A LAKELAND UPDATE

 A Lakeland Update  
From C. Peter Wagner
October 29, 2008

Dear friends,
 
            This is an update on the aftermath of the Lakeland Outpouring.
 
            As most of you know, a day or so after I went to Lakeland and helped align Todd Bentley with Revival Alliance on June 23, the veil of secrecy over a number of serious, hidden sins began to come off.  God has now shaken what could be shaken in Todd's life.  On August 12 he announced that he was leaving his wife of nine years, and it had been revealed that he had been directing his attentions toward another woman.  This is now history, but many have been asking for an update.
 
            I have delayed sending you this email until I had an official statement from Todd's apostolic alignment, John Arnott, Ché Ahn, and Bill Johnson of Revival Alliance.
Here is their statement, issued October 23, 2008, four months after the alignment:
 
PUBLIC STATEMENT ON TODD BENTLEY FROM REVIVAL ALLIANCE
 
Dear friends, several years ago, six leadership couples came together formed a relationally based, non-denominational network called Revival Alliance.
 
When the Lakeland revival broke out Todd Bentley and the revival meetings were coming under much criticism. At the suggestion of Peter Wagner, three of the members of the Revival Alliance team went to Lakeland because the Alliance as a whole wanted to express support for the Lakeland Outpouring and to commission Todd as a revivalistic evangelist. Having been powerfully touched in the Toronto outpouring, and seeing the opposition that came from leaders in the church because of that movement, we wanted to stand with Todd and deflect some of the personal assaults that were coming against him. Many of the attacks were coming from well-respected Christian leaders, people that we still hold in high esteem. Yet the mandate from the Lord was clear. And we stood with Todd and the Fresh Fire Ministries team to both endorse and support this move of God.
 
Rory and Wendy Alec of God TV also took tremendous risk in airing the revival prime time and broadcasting it to over 200 nations around the world. Their heart is to capture and release the move of God, no matter where it happens, or who God uses as His instrument. This unparalleled media attention gave unusual advertisement for the outpouring. But it also put their whole team in an unusual, high-level position of receiving both praise and criticism.
 
The impact of the Lakeland Outpouring has been amazing, and it still continues. The record of conversions and miracles of healing is extraordinarily great in number. And the spreading of the revival to nation after nation has also been very significant. The God TV broadcast stirred up the hunger in people from around the world to go to Lakeland and receive from God, but then bring it home to their local churches. Impartation seems to be one of the unusual markers of a genuine move of God. Revival fires began to spread around the world as a result of the impartation received at Lakeland. But as great as the fruit has been, so have the devastation and fallout from Todd's personal failure.
 
While there must be no toleration or whitewashing of sin, there must also be no allowances for ungodly judgments in the name of Jesus. Hatred often masquerades as a passion for holiness. And while the church has had its share of tragic failures of leaders in recent days and equally tragic reactions, we must get this one right. It is possible to promote holiness and accountability in the spirit of grace.
 
The quickness to condemn and abandon a fallen comrade has caused us as much concern as has the actual sin of our friend. Some want to humiliate and expose Todd before the world. And then there are others who want to point to the obvious anointing on Todd's life as the sign of God's approval of Todd's behavior. Neither is acceptable to us. There must be deep repentance and thorough restoration.
 
The restoration process must be firm but loving, while holding to the Kingdom standards of both holiness and grace. The initial goal is not to get Todd preaching again. It is to get him healed from the issues of the heart that have brought devastation to his family, and such shame and failure to him. His gift will always function when given an opportunity. We just want it to come from a place of personal victory and triumph this next time.
 
Since the announcement of Todd's leaving his wife, Revival Alliance has been working to help restore our fallen brother. Sin is disastrous on any level, but it is well known that "to whom much is given, much is required." Gross sin from someone on Todd's level of influence is devastating. Even so, God is ready to heal and restore.
 
Todd recently spent three days in Redding, California, with Bill Johnson dealing with the issues of his personal life. Following that, he went to Morningstar Ministries in Charlotte, North Carolina, to be with Rick Joyner for the same reason. Rick, along with the Morningstar leadership team, has offered to help in his restoration. With great confidence, Revival Alliance recommends this as the appropriate process for Todd's healing and restoration. Todd will be moving to Morningstar Ministries to live for a season. Rick Joyner's wisdom, along with the strength of the Morningstar community of believers, will be a great support to Todd as he deals with the heart issues that brought about his failures. A council of three has also been formed to give oversight to the restoration process. Rick Joyner, Jack Deere, and Bill Johnson will give oversight as needed.
 
