From The Christian Post:
Megachurch Co-Pastors Announce Divorce
By Lillian Kwon
Christian Post Reporter
The married duo pastoring one of the nation's biggest churches is planning for divorce.
Randy and Paula White of Without Walls International in Tampa, Fla., announced their decision to split at their Thursday evening service, shocking most congregants and bringing some to tears.
"It's the most difficult decision I've ever had to make in my entire life," Randy White told the congregation with Paula by his side at the podium appearing choked up, according to Tampa Bay Online.
Married nearly 18 years, the Whites, who have both been married and divorced before, said in interviews that the split is amicable. They also mentioned that the divorce comes after years of visits to counselors.
Trouble in the couple's marriage was picked up by The Tampa Tribune in May as the two were rarely seen preaching together anymore.
Both blamed the two different directions their lives are going.
Paula, 41, the church's senior pastor, leads her own ministry, making frequent trips as a sought-after speaker, author and televangelist. She leads monthly services at her newly opened Life by Design Empowerment Center in New York, appears regularly on "The Tyra Banks Show" as a life coach and serves as oversight pastor at Family Praise Center in San Antonio, Texas.
Meanwhile, Randy, 49, has been traveling to Malibu, Calif., where he plans to start another church, he told his Tampa congregation. He already signed a one-year lease on a beachfront dwelling there but plans for the new church are on hold, according to TBO.
Randy White will remain at Without Walls as senior pastor and Paula will remain based in Tampa and pledged to return frequently to preach.
Some congregants said the surprising announcement won't deter their continual attendance.
The announcement "didn't weaken the church in any way," said Kerran Fuller, who has been attending the church for less than a year, according to the TBO.
Still, Randy predicts attendance at the 23,000-member church "will take a hit" and finances will also be affected. Paula White Ministries brings in about $50,000 to $80,000 a week, said Randy.
Read more here:http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070826/29058.htm
Wow . . . which of the problems do you mean as there are a number of them here? This is really sad to read. I've never heard of either of these people or the church/ministries they're involved in . . . but it's just sad to hear when the people of God don't do what the people of God are supposed to do. I don't want to minimize the difficulty this couple has gone through/are going through. However, in the end, there should be a difference between how God's people handle this sort of thing and how the rest of the world handles situations like this. Problem 1: wrong priorites - My suspicion is that God is not so much concerned about our efforts to build huge ministries/things for Him. His concern is for the hearts of His people amidst the work that He's set out for them to do. Problem 2: Differing directions - Somehow, I don't think the Lord would be "calling" a husband and a wife to different directions. That would go against what He's revealed about Himself in Scripture (i.e. He hates divorce, the call for husband & wife to "cleave" to one another as one forever and even the controversial passages about submission & leadership). Splitting up can only make sense if you ignore Scripture & remove God from the Lordship position over a marriage and over the associated ministries. Problem 3: They're continuing in their leadership positions in the ministries - This is a variant of problem 1 really with roots in non-submission to Scriptural passages that talk specifically about stuff like this. I'm sad for the effect this sort of thing has on the Body of Christ. C.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Clym. There are probably several other problems here as well.By the way, this is not a mega-church thing as such. It's all about christians refusing to take on board the principles of Scripture, living lives of holiness, honour and surrender to the Lord.And yes, it's doing immense damage to the Body.BlessingsKeith
ReplyDeleteWhile in college and just after, I served as a staff person for a high school para-church-ministry-turned-church. They/we really pursued the Willow Creek model (big/crazy events, very seeker-oriented, small group/cells). Unfortunately, it became clear that the message after the build up of "bring your friends, bring your friends" was . . . "bring your friends, bring your friends...and here's a tidbit about a guy named Jesus." My wife and I left that church after volunteering/interning there for a few years. About 10 years later, that church went through an unraveling where the pastors and key staff members all went through divorces with their spouses. It was a mess that God's healing that body through new pastors and staff that a bit more balanced & Scripturally grounded. Their focus is no longer "let's build a huge church for God", but hopefully, something a bit more balanced. So, all that to say, that while this specific situation may not explicitly be "a mega-church thing", my experience was that it _can be_ an outgrowth of an imbalanced/improperly focus of ministry. Sometimes, mega-church models & the leaders of those churches can be slightly more susceptible to that sort of thing. C.
