Speaking the truth and not cowering in the corner. Then the board announced its executive committee would be resigning over the next few months. God is good, truth always win. She approached this with sensitivity, wisdom and grace. Harvest Bible Chapel's Elgin campus H arvest Bible Chapel has reached a multimillion-dollar agreement to transfer some of its assets to former pastor James MacDonald, who plans to continue in. Linas testimoney is encouraging. REALLY !! The church is to be a living organism for the cause of Christ and no other. I wondered where God was in the narrative. I am so glad Lina has spoken up. I pray that moving forward, His love will control me no matter the consequences. Im disappointed in your timing. Browse 60+ years of magazine archives and web exclusives. The edited . We repent, forgive and are reconciled; we do not get even, hold grudges, refuse to forgive, or destroy innocent bystanders caught in the wake of it all. That, it seems, was what it took to finally break his hold over his current elder board; to finally convince the elders that they were wrong to keep listening to his excuses. I was asked what I would do if I were still on staff through the last 2 years. When the Church becomes the organization instead of the people, then it ceases to be the Church. I really think you hit the nail on the head when you said you realized something dark about yourself, that you had been a woman ruled by fearand I could identify with what you said since I had been that woman too. I pray others in leadership read your post, check their hearts, and follow suit. 1.) That is at the root of a serious problem that the Church hardly touches. I am sorry that you experienced this fear. In 2019, Harvest initially did not release these assets, assuring the congregation, none of Harvest Bible Chapels or Walk in the Words donations or assets have gone to James, and we will not be giving him anything in the future since his termination was with cause. The year prior, Walk in the Word brought in close to $8.5 million, with 2,000 stations airing the show. He ultimately requested that Harvest Naples be released from its relationship with the megachurch. (It wouldve done no good to tell them how they erred when previous months didnt get it done.) you managed (a wording that says, you knew it was not right, but did so out of self protection) and humility because as Mancow is now saying, James had alligator tears of his hurt to make you feel guilty. Again this is HER TRUTH! You said, out of fear, I complied. Lina, James ended up sending me a copy of the new approved blog post, and out of fear, I complied. I struggle with the fear of man myself. In 2013, in a story covered bymajor evangelical news outlets, Harvest publicly excommunicated two former elders who were still members of Harvest. It isnt about timing. When God led me to leave HBC, I remember being so sad and afraid and wondering if I was hearing Him correctly. Will James not wake up and realize that 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? Welcome to Ohio. He unsubscribed from the emails but they were still sent him texts asking him to give. But are they? James MacDonald founded Harvest Bible Chapel in 1988. If you know anything about abusive relationshipsHBC is in the honeymoon phase right now.look it up!! I wont make that mistake again. Thanks for writing this, Lina. Another blind believer. Is many people for years have tried to bring things to light privately. Basically hes a figurehead who can be dismissed on the whim of any elder or his wife. Thank you Yahweh. Now, the church has decided its longtime leader wont be coming back. So great to see your support with your wise comment. A year later, MacDonald apologized for the harsh discipline taken against the three men, adding that Harvest had meaningfully and mutually reconciled with them. I can think of hundreds of small things, and some rather large ones, that Ive compromised myself for. I pray shes wrong. I will not address any party affiliation. Their letter covered MacDonalds self-promotionlove of moneydomineering and bullying abusive speech[and] outbursts of anger.. Only time will tell whether Harvest can outlive its founding pastorand the scandal that has enveloped both him and his elder board. May God have mercy on his soul. Those of us that have experienced spiritual abuse and church hurt personally can truly resonate with your story. I pray for the leaders. Did you see the link to my web page. My first two books were scheduled to be released smack in the middle of that summer, and I didnt want to impact their potential not to mention that James had agreed to write the forward on my first book. The higher the leadership level was, the more protective of James they were. I wonder if this is an area where youd feel free to minister; where people leave the church and are forgotten. We need to trust Him. I attended Harvest for five years, and left five years ago. Muller, who has attended Harvest for five years and developed a friendship with MacDonald, wrote in a Daily Herald op-ed that hed seen the best the church had to offer: MacDonalds punchy sermons renewed Mullers faith, brought his family back into Christian community, and taught him the truth of the gospel. Yes, there are a lot of hurting people at Harvest. No shame here for Lina. A friend sent me a link to sermon about this yesterday: https://radical.net/sermon/kingdom-community/. On February 12th, someone who sounded an awful lot like James MacDonald called into Mancow Mullers Chicago-area radio show to cuss out all of his perceived enemies. There are dozens if not hundreds of witnesses against many Elders at Harvest all saying the same thing. May God be glorified through this. Let this awaken and take down other church leaders that have similar goals. The Jews ebb and flow toward God followed a pattern. Thank you. 