Saturday, March 14, 2020
Prolonged Hurt and Foolishness
As I started writing this letter at 3:18 am this morning, the last 3 years of serving Harvest Rochester/Lift Church in some capacity and being members for 4 years, I can’t help but wonder what might have been?
To begin, please know this is not a short message. I would just ask that you endure with me and read until the end.
I am deeply grieved about the state of our church, the many broken relationships that have occurred, and the continual pain and hurt that I have seen happen and continue to happen.
Typically, the “I’m leaving the church/I’m resigning from the elder board” letter is short and stays within a very small group of people - the church elders. I have spoken to wise advisors and prayed and considered what to do next and I’m taking a very different approach to the current trend within the church of “leaving well” and leaving the “right way.” This has not been crafted out of a reaction - this has been discussed and prayed over for several weeks. Please allow me to explain my heart.
There have been several well-known pastors that have played a significant role in my spiritual life and health – Mark Driscoll, Matt Chandler, Perry Noble, Bill Hybels, and James McDonald. These men have played a unique and crucial role in my understanding of who God is and what He calls me, a Christian Man, to be. Certainly, the men that have been my actual pastors over my lifetime have impacted and molded me in countless ways and I am so grateful for them, including Steve Deedrick.
God made me a certain way and the way I tend to best learn is through preaching – whether live or via podcasts. I regularly listen to a sermon from someone every single day. Because of this, those five men, and many others I listed above, have been specifically important to me.
I say all of this to make a point – of those five men, four have been terminated from being the pastor of the church they founded. The first one, Mark Driscoll, really rocked my world and caused a period of confusion for me. I asked the question “How can such a wise and Godly man make so many terrible mistakes and fail so much in leadership?”
Then another was fired…and then another….and then another…. each time I was less shaken, less impacted. By the time James MacDonald and Bill Hybels were removed from ministry in the last year and a half or so, I have either become calloused from it or I have matured in my faith as they did not impact me nearly as much.
I have always been believed in learning lessons from mistakes. God often uses humiliation to teach us humility, at least that has been where He’s most taught me and gotten me to see what it is that He is trying to teach me. As you have likely heard, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” It’s OK to make mistakes, but it’s not OK to not learn from them.
As I have read about these various pastors losing their ministry, I have noticed a recurring theme that has formed my purpose in this letter. That theme is this – There always seems to be former elders, from years earlier, that say they regret they didn’t say something sooner.
Mars Hill – Mark Driscoll
In 2014, key former leaders published a confession detailing the failures of leadership and transparency related the 2007 terminations of former pastors Brent Meyer and Paul Petry, whose firings coincided with changes to the church’s bylaws that reorganized and consolidated leadership power and authority.
“We now believed that you were grievously sinned against in that termination” their letter states. “By failing to intervene we enabled a growing trend of misuses and abuses of power and authority that would be feared and tolerated by the rest of the church’s eldership. We now understand that these sorts of overpowering actions against elders were some of the very concerns that you had each expressed regarding some of the pending proposed changes to the bylaws. It was tragic that you were proved right by your own experience. The harm permitted by our failure to protect you has had a devastating and lasting impact on you, your families, Mars Hill church, and the watching world.”
In closing, the finished by saying “We hope that our confession also brings healing to the many past and present members of Mars Hill Church whose hearts were broken for you and your families as a result of our sin. As part of our commitment to walk in repentance, we invite anyone who has been impacted by our sins against you to contact any of us so we can continue to walk in repentance by listening, confessing, and asking for forgiveness.”
Sutton Turner, former Malls Hills executive elder stated later in an interview “Early on in my time at Mars Hill, I unfortunately operated in a sinful way that was consistent with the existing church culture that had grown and been cultivated since the early years of the church.”
CT - Mars Hill Elders Public Confession
Willow Creek Community Church
In August of 2018, the lead pastor and entire board of elders resigned from Willow Creek Community Church, saying that they had made mistakes by failing to believe the women who accused Bill Hybels, the church’s founding pastor, of sexual harassment with allegations made over a 10 year period.
“To all the women who have come forward,” said Missy Rasmussen, one of the church’s nine elders, speaking to the hushed congregants, “we are sorry that we added to your pain.”
“We have no reason to not believe any of you. We are sorry that our initial statements were so insensitive, defensive and reflexively protective of Bill.”
