Christian Influencer Jamie Ivey Postpones Book Tour Following Husband's Scandal

Successful podcast host, influencer, and author Jamie Ivey is currently in the news for reasons we’re willing to guess she’s not too happy about.

On Sunday, February 11, it was revealed that Aaron Ivey, Jamie’s husband, was fired from his position as pastor at the Austin Stone Community Church amid allegations he was having an extramarital affair.

Here is everything that we know about the scandal.

Aaron was let go by the church on February 5, 2024. An open letter on the church’s site explains their actions.

"Aaron Ivey was fired from staff after it came to light that he engaged in inappropriate and explicit ongoing text messages with an adult male," it read.

"Several elders were made aware of this situation on the evening of Sunday, February 4, and after reviewing the explicit nature of these messages, it was clear that termination of Aaron’s eldership and employment was necessary by the clear biblical standards outlined in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and 1 Timothy 5:19-20."

Later in the post, the church goes into more detail about their decision to fire Aaron, laying out a timeline of Aaron's phone messages:

• 2011: the first known instance, which took place with a teenage male victim and continued over time, involved inappropriate and explicit communications, indecent exposure, and the use of alcohol and illegal substances

• 2020: involved inappropriate and explicit ongoing texts with an adult male
• 2021: involved inappropriate and explicit behavior with an adult male
• February 2024: involved inappropriate and explicit ongoing texts with an adult male (this was the cause for discovery of the pattern of inappropriate behavior)

Jamie and Aaron have been married since 2001 and have four children. According to The Washington Post, their biological child Cayden was born in 2004 and they adopted Deacon in 2005 and Story and Amos from Haiti in 2009 and 2010.

The family lives in Austin, Texas and each other’s work informs the other’s career.

Jamie was a pastor until recently and Jamie has written and podcasted extensively about their lives. They co-wrote the 2021 book Complement: The Surprising Beauty of Choosing Together Over Separate in Marriage and made appearances on podcasts together to promote the book, as they did on The Heart of Dating.

Jamie’s newest book, Why Can't I Get It Together?: Kick Unrealistic Expectations to the Curb and Rest in God’s Truth, was released on February 13, 2024, two days after her husband was fired from The Austin Stone Community Church.

Jamie has also written the 2020 book You Be You: Why Satisfaction and Success Are Closer Than You Think, 2018’s If You Only Knew: My Unlikely, Unavoidable Story of Becoming Free, the 2021 children’s book God Made You to Be You and the aforementioned book with her husband.

Jamie has only somewhat addressed the allegations against her husband on social media.

"Due to an unexpected crisis, Jamie will be delaying her book publicity and tour," a statement on her Instagram. "She will also be taking a break from social media and public appearances until she has had time to process, discern, and recover. Please continue to hold all involved in your prayers."

To say that this news was a shock to Jamie would be fair. In a conversation with Rapt Interviews published on February 7, 2024, she laid out her biggest fears with her marriage. They do not involve any of the reasons Aaron has been let go by the church.

"Throughout our entire marriage, one of my biggest struggles has been overcoming the fear that he will leave me, grow tired and weary of me, and want a different wife," she shared.