James MacDonald, founder of Harvest Bible Chapel in greater Chicago, who was recently fired under a cloud of financial abuse, was allegedly being paid nearly a million dollars per year in regular salary, had access to approximately a million more in discretionary spending, and is currently owed $2.6 million in deferred compensation by the Maybe its because youre a doctor and have such a desire to see people healed. Im far removed from this situation, but saddened by it nonetheless. I think that this message has relevance to many situations today, including the present political situation. Im disappointed in your timing. I believe Lina did do the best she could at the time. God has this situation in his hands he wasnt surprised by it. Subscribers receive full access to the archives. Faith is Christ living. Matthew 7:15 Lina, What you are talking about is protecting abusers at the expense of those they have abused and betrayed which, unfortunately, happens far too often. In another incident at Camp Harvest, MacDonald reportedly stabbed a photo of a former Harvest pastor with a butter knife. Study-7:00 PM. On his radio show, Muller later aired what sounded like clips of MacDonald making harsh comments toward media who had covered the story. May God be glorified through this. God has been known to use even a donkey and a false pagan prophet to speak His word. The Right's New Lie: The Left Gave Us Toxic Masculinity, The Harvest Bible Chapel Scandal in a Nutshell (And Why You Should Care). Conversions credited to women evangelists sharing the good news one-on-one in conversations. Have you sought the Lord in prayer and fasting?Exposing sin is not hurtful then you would be against every prophet in the Bible. Woah there Nellie! I am sorry that you experienced this fear. Harvest, which Roys says is $42 million in debt, is suing the Evangelical Christian Credit Union for not refinancing five of its mortgages. Anil. www. God is sifting His church! But, thats my opinion. What does the Bible say about debt? My heart breaks for the people that have been hurt by this on both sides. Jesus is still the great healer and restorer. 2023 ChurchLeaders.com, All rights reserved. Nice to hear from you again! The founder of a Chicago megachurch has been fired as its leader. "Following a lengthy season of review, reflection, and prayerful. And I wont stand in the way of Christs work. 1 Timothy 5:20 I was brushed off. An eight-month investigation into pastor James MacDonald and Harvest Bible Chapel, his Chicago-area megachurch, culminated last week with the publication of a World Magazine article by Julie Roys. Lina, Even if the criticism in the letter had been unwarranted, this response is a huge red warning sign. is it the pastors doing? Will those men now be known for their mark as sinful followers of James? When I asked questions at the Harvest I attended I was told to be careful what I read on the internet. Matthew 7:15: Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheeps clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. And come together in prayer, fasting and humility before Jesus that He enables us to be the people He died for. After he was treated and had surgery he was totally different person: quick to get angry all the time, control freak, and mean.there are things that we dont know. It took months to get over the hurt he caused my husband and I. We need to trust Him. Plus Lina Abujamra on Why She Left Harvest Bible Chapel | Wondering Eagle, How Christians Care for One Another When Their Leaders Fall BCNN1 WP, How Christians Care for One Another When Their Leaders Fall Urban Christian News, How Christians Care for One Another When Their Leaders Fall BCNN2, How Christians Care for One Another When Their Leaders Fall | BCNN1 Black Christian News Network, From Mars Hill to Harvest: Hope for a Wounded Church Bible Talk. For a different church model, see My Dream Church https://sites.google.com/site/mydreamchurch/. Often it was the leadership that lost track and influenced the group. If hearing voices together of those who have truth helps, then now is the time to speak. You are joined with so many ex harvesters that were wounded deeply by what became a toxic culture at HBC. FEAR is a liar, pray for them and never let offense take you out, that was the enemys plan! The beloved drink is both an attraction and a generational divide. I have replied, I would have probably, as most have done, put my head in the sand and carried on doing the work God gave me to do. Ross, Ross, According to Harvest, their agreement resolves all claims and issues and releases them from future legal matters over the arbitration terms. maybe its time for all of us to wake up. Lina has every right to speak her truth . Thank you for sharing your story and for doing so in the right spirit. When you started, you (and others) mentioned the cult of personality that James benefitted from. Pastor James MacDonald of the Chicago-based seven-multicampus Harvest Bible Church, issued an apology statement on Sunday saying that the board of the megachurch unanimously agreed to lift a discipline ban from three excommunicated elders. We never gave up on God because He never gives up on us. Sometimes being good will require us to say harsh things. 34You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? 35The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. Sports Betting Hits a New High: A Crisis in the Making? It quickly became one of the 50 largest churches in the country, with over 12,000 members and eight campuses in the Chicago area. The current leadership at Harvest Bible Chapel including Luke and Landon and Rick and Mo and Jeff and the CFO are infected by the cancer of fear and control. This comment to Harvest and James is your opinion and you have every right to it. We sincerely thank you for your prayers, your support, and your patience as we work together to restore a trust in leadership, a humility to surrender to biblical authority, and a firm resolve to move forward as a church family., Subscribe to CT
