A tiktok video from a October 23rd, 2023, re uploading here for those who don't have tiktok. I share about some of my personal experiences during International House of Prayer's overnight section.
Cult like behavior, because it’s a cult. I lived near 24/7 prayer room and visited several times, spoke with many and consumed much of the material. From the aberrant teachings, soaking worship, alternative language and meanings of words, treatment when views are challenged… Years and years of reports of abuse at IHOP have been available online for a very long time. Not just sexual abuse either. Being a member of a church family and spending time with that family should be the therapy for living in a fallen world, not the thing that causes a person to need literal deprogramming from therapists specializing in helping people deal with the trauma of abuse within a cult. IHOP is 100% a cult. Shredding the plain meaning of text, false prophecy, teaching people that essentially they are a literal bride of Christ. Nothing but goat food for goats. Man centered. Highly produced to elicit emotional responses rather than the stoic, reasoning, fact based examination and exegesis of the text that God commands. Good music though?
God created our bodies to require food, sleep, exercise in addition to serving Him. One can only do so much before our body starts to suffer and we become no good to anyone. If you're trying to go to school, volunteer and spend half the night in prayer something's gonna give starting with your sanity. On the plus side for the abusing organization, you do become much more malleable and easy to control. Sleep deprivation is a tactic widely used in mind control.
You have valuable experience to help us avoid this type of situation - there has to be a way we can do this without the cult behavior. Thank you for speaking up it helps the rest of us better see the red flags 🚩
I went through similar abuse at a house of prayer. I'm sure it's not at every house of prayer, but the elitism was alive and well in your's and mine. Sending ❤️
Regular, nightly/daily, ongoing/prolonged sleep deprivation is definitely NOT good for anyone. It can cause all manner of problems, including psychosis. I know, from personal experience in a 'church', which was way OFF, in many ways. And I wasn't the only person affected very badly by those people. ANY church/christian ministry/organization has a duty of care to it's students, and shouldn't expect so much, especially of young, impressionable people. Such situations can become very cultic and abusive. In my early '60's, I'm still learning that such situations are not a reflection of God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit. It's the irresponsibility and wrong treatment of some of us by some of His people, and if they're in leadership roles this can make us think this is what God is like, that He does not really love or care about us. Psalm 22. Consider verse 26: "For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; nor has He hidden his face from Him; but when he cried to Him, He heard". (New King James Version of the Holy Bible). Cry out to GOD about such things. He does listen, and He does love and care about us ❤
Having been involved in a similar Christian cult operating with "group think" and "elitism" a book that was very helpfut to me understanding the dynamics involved (and both paries accountability) was "Letters to a Devastated Christian" by Gene Edwards Jeremiah 5:31 - "The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests (ministers) rule by false means (authority), and MY PEOPLE LOVE IT SO, and what shall they do in the end thereof..."
I believe that in looking at this whole situation we need to take a few steps back and realise what is actually going on. The whole philosophy of controlling God's actions by having nonstop prayer & worship is fundamentally flawed. I also glean from videos such as this that the perpetrators of this whole thing would never be there in the wee small hours of the morning. They rely on misled schmucks (who have bought into their false teachings) to "staff" the prayer room, so that they (the perpetrators) can wax lyrical about how they have this powerful prayer ministry going 24/7. The whole thing is pathetic and my prayer would be that the whole thing would be forced to shut down due to insufficient numbers of willing participants
Yeah, the longer I've been out the more the entire concept behind a lot of the prayer room feels like there's this element of power hunger built into it, inextricably.
This behavior of abusive leadership is not secluded to IHOPKC unfortunately. I have witnessed it in nearly every charismatic church I’ve attended. We no longer attend a Charismatic church for his very reason. Unity is not the same as conformity. And they don’t mean conformity to Christ, but instead their agenda. Conformity is easier to lead. So it is partly lazy leadership and partly a need for control. Real unity is standing strong in the areas we agree in and giving space and grace for area we don’t. Real unity gives up the idea that I know everything and that God sees the exact way that I do and embraces healthy diversities.