The same article also states that the church’s lead Pastor, the Rev. Heather Larson, said she was stepping down because “trust has been broken by leadership and it doesn’t return quickly. There is urgency to move us in a better direction.”
NY Times - Willow Creek's Top Leadership Resigns Over Allegations Against Bill Hybels
In a follow up Christianity Today article, Rasmussen added “Our entire elder board has had to come to grips with the areas of our hearts, minds, and souls that blinded us to the pain and suffering of the women and their advocates,” she said. “We ask forgiveness from God, our congregation, the women, their advocates, and those who have been calling us to repent.”
“We are sorry that we allowed Bill to operate without the kind of accountability that he should have had,” she said. “Our desire going forward is to retain what is good and pure about Willow, but to drive out the dark places that are unhealthy.”
“We believe that [Hybels’] sins were beyond what he previously admitted on stage, and certainly we believe that his actions with these women were sinful,” she said. “We believe he did not receive feedback as well as he gave it, and he resisted the accountability structures we all need.”
“Our board never acted out of malice, and tried to serve the church we love faithfully,” she said. “But the reality is we feel the failure of the board to move our church through this in the way we should have calls for action to be taken.”
She concluded: “We as a board know Willow needs a fresh start, and the entire board will step down to create room for a new board.”
In August of 2018, Bill Hybels’ heir, Steve Larson, quit as new accusations arose before the Global Leadership Summit.
“The new facts and allegations that came to light this morning are horrifying, and my heart goes out to Ms. Baranowski and her family for the pain they have lived with,” he wrote on his blog, announcing his resignation. “These most recent revelations have also compelled me to make public my decision to leave, as much as it grieves me to go.”
“I wish I had done more to prevent the hurtful statements that were made, and to advocate more forcefully for what I believe would have been a more humble and biblical approach,” he wrote on his blog.
CT - Bill Hybel's Heir Resigns
Harvest Bible Chapel - Chicago
With our church, Harvest/Lift, having been part of the Harvest Bible Fellowship and being planted by the fellowship, I know most of us are aware of the painful season that Harvest Bible Chapel in the Chicago area has gone through. I believe there are lessons to be learned from this as well. After all, it hits really close to home. Being in the elder room for almost two years, it is not difficult for me to see where some of the culture problems we have originate from. After all, we are a plant of HBC, our pastor was trained in the HBF training center, our bylaws are a virtual copy and paste of the HBC bylaws, and the training we have received have mostly come from HBC.
Steve Huston – Former chairman of HBC’s executive committee and one of the elders that appeared in a video in 2013 excommunicating former elders that brought up character concerns of James McDonald said in a tearful statement March 9th, 2019 that he apologized on the part of the board for a “failed system” that gave “too much latitude” and “too much trust”; for requiring only “partial accountability” of MacDonald; and for an “absence of communication” that “spoke too little, too late.” Huston also apologized for his “part in defending actions and people that I now know weren’t the complete picture, or even correct.” He added, “In my ignorance, or in my misplaced trust, I perpetuated misinformation and extended the problem.”
“In the absence of communication, you burn trust as fuel. I just couldn’t think of anything that’s more truthful than that. We spoke up too little. We were often too late. And very much too vague. And that left you wondering what we were thinking, where things were going. And one of the lessons I’ve learned from seasons past is that you should tell your story or someone else will. And I would say that that’s what we have suffered from. And so, I sincerely apologize on behalf of the full Elders for that. It’s a daunting task, but we didn’t–we failed to prioritize it for the importance that it was. We just ask for your forgiveness for that.”
Steve Huston Resignation Speech
Dan George, former elder of HBC for almost seven years said the following when he resigned from the elder board in February of 2019:
I apologize for not listening to those who tried to bring issues to light. I should have made it easier for brothers and sisters who called Harvest home to come to me. Please forgive me.
I apologize for vilifying people outside Harvest who tried to bring issues to light. Please forgive me.
I apologize for agreeing to place three of my fellow elders – i.e., Dan Marquardt, Scott Phelps, and Barry Slabaugh, who are all godly men – under church discipline and excommunicating them in 2013 when they raised concerns. (Dan/Scott/Barry – Please forgive me. I look forward to a time, hopefully soon, when I can sit with you and express this in person.)
