Former pastor of Orlando's Summit Megachurch, Isaac Hunter, commits suicide

[yodie]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-isaac-hunter-suicide-20131210,0,7159568

Isaac Hunter, the troubled son of Northland Church Pastor Joel Hunter, has committed suicide, according to an email sent to members of his former church on Tuesday.

"We found out today that Isaac took his life," says the email sent by Darling Murray, a coordinator at Summit Church in Orlando. "We are obviously deeply deeply devastated and saddened beyond words by this news. The tears keep coming and coming as we mourn. We are praying for his family and this congregation as we walk through this together."

Officials of Northland, a Church Distributed, said they are still awaiting the police report on Isaac Hunter's death, but the church confirmed his death in a statement posted on the Northland website.


"By now you may have heard that Pastor Joel and Becky's son Isaac Hunter died today. All of us are grieving for the Hunter family, and we will deeply miss Isaac. Words cannot express the sorrow we're feeling," said the statement by Vernon Rainwater, a Northland pastor. "We love this family and are so grateful for the impact they have had on each of our lives. I have loved Isaac since he was a child, and I know this ... Isaac loved Jesus. And we are assured of his continuing relationship with Christ now in heaven."

Summit Church officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Isaac Hunter, 36, resigned on Nov. 26, 2012, from the megachurch he founded after he admitted to other Summit pastors that he had engaged in an affair with a staff member. His wife of 13 years, Rhonda Hunter, subsequently filed a domestic-violence petition against Hunter, describing him as unstable, erratic and suicidal.

In court documents, family members said they found an undated suicide note addressed to Summit Church leaders.

"I would very much like to be remembered as a person who loved his children, his parents, his brothers, and his best friends — well, while I could," the note said. "I fear I will love them better in my absence. As I have become what I never wished to be, a burden on those I love the most."

According to Orange County court documents, Isaac Hunter filed for divorce from Rhonda Hunter on Oct. 4, 2013.

Isaac, Joel Hunter's middle child, founded Summit Church in 2002 from a youth ministry at his father's church. Starting with 300 members, Summit became one of the fastest-growing churches in Central Florida with five locations and an estimated congregation of 5,000.

In her domestic-violence petition, Rhonda Hunter said her husband abused drugs and alcohol and had guns in the house. Isaac Hunter denied the allegations that he was abusive to his wife or a danger to his three children.

 

[Keshieshimmer]

Wow how sad! And a father to three! Poor babies.

 

[VirtuousGal]

Oh my gosh! What is in the air or water this year? I definitely have had my bouts with sadness and depression, but I thank God I never had the urge to take my life. I wonder what is going on? Satan is going hard, hard, hard. I mean so many suicides, both in and out of the church. RIP and prayers to his family and loved ones he's left behind.

 

[Shimmie]

This makes me think of what happened to Judas, after he betrayed Jesus.

The guilt drove him to take his life.

Perhaps this Pastor was suffering from depression and never got treatment nor an intervention for it. The struggle was in his soul.

If nothing more, 'leaders' in Ministry need more prayers and support than those they pray for. It is too often taken for granted that leaders are invincible and do not need an intervention along with intercession for their strength to not fail.

I pray for his family, that they will heal as they grieve. That they will not lose hope nor faith in God, who is still God no matter what, and He loves them each deeply, beyond their pain.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen and Amen.

 

[yodie]

What can you say anymore. It's so sad. I pray that it doesn't become the norm and people become desensitized to it.

 

[Shimmie]

What can you say anymore. It's so sad. I pray that it doesn't become the norm and people become desensitized to it.

I agree yodie... I agree

The only way to not become desensitized is to allow the Holy Spirit to show us what's going on... to become more sensitive to Him and His voice upon our hearts. We have to begin looking 'past' the pulpit and see what God is trying to show us in the lives of these leaders. They are not invincible.

When I think of how powerful the Prophet Elijah was; this man was able to call fire down from Heaven (If God be God.... ) --- Yet this same man, ran for his life in terrible fright from Jezebel because she threatened his life.

We are called to pray for our leaders... all of them. This here is suicide prevention 101...

 

[Nice & Wavy]

Let me just say that the attacks are great...

There are many pastors who really love the Lord and really love God's people and the work that they are doing can be quite overwhelming. Sometimes the hours are 80-90 hours per week, especially when you can't get enough congregants to help with things in the church. Most of these things fall on the pastor's shoulders. In addition, their family lives are hurt because they aren't at home that often and the support may not be there. Amongst other things I won't even get into.