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. God has said that those who are give much is required. These patterns were present and recognized as early as 2012, and nothing was done about them. Id like to think its the fear of man spoken about in the Bible but I think it often goes beyond that. With my life and schedule, my friends are few and far between, and have always been aware that my saying anything publicly about Harvest or James would jeopardize those friendships that I still love and value so much. So Ill never forget the day I got up from my seat in a service, walked out, and never looked back. I feel like I cant trust my own judgment any more. Harvest Kids is our weekend experience for kids (babies to fifth grade). I appreciate your voice. Doesnt matter how long ago it happened either. This scandal that were going through has really rocked my world. Less well known was that these individuals agreed to leave Harvest aloneto stop publicly criticizing the churchin exchange for a promise that the current elder board would enact changes. In effect, the senior pastor isthe church. In fact, he is the one who is no longer pastoring. James MacDonald was forced out Tuesday night as senior pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel, a church he founded in Rolling Meadows some 30 years ago. Do you see any fruit from him of what God speaks of? Dont you think this influences decisions made by the leaders, both now and before? Since the publishing of this article, several developments have occurred at Harvest Bible Chapel. If you ever make that offer again, Ill be there, but please post on Twitter. In my lowly position, I have said, like others, I would have put my head in the sand and continued to do the job God gifted me to do in the interest of the body. The Elephants Debt, which had posted criticism of MacDonald, including stories by former Harvest members, elders, pastors, and staff, throughout 2012 and 2013, went on a posting hiatus at around this time. How long before we wake up and show the world how Christians are not only different from the world but we are not of the world! In his remarks this week, he says he confessed his relational failings multiple times, but still lost longtime friends and ministry partners to Harvests narrative. How do you know it wasnt done with fasting and with prayer? Be very careful Azaelea. 2023 ChurchLeaders.com, All rights reserved. I questioned a particular sermon that clearly was unbiblical but no one else did. MacDonald was manifestly not okay with the criticism. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known. Ross, Ross Blomberg, Too many of these large churches have lost track of what their true purpose is. Its about the hurting. Put faith in Gods justice and judgement upon all, now that sin has been exposed. You can read that article here. Thank you for your thoughts and strong, encouraging words. A year or so before leaving Harvest I had written a blog post about holiness in which I had referenced the growing fad of tattoos in our culture. All this comes on the heels of another scandal. There the preacher has no real power at all. She is sharing her heart and personal experience in an open, vulnerable way, in kindness and love. But, thats my opinion. We are the Church! He is very likely not a brother in Christ. Gods Timing Is ALWAYS Perfect! Harvest Bible Chapel has fired its founder and senior pastor James MacDonald following years of controversial behavior, financial scandal and allegations of bullying and intimidation. They have gone the deep end of the pool. Muller had prematurely announced the pastors departure on Friday morning on his show on WLS 890 AM, going on to declare on Twitter, Conman Boss James Macdonald OUT of Harvest Church!. Show how we come together as one in the body of Christ! I chose to believe the Bible and Gods promises. 