I apologize for signing a statement of “unconditional support” for our former senior pastor in December. I was wrong. Harvest congregation – Please forgive me for causing confusion. (I could do my best to unconditionally love someone – i.e., Harvest’s 5th pillar. But I cannot pledge unconditional support of anyone.)
I apologize for not holding our former senior pastor accountable for his actions. I apologize for being OK with a structure that did not allow the visibility needed for real accountability. (I could tell you all about the structure and the part it played. That may be another statement for another time.) As I have said to many of you in person recently, I am so sorry. Please forgive me.
In a separate resignation letter, George said the following:
“If the workings and culture of the Harvest elder board does not radically change, our church will not be able to rid itself of the old sinful, secretive, siloed, controlling culture. This might sound like I am giving up. I am not. My hope is for our church to return to Christ alone and be the church (or churches) I know we can be — a church with real uncommon community where anyone can ask questions, where we say hard things to each other when needed in love, where we communicate more; a church with full transparency; a church where every member entrusted with spiritual oversight really lives out both “What does God say about this in His word?” and “What is best for the church, for the people?” But this change can happen only with a new board that has left behind the ways of the past. So, I am resigning, and I am calling on every member of the former EC to resign immediately (Steve Huston led the way here with his resignation two weeks ago), for any board member tied to the old culture to resign immediately and be replaced by men who not only are willing to reform Harvest but know how to do it—men like the former elders already named.
Harvest needs reform. It needs to start now. I am willing to help in any way I can.”
In March of 2019, former HBC elder Mike Dunwoody made a public Facebook post with the following apology:
“For the last six years I served as an elder, which has been a sobering responsibility. I did not take it lightly and I was determined to serve to the best of my ability while seeking God for His help in shepherding His flock. 1 Peter 5:2-3.
I believe I did just that most of the time. I say most of the time, because especially in recent months, there were times when I had a check in my spirit but failed to speak up out of fear of man. This is not pleasing to God because He has called me to fear the Lord only. Proverbs 1:7 & 1 John 4:18”
Dunwoody added: “It has grieved my heart to know that I have failed the Lord and His church, therefore, I am asking for forgiveness for the following areas
not speaking up against the decision to discipline three elders who I know to be godly men. To Scott, Dan, and Barry, please forgive me for not having your backs. (I have already spoken with all three of these men) To the congregation, forgive me for how this misled and confused
allowing the lawsuit to take place. To the Bryant’s, Mahoney’s, and Julie, I have reached out personally to ask forgiveness, but I am also doing that here in front of others. To the congregation, forgive me for leading us into an unbiblical lawsuit.
signing a document that gave unconditional support to James. To the congregation, please forgive me for how this misled you.
not speaking up against the launch of the Naples campus in the first place. To the people of Naples, please forgive me for the turmoil that’s come out of that decision. To the people of Harvest Chicago, please forgive for the embarrassment this was for us.
being too quick in attributing to spiritual attack what I now see as consequences of sin, and by doing so, failing to discern the danger and protect the flock. To the congregation, and to my Lord Jesus, forgive me for the shame this has brought on the church and the name of our Savior. To those who have brought up concerns to me personally in years past, forgive me for not digging deeper to find real answers, instead of being satisfied with one side of the story.
In February of 2019, the five-member executive committee of elders at HBC resigned, admitting that they “collectively failed” to oversee the church properly. The announcement concerning the executive committee—the group that makes all the financial and legal decisions for the church—was read by Executive Elder William Sperling to a packed crowd at Harvest’s Rolling Meadows campus.
Sperling admitted that over the years, various former elders, staff, and members of the church had complained about James MacDonald’s behavior and “its overall effect on Harvest’s culture.” He added that “part of the complexity” concerning the elder’s response to those complaints was MacDonald’s occasional willingness to submit to increased accountability.
However, Sperling said in the past several weeks, the elders had concluded that MacDonald’s behavior was not “above reproach.” Instead, Sperling said MacDonald exhibited “a sinful pattern of inappropriate language, anger and domineering behavior.”
Sperling admitted that the elders had not provided the necessary “direction, discipline and response time” regarding MacDonald and asked for the congregation’s forgiveness.
