is pushing abortion pills for “political, ideological, and financial goals.” [Family Research Council, 2/22 ]
• Also in its analysis on abortion pills, FRC argued that easing regulations of mifepristone would “complicate the detection of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.” In a section on “Sexual Abuse and Sex Trafficking” FRC claimed, “Abusers, along with those in the sexual exploitation industry ... would love an environment in which they can compel women to repeatedly have abortions.” The section also claimed that Planned Parenthood is aiding sex traffickers by providing abortions. [Family Research Council, 2/22 ]
• The analysis also laid out policy suggestions, such as “complete removal of the chemical abortion regimen from the market,” forcing manufacturers of the drug to “report all adverse events” from mifepristone, and prohibiting the prescription of abortion pills over telehealth. FRC claims its final goal is “to see the sale and the approval of drugs meant to intentionally kill life in the womb eliminated from our society.” [Family Research Council, 2/22 ]
• In a 2021 report, legislative assistant Chantel Hoyt claimed expansion of access to mifepristone means “the abortion industry seems willing to gamble with women's lives and health” in order to expand access to abortion. [Family Research Council, 7/19/21 ; FRC, accessed 5/15/24 ]
• Starting in 2013 First Liberty Institute represented Joe Holland in a case against the federal government challenging the so-called  “Abortion Pill Mandate.” First Liberty argued he should not have to provide insurance coverage for abortion pills because of his faith. [First Liberty Institute, accessed, 4/16/24 ]
• ForAmerica president David Bozell joined a Washington Times podcast to attack the use of mifepristone, calling it “unfathomable.” He went on to claim, “The left will not stop until there is abortion on demand funded by the United States taxpayer up to and perhaps even including the moment of birth." [The Washington Times, 3/29/24 ]
• Liberty Counsel, an anti-abortion legal organization, filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Frederick Douglass Foundation to the Supreme Court asking it to uphold the Fifth Circuit’s decision to reinstate restrictions on mifepristone. [World News Group, 3/12/24 ]
• Ashley Bateman, a policy writer for the Heartland Institute, wrote a piece for The Federalist regarding anti-abortion activists protesting at the Supreme Court about the FDA case, describing mifepristone as a “high-risk drug.” [The Federalist, 3/27/24 ]
• Heartland Daily News, a publication affiliated with the Institute, has been attacking abortion medication for years. Recently Bateman published an article where she labeled mifepristone a “high-risk drug” and a different piece by Harry Painter attempted to raise concerns about the safety of telemedicine prescriptions for mifepristone while conflating the use of the medication with “back-alley abortions.” [The Heartland Daily News, 4/15/24 ,  3/27/24 ,  12/6/22 ,  9/18/21 ]
• The James Dobson Family Institute in a piece titled “Baby-Killing Pills” claimed the Biden Administration wants to distribute mifepristone “like candy,” and said it continues to “use every tool it has to keep the number of abortions in America as high as possible.” Later on, the author describes the medication as a “killer abortion pill.” [Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, 4/14/23 ]
• The institute was one of many organizations to sign an amicus brief to the Supreme Court on the FDA battle over the drug. [U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 2/29/2024 ]
• A commentary piece for the organization described mifepristone described as “death by mail,” and attacked pro-choice organizations, writing, “See you in court, NARAL! JDFI proudly signed onto an amicus brief in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and we look forward to making the case for life before the U.S. Supreme Court.” [Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, 8/30/23 ] 
• A 2021 piece by Dobson himself endorsed a bill that aimed to strip universities of their federal funding if they distribute reproductive medication to students. [Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, 8/3/21 ]
• Media Research Center’s affiliated news outlet, NewsBusters, published an article claiming NBC “fear mongers” about Louisiana’s new law classifying mifepristone and misoprostol as dangerous substances. The piece said an NBC correspondent stating the new law will create confusion around the safety of the drugs is “fear-mongering” and tries to rebut the idea by claiming the law “isn’t banning the drugs.” [NewsBusters, 5/22/24 ]