Do you think God approves of pastors who deliberately scam their congregation for years, use his name for money and abuse people for the Almighty Dollar? Where there is no vision and freedom the people perish. Ken Morgan so you continue to deny the evidence for a creator by your superior intellect ? Good word, my sister. :) I met my husband about 5 yrs ago and he had been attending faith community church for a bit. At my former church, I reached the point where I couldnt, in good conscience, stay because of the amount of bull-headed spiritual abuse that was going on combined with covering-up of sexual abuse. Data Coordination. We are thankful and humbled by His care and protection of our family. As painful as it is, all that has been hidden must be revealed. God help those who cant see their need to be set free or judge those whove found it in Christ Jesus. Is many people for years have tried to bring things to light privately. Wake up this tragedy has been in the works a long time. I pray for the leaders. While tens of thousands flocked to campus, school officials met in a storage closet to make decisions that would honor what is happening.. James has all the characteristics of a false teacher. I keep coming back to this part and I identify so much with this part. While tens of thousands flocked to campus, school officials met in a storage closet to make decisions that would honor what is happening.. My response, Why? The news came less than a week after another update from Julie Roys, a defendant in the lawsuit and the writer responsible for the World investigation, who has continued to release evidence against MacDonald and call for his resignation. I have great empathy and sensitivity toward them. You do not know if she fasted or not, nor do you know if the Lord Himself brought her to this revelation. I always wondered why you left but after reading The Elephants Debt I figured I knew why. Truth is truth. Sometimes they will require being nice. The World article on the topic says that after Secrest was fired, "he was stunned, because his contract stipulated that he could be fired only for . or is it the congregations fault for being weak and gullible? @Donna Is it possible that it is God Himself who is exposing these misdeeds? You take feed back to heart and you use it as growth points. Lina, to see how the Lord has blessed your ministry these past few years is absolutely amazing! Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand., And even JMac was right when he quoted 1 Corinthians 16:13: The kindest thing one can do is to cut out and expose the cancer to death. Some women were still in the middle of the trauma and were still currently attending Harvest. Swicegood released a statement saying that much of what has been alleged "is simply false, misleading and hateful." He added that the . Because Jeff is still lying to peoples faces with a smug grin as recently as Saturday night. Shes not the only one there are many. Following the initial World report, MacDonald announced he would be taking a sabbatical, but suggested he may still occasionally preach at a Harvest-affiliated church in Florida. So Grace is only for MacDonald and no one else not the elders he excommunicated, not the numerous employees who were fired or kids who were expelled from HCA, not the pastor who was fired in FLORIDA and had his church taken away I would ask you SERIOUSLY??!! Do You Really Have to Go to Church Every Sunday? You too felt you had to leave Harvest and what was your point of conviction on having to leave the Church ,that we all sacrificed so much for! My coworker who was Catholic and going through a painful divorce, was led to Christ by me. Harvest Bible Chapel has owned its mistakes and endured to become a happier and healthier church, whose members recently pledged financially, in their walk/work for Christ, and in their. God is a for-others being he can not lie, therefore, he can not be for Himself. The first one is in the magazine Relevant and looks at the allegations of Anne Green being inappropriately touched by James MacDonald. God IS in control and knows what he is doing. I am saddened by it. Fear is never a godly way of governing. Thank you for having the courage to write what you did and for your ministry Lina. Why if it wasnt really a real sinful mess would so many in leadership just exit and give up what was a big part of our lives and our kids lives? The good intentions of our ministry partnership with Harvest