People really need to pray for their pastors....well, pastors in general. It is so needed...

 

[Iwanthealthyhair67]

slightly off topic

This reminds me of last nights service, we were rebuked for not getting in the word like we should.....once person actually got up and said they didn't feel like they needed to do too much because the pastors had more 'time' than she had.

The bottom line is that we are all in this together, we are suppose to be bearing one another's burden, lifting each other up in prayer, each joint supplying.

Let me just say that the attacks are great...

There are many pastors who really love the Lord and really love God's people and the work that they are doing can be quite overwhelming. Sometimes the hours are 80-90 hours per week, especially when you can't get enough congregants to help with things in the church. Most of these things fall on the pastor's shoulders. In addition, their family lives are hurt because they aren't at home that often and the support may not be there. Amongst other things I won't even get into.

People really need to pray for their pastors....well, pastors in general. It is so needed...

 

[Iwanthealthyhair67]

very sad news indeed, the devil will make you feel that there is no way out, please don't believe the lie

 

[Shimmie]

Let me just say that the attacks are great...

There are many pastors who really love the Lord and really love God's people and the work that they are doing can be quite overwhelming. Sometimes the hours are 80-90 hours per week, especially when you can't get enough congregants to help with things in the church. Most of these things fall on the pastor's shoulders. In addition, their family lives are hurt because they aren't at home that often and the support may not be there. Amongst other things I won't even get into.

People really need to pray for their pastors....well, pastors in general. It is so needed...

Amen... the 'attacks' upon Pastors and other Church Leaders are very great and it takes the love and faithful supporters to support them.

Every 'Head' requires a 'Neck'.... there's no way around it. Every "Neck" requires a set of strong shoulders to rest upon for firm support, because the load of the 'Head' is quite heavy.

When the children of Israel were in battle, as long as Moses held the rod up, they were winning, but his arms became weary and each time his arms lowered, the battle was beginning to lose; Were it not for the help of his brother Aaron and for help of Hur, who both held up his arms, the battle would have been lost...

Pastor's need support... STRONG support. And we who know God have to take heed to their need, by remaining close to the Holy Spirit who leads us into 'Intercession'.

 

[PinkPebbles]

This is heartbreaking.

Sadly, guilt or unconfessed sin opens the door for the enemy to deceive you into believing it’s not worth living.

Psalm 32 reminds us to confess and pray to the Lord while He can still be found. If we do not confess our sins and ask forgiveness then the guilt will torment us.

When the prophet Nathan confronted David about his deceit, affair with Bathsheba, and the murder of Uriah, David humbled himself and prayed to the Lord.

It is better to run to the Lord rather than away from the Lord. Do not worry about what others will think or say because at the end of the day, God has the final word and authority.

Suicide is not the answer. You still have to face God.

Psalm 51
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
so that sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
you who are God my Savior,
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 Open my lips, Lord,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 My sacrifice, O God, is[b] a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-isaac-hunter-suicide-20131210,0,7159568

Isaac Hunter, the troubled son of Northland Church Pastor Joel Hunter, has committed suicide, according to an email sent to members of his former church on Tuesday.

"We found out today that Isaac took his life," says the email sent by Darling Murray, a coordinator at Summit Church in Orlando. "We are obviously deeply deeply devastated and saddened beyond words by this news. The tears keep coming and coming as we mourn. We are praying for his family and this congregation as we walk through this together."

Officials of Northland, a Church Distributed, said they are still awaiting the police report on Isaac Hunter's death, but the church confirmed his death in a statement posted on the Northland website.


"By now you may have heard that Pastor Joel and Becky's son Isaac Hunter died today. All of us are grieving for the Hunter family, and we will deeply miss Isaac. Words cannot express the sorrow we're feeling," said the statement by Vernon Rainwater, a Northland pastor. "We love this family and are so grateful for the impact they have had on each of our lives. I have loved Isaac since he was a child, and I know this ... Isaac loved Jesus. And we are assured of his continuing relationship with Christ now in heaven."

Summit Church officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Isaac Hunter, 36, resigned on Nov. 26, 2012, from the megachurch he founded after he admitted to other Summit pastors that he had engaged in an affair with a staff member. His wife of 13 years, Rhonda Hunter, subsequently filed a domestic-violence petition against Hunter, describing him as unstable, erratic and suicidal.