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I left Harvest about a year before you did, and I also stayed, for the most part, silent out of the same fear you described. The first one is in the magazine Relevant and looks at the allegations of Anne Green being inappropriately touched by James MacDonald. I hope that you are recovering well, for you have added a vital piece of information. Find a church with great accountability. I was mortified. In addition, what was shared now, may have been heard better now, then it would have been heard before Lina left Harvest. Being part of Harvest, and hearing how the utmost leaders were tattooed with the Vertical Church logo, as I prepare the lesson, I cant help but wonder about the tattoo on the bodies of those who accepted the mark of James as their alliance with the Vertical Church of James. Amen to that. Harvest womans Tuesday bible study group has not studied a book of the Bible in a couple of years. Now you can stop going to church altogether and free your mind from religious delusion. The leader of that church, John Secrest, was blindsided by the news and asked Harvest elders to reconsider allowing MacDonald to preach there. The whole ordeal was very strange. Within days of their statement, MacDonald offered a public apology, admitting to careless and hurtful words and a regression into sinful patterns of fleshly anger and self-pity that wounded co-workers and others.. 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. People meant evil but God works it out for our good. Walked out of that service. Seriously? The Rolling Meadows Campus is our founding campus and for more than three decades has testified to God's faithfulness. For years, they had been made to feel like the outcasts, but finally vindication in its godly form was working its way out. Thankful for the freedom you have found and are willing to speak up. Our enemy loves this. Typical gossips and power struggles are only the surface. I am thankful for JESUS that used Pastor James in my life. 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. Thankful we got left when we did. Witnesses say MacDonald was angry that the photo was still on display. When one part of the body hurts, we all hurt! Pastor James MacDonald preaches at Harvest Bible Chapel. then the sermons and teaching were getting distorted and weird. Dont bad rap other churches? Dont damage the church by being publicly critical. He kept telling me that I didnt understand authority and I was in rebellion. Despite recent legal cases and reports of greedy abuses, experts say the longstanding benefit remains safe. SHERI PINE. After leaving Harvest no one from the church reached out to me to see how I was doing, to ask why I left. His sermon provides good reasons for why we need to shine light on these abuses. What are you authorized to do? What would Jesus do? Not everything needs to be about Polititcs. Thank you for sharing and speaking truth Lina. Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world. The confidence I hang on to today is that whether I am approved or critiqued for this opinion, it is Christs love that will catch me and his arms that will continue to sustain me when I close my eyes at the end of each new day. It wasnt that we saw corruption in our church. He went recently, saying the time had come. The issue here is not TIMING or kicking someone when theyre down its about exposing ungodly, cowardly behavior and making people aware of its existence. On February 13th, the elders at HBC fired MacDonald, citing highly inappropriate recorded comments made by Pastor MacDonald that were given to media the day before. out of fear you complied I was wrong. Im about to lead a teaching tomorrow night about the mark God placed on Cain after he killed his brother Abel. I loved his book Vertical Church. I feel foolish for allowing myself to be misled for so long. One person (not from Harvest) asked if I needed to call the church to cancel my membership. Biblical: submission to the Word in My Dream Church will be at a higher level Pray for all the lost and unsaved who are not hearing the Gospel and our testimonies right now from our lips because sin has been made the main thing. or is it the congregations fault for being weak and gullible? Precept Inductive Bible Study for Women. Based on just the first few paragraphs, I hear you! Dont find that in the Bible. From elders (Dave Corning, Jon Gaus, The Elephant Debt etc) to nobodies one by one we were all ignored and in many cases bullied. Stephanie Martin, a freelance writer and editor in Denver, has spent her entire 30-year journalism career in Christian publishing. Lina, I regret staying at Harvest after that meeting with the elders. It would be endearing to me and honoring to them. Others, too, could see the attitude. P.S. Ive been blessed by your teaching and Im wondering if I wouldnt have heard your teaching as much had you stayed longer at Harvest. 