We appreciate the prayers and support of countless numbers of believers who have continued to support Fresh Fire Ministries. We also appreciate the prayer support of so many for the Revival Alliance. We are also very thankful for Rick Joyner and his whole team that will be working to bring about a complete healing to our friend, Todd Bentley.
 
It should also be noted that effort is being made to ensure that Shonnah (Todd's wife) and children are also cared for and given opportunity to receive ministry and help. As you may imagine, they have suffered great hurt from this failure.
 
There are many in Fresh Fire Ministries who also need help. Efforts are being made to serve them as best as possible. John Arnott recently invited the Fresh Fire Ministries associates to Toronto for their Signs and Wonders Conference to receive personal ministry and encouragement. These kinds of efforts will continue.
 
Bill Johnson, John Arnott, and Rick Joyner have each spent time with the Fresh Fire Ministries board, and will continue to assist them as needed through this tragic season.
 
Fresh Fire Ministries will continue their crusades and conference schedule around the world. They are a group of ministers with much integrity and a great heart for the lost. Pray for them as they maneuver through the challenging season ahead, while serving the church at large.
 
We are thankful for the honor of being involved in this crisis.
 
 
On behalf of Revival Alliance:  John Arnott, Ché Ahn, and Bill Johnson
Thursday, October 23, 2008
 
Apostolic Protocol
 
            The Todd Bentley situation affords us a good contemporary case study in the proper application of agreed-upon apostolic protocol.  Before an international TV audience, Todd affirmed that he desired to be apostolically aligned with Revival Alliance, and then received their apostolic commissioning as a revivalistic evangelist.  Almost immediately, the shifting that this alignment produced in the invisible world caused Todd's hidden personal life to begin to unravel until he left the Lakeland Outpouring in early August.  Host apostle, Stephen Strader, continued services in Ignited Church until he finally closed it in October.
 
            The Revival Alliance took the first steps toward dealing with Todd's discipline and possible restoration.  However, Rick Joyner of Morningstar Ministries in Ft. Mill, South Carolina, a friend of Todd's, offered his services to help in the process.  Revival Alliance, then, decided to outsource the long-term hands-on restoration to Rick.  Rick brought his friend, Jack Deere onto his team, and Bill Johnson was added to maintain a link with Revival Alliance.
 
            After reading the Revival Alliance statement above, some have asked not only who is now in charge of the restoration (Rick Joyner authorized by Revival Alliance), but also who would make the official announcement to the body of Christ if and when the restoration is complete and give Todd clearance to resume public ministry?  The answer to this question revolves around responsible apostolic protocol, and the proper answer is that only Revival Alliance would be authorized to make such an announcement.
 
            How would I reach that conclusion?  Later on, I will explain the Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team, but first let me introduce an official statement on apostolic protocol dealing with situations such as Todd Bentley's issued by the group in October:         
 
Statement from the Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team
 
Current issue:  Paul Cain and his appearance on the platform of the Lakeland Outpouring I.
 
            The background.  At one point rather early in Lakeland Outpouring I, prophet Paul Cain was invited to appear on the platform.  A few months before the Outpouring began he had prophesied publicly that such an outpouring would break out in Lakeland, and Todd Bentley felt it would be appropriate to recognize Cain on the platform and let the audience know about his accurate prophecy.  While Cain was there, he took the opportunity to announce, among other things, that he had been living a chaste life and that rumors about him were not true.
 
            This event drew criticism from many observers who knew something of Paul Cain's recent experiences.  It turned out that he had been living a secret life which involved problems with drunkenness and homosexuality.  Three Christian leaders who had been long-time friends and colleagues of Cain, namely Rick Joyner, Mike Bickle, and Jack Deere, attempted to bring correction and restoration privately, but to little avail.  Consequently, they decided that, following the precepts of Matthew 18, they had come to the place where they needed to announce Cain's moral turpitude to the church at large with the hope that this public reprimand would speed the process of his restoration.  Cain's response was to place himself under the accountability of other, self-chosen, Christian leaders who after a period of time announced that his restoration had been completed and that he was free to return to public ministry.  This was an obvious violation of apostolic protocol.  The correct apostolic protocol would have been for the three who first blew the whistle publicly to have been involved directly in any announcement to the body of Christ that Cain's restoration had been complete.  Not only were the three not involved, but they felt that the timing for such an announcement had been premature.
 