Harvest Elder Board Chairman Resigns
All these articles, posts, and apologies have played a significant part in my decision to be “very bold” as 2 Corinthians 3:12 cites. If there is one thing that has most tugged my heart the most, it is this:
In a February 13th article in Christianity Today titled Willow Creek and Harvest Struggle to Move On, the author, Abby Perry, referenced the following from Twitter:
“Dear Bill Hybels,” tweeted Sarah Carter, whose husband Steve was appointed preaching pastor after Hybels before also resigning when further allegations against his predecessor emerged. “Thank you for the gift of tucking my kids in as they weep & cry over friendships they can longer have, the home they had to leave, & the faith they’ve watched crumble. I give you & your assembly of lead staff & elders full credit for this current experience.”
The weight of the reality that I have been a part of an elder board in our church that has allowed this very picture to be painted crushes my spirit. In a letter to the elder board asking for a leave of absence, dated November 15th of 2019, I said the following to the other elders:
“Despite the many difficult seasons that both Andi and I have had in our lives with health challenges, ups and downs of adoption, death of loved ones, etc., this is the first time either of us have struggled with despair and lack of hope.”
I have received professional help in the form of Biblical counseling, and we are doing so much better - mostly due to the relational distance we have had with Steve.
It pains me that families have left our church, friendships have been strained and broken, and children have lost friends who have moved away or moved to other churches. In the almost 2 years since I have been in the elder room, we have lost Chris & Crystal Persons and their children. We have also lost Matt & Shawna DeCola and their children. We have lost Ben Levno and his family. We have lost Mallory Gregory. (Michael & Renae Cuestas left prior to me being in the elder room) Each of these have had profound consequences to our church. There is real pain from the past and the present. Please know that this has not been ignored by all elders – but the dysfunction of our elder board, led by Steve and Ed, has led to what I believe has been a lack of repentance, empathy, and honesty. The saying goes “People join cultures but leave leaders” and I believe is very true for us.
I can no longer stay silent.
With that in mind, I am resigning as elder of Lift Church. Andi, Natalie, Jillian, and I will also no longer be attending the church which grieves us greatly. I have failed you as an elder of the church. As just as so many former leaders of other churches have had to confess, I have waited too long. I am sorry for silence when a word should have been spoken. I am sorry that I have not listened as well as I could. I am sorry I have protected Steve at a cost to you and your family.
I believe that I have attempted, along with so many others, to follow a Matthew 18 process with Steve. I have also done the same with Ed.
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Matthew 18:15-17
Not on only one occasion either. For two years I have told Steve, on numerous occasions, that he has a blindness to the sin of pride in his life and what I believe is the idol of control.
I inquired in November of 2019 to Steve, Ed, and Adam what bringing charges would look like, in accordance with 1 Timothy 5:19. “Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20 As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.” I Timothy 5:19
The response I received was “write and letter and we’ll go from there.” Knowing how manipulative the Harvest culture is and based on previous experiences I will reference later, I did not believe there was a Biblical path forward. In the past, Steve has, what I believe, abused scripture by saying when witnesses have come against him that there was sinful pre-loading and has used that to discredit the patterns of sin that he has been confronted over. I specifically asked, “What would be the elder board’s expectation of witnesses, as 1 Timothy 5:19 makes clear is necessary?” I did not receive a reply to that question.
November 2019 - Asking More Questions
There has not been a lack of laboring and these last 2 years have been the most exhausting, challenging, and emotionally draining of my life.
There is a saying in the corporate world “The most expensive time for an organization is the gap between knowing a decision needs to be made and actually making that decision.”
Our church has spent significant dollars on all these professionals, and we have mostly discarded the recommendations.
One item that I believe needs to be brought out into the light. Andi and I received a visit from Adam Sawatsky to our home the evening of Wednesday, February 5th.
Adam informed Andi and I of the decision that was made by the three elders that evening at the elder meeting. Based on recommendations by our current church’s consultant, Lyle Wells, they were faced with one of three decisions based on my understanding of what Adam told me.
1. Address our current elder issues and make significant changes to create a healthy elder board.
2. Dissolve the current elder board and create a “board of advisors” for a season.
3. Allow a larger church to absorb our church.
Adam stated that the three of them chose to dissolve the elder board and create a board of advisors for a season. When he told me of this decision, I immediately started thinking about the potential risks and ramifications of this decision. As a financial advisor, my practice is built around the concept of “we protect against what can go wrong so we can experience the joy of what can go right.” I asked Adam if the three of them resigned or if they dissolved the elder board, and he said he was pretty sure that they chose to dissolve the elder board. I stated that we could go back to the meeting minutes to clarify that point and he stated that because this was the “shepherding” elder meeting, there was no meeting minutes taken, which surprised me.
