Posted on 11/05/2006 3:53:32 PM PST by quiet_reverie
Ted Haggard's letter to New Life Church
Gayle Haggard's letter to New Life Church
In this instance, it is probably most apporopritate not to cite Scripture but convey through action its principles. He, is defrocked, and is no longer in the leadership role -- citing Scripture wouldn't be right.
Quit nitpicking. Gayle refers to a "Savior" in her letter. It's obvious they're talking about Jesus. That letter was good enough and there's no reason to paste in some out of place scripture that suppose to be "relevant".
"Ridiculous. She should kick his sorry ass out to the curb."
That's the difference bewteen being a Christian or someone like you. She's a Christian. She is trying her best to imitate Christ. Her husband asked her forgivness. She forgave him.
BTW, Christ died for you too!
Christ didn't "kick your sorry ass to the curb" . Nor will this woman treat her husband that way.
I can't get that picture of Gayle, sitting in the car, eyes swollen from crying, and her children behind her in the car.
Christians do not have such a lax attitude toward marriage. Just because one spouse was not faithful is not reason enough for the other to be so, too, especially when the first spouse is trying to overcome his unfaithfulness. They are one flesh, and, as that implies, are not easily divided.
Very sad. Honestly, we are all humans and sin. As a sister in Christ I can't look down upon this man, but pray that God will restore his soul and free him from the sin that has is holding him captive. I feel horrible for his family and his wife's letter to the church was very moving. I can't imagine what that family is going through. God bless them all.
My pastor led our congregation in prayer for the healing of New Life Church, and for the Haggard family, and all affected by this.
From Ted's letter: "... I have been appropriately and lovingly removed from ministry. Our church's overseers have required me to submit to the oversight of Dr. James Dobson, Pastor Jack Hayford, and Pastor Tommy Barnett. Those men will perform a thorough analysis of my mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical life. They will guide me through a program with the goal of healing and restoration for my life, my marriage, and my family."
The leadership of New Life has set a good course. I pray the church and the Haggards get all the help and love they need and that this deep wound in the body of Christ will be healed as only God can make it heal.
Revelation 21:5 "And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new."
It is the best part of his letter. No liberal apologizes like this. They throw out a little remorse that they were caught then go right on to attack their accuser and vilify Bush, Rove and others. This man needs tobe dealt with and just as he said..harshly, but he make NO qualification for any of it.
No democrat would do this and I dare say a lot of Republicans do not either. It will just get lost on the MSM as they will be the trumphet for the hate-filled anti-christian bigots of the eft as they use this to attack all christians and lable those as idiots for believing in Christ.
The Haggarts aside, perhaps one of the problems which modern Christianity faces is the mega-church -- very much like that Laodecean Church that the Lord admonished.
Brother Haggard,
Even though I'm a thousand miles away, I too was hurt by your actions brother Haggard. The body of Christ is one, throughout the entire world.
Your biblical act of humility and repentance has helped to heal the bodies pain.
I have forgiven you, and also your accuser. I will hold him up to the Lord in prayer that he will feel the real power of Christ in his life through this experience.
I will also pray for you and your family that you will be healed and restored to the fullness of life that God has intended you to have.
Lovingly,
Your brother in Christ
It is the part of the apology which truly shows that he recognizes that this humiliating ordeal he is going through has divine retribution infused .
Pastor Cho (I can't remember how he spells his first name but it's something like Yonggi) in South Korea has an enormous church. They way they keep things working is that they have small groups so that people can get to know one another and be accountable. I'm not against large churches or megachurches; I have no desire to keep multitudes of people from being fed by one leader. That's what Jesus did, while training His disciples to pick up the load after He ascended to heaven.
Just a guess on my part, but based on observing this type of thing before: so many times with Christian leaders, pride can keep leaders from admitting how desperate they are for real help. Haggard admits he knew he was in deep, deep trouble a long time ago. God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble -- if only we could get ahold of this truth! How much less damage to the flock, and to his own life, if he had brought his darkest needs into the brightest light, the light that comes with baring your soul to another person in ministry and going to the Lord for true help, before the temptations to do evil pulled him into this pit. And isn't that where he is today -- baring his soul not just to a few Christian leaders and God, but to that group PLUS the whole world?
I thank God Haggard had the wisdom to submit to the godly counsel of the elders in his church, and to submit to Dobson, Barnett, and Hayford. It would be difficult to find a better team of men to rebuild someone who has fallen into sexual sin.
He's an admitted fraud. Walk in her shoes.
She needs to protect her children and herself. She should start with an HIV/AIDS test.
ps. I am a Christian and don't have a "lax attitude" about marriage. Are you judging?
Thank you, Quiet, for providing the link to the letters. Sounds like real believers to me.
To be the pastor of a megachurch would certainly be a source of incredible temptation, especially since such churches tend to rely so much on the personality of the pastor, and peoples' response to him.
That's one of the reasons why I'm much prefer a liturgical approach -- the service is the liturgy, and the Word, and the music, not the pastor.
According to the local paper today, New Life has something like 1,000(!!) small groups. It's not for me, but I know a number of folks who go there, and it does feed them.
Last comment then I'm gone forever from this topic.
All I'm trying to say is that we should be careful not to follow any scam artists. Perhaps you know this guy and his wife from somewhere and you know them to truly be Christians. Perhaps Haggest is more like Billy Graham than Billy Clinton. One Billy could tell you about Jesus' salvation, the other carries a big Bible sometimes.
As for me, I don't know Haggert, never heard of him, and all I have to go on is today's statements. Yes, the apology was unequivicable - that's exceptionable. The rest of the statements were good too (except for that #1 concern "keep giving" line). In the end, I don't see anything here that distinguishes Haggert today from Swaggert twenty years ago.
May God bless the body of Christ.
I don't know how a megachurch can be effective without having small groups.
A visiting pastor was speaking at my church in August and he about had us on the floor laughing about an experience he had in his early days in the ministry. He wanted an answer to prayer that wasn't what God wanted for him but he didn't know that at the time. He said he'd heard about Pastor Cho having this "prayer mountain" so he got on the Internet and Emailed them his prayer request. He said he didn't know what he'd set loose. He said, "God only knows how many millions of Koreans started praying for me, and not for what *I* thought I needed!" In the end, the pastor got an amazing series of answers, and his initial request fell by the wayside. He laughs about it now. So did we. Makes me smile just remembering it.
It isn't the megachurch that is not right. It's when an individual leader isn't walking in righteousness that things get not right.
I got saved in and attended a liturgical church in my youth. In all the years I went to it, there was only one minister who garnered my true admiration as a man of God, and he pastored the church where I got saved.
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