            Bentley knew something of this situation because he reportedly later commented that he had thought (wrongly!) that he had first cleared his intentions of inviting Cain to the platform with Rick Joyner.  The problem had become more complicated with Cain's public confession of having lived a chaste life, apparently denying that he ever had been involved in homosexuality.  His later explanation that he really meant that he had been chaste only since his "restoration" was not sufficient to change the impression left with the huge international television audience who heard his first words.  Our conclusion is that inviting Cain on the platform and allowing him to have the microphone was an unfortunate mistake on the part of Bentley since it was an intended or unintended violation of apostolic protocol.
 
            The principle.  What can we learn from this?  The principle is that the prescribed  restoration of a fallen leader should be undertaken only by or under the direct supervision of the apostle or apostolic group (whether or not the term "apostle" is used) with which the fallen leader has previously aligned.  The practice of the leader, himself or herself, slipping out from under a recognized accountability structure in order to select what would inevitably be a more lenient person or group of persons should be regarded by the body of Christ as unacceptable behavior.  The proper apostolic protocol should be for  those involved in the initial apostolic alignment, and those people only, to make any public announcement on the progress of the restoration or that the restoration has been completed and that the restored leader be allowed once again to resume public ministry.
 
            As a footnote, it should be recorded that in recent years Paul Cain has not been the only high-profile leader to attempt this evasion of accountability.  Others have taken similar erroneous pathways, and our opinion is that there should be a general consensus in the church that such behavior will not be repeated or tolerated in the future.
 
Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team
October 10, 2008
 
            In light of the above statement it seems clear that public reports of the progress or successful termination of Todd Bentley's restoration be made only with the explicit approval of Revival Alliance.  Any attempt to circumvent this apostolic protocol (as was done in the case of Paul Cain) should not be regarded as acceptable to the body of Christ.  Especially those of us in the charismatically-inclined evangelical stream feel deep embarrassment over a number of recent cases that have taken this deviant route.
 
The Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team
 
            As I have told you in other emails, after I moderated the meeting at which Todd Bentley was aligned and commissioned, I received over three thousand emails.  Many of them expressed dismay and concern over issues that had surfaced during the Outpouring itself and during the commissioning.  I carefully cataloged these and simultaneously pulled together a group of apostles which I called the Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team.  The team included Stephen Strader, Steve Strang, David Cannistraci, Ché Ahn, Lee Grady, Joe Askins, Jeff Beacham, Chuck Pierce, and John Arnott besides myself.  One of the first things we did was to analyze the issues raised and end up with a list of 24 important concerns, each of which we would discuss and attempt to issue a public statement to the body of Christ.
 
            We began our work and issued the statement above on apostolic protocol for the Paul Cain case, reducing the list to 23.
 
            Meanwhile, God began speaking to Dutch Sheets, whom many of you know is my pastor at Freedom Church here in Colorado Springs, and who has been recognized as an apostle to our nation.  Dutch felt that God was giving him an assignment to deal with many of the issues that I had on my list, and others as well, from a proactive, rather than a reactive posture as I had been doing. 
 
            After consulting with John Kilpatrick, Dutch approached me with the possibility of making some changes.  I gladly received his suggestions and, frankly, I was greatly relieved.  While I chaired Todd's alignment ceremony in obedience to a direct word from God, I did not have the same clear assignment from God to deal with the issues.  I had organized the Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team only because I felt it was my duty.  Dutch now has a passion for the task, while I only had a sense of responsibility.  The upshot is that I have now disbanded the Lakeland Outpouring Apostolic Team and passed the torch to Dutch Sheets, who will form a similar group.  One condition for Dutch's action was that I would agree to be a member of the new group, which I did.  I also think that a proactive stance will be much more profitable for the body of Christ long term than my reactive approach, dealing specifically with problems arising from the Lakeland Outpouring which no longer exists.
 