In court documents, family members said they found an undated suicide note addressed to Summit Church leaders.

"I would very much like to be remembered as a person who loved his children, his parents, his brothers, and his best friends — well, while I could," the note said. "I fear I will love them better in my absence. As I have become what I never wished to be, a burden on those I love the most."

According to Orange County court documents, Isaac Hunter filed for divorce from Rhonda Hunter on Oct. 4, 2013.

Isaac, Joel Hunter's middle child, founded Summit Church in 2002 from a youth ministry at his father's church. Starting with 300 members, Summit became one of the fastest-growing churches in Central Florida with five locations and an estimated congregation of 5,000.

In her domestic-violence petition, Rhonda Hunter said her husband abused drugs and alcohol and had guns in the house. Isaac Hunter denied the allegations that he was abusive to his wife or a danger to his three children.

 

[Nice & Wavy]

slightly off topic

This reminds me of last nights service, we were rebuked for not getting in the word like we should.....once person actually got up and said they didn't feel like they needed to do too much because the pastors had more 'time' than she had.

The bottom line is that we are all in this together, we are suppose to be bearing one another's burden, lifting each other up in prayer, each joint supplying.

People always seem to think this way...sad.

Amen... the 'attacks' upon Pastors and other Church Leaders are very great and it takes the love and faithful supporters to support them.

Every 'Head' requires a 'Neck'.... there's no way around it. Every "Neck" requires a set of strong shoulders to rest upon for firm support, because the load of the 'Head' is quite heavy.

When the children of Israel were in battle, as long as Moses held the rod up, they were winning, but his arms became weary and each time his arms lowered, the battle was beginning to lose; Were it not for the help of his brother Aaron and for help of Hur, who both held up his arms, the battle would have been lost...

Pastor's need support... STRONG support. And we who know God have to take heed to their need, by remaining close to the Holy Spirit who leads us into 'Intercession'.

Amen, Shimmie. Thanks for this post.

 

[Iwanthealthyhair67]

^^^the general thought is that it's the pastors 'job', well it's all our jobs, we are priests of the Lord, amen!

 

[Nice & Wavy]

I found this blog from Ted Haggard and it really moved me:

http://tedhaggardblog.com/2013/12/12/suicide-evangelicalism-and-sorrow/

SUICIDE, EVANGELICALISM, AND SORROW

Joel Hunter, pastor of Northland Church, and Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church, both had sons take their own lives this year. I know of five other wonderful Christian families that also had sons who took their own lives. Some researchers are reporting that the suicide rate among Evangelicals is the same as that of the non-Christian community. How sad.

Back in my NAE days, I knew Joel and Rick. They are both sincere, wonderful believers with ministries that are admired. I also knew some of the parents of the kids who took their lives here in Colorado Springs. Good families.

The news about Pastor Isaac Hunter breaks my heart. Great speaker, lover of God, and my guess is he loved the church. But he, like all of us, fell short. In the midst of divorce with accusations swirling, he resigned from the church he founded. He gave it his best shot, and his heart was broken. This makes me sick to my stomach. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not sick that he fell short, that’s a given for everyone except Christ Himself, I’m sick that our message did not do what we all hoped – it did not fix the problem.

In the past we would try to argue that Evangelical leaders who fall were not sincere believers, or were unrepentant, or that they did not really believe their Bibles, or were not adequately submitted. And in the midst of these arguments, we KNOW those ideas are, in some cases, rationalizations. I can offer some guesses from personal experience as well as knowledge of others’ stories that, 1) Matthew Warren repeatedly prayed for God to heal his mind, and 2) Isaac Hunter frequently repented of the things in him that damaged his heart and marriage. I think Jimmy Swaggart, Jim Bakker, and I know Ted Haggard, hated their sins, repented, prayed, fasted, memorized Scripture, and pleaded with God for personal holiness. I think there are very few hypocrites in our pulpits or on church staffs. I believe most people in ministry are sincere followers of Christ. But when God’s holiness is infused into our humanity, that sets us all up for some degree of struggle.

