Sarah Card

@MikeGastonscv @MtnMommaljh @Protestia No.

@MtnMommaljh @Protestia But if you expect confidentiality of adults on your staff, wouldn’t you also express the same expectation to minor interns, however legally binding it may be? You’re giving them a ministry staff experience. This is part of it. I’m anti-NDAs in churches. This is not that.

Here is portion of an NDA that Mark Driscoll of Trinity Church allegedly makes minors sign, many of them under the age of 14. Our position is simple: There’s no justification for telling CHILDREN they can’t tell their parents EVERYTHING and ANYTHING that goes on inside a church. The young man who signed this particular NDA was 15 years old when dated Driscoll's daughter for a while and kissed her, causing Driscoll to flip out, remove the family from church, see them shunned, and put the family under surveillance. (see our story about it below) Now, the young man writing a book about it.

@jaredcwilson Completely unrelated, but I was there today and now you show up in my feed….phones are listening 😂. Nevertheless, it was such an encouragement and renewed a desire to find the road to Christ in the scriptures, thank you!

Today I spoke on preaching Christ from every text, and I made the claim — not original to me — that if your OT sermon would be at home in a Jewish synagogue, it’s not a Christian sermon. That raises eyebrows too. 👀

@megbasham Just stop already. My word.

Maybe this is a learning moment. I would like for some to consider, what if, at the height of Trump‘s “grab them by the blank“ controversy, a pastor with the recognition of a John Piper had simply posted “judge not lest ye be judged.” Do we think that most people would’ve assumed he was intending it to relate to the biggest news of the day? And if he didn’t intend that, do we think that he probably would’ve clarified? And if he didn’t clarify, do we think that the post would get a reaction?

@EBurdine @LeMonde1804 @LongTimeHistory Stop it. Get off the “empathy is toxic” train. It does nothing to help anyone.

@LeMonde1804 @LongTimeHistory Guess what pal, Christian doesn’t mean doormat. Get a life. We’re so over weaponized empathy.

ICE kicks woman off of Social Security—a U.S. citizen who's never traveled more than 40 miles from home. "I've never even left Dallas County—let alone the country," she said. "I am not an immigrant." She is disabled—and relies on social security as only source of income. 59-year-old Ramona Rakestraw was born in 1966 at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Despite this she received a letter stating: "We cannot pay you benefits because you are not lawfully present in the U.S." Kidney disease first sent her to dialysis at age 28 and she received a transplant—30 years later she was diagnosed with cancer.

@MBurtwrites I can only stomach watching a few of these clips.

Doug and Nancy's stand-up bit on how they spanked their toddler 35-50X for outgrowing his nap

Doug Wilson preached at the Pentagon this week. It's important to know that Christian Nationalist goals begin with pronatalism: having many children & "training" them accordingly. How? Here is a 🧵in Doug's own words. Doug on tools to hit children with:

Repentance is not seen in tears; it is not seen in words; it is not seen in emotion. Repentance is long, slow, consistent change over an extended period of time because it is from the heart outward. Heart change is supernatural work.

@KozarSteveMUC It’s really sad. I know several young people who love the Lord & have gone through the program. Each one has had to post multiple requests to raise money, not only for the tuition, but for living expenses while working multiple jobs.

When students give $5,750/year to the Bethel School of Supernatural, where does that money go? Who is getting paid to run this thing, and how much? I have found ZERO information on the financials for this pretend school, where you're expected to buy numerous Bethel books. #BethelMusic #p_billjohnson #kvministries #BSSM #NewApostolicReformation

@webdevMason I would like to know who let their baby be used for that disgusting ad.

The Frida Baby thing is the worst unforced error I think I've ever seen on the part of a retail company

@linzcreswell @alisa_childers She just doesn’t have the same theology as you on secondary issues but that doesn’t mean it’s poor theology.

@alisa_childers Maybe #1 She Deserves Better & #2 The Great Sex Rescue. Sadly, w/ her books being recommended by women at my church I’m listening to her podcasts as well to Biblically refute the poor theology she teaches. Too many women are buying it hook, line and sinker😢

For those of you who follow Sheila Gregoire and are concerned about her teachings, which of her books would be the most helpful for me to review?

@HeatherACofer @alisa_childers Dangerous teaching or that she’s an egalitarian? That seems to be what others see as a red flag instead of critically looking at what she teaches and how her research has helped many.

My first thought was She Deserves Better (I’ve begun critically reviewing this personally due to close-to-home interaction over her teachings/influence), but I know a lot of women who really got into her content through The Great Sex Rescue (which I have not read, but know a lot of people in the conservative Christian world liked it). It might be helpful to hear your take on that, and potentially how it’s the gateway into accepting her other more blatantly dangerous teachings.