Conclusion
 
            That is my update for now, and probably the last one I will issue on the subject of Lakeland.   Criticisms of what I have done have been severe, but affirmations have outnumbered them maybe one hundred to one.  Only a few have been so upset that they have severed relations with me, and I deeply regret this.  But I have no regrets over what I have done in the last four months, although there are undoubtedly a few things that I could have done better.
 
            Let's move on to new horizons for the kingdom of God!
 
Blessings,
Peter

WORSHIPING AT THE ALTAR OF SUCCES

Worshiping At The Altar Of Success
by David Ravenhill www.davidravenhill.net

Though you may find it hard to believe, there is an addiction more subtle and more powerful than either drugs or pornography. It’s older than prostitution, more prevalent than alcohol, more addictive than cocaine. It doesn’t discriminate between male and female, black or white, young or old, rich or poor. Its strength is greater than all other addictions combined. It’s as rampant in the Church as it is in the world. It leaves the body unscathed but destroys the soul. The vast majority of people addicted have little if any understanding of its power or perils.
The history of the worship of success dates back to Lucifer, the rebellious archangel who wanted to relegate God to a subordinate role and take the ‘top gun’ position for himself. This desire for success soon spread throughout the earth like a cancer, reaching its pinnacle with mankind seeking to build a tower and to make for themselves a name. What a contrast in attitudes we find between Genesis 11 and 12. Chapter 11 exposes man striving for recognition, while chapter 12 we find God promising humble Abraham that He would make his name great.
A clear picture of this obsession with success can be found in the story of King Ahaz. His numerous sins had brought judgment upon himself and the nation of Judah. This punishment came through the king of Aram who carried off a great number of his people as captives. Embarrassed and distressed over his glaring defeat, the Jewish king made the monumental mistake of attributing the Aramean victory to their gods. Whatever small faith he may have had in Jehovah was completely discarded in favor of idol worship. “Because the gods of the kings of Aram helped them,” he reasoned, “I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” (II Chronicles 28:23) It seems that Ahaz was prepared to pay any price for success.
Lamentably, it seems that much of the American Church holds this same misguided logic. Pastors around the nation are flocking to follow the ‘mega church’ pattern, believing that what worked somewhere else will work for them as well. We now have the mentality that success is purely numerical. Witness what the Barna Research Group stated as the result of a recent study:
“The most discouraging study we ever conducted was one in which we attempted to identify churches in the U.S. that consistently and intelligently evaluate life transformation among the people to whom they minister. We found that very few churches - emphasis on very - measure anything beyond attendance, donations, square footage, number of programs and size of staff. None of that necessarily reflects life transformation.” (Italics mine)
How tragic! Success is now measured by attendance, donations, square footage, etc. It’s time we stopped worshipping the ‘gods of success’ and turned our gaze afresh upon the Lord, for beholding we will be changed. I think that is the definition of SUCCESS in the Kingdom of God.

WORSHIPING AT THE ALTAR OF SUCCES

Worshiping At The Altar Of Success
by David Ravenhill www.davidravenhill.net

Though you may find it hard to believe, there is an addiction more subtle and more powerful than either drugs or pornography. It’s older than prostitution, more prevalent than alcohol, more addictive than cocaine. It doesn’t discriminate between male and female, black or white, young or old, rich or poor. Its strength is greater than all other addictions combined. It’s as rampant in the Church as it is in the world. It leaves the body unscathed but destroys the soul. The vast majority of people addicted have little if any understanding of its power or perils.
The history of the worship of success dates back to Lucifer, the rebellious archangel who wanted to relegate God to a subordinate role and take the ‘top gun’ position for himself. This desire for success soon spread throughout the earth like a cancer, reaching its pinnacle with mankind seeking to build a tower and to make for themselves a name. What a contrast in attitudes we find between Genesis 11 and 12. Chapter 11 exposes man striving for recognition, while chapter 12 we find God promising humble Abraham that He would make his name great.
A clear picture of this obsession with success can be found in the story of King Ahaz. His numerous sins had brought judgment upon himself and the nation of Judah. This punishment came through the king of Aram who carried off a great number of his people as captives. Embarrassed and distressed over his glaring defeat, the Jewish king made the monumental mistake of attributing the Aramean victory to their gods. Whatever small faith he may have had in Jehovah was completely discarded in favor of idol worship. “Because the gods of the kings of Aram helped them,” he reasoned, “I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” (II Chronicles 28:23) It seems that Ahaz was prepared to pay any price for success.
Lamentably, it seems that much of the American Church holds this same misguided logic. Pastors around the nation are flocking to follow the ‘mega church’ pattern, believing that what worked somewhere else will work for them as well. We now have the mentality that success is purely numerical. Witness what the Barna Research Group stated as the result of a recent study:
“The most discouraging study we ever conducted was one in which we attempted to identify churches in the U.S. that consistently and intelligently evaluate life transformation among the people to whom they minister. We found that very few churches - emphasis on very - measure anything beyond attendance, donations, square footage, number of programs and size of staff. None of that necessarily reflects life transformation.” (Italics mine)
How tragic! Success is now measured by attendance, donations, square footage, etc. It’s time we stopped worshipping the ‘gods of success’ and turned our gaze afresh upon the Lord, for beholding we will be changed. I think that is the definition of SUCCESS in the Kingdom of God.