I was so ashamed in 2006 when my scandal broke. The therapeutic team that dug in on me insisted that I did not have a spiritual problem or a problem with cognitive ability, and that I tested in normal ranges on all of my mental health tests (MMPI, etc.). Instead, I had a physiological problem rooted in a childhood trauma, and as a result, needed trauma resolution therapy. I had been traumatized when I was 7 years old, but when Bill Bright led me to the Lord when I was 16, I learned that I had become a new creature, a new person, and that I did not need to be concerned about anything in my past, that it was all covered by the blood. I did become a new creation spiritually, but I have since learned that I needed some simple care that would have spared my family and I a great deal of loss and pain.

Contrary to popular reports, my core issue was not sexual orientation, but trauma. I went through EMDR, a trauma resolution therapy, and received some immediate relief and, as promised, that relief was progressive. When I explain that to most Evangelical leaders, their eyes glaze over. They just don’t have a grid for the complexity of it all. It is much more convenient to believe that every thought, word, and action is a reflection of our character, our spirituality, and our core. They think the Earth is flat. Everyone is either completely good or bad, everything is either white or black, and if people are sincere Christians, then they are good and their behavior should conform.

Not so. There are more grays in life than many of our modern theological positions allow. It would be easy if I were a hypocrite, Bakker was a thief, and Swaggart was a pervert. None of that is true. Because I’ve not communicated with the Warrens or the Hunters since late 2006, I do not know for sure, but my experience would suggest that the Warren’s have received some hurtful communications from other Christians saying their son had a demon that could have been taken care of if they would have simply taken their son to them for deliverance. No doubt Isaac also received some brutal mail from Christians after his resignation from his church. My sin never made me suicidal, but widespread church reaction to me did.

I can only image what many Christians must go through trying to reconcile the things we Evangelicals say are true with the realities of their own lives. Do we actually believe that the many pastors who have been characterized as fallen decided to be hateful, immoral, greedy, or deceitful? I think not.

In my case, I was taught that life transformation took place at salvation and the power to overcome was inherent with the baptism in the Holy Spirit. My early Christian training was given by those who did not respect the mental health profession, nor the field of neural science. So I believed the solution to my struggle was exclusively spiritual, which turned out to be counterproductive.

If I prayed and fasted, I was more tempted. If I just worked in ministry, I experienced relief and was not tempted. I thought it was spiritual warfare. It was not. My struggle was easily explained by a competent therapeutic team.

But many in the church-world had to demonize the facts. My accuser failed his lie detector test and refused to take another, and I passed four lie detector tests given by three different polygraphers saying that the primary accusations were false. This so confused the narrative the church wanted to publicly present, they hid the tests from the public. The lead overseer actually told me, “Brother Ted, we do not believe in this psychological mumbo-jumbo, but we need to send you to therapy for the sake of the public. Then when you get home, we’ll get this demon out of you and your family and sweet Miss Gayle will be just fine.” I thank God for the therapy. It answered 30 years of prayer. I became the man I had always prayed to be because of the process I went through during the crisis. Though I do believe there is a need for deliverance in some situations, for that sincere overseer, the world is way too flat.

Saints, I have a high view of Scripture and am persuaded that the theological underpinnings of Evangelicalism are valid, but I am growing away from the Evangelical culture we have created. I think our movement has abandoned the application of the Gospel, and as a result we spend too much time on image management and damage control. Maybe we should be willing to admit that we are all growing in grace, be willing to be numbered with the transgressors, and stop over-stating and over-promising. Jesus has been faithful to all of us in the midst of our pain, our suffering, and our disappointments. Why don’t we tell that? Every one of us have had sin horribly intrude in our lives after being saved and filled with the Holy Spirit, and God is faithfully healing us or has healed us. Why don’t we tell that? He has never left us or forsaken us when we’ve said and done the wrong thing. Why don’t we tell that? And when our children disappoint and hurt us, or we disappoint and hurt them, God sees us . . . and them. Why don’t we tell that as well?

My heart physically hurts for the Warrens, the Hunters, and the five families that lost their sons. The pain is incredible. I don’t know that it will ever heal this side of Heaven. I also hurt for Pastor Zachery Tims who died alone in a Times Square hotel room trying to get some relief, and for Pastor Cedric Cuthbert who was accused of watching child porn at work, and for Pastor David Loveless who was let go after his affair was revealed. Shall I go on? I do not believe we have a problem because these and so many others are insincere or because we have not adequately emphasized holiness. I think we have a core, fundamental, essential problem with our application of the Gospel. We need to re-read the New Testament and modify some of our interpretations. The Bible is true. God is faithful. But at this point, too many are missing the mark.