Because of the various securities licenses that I hold for my career, I am required to disclose any outside business activities, which includes serving on a board of directors, especially if there is any financial oversight. I started being concerned about the decision to dissolve both from a personal risk standpoint and from the position of being responsible for the church according to the law, our church’s bylaws, and what I believe is the Biblical requirement to have elders.
I contacted an attorney, Gary Dahl, who specializes in church legal issues. This was not with the intent of taking legal action against the church but rather to understand the risks that I may have personally and the risks I am responsible for as an elder.
At my own expense, I had Mr. Dahl prepare a legal opinion on the situation. I then met with Steve and Ed after church on February 16th. At this meeting I delivered the letter that is linked below this paragraph stating that there were significant issues that this dissolution creates and that my letter was under our church’s “Whistleblower” articles in our bylaws. Not having a board of directors is a violation of MN law, it is a clear violation of our bylaws, and it is unbiblical. They cannot dissolve the elder board without a clear violation of these issues.
Letter to Steve, Ed, & Adam - Possible Legal, Bylaw, and Biblical Violations
I asked for a prompt response to this situation of which I just received, in very limited fashion, yesterday – March 14th. The elders did meet (I was not invited as now my leave of absence is being forced to continue for six months without any bylaw supporting this action. I have, in writing to the elders, ended my leave of absence as of February 27th. You can see my “Decision Letter to Elders” where you will see what I asked for and now those very things I disclosed in a vulnerable and what I thought was a safe environment – but some of those items have now left the elder room out of Steve’s mouth in hurtful and very personal ways.
At no point in the last almost six weeks did I hear anything back without having to poke first. Apparently, the elders now understand that they were not able to dissolve – but be very clear about something – they had every intention of dissolving the elder board and our church would not have an elder board if I had not pushed back. When I met with Steve and Ed, Steve made it clear that decision was made and now they just had to make sure it fits with the rules.
I believe this is needed to be brought out into the light – under your senior pastor’s leadership, your elders were prepared to hand complete governance of our church over to Steve – in clear violation of state law and our church’s bylaws. Not only were the elders willing to do that, but Steve was more than willing to have that happen. The plan would be for Steve to put a board of advisors together but best case there would be a gap. I don’t know all that was discussed other than I can’t go to elder meetings and that this is now a settled issue according to the elders. I do not know if that is or isn’t true.
Here’s the question I would ask: What humble senior pastor would ever even want to have no accountability in place for a season and would think so lowly of his co-elders that he is OK with them just throwing their hands in the air and giving up? What knower and doer of the Word, not blind to their own pride, would even consider this to happen much less let it happen and then defend it happening?
Some additional things that I believe need to be brought out into the light:
1) Pastor Ron Zappia, the man Steve calls “my pastor” recommended we have a clear break from Harvest Chicago. After this advice was given, Steve went against this advice and the counsel of the elders and deacons by insisting in taking men to the Act Like Men Palooza. In addition, several times, Steve attempted to engage in conversations around hiring Rick Donald, assistant senior pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel in Chicago. Rick was often referred to as “James MacDonald’s right-hand man” and is certainly not above reproach. Just Google his name and judge for yourself.