THE PROPHETS TOWER

The Prophets Tower
by Samuel Chadwick

’I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me.’ Habakkuk 2:1.

Habakkuk is the skeptic among the prophets. His prophecy opens with a passionate remonstrance with God. The times in which he lived were sadly out of joint. He looked for God and found chaos; for righteousness and found confusion. Western Asia was being swept by Chaldean armies. Judah was helpless. Prayer availed nothing.

The prophet’s heart was sore. He had hoped, believed, and declared that God would come with swift and miraculous power to overthrow their enemies and deliver His people. He cried unto the Lord, and there was no sign of His appearing. The enemy marched forward unhindered, invincible. Then he shook his fist at the Almighty, and demanded an explanation. The facts he faced made him a skeptic; for skeptic and prophet are both seers. They both faced facts.

The difference is that one finds his way to a tower, and the other does not. One beholds the confusion, and the other rises above it. They both gaze sorrowfully upon the scene of dust, disaster, and din, but the prophet gazes till he sees through it; and he discerns the eternal realities beyond the temporary confusion. That is how prophets are made. It was in the year King Uzziah died that Isaiah saw the Lord, and it was in the broken heart of love betrayed that Hosea found the secret of God’s yearning for sinners. How Long? And Why?

The prophet’s problem is summed up in questions that are with us still. How long? Why? Wherefore? How long shall I cry, and Thou wilt not hear? Why dost Thou show me iniquity, and cause me to look on perverseness? Wherefore lookest Thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest Thy peace, when the wicked swalloweth up the man that is more righteous than he?

How long shall the oppressed and afflicted appeal in vain? Why are the righteous so helpless against the forces of iniquity? How is it that Heaven’s prospering blessing seems so often to be given to the wrong people? When Carlyle and Froude discussed the affairs of the world, Froude remarked that God did not seem to interfere much in the affairs of men, and that he could only believe in a God who did something. To this Carlyle grunted, ’He does nothing?’ Stand! Watch! Wait!

Salvation comes to the man who has a tower. There is no solution in the thick of the confusion. The seer must get above the crowd. He cannot keep his feet in the seething mass of a shouting, screaming, blaspheming multitude. He must ascend. Like his Lord, he must be high and lifted up. He must be detached if he would understand. Only by getting above the scene can he truly see. In the tower he finds standing-ground for his feet, and control of himself. No voice is without signification, but when they are all heard at once the signification is lost. He must get away from the clamor, that he may give God a chance. With deliberation he must set himself to stand, watch and wait. He climbs that he may see.

Serenity must not be secured by shutting the eyes and hardening the heart. They are false prophets who cry peace when there is no peace. The tower is a point of vantage from which the anomalies and tragedies, that stagger the faith of man, can be seen more clearly and felt more keenly. His vision gains in comprehensiveness and perspective. History in fragments makes God a liar, but the broad sweep of centuries witness to His power.

Eternity rebukes our impatience, and teaches us the secret of tranquil faith. God reigns. He may be invisible, but He is not indifferent. The lesson of history is that the just live, and right ultimately prevails. Things puffed up may loom large, but they do not last. Through all the confusion and contradictions God works to plan. He has His appointed time. It will not fail, neither will it be late. Though it tarry, wait for it, for it will surely come. In the tower men learn that the just must triumph, and right – not might – prevail.