I know this is too long, and I would like to stop, but I can’t . . . not until I say one more thing. Everyone I’ve mentioned here has fallen because of obvious sin. But I did not mention the proud, envious, gluttonous, angry, greedy, blamers and scrutinizers in the body of Christ who have equally fallen but their sins are acceptable in our culture so they do not even realize their sin or need for repentance. Why? They are too busy with the sins of others. Often we actually laude these Pharisees and Judaizers because of their stand against sin, not realizing that they are still not teaching us the New Testament solution to mankind’s sin problem. When the New Testament becomes Torah in their hands, that law, too, stimulates sin.

It’s time for us to stop what we’re doing and weep. We need to repent, enter into the prayer closet without cameras, notes, or any announcements that we’re praying and fasting, and repent for what we have created until our hearts are soft again. Our children are dying. Our relationships are broken. Our attitudes are arrogant. And our hearts are left confused.

 

[Shimmie]

I found this blog from Ted Haggard and it really moved me:

http://tedhaggardblog.com/2013/12/12/suicide-evangelicalism-and-sorrow/

SUICIDE, EVANGELICALISM, AND SORROW

Joel Hunter, pastor of Northland Church, and Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church, both had sons take their own lives this year. I know of five other wonderful Christian families that also had sons who took their own lives. Some researchers are reporting that the suicide rate among Evangelicals is the same as that of the non-Christian community. How sad.

Back in my NAE days, I knew Joel and Rick. They are both sincere, wonderful believers with ministries that are admired. I also knew some of the parents of the kids who took their lives here in Colorado Springs. Good families.

The news about Pastor Isaac Hunter breaks my heart. Great speaker, lover of God, and my guess is he loved the church. But he, like all of us, fell short. In the midst of divorce with accusations swirling, he resigned from the church he founded. He gave it his best shot, and his heart was broken. This makes me sick to my stomach. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not sick that he fell short, that’s a given for everyone except Christ Himself, I’m sick that our message did not do what we all hoped – it did not fix the problem.

In the past we would try to argue that Evangelical leaders who fall were not sincere believers, or were unrepentant, or that they did not really believe their Bibles, or were not adequately submitted. And in the midst of these arguments, we KNOW those ideas are, in some cases, rationalizations. I can offer some guesses from personal experience as well as knowledge of others’ stories that, 1) Matthew Warren repeatedly prayed for God to heal his mind, and 2) Isaac Hunter frequently repented of the things in him that damaged his heart and marriage. I think Jimmy Swaggart, Jim Bakker, and I know Ted Haggard, hated their sins, repented, prayed, fasted, memorized Scripture, and pleaded with God for personal holiness. I think there are very few hypocrites in our pulpits or on church staffs. I believe most people in ministry are sincere followers of Christ. But when God’s holiness is infused into our humanity, that sets us all up for some degree of struggle.

I was so ashamed in 2006 when my scandal broke. The therapeutic team that dug in on me insisted that I did not have a spiritual problem or a problem with cognitive ability, and that I tested in normal ranges on all of my mental health tests (MMPI, etc.). Instead, I had a physiological problem rooted in a childhood trauma, and as a result, needed trauma resolution therapy. I had been traumatized when I was 7 years old, but when Bill Bright led me to the Lord when I was 16, I learned that I had become a new creature, a new person, and that I did not need to be concerned about anything in my past, that it was all covered by the blood. I did become a new creation spiritually, but I have since learned that I needed some simple care that would have spared my family and I a great deal of loss and pain.

Contrary to popular reports, my core issue was not sexual orientation, but trauma. I went through EMDR, a trauma resolution therapy, and received some immediate relief and, as promised, that relief was progressive. When I explain that to most Evangelical leaders, their eyes glaze over. They just don’t have a grid for the complexity of it all. It is much more convenient to believe that every thought, word, and action is a reflection of our character, our spirituality, and our core. They think the Earth is flat. Everyone is either completely good or bad, everything is either white or black, and if people are sincere Christians, then they are good and their behavior should conform.

Not so. There are more grays in life than many of our modern theological positions allow. It would be easy if I were a hypocrite, Bakker was a thief, and Swaggart was a pervert. None of that is true. Because I’ve not communicated with the Warrens or the Hunters since late 2006, I do not know for sure, but my experience would suggest that the Warren’s have received some hurtful communications from other Christians saying their son had a demon that could have been taken care of if they would have simply taken their son to them for deliverance. No doubt Isaac also received some brutal mail from Christians after his resignation from his church. My sin never made me suicidal, but widespread church reaction to me did.

