If the 6 pm Saturday service comes back in September…I’ll keep an eye out for it.

He also said that they got rid of one of the Saturday services and pulled a few hundred seats out into storage so the place still would look full. You are there on Sundays and on the outside so you would not have seen either of these things.

I do not see anyone attacking Kim. What I do see is people asking how does this happens and how does it keep happening? When you have lived through this you had better learn to look in the mirror to see how you got sucked in in the first place. If you do not do that you just end up repeating the same mistakes over and over. I do not want to be an idiot nor do I want to see others merely repeat this cycle going around the same mountain over and over, or going to the other extreme: walking away from the faith because they think God is somehow in and responsible for the madness. Warren you should know this better than anyone. This is common theory in Psychological studies, to see how people get stuck doing the same thing over and over that just makes them miserable. They are called patterns and they are so very predictable. My GFA diaspora friends have 4 and 3 cults runs between them. They got sucked into Bill Gothards legalistic b.s. They got sucked into GFA like I did. They got sucked into SIM, which is a small GFA knockoff run by KP’s former righthand man. She was about 60 and after 4 cults finally found the courage to look inside and say enough is enough! When I come across people who are consideralbly younger than this and have perhaps had their first run, I like to say something clearly. It would be easier to be indifferent. After all, when people jump on the Mars Hill/Trinity bandwagon they are the ones that get hurt, not me. If they leave just to go to some other church just as bad, it is them suffering not me. I intend no unkindness, but I am convinced that Jesus church is almost entirely in rebellion against God and the whole world is suffering the consequences of that in more ways then one. None of this will change as long as Christians stay in denial.

I would also note that it does not take a Christian, let alone a mature one, to get mad enough when they are lied to, manipulated and abused to want to speak out about it. There are personality types that will never speak out and ones that always will no matter how much it might cost them. This does not require faith in Christ either. Much of the Internet has been set aside for people to vent about how they have been abused. They cover every faith that exists and atheism too. Abuse is a human problem. What does require maturity is to look in the mirror and ask the all too important question: “How did I get myself into this mess?” And it takes faith in Christ to ask this question to the real Holy Spirit who has been waiting patiently for someone, anyone to ask the question.

Also, I am much more hesitant to embrace an ideology where you quickly believe people who made a big profit off of screwing Christians, like the guys you mention, are repentant, without bearing the fruit of giving the Mammon back. You are way too idealistic. What is happening is damage control, not repentance. Repentance requires actions not words that include keeping your enemies closer than your friends. And I should note that most people in the field of psychology treat narcissism as something that is untreatable. This is because it does not make the person with the disorder miserable, but everyone else around them and they do not care for they have zero empathy. Many like William Wallace II obviously get a perverse pleasure out of making sadistic comments. Mark ain’t repenting, ever. It is not in their nature. I go with what Jesus said when he addressed this. He said of the teachers and preachers of his day, “How will you avoid hell?” The statement does not give much hope. Jesus is a lot smarter than you and I am. I will go with Jesus any day. I would also say that this is so clearly truth to me that I would bet everything that I have, my car, my house, my cash, my retirement, every last dime that Mark will live out his life and die without showing a single clear sign of repentance. I know that no one will take me up on that for it would be exceedingly foolish to do so.

I’d be more worried about it ending much worse than last time.

Thank you so much for your affirming words!! I agree some gentleness is definitely in line here. Thx again. Have a blessed Sunday.

Do you think your comments on this thread are helping?

Can you think of any ways you could have posted your thoughts to be more helpful? For Kim or anyone else harmed by Driscoll.

Yup: ” how evil the media can be, which we all have seen to be true, especially this year” is barely even code for some combination of “Trump really won” and/or “Covid is fake.” Driscoll is running a variant of the right wing Long Con, though the motive seems to be control more than money.

I have commented previously on people choosing their pastor with less care than they would their plumber. Imagine hiring a plumber with a long string of negative reviews, because he talks a good talk and tells you not to believe everything you read online.

Kim, your own words and actions testify that you are nothing like Driscoll. I’m sorry a few of the comments have been hurtful, and I am thankful for the great risk you are taking to speak the truth. You’re reminding us that those far from Driscoll’s spiritual harm need to be a bit more gentle when responding. It is my hope that your story will encourage other survivors to speak out about the thieving liar and serial abuser at TTC.

Your vulnerability and conviction remind me of the words attributed to the Apostle Peter:

“For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17)

Thanks, Warren. I love that there was restoration between you and many in Seattle. God’s grace IS big enough to heal and my prayer is that it will happen with MD in this situation. I pray that he is reading these comments and takes to heart what our motives are here. Thanks for making our stories heard.