The Wrong Telephone
The weakness of modern life is that it has no tower. We have many politicians, but no prophet. When Lord Rosebery was Prime Minister he made a speech in which he said all a statesman could do was to keep his ear to the telephone of public opinion and carry its wishes into law. That explains much. The most colossal failures in modern politics are due to the fact that the men had no tower. They put their ear to the wrong telephone.

The Church suffers from the same cause. Ecclesiastics wrangle over property and privilege. The Church is in the thick of the world’s activities. There never was so much perspiring haste to hurry up the Kingdom of Heaven. We have no time for towers. The drains are bad, and the devil is everywhere; so the Church hustles and jostles with the rest. Prayer is abandoned. Our fathers imagined Satan was to be conquered with weapons not carnal, but we are a practical generation and we find it handier to fight the world with its own weapons.

To the tower all ye fuming, perspiring, fussy unbelievers who bear the name of Christ! Take your stand upon the eternal realities, look out upon the history of the world, wait to see what God will speak. There you will learn the secret of God’s eternity, and receive of His quietness and strength. The tower makes the prophet. It is the place of vision, the place of wisdom, the place of power, and the place of song.

WHY MIKE GUGLIELMUCCI LIED TO THE WORLD

Why Mike Guglielmucci Lied to the World
by Lee Grady (Charisma Editor) www.themordecaiproject.com

The Australian musician who wrote “Healer” needed his own healing from a porn addiction. His tragic story should challenge us to embrace purity.
I play the song “Healer” all the time in my car. I can’t get the tune out of my head. You probably know the words:
I believe You’re my healer
I believe You are all I need
I believe You’re my portion
I believe You’re more than enough for me
Jesus You’re all I need.
Thousands of churches have been singing the popular worship chorus since Australian youth pastor Michael Guglielmucci wrote it in 2007. The Aussie worship band Hillsong United has made it a global anthem, and it’s especially popular among people battling illness. But the song took on a darker meaning in August when Guglielmucci admitted it was part of an elaborate hoax he created.
"When we sing ‘Healer’ from now on, let’s remember that Jesus wasn’t lying when He promised to heal our broken souls.”
Christians around the world felt shocked and betrayed when the 29-year-old minister admitted he had faked cancer for two years in a strange ploy to hide his secret pornography addiction. The fiasco has become one of the biggest scandals to rock Australia’s Christian community in years.
In a tearful apology aired on Australian television several weeks ago, Guglielmucci said he faked symptoms and wrote bogus e-mails from doctors. He sat in waiting rooms alone while his family assumed he was getting treatment. He appeared in church concerts with an oxygen tube in his nose, deceiving thousands of mostly teenage fans into believing he needed a physical healing.
This talented but tormented young man eventually trapped himself in his own deceptive web.
Church leaders asked him to confess his lies to the police, since he used the story to raise funds. He was stripped of his ministerial credentials and is now receiving psychiatric help. Aussie church leaders, including pastor Brian Houston of Hillsong Church in Sydney, had to make public statements to calm distraught churchgoers who feel betrayed and, in some cases, defrauded of their money.
I can’t begin to imagine the pain that Guglielmucci’s parents feel. (His father is an Assemblies of God pastor who read his son’s apology to a stunned congregation outside Adelaide). I am sure trust has been severely damaged among members of Guglielmucci’s family. But how do we respond when a leader fails us like this?
Thankfully, in Guglielmucci’s case, he did not justify his behavior. His apology was read in churches all over Australia. He told a news reporter: “I’m so sorry not just for lying to my friends and family even about a sickness, but I’m sorry for a life of saying I was something when I’m not. From this day on I’m telling the truth.”
On behalf of American Christians who (1) have endured our own share of religious scandals and (2) still believe that Jesus Christ heals today, I want to say to Michael Guglielmucci: We forgive you.
I’m not excusing his behavior. It’s possible he will go to prison for fraud. But at least he’s not denying his sin. And honest confession is the first step to true restoration. I pray Guglielmucci will embrace the process so he can not only preach the truth of Christ but also live the truth inside.
This sad drama from Down Under reveals a global problem that the church must face. Pornography is eating our culture alive—and it is affecting ministers along with everyone else.
Guglielmucci admitted that he began to weave his false story of illness in order to mask his addiction. Sometimes he felt so guilty after looking at porn that he couldn’t go to work—so he called in sick. He dug himself deeper every day. His little lies grew to become a monstrous con job.
This man’s pretend sickness was caused by a disease of the soul that plagues millions of people today, including many Christian men who wear masks to church to hide their shame. They haven’t stuck tubes in their noses or broadcast their lies to teenage audiences like Guglielmucci did, but they are lying just the same to cover up their lust. They, too, need to come clean.
If you are struggling with a porn addiction, I challenge you to take a bold step and confess your sin to your pastor, your spouse or a trusted Christian friend. Don’t hide any longer. Don’t live a lie. Lust does not have to control you. Jesus has provided a way of escape. Don’t wait until your sin is exposed; instead, expose your sin to the light of God’s holiness.
James 5:16 summarizes this simple formula: “Confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. (NASB)” Those ancient words still work today.
True healing is available from Jesus, not only for the victims of cancer but also for all those men like Mike Guglielmucci who are battling sexual addictions. When we sing “Healer” from now on, let’s remember that Jesus wasn’t lying when He promised to heal our broken souls.