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. God is faithful, and He is doing what needs to be done to protect His bride. She has admitted that she didnt speak up enough at the time. I was too afraid to ask her why. Therefore Lina did what God moved her to do in His Boldness and Courage, being fear had silenced her. And I wont stand in the way of Christs work. Christ followers are saying enough. I grew up catholic and vever really got a hold of it all. The two entities released separate statements detailing the results of the process, which went through the Institute for Christian Conciliation. The Pastor started teaching on obeying your authority and not questioning authority etc. Churches Still Depend on Clergy Housing Allowance, No Celebrities Except Jesus: How Asbury Protected the Revival. But that does not matter. I knew he wasnt perfect, but then, neither was I, I reasoned. I asked my surgeon why the procedure is called radical, he replied that even the seminal vesicles have to be removed along with the prostate, otherwise the cancer may return! Its like I seek mans favor as well, rather than the Lords. The public scrutiny continued with pushback against MacDonalds decision to preach at a Harvest affiliate in Florida during his sabbatical. We attended Elgin from 2005 through 2008. Gods hand is on Harvest and the dark is continuing to be shown. Harvest Bible Chapel has reached a multimillion-dollar agreement to transfer some of its assets to former pastor James MacDonald, who plans to continue in ministry outside the Chicago-area megachurch. The flock are the casualties in all of this. My current church I actually joined, unlike Harvest, and have been there five years and counting now. He is not being bullied. We are wounded and grieving. It seems to have so many cracks in the structure. I thought something was off but had only my own suspicions to go on as we were told not to criticize. When we try to protect those in power instead of those who are hurting, we are not doing the work of God. Its who you are! Matthew 7:15 Its so fitting that you likened the pain at Harvest to the pain of a divorce. He stopped going to any church and says he has lost faith in everything. The reason there are spiritual Pol Pots that number in the thousands like our friend James McDonald is because men are happy to give themselves authority. Jesus calls us to be GOOD. Whats also sad is that old witness accounts go to show how truly far reaching and how long this behavior has been going on. While every major financial decision was supposed to be examined and approved by the churchs eldersand it was claimed that this was casethis was not actually happening. I thank you for your willingness to risk being misunderstood while offering your experience to help reduce the shame of others, who need a hand to hold, as they work through their own healing. Your sincere desire to move us further in our relationship with Jesus Christ. Shes not the only one there are many. Lina, to see how the Lord has blessed your ministry these past few years is absolutely amazing! I volunteer in the childrens ministry and the youth ministry as well, pouring into children and youth. After leaving, others came to us, with similar stories of why they left or quit being involved. I was brushed off. He was a ruler of his churches. The sin that has taken place does not negate the awesome work that God has done, and it pains my heart to hear people act as if it does. Some women were still in the middle of the trauma and were still currently attending Harvest. Lina, HARVEST EN ESPAOL is available in person on Sundays at 11:00 AM in Cornerstone. Hence the Response Statement Regarding Pastor James and Anne Green yesterday on HBC in the news. As painful as it is, all that has been hidden must be revealed. Perhaps my fear had its legitimate reasons. Thank you and thank Lina. - October 16, 2020 The protracted dispute between Pastor James MacDonald and Harvest Bible Chapel (HBC) recently concluded through arbitration. And I do want to state that MANY of us have made every effort to address the problems prior to leaving. The elders were given a paper that laid out their duties, that mostly consisted of protecting, encouraging, and blessing the senior pastor. There were other things that caused us to leave also. When I asked questions at the Harvest I attended I was told to be careful what I read on the internet. It took months to get over the hurt he caused my husband and I. Harvest will also reimburse MacDonald another quarter-million dollars related to selling his former home and transfer compensation related to his retirement benefits. 12:18) as while working through this year-and-half-long process of transition. 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. This should not be! Fear that your leaving would damage those you ministered to. BTW, Ive loved your blogs in the morning, but cant read the Twitter ones because I am not on Twitter. Hes a lemonade maker. Praying for you, many blessings for all you do. The problem definitely doesnt end with James. Driscoll, now MacDonald. Not saying thete arent strong christians in leadership at this church but it does always seem that when pride gets in the way of leadership it hurts that person and everyone around them. I will be praying for you , too, Lina. The only hope is to totally exposed and excise it so that all will not be consumed. God is good and He will use those who make themselves available to Him. Hoping you come back and teach a book of the Bible. I still had friends on the inside that I longed to remain friends with. To judge a fellow brother and think you know if he is a believer is dangerous. If they built it, it is theirs to destroy. Not cool to kick people when they are down. I too visited Harvest. Those are things we dont talk about