I remember there was a really cute girl on my FITN track. She used to get a lot of attention in class from male senior leadership. Since I’m not attracted to girls I didn’t think much of it at the time being that reason but it always felt a bit strange to me(there was nothing in her behaviour or knowledge that would encourage additional attention) I remember both a senior night watch male leader and another senior male leader that would come in on the 6am making a lot of time for her. I have to say separately from this I heard the DB going to pass away in an earthquake word relayed to me by a female friend(it was some how known in her all girl small group) It seemed weird but I just shrugged it off
Sierra, when you decide that you are healed, you will be. There’s nothing more powerful operating in your life than the idea that you could be controlled for the rest of your life by an experience that you have had in an inexperienced part of your life. But God is the one commanding your life and his love for you is profound and his trust in you is profound. I remember you. I lived with one of your best friends, briefly. I remember her introducing me to you. You smiled and nodded and we never really became friends. It is a pleasure to hear you speak. I knew that you were like this. I bless you in the name of Jesus. Go forward now sister, don’t look back. And love love love. This is what the enemy tried to steal from you, your capacity to love and to joy in life, but don’t let it happen- not to foil him, but to please Jesus, who gives us a command. That command is to rejoice. It’s the first thing he said to Mary Magdalene, after he said” Mary” , he said “rejoice.”This is a repeat of what he said in the Old Testament when he said “you shall rejoice in whatever you take up for the Lord, in whatever you put your hand to.” Sierra, rejoice! Again I say, rejoice, and you have a great reason to rejoice. How highly you are thought of by your Father , how great is your reward in Jesus Christ. Rejoice! Your friend, Stephanie.
Wow. I can see why you and I never became friends. This is incredibly presumptive. Who did you live with? I was around for a while and that interaction is not ringing a bell.
Rejoicing is not in order in the face of abuse. Love calls out abuse and names it. Love is when you see how harmful your response is along with a sincere apology. I encourage you to do that, and read the article about group think that Sierra suggested with an open mind.
We don't rejoice in the midst of abuse. We expose it and call it out so others aren't harmed as well. It sounds like you're in doctor nation goes deep.
You go ahead and mind your own relationship with Jesus, not mine. It is so wild to me that so many Christians think that they are entitled to know this kind of thing about people. If you don't want to listen to my video, scroll. If you not having an answer to this question is going to be the difference between you believing the rest of what I said or not, then I'm not really interested in persuading you. If you want to make assumptions about me based on this answer or the contents of the video, then I want to keep you away from me. Go elsewhere, because I'm done with that crap. I have none of what I just said applies to you, then don't get mad about it. But I'm not going to answer that question. Answering that kind of crap, literally no matter what answer I give, just opens me up to more random people coming in here and trying to tell me why I fail their idea of what a Christian should be, literally no answer I could give will avoid that fate. So no, I will not be answering that. And I hate being asked that. If I don't reply to you someone's going to come in here assuming something, if I do reply to you with an answer someone's going to come in here jumping down my throat, and even this thing I'm saying to you now is going to get me flak from someone out there. It shouldn't actually matter for what I'm talking about in this video.
Subscribed as commitment to pray for you & your friends. As you grieve, remember to be thankful for the warfare training no matter how painful. You are living in extraordinary times, now as warrior equipped to see God’s reality vs enemy’s deception. 🫡
Bottom line? You were singled out and Abused. I’m So sorry this happened to you. Back in the 70s when I was in my 20s I was in a church connected to the Shepherding Movement.. Discipleship Movement. My family and I started asking questions (even had a meeting with the Pastor and his wife) we were “Disfellowshiped” and shunned as heretics. Later after we were gone it was discovered that the Pastor had been having sex with several women in the church. Also that he had a history of it and was “restored” and sent out again to our church. I was a brand new Christian. A similar cover up as IHOPKC tried to pull off( common practice) and he was sent out again to other churches.. again preying on women in his congregation. There has never been a platform for victims or congregations to seek healing from the spiritual abuse and resulting issues that go along with it. 50 years later and it’s still about maintaining the Pastors Integrity and good name as he repented and has since gone on to “be with the lord.” Where does that leave us 50 years later? I hope you get the healing and closure you need and this never happens to another human being. ❤
