The Trinity Church – Page 12 – Warren Throckmorton

Mark Driscoll Responds Briefly to RICO Lawsuit; He's Talking to God but Apparently Not to His Former Members

Mark Driscoll has found his voice to respond briefly to Religion News Service about the RICO lawsuit.

“Unfortunately, false and malicious allegations continue to be made against me,” Driscoll said in an email to RNS Thursday (March 3). “I’m certain that the most recent examples are without any merit.”
“I remain focused and devoted to preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, loving others, and praying for my enemies,” Driscoll said.

I may never understand why this energy hasn’t been spent on reaching out to those who have very publicly asked Driscoll for reconciliation. I have reached out to more than three dozen former Mars Hill leaders and members and none of them have heard from Driscoll. Several of them have reached out to Driscoll with the message back that there will be no meeting.
In particular Bryan Zug and Jeff Bettger claim to have reached out and have received negative responses. Instead of talking to God about the “enemies,” why can’t the parties talk to each other?

Mark Driscoll Looking for a Meeting Place for The Trinity Church

The Trinity Church. Used by permission of Becky Garrison — The Trinity Church.
Used by permission of Becky Garrison

Ho-hum.
In a email sent to supporters today, Driscoll details what he is looking for in a meeting place:

Howdy everyone,
I want to thank all of you who have been praying for and connecting with Mark Driscoll Ministries. I’m on the road teaching this week, but I look forward to returning home to catch some sun and spring training baseball games with my family.
We are in the first steps of planting The Trinity Church in the greater Phoenix area. As we continue to make plans, many people have asked where we will meet and when we will start services. Both of those questions will be answered when we find a church building to call home. Our search for a building is underway. As soon as we have a home we will let everyone know. In the meantime, we genuinely appreciate everyone who is praying for this next step.
Here are some specific things we are asking the Lord to provide with our first church home:
·      The ability to meet multiple times on Sunday mornings
·      Space for the main service
·      Lots of space for children’s ministry
·      Close proximity to a major freeway for accessibility
Lastly, with Good Friday and Easter Sunday coming up, I want to let you know about a free eBook called Gerry Breshears and I put together. It’s called “It is Finished! Jesus’ Death and Resurrection”. You can download in now EPUB http://bit.ly/1QVPqnx
Thanks for your support,
Pastor Mark Driscoll

There is something surreal about these messages in light of the controversies swirling around the RICO lawsuit and Mars Hill Church.

Phoenix Public Radio Features Mark Driscoll and RICO Lawsuit

Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=146699

KJZZ, Phoenix public radio, today released a feature on Mark Driscoll and the RICO lawsuit. In a move which isn’t likely to sit well with Phoenix media, Driscoll again declined to speak to the Phoenix press.
The audio and article are somewhat different so check out both. You can hear the audio by going to the article. From Jacob McAuliffe’s report:

The Trinity Church is in its early stages of development. All it has is a website, some online supporters and a video message from founder Mark Driscoll and his wife.
Driscoll’s previous venture became a megachurch, which is a protestant congregation with at least 2,000 members. At its height, the now-disbanded Mars Hill Church in Seattle had an average weekly attendance of more than 12,000 people, spread across several different campuses.
Mars Hill fell apart when Driscoll resigned following allegations of emotional abuse and mismanagement of church funds. He now faces a lawsuit from former Mars Hill members.

Daily Beast: There a New Mark Driscoll Church Coming to Phoenix

Just a bit ago, Brandy Zadrozny posted an article at the Daily Beast that essentially summarizes the scandalous aspects of Mars Hill Church’s decline.
Probably the most controversial aspect of the article is Mark Demoss’ contention that Driscoll reached out to those he knew were at odds with him. That is going to inflame many former Mars Hill members since so many of them have not heard a word. I know a few, in particular, who reached out to Driscoll on multiple times without any response.

Hillsong Plans to Open Megachurch in Phoenix

Oh boy; didn’t Brian Houston get the memo about Mark Driscoll’s The Trinity Church?
Hillsong plans to go big in the valley.

Hillsong Church, a global church founded in Australia with 15 locations and over 100,000 in weekly attendance, announces the launch of its third U.S. congregation in the Phoenix, Arizona, area on Feb. 21, 2016. The Phoenix site will initially offer six Sunday worship experiences on three campuses with additional sites under consideration.
“After 15 years of serving as a large, vibrant, multisite church in the Phoenix metro area, and after much prayer and planning, we are excited to announce that we have become the 16th global campus of Hillsong Church,” said Hillsong Phoenix Lead Pastors Terry and Judith Crist.

I know Phoenix is huge and growing but there is only so much oxygen, right?