@linzcreswell @alisa_childers So it’s a huge red flag because…..?

@alisa_childers Forgot about “The Marriage you Want”. Would really love to hear your rebuttal of this book. It was just recommended by women’s ministry leaders at my church. Huge red flag for me that THIS was the marriage book recommended. Heartbroken for my church😢

@faith_reframed @realprophetguy @MikeWingerii Maybe reach out to @netgrace_org

PLEASE REPOST/SHARE IF YOU WANT TO HELP WITH BETHEL VICTIMS I’m at a loss for words. Over the past week, since @MikeWingerii released his video,I have had more than 5 victims of Bethels corruption and abuse come forward to me. Many more have to other Podcasters and more will continue to come. This is just beginning. We had the alumni call today and we were told by Dan Farrelly that SLT wanted to listen to us more. @kvministries jumps on the call and spoke for almost an hour, then left when the alumni were going to ask questions. When people were ready to tell him directly how his actions failed us. He only said what was already said on Sunday morning. I only say this because for me it does not look like a good start for change. It’s more control. It’s more “let me just tell you what I’m gonna say and not actually listen to you” The tone was great, what was said was thoughtful, but what happened showed us everything. People are hurting. Victims are scared to even submit reports because of how “Safe Church” reads. This is only going to get worse. If you have any connection to a trauma informed reporting/processing service please reach out to me. As alumni we are trying to get our own reporting site with real third party accountability. We need help. #bethel #bethelmusic #bethelalumni

@healintuitively @RonSCantor Not to mention restoration to leadership shouldn’t have been an option.

@RonSCantor When his restoration process was announced I remember thinking: What about her restoration process? How can he ever be trusted in a leadership role again?