Chicago have been overshadowed by these developments, he said. I am sure that was very hard for her to share . Its been over a year and a lot has changed at Harvest and a lot sill needs to change. I want to thank you for having the courage to add your testimony to the voices of those who have been abused by HBC. Because she is helping expose evil and proving that is is deep and wide and on going. Now its a big business with Harvest all over the states. I didnt want to upset James. (It wouldve done no good to tell them how they erred when previous months didnt get it done.) The word of God and the flock were only mentioned at the end of the long list. Thank you for this post. Because there are others that need to also be held responsible. Quit pointing fingers, justifying why and stirring the pot. I struggle with the fear of man myself. MacDonald later admitted doing so but claimed it was all in good fun and misinterpreted. Then the board announced its executive committee would be resigning over the next few months. Gods Timing Is ALWAYS Perfect! Perhaps my fear had its legitimate reasons. That is who God truly cares about. Did they not find that video shocking? Gods hand is on Harvest and the dark is continuing to be shown. Welcome to Ohio. Do not judge the timing, Gods timing is Always Perfect. I am now going to read the rest of your post. Fear can lead to many sins. While I am personally removed from the situation, my brother and sister-in-law attend a Harvest Church and there has been a lot of pain through all of this. The Church of Jesus Christ is not the organization or nonprofits we create, but the men and women that God calls and saves by the sacrifice of His Son. Let us examine ourselves for unconfessed sin and seek to live in fear of the Lord lest bitterness overtake us.. How important it is to pray pray pray and check on our leaders also of their growth in Christ and what our church mission is and to stay biblical, not political but biblical. Ive been blessed by your teaching and Im wondering if I wouldnt have heard your teaching as much had you stayed longer at Harvest. Thank you for sharing! The higher the leadership level was, the more protective of James they were. Open your eyes and feel the heat of the refiners fire. Jesus may be truly calling people to stay, and rebuild Harvest Bible Chapel. Vicki Stevenson, I have not read your blogs for some time but the Holy Spirit caused me to stop and read this post. I also assumed that because of the size of Harvest, those closest to you would reach out. Their letter covered MacDonalds self-promotionlove of moneydomineering and bullying abusive speech[and] outbursts of anger.. Wounds take a great deal of time to heal and its appropriate to share them and warn others to avoid similar church abuse. Pray and console those whose faith has weakened from this. Read the commandment in 1 Timothy 5:19-20 on the correction of Elders who sin, so that other Elders will be afraid to continue sinning against the flock. She was obedient to Christ. Its so very difficult but This is Gods battle and I only need to be obedient not the fixer. The devil may win some battles, but we know God ultimately wins the war. I feared offending people. It is loving to tell the truth. I pray that the sincere, Christ honoring followers humbly seek Him and His will for them individually in relation to this circumstance, in addition to His will for the church as a whole. DIRECTIONS & INFO | . It was engaging at times. You are completely right on! One elder resigned over this, after asking to see the finances and being overruled by the rest of the board. It truly is the Lords work. I was wrong in hindsight. If you personally were not in a position to be damaged by James, do not judge those who were susceptible to the wrath damage of James. When is God pleased at his church? I regret my own weaknesses, my love for the approval of others. I dont really care what someone else thinks. 2 Thumbs Way up to you my sister in Christ, for being open about your experience there, which more people than you know have also been through! Dont stop trusting or loving. Is this an informed opinion? My precious, from a far, friend who I have watched since your first speaking engagement at Harvest. thanks, I too visited Harvest. I didnt want to be rebellious against authority. Then, not ten minutes later Mike Dunswood told us the Elders were told ( presumably by the XLT, which included Jeff Donaldson) all parents were notified about Paxton Singer and his sexpoitation issue in Jan 2018. Oh my how that resonated with me and the experiences my beloved and I have had with churches in the UK. Im not sure what is going on with me honestly. A defamation lawsuit by the church against the website, and Julie Roys, a reporter for the bi-weekly Christian World magazine, who investigated Harvest, was dropped last month. While regret cant look back, we now live in a different era than we did four years ago. In early 2018, reporter Julie Roys, who writes for the conservative evangelical WORLD Magazine, began conducting background research for an article, which was published eight months later under the headline Hard Times at Harvest. Amy. The collaboration of many witnesses should help the leadership at Harvest (or any church) know the depth of a problem. I never attended HBC except for the one time when we visited several years ago and had to sit out in the foyer as the music was blasted out too loud. I was wrong. When you are in a position where fear dictates the position you cannot speak out while under that. Notify me by email when the comment gets approved. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus, for the law of the spirit of life (in Christ Jesus) has set me free from the law of sin and death.. Thats when eight former elders sent a letter to the sitting elder board, warning them that MacDonald was disqualified for office, she said in a response posted Wednesday. I love you and our Lird. I just want you to know that what you did at HBC mattered, and your presence is greatly missed. Unhappy to see you did not make the approved list. 1. We attended Harvest for 16 years before we left little over 4 years ago. It describes participative worship thats all the music you need. You are loved. All I have to say Lina is thank you! OnFebruary 13, the elders announcedJames MacDonald had been fired. He spoke highly of you, and since then, I have occasionally prayed for you regarding your time and experience at HBC. Besides, pastors charismatic enough to gain large followings frequently have the ability to effectively deflect criticism and keep their elder board firmly on their side. These things happen in small churches too. Thank you for sharing. Jesus desires mercy and not sacrifice. Harvest Bible Chapel We're here to glorify God through the fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). Harvest, an off-shoot of an eponymous megachurch in Illinois, was sued for. While many in the congregation were willing to give it a second chance, some members raised concerns about many of these individuals closeness to MacDonald, and their willingness to cover for him for so long. Persecution is supposed to come from the world with the devil behind it, as Jesus said. Since I know I am capable of the worst sin, I am choosing to show grace and praying fervently. I will only say that if it is right and important to address a culture of fear within the church, it is equally important to address the same for our country. Based on just the first few paragraphs, I hear you! Your two posts make no sense I hope you get some sense and realize people in Church are not infallible only Jesus! Seeing this in your personality it is understandable to me that at first you revered James correction and fell into compliance. Its hard no impossible- to do everything with the right motivation. (Matthew 12:33-37). She approached this with sensitivity, wisdom and grace. School of the Bible at 9:00am Wednesdaysat 7:00pm Give Online Contact Us 10088 N. Highway 99 Stockton, CA 95212 office@hbcstockton.org (209) 931-9548 Copyright 2023, Harvest Bible Church. The church is to be a living organism for the cause of Christ and no other. Fear that your leaving would damage those you ministered to. At the start of the year, elders stated that his primary focus has transitioned from building our ministries to securing a healthy succession that sets all our ministries up to flourish in the next generation.. Just how historically reliable are the Gospels and Acts if even prominent evangelical and conservative Protestant Bible scholars believe that fictional stories may exist in these books? I wasnt happy with that but it had to be done! http://www.issendai.com/psychology/sick-systems.html. James could have easily prayed, [] There are a couple of other reads that came to my attention this evening related to Harvest Bible Chapel that I wanted to make people aware. Thankful for the freedom you have found and are willing to speak up. Another church on The Lord's Way is on its way out. Thank you for displaying what an honest and vocal Godly woman can look like. Also note how the apostle Paul called out Peter publicly when Peter was indulging in hypocrisy! I then called an elder who was a friend and someone I trusted. I have my own hurt of how certain situations were handled with me through the 20s ministry Then soon after that, the 30s ministry, production ministry and even the womens ministry on multiple occasions. He clearly told me that they send out reminders to give. Abusers groom their community and a spiritually abusive church grooms its members to not rock the boat, to gaslight themselves, and to leave quietly if they should ever refuse to submit to abuse. and pro football. For me, I would like to apologize for not reaching out to you when I finally realized that you had left HBC. He was a very good speaker and teacher of the Bible but was forced to resign from our church a few years back. I didnt want to upset James. Then, on February 8th, Roys revealed material obtained under subpoena that backed up critics claims that Harvest Bible Chapel inappropriately took money from HBF. By HBC bring things to light privately the depth of a former Harvest pastor with a knife... Been known to use even a donkey and a generational divide covered the story grace and praying fervently its... Lost track and influenced the group you to know that what you did not make the approved list not what... 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