2) Lee Lewis, the Biblical Soul Care consultant that our church invested in to help reconcile the broken relationships with Chris and Crystal Persons and Ben and Amanda Levno, gave us several recommendations you will find in the document ‘Conversation with Lyle’. Lee recommended that as an elder board, we read the book From Pride to Humility which he said needs to lead to confession, repentance, and prayer. We did go through Pride to Humility late summer of 2019 despite being given this recommendation in April. This book has a helpful assessment. Adam and I pushed to go through this as an elder team – and I welcomed each of the other elders to rate me as well. Steve was not willing to have others ‘score’ him and so we ended up sharing what we learned about ourselves. Ironically, in the book, the author points out that the word PRIDE in Greek refers to be haughty and conveys a blindness or even being enveloped in smoke. I find that ironic. Steve has told people that “Steve Buehler, Lyle Wells, and Ron Zappia don’t see pride in me. I’ve asked God and He said I don’t have pride. Kimberly said I don’t have pride either.” The last quote is interesting because Kimberly came to an elder meeting once to defend Steve and said she “knows he has some pride but that it is getting better.” All three of us elders have said we see it in him at various times and within the last few weeks I know of at least two occasions where others have expressed this to Steve, and he has made it clear he doesn’t have pride. The author of the book, Stuart Scott, makes it clear that:
“Pride is everywhere and manifests itself in many ways. As much as we may hate to admit it, all of us have pride - each one of us. The question is not “Do I have it?” but “Where is it? and “How much of it do I have?” Throughout the Scriptures you see the pride of position (Matthew 23:6), ability (2 Chronicles 26:15-16, achievement (Daniel 4:22), wealth (1 Timothy 6:17), possessions (Matthew 6:19), knowledge (Isaiah 47:10), learning (1 Corinthians 8:1, spiritual attainment (Luke 22:24), self-righteousness (Romans 10:3), being esteemed or liked (Galatians 1:10), and even pride of spiritual experiences (2 Corinthians 12:7). Our flesh has a bent toward pride and it is an easy snare for the devil to use.” He then quotes the Puritan Thomas Watson “It is a spiritual drunkenness; it flies up like wine into the brain and intoxicates it. It is idolatry; a proud man is a self-worshiper.” Some people try to hide their pride behind spiritual words and actions, but it is there nonetheless. “ That is, unless you are Steve Deedrick. Well known Christian author and speaker Charles Colson once said “Though I know intellectually how vulnerable I am to pride and power, I am the last one to know when I succumb to their seduction. That’s why spiritual Lone Rangers are so dangerous – and why we must depend on trusted brothers and sisters who love us enough to tell us the truth.”
3) Andi and I and one other couple in our church were contacted prior to traveling down to Illinois to visit the Persons family – Steve’s brother-in-law, close friends of ours, and former staff of our church. Both of us were given instructions about what we could and could not talk about with the Persons. One was via phone call and for us it involved a text. Does that sound like a humble, contrite, reconciled person? Or does that sound like someone who is trying to control the situation? I have never in my life considered contacting someone about something like that…. but then again, I’ve never had prolonged and unreconciled relationships with people either. Do not accept Steve’s version of events or the status of relationships. Ask others where things are at.
4) Steve has used prayer requests in the connect registers against people.
5) Steve and Kimberly have used conversations in the elder room against us in conversations with friends of ours. He then has blamed the people who have told us that they are the ones being gossipers. The reason it was shared with us was because it had to do with serious issues within the church that were disclosed to them and they were concerned.
6) Steve insists on using funds given to the church building fund to pay the mortgage on the land directly. I have questioned this on multiple occasions as I think people should know that they are not giving to a future building in that case but rather just paying the existing land mortgage. I believe that should at least be disclosed.
7) Steve has claimed on numerous occasions to be a great leader, that he is great at hiring people, and that he is great with staff. This despite his position that all the problems are all on the other staff members – it’s always someone else’s fault with Steve. Steve will likely attempt to claim that he admitted to our church that he is responsible for the “culture problems” that led to staff leaving. Be clear about this – he has always meant that in that since he’s the senior leader, he is responsible. He does not mean that he has contributed, and I believe he is the single largest contributor to the problems we have had at this church.
8) Steve continually has shown a belief that he is “better than others” through his words and actions. (Luke 7:36-50) He believes he is not equal with the other elders (the Bible does not have the phrase ‘first among equals’ anywhere.) Harvest DNA, Steve, and Ed have used 1 Timothy 5:17 as the justification for this elevated belief.
“Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.” 1 Timothy 5:17
It does not take a very deep study of scripture to understand what this verse implies. At that time, the church was under attack from false-teachers so Paul is making it clear that the local church should properly care for those who are specially gifted in teaching and spend the time to do so. (see Role of Elder document for an in-depth explanation of the author of the concept “first amongst equals” – Alexander Strauch. I included several points from his book Biblical Eldership and it is worth nothing this point: “Often times, the administration of the church is left largely in the hands of the pastor. This is bad for him, and it is bad also for the church. It makes it easier for the minister to build up in himself a dictatorial disposition and to nourish in his heart the love of autocratic power. It is my conviction that God has provided a hedge against these powerful temptations by the concept of multiple elders. The check and balance that is provided by men of equal authority is most wholesome and helps to bring about the desired attitude expressed by Peter to the plurality of elders: “. . . shepherd the flock of God among you, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock (1 Peter 5:2,3).” Clearly, he is not advocating a hierarchy of leadership and this is abused often in our church and many other Harvest Bible Fellowship churches. Our consultant is currently working with several former Harvest Bible Fellowship churches and all of them are struggling with this same issue of pastors with control issues.
