When Help Arrives Too Late

Death of the Pastor's Wife is streaming on Netflix

I recently watched the Netflix 3-part story just released in August 2026 about Mica Miller. Mica was the wife of John-Paul Miller, Pastor, Solid Rock Church, Myrtle Beach, SC. Mica and John-Paul’s marriage was toxic and downright abusive. While Mica cried out for help and sought counseling, safety, and security, she was found dead with a fatal gunshot wound in a North Carolina state park. The authorities have ruled her death a suicide, while mountains of unanswered questions are still out there.

Watch Trailer - Death of the Pastor's Wife

While it’s hard to watch, it’s the ugly truth that abuse is real and happening in churches. I’m wondering how many of us can think of a time when we questioned a situation or even have someone cry out to us for help.

Mica’s story is a reminder that our churches need more than compassion & forgiveness. Our churches need training and accountability. They need policies. They need leaders (including people in the congregation) who understand what intimidating control looks like and know how to get involved when someone is in danger.

Here at CBF we can help you and your church avoid children and other church members from being abused. Here are a couple ways that you and your church can make sure to protect those in need.

1. CBF has a dedicated staff member, Jay Kieve, for Church Safety and Abuse Prevention. Jay is passionate about helping churches become places free from abuse where everyone can thrive. Jay is a safeguarding specialist for GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christina Environment) and a facilitator for Darkness to Light’s “Stewards of Children.” He routinely seeks trauma-related learning and is trained as a victim’s advocate. So if you want to talk to someone one-on-one about how you and your community can create a safe space for all people, reach out to Jay at jkieve@cbf.net  

2. Sep 29, 10am - 3pm @ FBC St. Petersburg FL - We at Florida & the Caribbean Islands are offering a FREE training session for you and your leadership team. During this training session we will teach you how to keep children and other church members safe from abuse by identifying signs of abuse, creating safeguarding policies for volunteers, and enacting simple steps to keep leaders accountable.

Register for Safeguarding Training Session Today!

Abuse doesn’t just come from outsiders visiting your church community, so we want to make sure you and your leadership team have the resources to keep members safe from physical, emotional, and spiritual abuse as they continue to worship in a community rooted in love.

Rev Tammy Snyder, Coordinator, CBF FL and Caribbean Islands

P.S. Did you know you can leave comments on this blog?!

• Let us know what you and your church are doing to safeguard your community in the comments bellow.

• Watched the doccumnetary? Let us know your thoughts!