• The right-wing “media watchdog” organization has been releasing content railing against abortion and mifepristone for years. In many pieces, the titles refer to the drugs as “harmful,” dangerous”, and “deadly.” [NewsBusters, 3/20/24 ,  4/24/23 ,  4/22/23 ,  3/24/23 ,  11/18/22 ]
• The organization has also cherry-picked stories to bolster its fearmongering about the pill. In one example, it describes a “chemical abortion nightmare” where a woman on YouTube described witnessing the heartbeat of the fetus and the health issues she faced afterward. The Media Research Center used the story as an opportunity to attack Planned Parenthood for what it describes as “its prioritization of killing babies over keeping women out of harm's way.” [Media Research Center, 1/5/24 ]
• In a commentary piece for its parent organization, the National Center for Public Policy Research, Project 21 member Patrina Mosley described mifepristone as a “lethal regime,” and compared the fight to end abortion with the fight to end slavery. She went on to claim the medication “has led to untold physical and psychological harm” to patients. Mosley also went on to claim drugs like mifepristone are an easy way for pharmaceutical organizations to make quick profits, and allow for “sexual abusers and partners who are unwilling fathers” to coerce people into taking the drug. [The National Center for Public Policy Research, 4/20/23 ] 
• Both groups also signed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court asking it to reverse the approval of the drug. In a concurring statement, Project 21 chairman Horace Cooper said, “Project 21 supports ending the FDA’s attempt to radically expand the use of mifepristone into some sort of ‘morning after’ abortion pill.” He went on to call the medicine “dangerous” and claimed that pro-life doctors should be exempt from prescribing the medication as it would make them “an accessory to an evil act.” [The National Center for Public Policy Research, 3/26/24 ]
• Students for Life of America has been a leading force behind a push to prohibit reproductive medication — the organization’s website even has a “chemical abortion” landing page, which fearmongers about the safety of mifepristone. [Students for Life of America, accessed 5/15/24 ; Politico, 4/19/23 ] 
• Students for Life Action, the political arm of the organization, released a statement praising Louisiana’s new law categorizing mifepristone and misoprostol as controlled dangerous substances. The statement called the drugs “dangerous” and repeated claims that chemical abortions result in significantly more complications and death than surgical ones. [Students for Life Action, 5/23/24 ]
• Students for Life president Kristan Hawkins posted on X praising the Louisiana law and calling abortion pills “dangerous” and, in another post, claimed Vice President Kamala Harris was “protecting sexual predators” by speaking out against the law.  [Twitter/X, 5/22/24 , 5/23/24 ]
• I n a press call reported on by NPR, Hawkins described the process as tantamount to “death by mail delivered to your doorstep.” [NPR, 12/16/21 ]
• The group has spread debunked claims about medication abortion having a harmful impact on wildlife and the environment, and filed a petition with the FDA to require providers of the medication to be responsible for the disposal of fetal tissue similar to medical waste. Hawkins was quoted in an organization blog saying that “tainted blood, tissue, and human remains have been flushed away, without any hard look at what happens next, or what happens to us and the environment.” [Media Matters, 3/12/24 ; USA Today, 12/12/22 ; Students for Life for America, 11/23/22 ] 
• A different blog post focused on the supposed dangers of using abortion medicine and the “abortion pill myths perpetuated by the abortion industry.” It argued that it is a “myth” that the majority of patients who take the medication don’t experience “serious complications,” and claimed that it is illegal and unsafe for the medication to be sent through the mail. Additionally, the group said abortion medicine is “uniquely traumatic” to patients. [Students for Life for America, 4/26/23 ] 
• Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America released a statement congratulating Louisiana for the The Catherine and Josephine Herring Act categorizing abortion drugs as controlled substances. The statement, by Southern Regional Director Caitlin Connors, claims “pro-abortion Democrats have enabled abusers to coerce and poison mothers with dangerous abortion drugs,” seemingly referencing the FDA easing restrictions on the drugs. The organization repeated these claims in a blog posted to Substack. [Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, 5/21/24 ; Substack, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, 5/23/24 ]