Thoughts on Biblical Eldership
9) On several occasions, Steve has made it clear that if he were to be terminated as pastor of Lift Church, he would just go plant another church in Rochester. This is the same things James MacDonald is currently doing, regardless of being disqualified from ministry. Steve would be in the same situation and his position is telling.
10) Steve has claimed to others that he has tried repeatedly to reconcile with me but that I refuse to do so unless there is a 3rd party involved. I would ask Steve to supply proof of his efforts as I have received one text from him prior to the elder resignation situation. He has not asked to meet and if anything he has avoided my messages to him. The only conversation that was had about reconciliation was at Adam’s home when Steve and Adam informed me of the elder’s decision to give me 6 months off for my leave of absence. At the time, it was communicated as a gift but now is being used to keep me out of elder discussions. Steve mentioned at that meeting that during the 6 months off he and I could ‘grab lunch and get right’ and I stated that for our relationship to heal it would require a professional 3rd party to be involved. Too many times I have heard Steve say “We’re good” when talking about his relationship with others and that just not be true.
11) At the direction of consultants, it was advised that Steve and the elders need to own our sin to the church. During a text exchange between elders this past summer, Steve said that he would own what we want him to own if we’ll own what he wants us to own and if the former staff will own what he wants them to own. (I can provide the text.) Even more concerning was what Steve said during an October elder meeting, in the presence of one of our consultants. As we were attempting to come to an agreement about what all of us should own, Steve said to all of us “I’ll own what you want me to own, but I have one condition - all of you resign as elders.” This was made just prior to our November member’’s meeting. That is the best example of what I feel is the problem - a lack of humble, contrite, low-postured repentance. Matthew 15:18 makes it clear that what comes out of the mouth is already in the heart.
The argument that has been made to defend Steve has been that he lacks self-awareness. While this is true, he has had numerous opportunities to step back and instead pushes forward. The time is over for this to be an excuse.
To be clear, Ed Gaul had been Steve’s protector in all of this. Ed is a peace-maker and I believe he fears Steve. Part of the “Harvest DNA” is that unity of the elder board is the most important thing in the church. Ed has used this several times to justify not speaking up to Steve. I once asked him via text to give me the scriptural support for that and he sent me a picture of the Harvest Elder Expectations document, which used Ephesians 4 in an inappropriate application. That verse is to the whole body of the church and certainly does not allow to look the other way to unrepentant and prolonged sin in any of our lives. When we met with Vital Church, Greg Caruso specifically said Ed should not be our elder board chair, but Steve would never have let Adam, or I be elder board chair – we were already pushing back against the character flaws we saw in him. I have seen Ed dismiss people’s feelings and lack empathy.
In the spring of 2019, Ed, Adam, and I proposed to Steve that he take a sabbatical from church leadership to get healthy, allow us as elders to care for the flock, and to correct some of the systems that we have been advised to fix. Steve was initially open to this, but then he started placing numerous conditions on his leave which ultimately would not accomplish any meaningful space to be an effective elder board.
In June of 2019, Ed, Adam, and I wrote a letter to Steve to formally tell him that something must change. All three of us played a part in crafting this letter. When the three of us met at Adam’s home to make the final edits, Ed decided he no longer would be willing to deliver the letter “because we all know how he will respond, so what difference does it make?” Adam and I could not believe that and felt that is why it had to be delivered. Ed would not budge – despite being the final author of the letter.
The final point I would like to make about the state of things at our church is best communicated in this article from Desiring God: The First Requirement of Christian Leaders - Above Reproach
I would challenge you to take a few minutes to read this piece.
“We might say that “a model Christian” is essentially the other side of the coin as “above reproach.” This seemingly low bar for eldership does have some important truth to convey about our pastors, elders, or overseers (three terms for the same lead office in the church). First, as Don Carson has observed, the lists of qualifications, summarized with “above reproach,” are “remarkable for being unremarkable.” There is no requirement here for achievements in formal education, world-class intellect or oratory, or manifest giftedness above the common man. Rather, these qualifications are the sort of traits we want to be manifest in every Christian. What we’re looking for in our pastor-elders is normal, healthy, model Christianity.