A FULFILLED PROPHECY

A Fulfilled Prophecy
by R. Loren Sandford www.newsongfellowship.org

November 30, 2007 I posted the following "Prophetic Moments". In light of the crisis unfolding right now in our nation's financial system, I felt it appropriate to re-post at least key excerpts from it now today:

"RIDING THE ROLLER COASTER - For several years I've been warning believers that the kind of security and stability many of us have known in America during the last half of the twentieth century has ended....American believers have placed their faith in their prosperity (and thought it was God) to a degree most us have been blind to. This will be tested in days to come by the fires of instability and turmoil. The shaking that has come upon us will intensify and expose everything in us that has not been built upon a true foundation in Him....Having said this, I do not believe that America’s economy will collapse, but instability and uncertainty will get much worse. We will be like riders on a roller coaster, filled with fear because of the speed and violence of the changes of elevation and direction, when the truth is that for believers the ride is perfectly safe, fastened to the tracks in such a way as to ensure safety....The roller coaster of material instability is upon us and will remain, but for the believer the danger is only an illusion sent to produce fear. Fear shuts off the flow of the gospel and cripples the ministry of the body of Christ. Only true apprehension of the Father’s perfect love and a choice to have faith in His faithfulness form the antidote to the fear that threatens to overwhelm so many of us. In days to come we must learn to rely solely on our Lord for provision rather than the world’s lost stability."

To read the entire posting as I wrote it in November, 2007, click HERE. In "Purifying the Prophetic" I wrote that the true religion of America is not Christianity, but recycled Baalism. The cult of Baal in Bible times focused on material prosperity, the fulfillment of self. This focus, inspired by the same wicked principality, has dominated our American culture and has invaded the doctrines and practices of the church, drawing us away from the selfless message of the cross and installing prosperity as an article of faith. We are now experiencing the hand of God shaking this form of idolatry to its foundation. This is the fulfillment of what the Lord told me a year ago.

God has not given up on America. Not yet. This is why we are in no danger of imminent collapse, although some very difficult times lie before us. In 586 B.C. Israel's stubborn apostasy led God, in effect, to give them up to utter destruction, although a restoration came later when destruction produced its good fruit. We are not yet at that point - and America is not Israel. We might be more like Sodom and Gommorhah that would have been saved if even ten righteous could be found in them. Many more than ten righteous dwell in this nation and cry out in repentance for our sins. God still listens.

The shaking in coming months, however, will be violent. Never in my lifetime of 57 years have we seen such a stream of natural disasters impact this nation and the world. My sense is that we have seen only about a third of what is to come in terms of hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and so on. Some of these will impact regions previously considered safe. These disasters in nature are not the judgment of God, but rather the inevitable reaping of what we have sown in sin. Earth literally groans under the burden of it in the same way that when Cain murdered his brother Abel, his blood cried out to God from the ground. The financial meltdown we now see unfolding, however, is a different matter. I believe this is the hand of God directly shaking that in which we have placed our faith. Baal must be de-throned, beginning in the churches.

We must restore a faith like the apostle Paul's. I Corinthians 2:2, "For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." He didn't die to make us prosperous. He died that we might die with Him, the old self laid to rest and a new self raised up in His image, reflecting His own nature and living it out in the world - and best of all, living in the Father's embrace. It's time for a radical adjustment of focus for our lives and spirituality.