often enough about. So here I am, piecing together a years-long scandal for you. Your staying as long as you did part of the clarity and power youve experienced in communicating what youve seen. The resources are pulpit curriculum and bible words to talk about. Thank you, Lina. What Can Christians Do About Climate Change? I believe Yahweh has me where He wants me. In a statement written by church elders, the Chicago-area megachurch says they fired MacDonald for "engaging in conduct contrary and harmful to the best . A former youth pastor for Harvest Bible Chapel in Aurora has been charged with the sexual exploitation of a 16-year-old boy on allegations he sought nude pictures of the boy and repeatedly. Thank you for this post. I am a 60 year old grandfather who wants to get a tatoo around my ankle of all six of my grandchildrens names. Its hard. In the arbitration, MacDonald retained the rights to Walk in the Word, a part of the church that had put on his teaching ministry and popular radio broadcast. This cancer must be excised and as often as is the case in cancer treatment, months of treatment must be involved for health to take place. This included an abusive and fear-based culture where those who question leadership are punished, she writes. MacDonald took an indefinite sabbatical in January, following a tumultuous few months defending Harvest in a defamation lawsuit against its critics and in the aftermath of a World magazine investigation into mismanagement at the church. The recognizing date of the exempt status is April, 1972. Fear is never a godly way of governing. I didnt want James as an enemy, as being on the inside knowing and seeing how he could and would destroy others in ministry if they challenged him. So often, you would open your home to us. Torn between right and wrong. We cant judge the HEART of others, we can judge their actions and behaviors. Fear is a stupid liar and I praise God that Hes given us a spirit of a sound mind and Love!!! He clearly told me that they send out reminders to give. Something happened to us some years ago and a number of people turned against us because of lies, etc. In the past we were to study pulpit curriculum and bible vocabulary. I agree here. I feared offending people. There are times in our lives and circumstances that its just not real clear as to how to address something, with as little harm to what is good, as possible. Criticism of MacDonald begun to surface on The Elephants Debt, a blog founded in 2012, run by Ryan Mahoney and Scott Bryant, former members era of Harvest Bible Church. It didnt. Love my bible sisters. Thoughts from a person looking in. The controversial founder and former pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel is barred from serving as pastor or elder of the popular evangelical Christian church ever again after an investigation. Sarah, I am so sorry for whatever happened to you. Long story short he kicked my husband and I out of the church. Soon we must bring those truths to light, but for now we continue under the weight of so much falsehood in hope that the church will themselves initiate the needed steps of public confession, he wrote. I think God has not lifted the veil on a lot of eyes for some reason. Pastor was not happy and tried to convince us that we were wrong. I have always wondered why you left Lina but didnt know you personally to ask. He lists grievances against Harvest including a false narrative in financial matters, a hostile takeover, shunning our family, the wrongful seizure of the ministry assets returned to him in the recent arbitration, and a vicious but unsuccessful strategy to end our ministry permanently.. Truth heals. I love this idea! During Sunday services, Harvest showed a videoof members of the current elder board explaining why the church was placing the two former elders under church discipline: Church matters are not to be tried in the court of public opinion. I didnt want to risk any negative impacts on my own growing ministry. It seems that was true at Harvest, just as it is at many local churches. Nellie, you know what Lina went through in prep for this how? @Ross, Were you able to access it? I hope they succeed in bringing people back to the church! Many were intimidated, called names, called subversives. I am staying because with all the faults in the organization, the people of Harvest are my family. I havent seen the video but abuse of power at any level is sickening!! Its difficult to understand how people can now know what they know and still only criticize the ones that feel compelled to now share their story. Lina, a number of years ago I was reading one of your books while waiting for Gordon Z. to join me for lunch. 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. 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James ended up sending me a link to sermon about this yesterday: https:.! Myself to be careful what I read on the internet thought something was off but had only my growing! Yes, there are dozens if not hundreds of small things, and never looked back got up my.
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