Fundamental, then, to leadership in the local church is an exemplary function. Pastors must not only be skilled teachers of God’s word and governors of his people, but also examples of the kind of increasingly Christlike life toward which the whole congregation is progressing. The pastors unavoidably are “being examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:3; also 1 Timothy 4:12). The pastors must be those we hold up to the church and say, in essence, “Be like him,” without having to make any qualifications.
“Above reproach,” as we see in Titus 1:7, also communicates a kind of modesty and humility in the very nature of the calling: “an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach.” Leaders in the church are not rulers. They are stewards, not kings, not stars, not performers. Pastors are “God’s stewards” of his word and his people, and church office is not a personal possession but an assignment to a steward. And part of stewarding, among other things, is not drawing inordinate attention to the steward himself while eclipsing the one to whom we’re called to point.
This much, and more, Christ requires of formal leaders in his church. It is inevitably a public calling, in the church and beyond. And so, for the good of the flock, and the good of the gospel in the world, Christ through his apostle bids us to appoint pastors and deacons whose lives are exemplary. They are to be “above reproach.” No reasonable or founded blame or reproach can be leveled against them, as they happily, and distractingly, lock arms with a team of pastors to care well for the whole of the flock.”
Can this be said of Steve Deedrick? I believe there is no question that Steve does not live a life “above reproach”
I end with this article from The Gospel Coalition: How Should a Pastor Think Through Leaving His Church
The article lists eight diagnostic points for a pastor to ask himself:
1) Are the people responding favorably to your leadership? Our church has gone from 550 or so people a week to around 200. Our staff has seen a steady decline in the last 2 years. As of this weekend, we will have had 4 elders resign in 2 years.
2) Have you misunderstood your calling? The phrase “One another” occurs 100 times in the New Testament and 59 of those occurrences are specific commands teaching us how (and how not) to relate to one another. Steve’s strengths are certainly geared more toward church planting where his weaknesses might not become character issues as quickly vs. him leading a congregation with a large staff.
3) Do you have substantive support in the church? I do not believe this to be true.
4) Is this ministry chewing up your family? I know this has been a very hard season for the Deedrick family.
5) Is this ministry taking a toll on your marriage? Steve is not a vulnerable guy, so I don’t know the answer to this. They did say to the whole church that they were going to an intensive marriage counselor/retreat a while back – I hope and have prayed it was helpful.
6) Do mitigating factors prevent you from staying? Steve is compensated very fairly so this is not an issue to me.
7) Have you sought the council of other mature, godly pastors? For this to be answered honestly, I believe Steve would need to let elders and others be involved in those conversations. Steve is very gifted at controlling the narrative and preloading conversations himself (something he would claim is unbiblical if someone else did it to him). I do not believe there are local pastors that he could have this conversation with because I don’t believe he has strong relationships with other local pastors.
8) Will your continued leadership help or harm the church? I do not believe our church can survive the current path we are on.
I want to leave you with a powerful response to a question I recently read in an interview with author and professor Chuck DeGroat. DeGroat, a professor of pastoral care at Western Theological Seminary, shares the lessons he’s learned in his latest book, When Narcissism Comes to Church: Healing Your Community from Emotional and Spiritual Abuse.
There are two questions that have very powerful answers:
How can the church better take the plank of narcissism out of its own eyes?
“Humility, humility, humility. Are we willing to hear how others experience us? Are we willing to self-evaluate?”
In closing, the interviewer asks, “Considering the abuse that’s come to light in the last five years, the outlook could seem bleak. To me, this book exists as a sign of hope. What encourages you?
” What encourages me most is that men and women of courage are stepping forward to say ‘This is not Christ’s version of the church, of leadership, or of relationships.’ They are demanding more of us as leaders. They genuinely long for Christlike humility. They are willing to do the hard work of dismantling toxic systems and relationships, of naming harmful realities, and moving toward hope and trust in love.”
My hope and prayer are that this long and wordy message has accomplished just that.
Pray for all involved. Pray for those we disagree with. And pray for Christ’s Bride – she has taken a beating for a while now.