• In March of 2024, SBA published a piece on its site titled “Five big lies about the Supreme Court mail-order abortion drug case” in which it focuses on potential harmful side effects of the drug and the effects on patients. [Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, 3/25/24 ]
• Notably, two publications cited as key studies in the Texas lawsuit against the drug, produced by the research arm of SBA, the Charlotte Lozier Institute, were retracted from a medical journal for issues regarding flaws and conflict of interest. [The Associated Press, 2/7/24 ]
• The SBA was also one of several organizations to sign an amicus brief in support of reinstating the rule requiring an in-person visit to be prescribed mifepristone. [ U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 2/24 ]
• According to Vox, SBA has been reaching out to right-wing governors in numerous states to discuss restrictions on the shipment of abortion medication. The organization’s state director of affairs told Vox that she expects states to be “creative” in finding ways to enforce restrictions against reproductive rights. [Vox, 1/9/23 ]
• SBA has released numerous press releases following the litigation of abortion medication, in many cases describing the pills and their distribution as “dangerous” and “reckless.” [The Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, 4/13/23 ,  2/8/23 ,  1/25/23 ,  1/19/23 , 1/3/23 ,  11/18/22 ]
• In January 2022, SBA, alongside a coalition of other organizations, released a letter to the Senate arguing against the nomination of Dr. Robert Califf for commissioner of the FDA due to his support of abortion pills. The letter claimed Califf approved “unsafe mail-order abortion.” The letter was also signed by other Project 2025 partners such as Concerned Women for America, Americans United for Life, Family Policy Alliance, and The Ethics and Public Policy Center. [Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, 1/12/22 ,  2/14/22 ]
• In 2023, The Texas Public Policy Foundation filed an amicus brief in  U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, defending other Project 2025 partners' effort to limit access to mifepristone.  [ U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 2/29/24 ]
• Turning Point USA has published several opinion pieces from contributors attacking mifepristone. In one piece titled “NY Passes Law Requiring Public Universities to Provide the Abortion Pill to Students,” Turning Point USA contributor Morgan Zegers highlighted mail-ordered pills, writing, “Recently, some states have approved the sale of these abortion drugs via online order and mail delivery, a move that has been called reckless as it endangers not just the pre-born child, but also the life of the mother.” [Turning Point USA, 5/3/23 ]
• Turning Point USA contributor Erin Elmore took aim at mifepristone again in a piece asking, “Did the FDA Classify Pregnancy as an Illness to Approve ‘Abortion Pill?’” Elmore said the drug is “has several side effects, doesn’t always work as intended, is linked to the deaths of nearly 30 women, and has caused life-threatening illnesses in hundreds of women.” [Turning Point USA, 4/20/23 ]
• In another blog, Morgonn McMichael wrote about FDA regulations allowing for mifepristone to be sold at retail pharmacies, heavily accentuating the negative side effects of the medication. She writes, “Despite the innumerable side effects, some tolerable, others life-threatening, Plan C, a medical abortion pill provider, still claims that abortion is ‘safer than continuing a pregnancy and having a baby.’” She goes on to add, “Making the abortion pill more accessible is not the win for women that the left is branding it as.” [Turning Point USA, 1/4/23 ]
• Young America’s Foundation published a blog on its website in July 2023 attacking a seminar at Texas A&M University which included information about mifepristone, titled “Pregnant Woman Teaches Texas A&M Students How to Perform Illegal Abortions.” YAF wrote, “Universities should never allow students or guest speakers to use official resources to promote illegal activity. Hopefully, the investigation will result in consequences for the leftist student organization as well as the administrators who approved the all-school invitation.” [Young America’s Foundation, 7/19/23 ]
• In April 2023, YAF filed an amicus brief alongside several other right-wing organizations, which argued that the “FDA abused its own regulation in approving mifepristone in 2000.”  [ U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , Brief of Amicus Curiae, 4/18/23 ]