Kathi, can you honestly get a feel for what they’re all about through a few friendly little conversations? Of course all is well behind their doors, they’ve already bought it hook line and sinker - their job now is to sell it to others.

Don’t the experiences of all those that are close to you mean anything anymore Kathi?

And Rev, at one time I had gotten to know them all well. Looking back, I wish I hadn’t.

Have a good one.

And to me the main issue with WOF is not so much the desire for money, but the name-it-and-claim-it beliefs that are preached from the pulpit. Isn’t this alone enough to keep one away?? I once thought so.

Oh, and we never labeled ourselves WOF, but that’s what we were.

Rev! We finally agree on something. Glory to God!

I don’t think that if the local church steps up to the plate as it should, that we’ll suddenly lose the need for televangelists, people with healing ministries, etc. There are, and will always be, people who will not initially be reached by the local churches but will instead find God through media and/or the internet.

Your horror story of the pastor who will not visit a man not a member of his church is disgusting - but it mirrors several of the local churches here, where people are kicked out for not wearing the right clothes, putting the correct amount of $ in the plate, or lacking transportation to church. I pray that these pastors will gain a clue before it’s too late.

It IS time for the local church to step up and do what it’s supposed to be doing! That’s one reason I’m so grateful for the Lakeland revival, Rev… God is prompting an ever-growing number of people to truly seek Him and seek what He longs to give them.

Here’s the short of it, though. I’ve spent a lot of time in thought and in prayer, and I’ve had to admit - I’ve not seen either of them in person. All I’ve seen, really, are video clips on the internet, and some things people have written about them. Given that videos are being spliced together to prove the evils of Todd Bentley, it wouldn’t surprise me if the heresy hunters had done the same with KC and BH.

So I’ve done some digging. Not a lot, yet. But some. I’ve watched Copeland on the television. Does his focus seem to be on the wrong thing (money)… yes. Does that make him a cultist? I don’t think so. Can God use him anyways? Yes. I’ve not investigated Benny Hinn much. I am, however, going to one of his conferences this fall. Why? To see, for myself. Is he a cultist? By strict definition, no. The same thing I’ve asked people to do regarding Lakeland and TB.

I’ve also started looking into some of the Word of Faith stuff. I’ve read a lot about it - from people who didn’t like it and seemed to have good reasons not to. I’ve heard a lot about it, by people who hurt by it. This convinced me that overall, it’s a bad thing. I’m sure I’ll remain convinced about certain elements of it, and I’m pretty sure I’ll never be called WoF (just a follower of Christ, thank you). These days, I’m talking to people within WoF churches about what they believe, and why. Nearly all of them denounce the more extreme teachings and the $$$$ stuff. That surprised me. They say that some of the teachings that seem extreme or unbiblical really aren’t what they seem (I’ve not had time to investigate yet). That said, what I’m seeing in these folks that I’ve come to know is a wholehearted seeking of God and a desire to live by His word. They’re not at all like the way I envisioned WoF folks to be, and so perhaps I’m guilty of having formed a stereotype based on the negatives.

Well, that got longer than I intended… might as well continue for a bit.

When I said, can God work through a cultist, I meant that we’re not seeing a cult leader (Warren Jeffs, the LDS, the JW’s, etc.) seeing people by the thousands saved, healed, delivered, set afire for the Most High. I won’t say that individuals aren’t occasionally healed in those places. I don’t know that it’s the work of the devil, or maybe God’s mercy and working out His plan.

There’s a difference between a cultist and an imperfect preacher of God’s word (which we all are, and that was my point of the Sin post). Can God work through an imperfect minister? Yes. He does it all the time. Can God even work through a preacher or minister who is undevoted to Him? Who lives in sin? Who has a skewed view of Him? Yes, I believe He can.

More later, perhaps… work is calling me (I’m designing a series of websites - commercial stuff/business venture. I’ll post on that eventually)