The video below is being shared with Rozanne Leigh's permission. 👇👇Please read this description as well 👇👇 Two days ago, in a letter I posted to Danny Silk—who was part of Bethel Church, Redding's leadership—I included a postscript. In it, I raised concerns about Danny’s description of a case involving the grooming and sexual abuse of a young intern by one of their pastors. He referred to it as an “affair,” language that fails to account for the significant power imbalance involved and obscures the reality that a young woman in her early twenties was targeted and exploited. In my judgment, calling such a situation an “affair” is no more accurate than claiming that the deer consented to being devoured by the leopard. Based on Rozanne’s testimony, she was being groomed during roughly the same period that this pastor was later reported to have engaged in what appears to have been a sexually abusive relationship with his intern. I first became aware of this man's story after watching a widely discussed sermon by Kris Vallotton where declared his loyalty to Mike Bickle, shortly after it became known that Bickle had maintained a long-term sexually abusive relationship with a minor. In that message, Kris highlighted this pastor as a beautiful story of “restoration.” (He did not mention the victim, nor did he frame her as one. It's all about the abuser and his restoration.) I am choosing not to name him here, not to shield wrongdoing, but to avoid further harm to innocent family members. Still, it must be said plainly: when a pastor invites a young intern—someone over whom he has exercised spiritual authority and a fatherly role—to live in his home with his family, serious ethical and safeguarding concerns are unavoidable. One might assume he knew exactly what he was doing. This is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, When Shepherds Prey: “In the Ancient Near East, shepherds often wrapped themselves in a sheep’s skin or fleece (see Jeremiah 3:12) to keep warm on cold nights in the open fields, particularly in Jerusalem’s chilly mountain winters. The image was familiar: a shepherd clothed in the fleece of his own flock. Jesus wasn’t contrasting wolves with sheep—He was exposing the predator who masquerades as a shepherd, using the garb of concern and care to conceal evil intentions. While they may look like a shepherd, ‘inwardly [they] are ravenous wolves’ (Matt. 7:15 ESV).” Rozanne was a student at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry. At 18, she moved from overseas to Redding, California, encouraged by her father and filled with expectation. Students were assigned to "revival groups" of approximately sixty people, each overseen by a pastor. Her assigned pastor was a man. Early in the year, the group attended a retreat. Rozanne did not know anyone and describes herself as feeling isolated. According to her account, the pastor noticed this and approached her, saying, “I noticed that you’re a bit of a loner.” He began spending time with her and occasionally asked her to meet with him, often during times she would otherwise have been in class. Although they met in public locations, she says these meetings occurred when no one else was present. During these interactions, he told her that God had revealed to him that she had “intimacy issues.” A male pastor was meeting privately with an eighteen-year-old female student and directing conversations toward her perceived intimacy problems—something widely recognized as a serious boundary violation. He further told her that she would be unable to have a romantic relationship until these issues were addressed, and that he, conveniently, would be the one to help her do so. She describes sitting next to him on a bench, pressed closely “thigh to thigh,” with his arm around her. When she expressed discomfort, he framed her reaction as further evidence of her supposed intimacy issues. According to established definitions used by abuse-prevention experts, these behaviors align with recognized patterns of grooming: ✅️ identifying a person who is isolated ✅️ cultivating emotional dependence ✅️ introducing physical contact gradually ✅️ reframing discomfort (with him touching her) as her personal or spiritual deficiency ✅️ leveraging spiritual or parental-like authority It would appear that he fabricated the intimacy issue to be the one to minister to her. When touching was uncomfortable, it only proved his point; therefore, God must have revealed it to him. His touching did not cross a boundary a pastor should never cross; as her spiritual leader, he was helping her overcome her problems. He created a problem that could only be solved through his inappropriate behavior. THAT'S GROOMING! Rozanne explains that she assumed his behavior was acceptable because Bethel leadership had given him authority. Certainly, they would not have empowered someone with ill intentions. She was 18, sheltered, from another country, and operating within a highly spiritualized environment where leaders are assumed to be examples of morality and spirituality. She describes his physical contact escalating—hands moving closer to her chest and resting on her thigh. It is important to clarify why she is properly understood as a victim rather than a participant. Even when a young person does not immediately withdraw, the confusion, disorientation, and self-doubt she describes are well-documented features of clergy sexual abuse. When the perpetrator is perceived as a “man of God,” the victim often struggles to trust her own instincts. Rozanne describes feeling deeply uncomfortable while simultaneously believing he was helping her. Eventually, she began signaling that she did not want to miss class or worship. At that point, he backed off. In my assessment, based on her account, his behavior suggests a probing or testing of boundaries that ceased when resistance became clearer. A few months later, during Rozanne’s second year, this same pastor was reportedly required to confess—along with his intern—that they had been involved in an “affair.” That is the language used in Danny Silk’s book Unpunishable, and it appears to be how the situation was communicated to students at the time. That framing, however, fails to account for the significant power imbalance involved. Based on publicly available testimony, the woman involved was in her early twenties and serving as the pastor’s intern. She has since stated that he positioned himself as a father figure, and Silk revealed that he invited her to live with him and his family. While I do not know every detail, she now classifies what happened to her as grooming (see below). We now have two independent testimonies describing similar patterns of behavior by the same individual. Given the overlap in timelines, it is reasonable to consider that these dynamics occurred at the same time, though I do not claim to know more than what survivors have shared. Rozanne recalls that the intern was subsequently shamed. That experience is consistent with how institutions sometimes respond when misconduct is minimized or mischaracterized. Someone who was present shared, “It was sad what happened to her after it was made public. She was shunned and treated as less-than, while [the pastor] went thru a “restoration” process and then was back in bethel leadership not long after.” Seven months ago, the former intern wrote: “I’m doing great. Still recovering, heavily in therapy. That whole situation was very bad—more to the story than anyone will ever know. Ben was a father to me, a pastor. I was groomed. But I am okay. I moved away. I have been happily married to my husband since 2018; we’ve been together since 2011. I have two great stepkids, own my own home, and have a very successful career. I’m still deconstructing Bethel and all we went through there—that part has not been fun. One day I may do a podcast or write about it all. I’m not ready yet. But I am good.” I hope she does tell her story publicly when—and if—she is ready. Her voice matters. And I hope Bethel’s leadership will reach out to her, not to manage appearances, but to acknowledge the harm caused by framing her victimization as an “affair,” and to offer a genuine apology.

@Jennieseeking @BethMooreLPM Why does he deserve respect from her?

@BethMooreLPM You frankly are the immature one! I am done! I too have benefitted from years and years of your studies. Attended your events $'s, am your age, and the POTUS deserves prayer and respect ONLY from you! You have a HUGE platform and you are using it unwisely and without grace!

I long for a day when the United States has a president who, just for starters, not to even get into more serious matters, is not older than Methuselah and does not sound like a 13 year-old on TikTok talking about middle school classmates. I don’t think this is too much to ask. And do not say to me, I guess you wish we had so-and-so and think what they’d do. We don’t have so-and-so. We have this one. And I don’t think it makes me woke to wish he acted like a grown-up.

@Jesusmyhealer3 @BethMooreLPM The adjudicated rapist?

@laurieasheldon @BethMooreLPM President Trump is not my pastor. He’s my president. And he’s doing an excellent job despite the ones who wanna cut him down. I am very thankful for all that he has done! I’m very thankful for his stance on moral issues, too, which is why I voted for him!!