I can only image what many Christians must go through trying to reconcile the things we Evangelicals say are true with the realities of their own lives. Do we actually believe that the many pastors who have been characterized as fallen decided to be hateful, immoral, greedy, or deceitful? I think not.

In my case, I was taught that life transformation took place at salvation and the power to overcome was inherent with the baptism in the Holy Spirit. My early Christian training was given by those who did not respect the mental health profession, nor the field of neural science. So I believed the solution to my struggle was exclusively spiritual, which turned out to be counterproductive.

If I prayed and fasted, I was more tempted. If I just worked in ministry, I experienced relief and was not tempted. I thought it was spiritual warfare. It was not. My struggle was easily explained by a competent therapeutic team.

But many in the church-world had to demonize the facts. My accuser failed his lie detector test and refused to take another, and I passed four lie detector tests given by three different polygraphers saying that the primary accusations were false. This so confused the narrative the church wanted to publicly present, they hid the tests from the public. The lead overseer actually told me, “Brother Ted, we do not believe in this psychological mumbo-jumbo, but we need to send you to therapy for the sake of the public. Then when you get home, we’ll get this demon out of you and your family and sweet Miss Gayle will be just fine.” I thank God for the therapy. It answered 30 years of prayer. I became the man I had always prayed to be because of the process I went through during the crisis. Though I do believe there is a need for deliverance in some situations, for that sincere overseer, the world is way too flat.

Saints, I have a high view of Scripture and am persuaded that the theological underpinnings of Evangelicalism are valid, but I am growing away from the Evangelical culture we have created. I think our movement has abandoned the application of the Gospel, and as a result we spend too much time on image management and damage control. Maybe we should be willing to admit that we are all growing in grace, be willing to be numbered with the transgressors, and stop over-stating and over-promising. Jesus has been faithful to all of us in the midst of our pain, our suffering, and our disappointments. Why don’t we tell that? Every one of us have had sin horribly intrude in our lives after being saved and filled with the Holy Spirit, and God is faithfully healing us or has healed us. Why don’t we tell that? He has never left us or forsaken us when we’ve said and done the wrong thing. Why don’t we tell that? And when our children disappoint and hurt us, or we disappoint and hurt them, God sees us . . . and them. Why don’t we tell that as well?

My heart physically hurts for the Warrens, the Hunters, and the five families that lost their sons. The pain is incredible. I don’t know that it will ever heal this side of Heaven. I also hurt for Pastor Zachery Tims who died alone in a Times Square hotel room trying to get some relief, and for Pastor Cedric Cuthbert who was accused of watching child porn at work, and for Pastor David Loveless who was let go after his affair was revealed. Shall I go on? I do not believe we have a problem because these and so many others are insincere or because we have not adequately emphasized holiness. I think we have a core, fundamental, essential problem with our application of the Gospel. We need to re-read the New Testament and modify some of our interpretations. The Bible is true. God is faithful. But at this point, too many are missing the mark.

I know this is too long, and I would like to stop, but I can’t . . . not until I say one more thing. Everyone I’ve mentioned here has fallen because of obvious sin. But I did not mention the proud, envious, gluttonous, angry, greedy, blamers and scrutinizers in the body of Christ who have equally fallen but their sins are acceptable in our culture so they do not even realize their sin or need for repentance. Why? They are too busy with the sins of others. Often we actually laude these Pharisees and Judaizers because of their stand against sin, not realizing that they are still not teaching us the New Testament solution to mankind’s sin problem. When the New Testament becomes Torah in their hands, that law, too, stimulates sin.

It’s time for us to stop what we’re doing and weep. We need to repent, enter into the prayer closet without cameras, notes, or any announcements that we’re praying and fasting, and repent for what we have created until our hearts are soft again. Our children are dying. Our relationships are broken. Our attitudes are arrogant. And our hearts are left confused.

Thank you, Precious Wavy....

This gives me even more reason to pray for the Ministers in the Body of Christ. The struggles are beyond what we see in the natural. We have to allow the Holy Spirit to show us and to teach us how/when/what to pray.

And...

To 'speak up' as the Holy Spirit leads us. These leaders are still all the more in human form.