Finally, as those in world around us become more fearful, they will need to know that a God in heaven loves them. They will be vulnerable to the gospel as never before. We must be ready to minister the kingdom of God to them. We cannot do that if we ourselves walk in the same level of fear as they do, or if we allow ourselves to be angry with God for material setbacks and financial difficulties. He has not let us down. We've let ourselves down. This is the time to press into intimacy with the Father who loves us and then to share our hope - our true hope - with those made ready to listen.

A FULFILLED PROPHECY

A Fulfilled Prophecy
by R. Loren Sandford www.newsongfellowship.org

November 30, 2007 I posted the following "Prophetic Moments". In light of the crisis unfolding right now in our nation's financial system, I felt it appropriate to re-post at least key excerpts from it now today:

"RIDING THE ROLLER COASTER - For several years I've been warning believers that the kind of security and stability many of us have known in America during the last half of the twentieth century has ended....American believers have placed their faith in their prosperity (and thought it was God) to a degree most us have been blind to. This will be tested in days to come by the fires of instability and turmoil. The shaking that has come upon us will intensify and expose everything in us that has not been built upon a true foundation in Him....Having said this, I do not believe that America’s economy will collapse, but instability and uncertainty will get much worse. We will be like riders on a roller coaster, filled with fear because of the speed and violence of the changes of elevation and direction, when the truth is that for believers the ride is perfectly safe, fastened to the tracks in such a way as to ensure safety....The roller coaster of material instability is upon us and will remain, but for the believer the danger is only an illusion sent to produce fear. Fear shuts off the flow of the gospel and cripples the ministry of the body of Christ. Only true apprehension of the Father’s perfect love and a choice to have faith in His faithfulness form the antidote to the fear that threatens to overwhelm so many of us. In days to come we must learn to rely solely on our Lord for provision rather than the world’s lost stability."

To read the entire posting as I wrote it in November, 2007, click HERE. In "Purifying the Prophetic" I wrote that the true religion of America is not Christianity, but recycled Baalism. The cult of Baal in Bible times focused on material prosperity, the fulfillment of self. This focus, inspired by the same wicked principality, has dominated our American culture and has invaded the doctrines and practices of the church, drawing us away from the selfless message of the cross and installing prosperity as an article of faith. We are now experiencing the hand of God shaking this form of idolatry to its foundation. This is the fulfillment of what the Lord told me a year ago.

God has not given up on America. Not yet. This is why we are in no danger of imminent collapse, although some very difficult times lie before us. In 586 B.C. Israel's stubborn apostasy led God, in effect, to give them up to utter destruction, although a restoration came later when destruction produced its good fruit. We are not yet at that point - and America is not Israel. We might be more like Sodom and Gommorhah that would have been saved if even ten righteous could be found in them. Many more than ten righteous dwell in this nation and cry out in repentance for our sins. God still listens.

The shaking in coming months, however, will be violent. Never in my lifetime of 57 years have we seen such a stream of natural disasters impact this nation and the world. My sense is that we have seen only about a third of what is to come in terms of hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and so on. Some of these will impact regions previously considered safe. These disasters in nature are not the judgment of God, but rather the inevitable reaping of what we have sown in sin. Earth literally groans under the burden of it in the same way that when Cain murdered his brother Abel, his blood cried out to God from the ground. The financial meltdown we now see unfolding, however, is a different matter. I believe this is the hand of God directly shaking that in which we have placed our faith. Baal must be de-throned, beginning in the churches.

We must restore a faith like the apostle Paul's. I Corinthians 2:2, "For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." He didn't die to make us prosperous. He died that we might die with Him, the old self laid to rest and a new self raised up in His image, reflecting His own nature and living it out in the world - and best of all, living in the Father's embrace. It's time for a radical adjustment of focus for our lives and spirituality.

Finally, as those in world around us become more fearful, they will need to know that a God in heaven loves them. They will be vulnerable to the gospel as never before. We must be ready to minister the kingdom of God to them. We cannot do that if we ourselves walk in the same level of fear as they do, or if we allow ourselves to be angry with God for material setbacks and financial difficulties. He has not let us down. We've let ourselves down. This is the time to press into intimacy with the Father who loves us and then to share our hope - our true hope - with those made ready to listen.