@phantom__picks @PatriciaKingXP And charge for it. Then you see the students working multiple jobs, basically begging for money to pay rent, pay tuition, & for mission trips.

@PatriciaKingXP Until you and others stop with the prophetic when you aren’t and also close the school (BSSM), no one will heal & many others will continue to get hurt. A gift isn’t taught but yet you let these schools accept anyone at any age and tell them they already have the gift. Blasphemy

@GeoffMatero @alisa_childers @MikeWingerii Covering up abusive and manipulative behavior harms people, regardless of how you feel about them. I would pay attention to how they respond. Do they humbly admit it, make changes and apologize or do they deflect?

I’ve had some of my deepest encounters with God and the heavenly realm at Bethel. I’ve followed their teachings and read countless books. I was a BSSM online student with years ago and STILL recommend it. It’s not bethels job to air out everyone’s dirty laundry. They distanced themselves from Shawn years ago. Shawn’s leadership should’ve outed him and shut him down. Could bethel have handled the most recent stuff better? Sure. But it just seems like everyone is jumping on the hate bethel train. Showing more hate than grace. My question is who is vetting Mike. Because all I’ve seen so far is just hate for Christains on his channel while talking liberal talking points. (Let the hate flow. I know it’s coming.)

I say this as gently as possible, but if anyone still thinks Bethel carries a "special anointing," or experiences an increased measure of the Holy Spirit, or moves in a genuine "prophetic culture," I dare you to watch this. Also, @MikeWingerii is a gift to the body of Christ. Pray for his protection, strength, and endurance. youtu.be/GH05S53QlY0?si…

@JenniferEValent @JayMallow3 That’s an huge understatement.

@JayMallow3 The man is a scourge. Just truly abysmal.

I keep telling you "complimentarianism" is just slave holder theology transferred to women and children.

@cordova_24 @BethMooreLPM Maybe because today is Piper’s 80th birthday and she wanted to highlight a great story to show how two believers with different views were able to have lovely fellowship together. 🤷🏻‍♀️She was honoring him.

@BethMooreLPM What in the world is the point of this story other than bringing someone's name up publicly to stir up drama? Did any of these men mention your name surrounding an issue for everyone to see? If not, this is highly disappointing

A story. Years ago at one of the passion conferences, Louie Giglio asked John Piper and me to lunch then went suspiciously quiet. And there we were, sitting across from one another forced to talk or take the chance of dishonoring our host. I’m not saying this was Louie’s intention. But I suspect it was Christ’s since he’s the Head of every table where Christians sit even if he’s unacknowledged. There we were, two people who loved Jesus, prized his fellowship above all earthly treasures, pored over the scriptures and prayed day in and day out. Passionate about Jesus then and to this day. If either of us are faking it then you’ve got to at least give us credit for keeping it up for so long. But we saw some things differently that caused us to have a certain allergy to each other. Disapproval of one another. I realize this story will bring out side takers and maybe even haters but they will have missed the point. Neither John nor I have always been right or wrong. I wouldn’t say we got particularly chatty or chummy. But we talked a bit and mostly about family. That was common ground and good ground. I’ve always been tender toward his kids as I’d like to think he’s been toward mine. It’s brutally hard to be the children of such opinionated and outspoken people. Imagine how many times our children have opened up social media and seen where we’ve dropped some kind of grenade, a take on something they could not support or, if they did, certainly wouldn’t have wanted us to say it publicly the way we said it. Many years have passed. But every single time I have ever squirmed over anything he has said or written, I revisit that lunch. I think how hard it is at times for people who come from such different places and see things from different sides of the table to understand one another. And what I know even when I don’t agree with his take on a thing is that his faith is genuine, his love for Jesus indisputable and his endurance admirable. And I can say to myself, that is my brother.

@Matthew56193629 @gobutlerdawgs @scotchanglican @BethMooreLPM @TexNTenn1977 Yes, Adam was there the whole time and purposely sinned. Hmmmmm…..

Half century ago soon enough? The reason you have no spiritual discretion is the loyalty to gender that runs counter to the bible. Women are not pastors not because Paul hated women, but the woman, Eve, was deceived. And how? Eve was deceived because she wanted to be more spiritual, be more like God. Yet Adam was not deceived, and he was there the entire time. The Beth Moores and the Joel Osteens and the Joyce Meyers are the problem, not the solution. All three wish they had been born men. The prosperity gospel is for people going to hell, logically speaking. Because if you're living your best life now, you're going to hell. No life on earth is worse than the best life in hell, and no life on earth is better than the worst life in heaven.