ReplyDeleteVery well spoken clym. Everyone's comment was on point. It seems to me that the "Church" is conforming to the ways of the world and not the ways of God. Jesus is really not the head like He's supposed to be. Like you stated God wouldn't draw a married couple into two different directions. The Bible states that God is not the author of confusion. What's really happening here? Christians have lost touch of the importance of family. That's how church's are built. Sometimes God gives people a lot of gifts and pride comes in and priorities change. God never changes, never! Wives are suppose to put God first and thier husbands second and vise versa. I read this wonderful book written by Jimmy and Karen Evans called "Marriage On The Rock". If you can pick it up everybody should really read this book. It doesn't matter if you're single, married, or if you've been married for a long time. It's a book worth getting and keeping in your library. One thing that Mr. Evans explains, became very clear to me while I was reading the book . Most people feel that the church is on the same level as God. Mr. Evans put the order this way; God is first, then your spouse, then children, and then the church. Some people might have a problem with that order, but if you really allow God to speak to you, it will become clear. I know some people who are preacher's kids. The church was made a priority for a long time because thier father was doing "the work of the Lord" and they suffered and rightly have some issues with that. Well everybody's all grown now and their father has real regrets about the amount of time he spent will them. Don't get it wrong, the bible does says, "forsake not the assembly of yourselves together". But if your church is having service every night on a regular basic (and I'm not talking about revival) then you shouldn't be there every night. Where is the quality time for your family. Remember God made the family and everyone in it has a particular need that needs to be met and not neglected. A wife's first ministry is to her husband and her children. That's most important. God still has an order. It doesn't matter that it's 2007 soon to be 2008. That has nothing to do with it. If we as christians want God to be pleased with us, we have to follow His Word. When we do this, everything will fall into place. Everything will work fine and everything will be alright. We cannot lose are focus in these last days. Every blow the enemy throws no matter how small or non important it seems, he gains a lot of ground. We must be vigilant and sober. God bless and get the book. I would love to hear your comments.
ReplyDeleteI really don't like it when people put out an order of priorities like "God- family- church" because that does exactly what the Bible says we shouldn't do- divide our lives into compartments. (I agree with the other points you make here Sharme).I would much rather say- our lives have to be ordered around God.Within that we have some responsibilities- e.g. wife, children, friends. these are our primary mission and nothing should normally be allowed to get in the way of that. I'm a whole person- Keith, father, husband, pastor, member of a community.It's that whole person that serves God. My responsibility is to make sure that I maintain a healthy, whole, relating me with my life in balance in all of these areas.The other thing about these rankings of priorities is that they actually force me to look at myself against the other things. I'm dividing MY time and MY energy to these things that are outside of me. But God is in me. I'm a part of a family. I'm a part of a faith community. These things do not just take from me, they give back to me and make me a whole person. If these parts of our lives are being demanding of us without growing us, something is not right- either inside us or in our relationships.It is much healthier to look to God's calling on me each day.BlessingsKeith
ReplyDeleteHi Keith!God should most certainly be the motivation for everything we do, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The first commandment is: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. Deut 6:5God himself has set an order. Everyone within a family has a real need. If those needs are not paid attention to, then someone suffers. That's just a fact. When husband's and wive's put each other first, after God then the children are content and happy. Speaking from the perpective of a child (although I'm not one any more), that builds confidence in children. A safe emotional and stable environment is created for the children to grow in. God made the family. Marriage was ordained by God Himself from the beginning. Puting each other first really works. Meeting the needs of one another (within reason), is what works. One of the biggest problems that people come into when they're married is expecting the other person to meet needs in them that only God can fulful. But after that there are needs that married couples have to meet in each other. The first thing is understanding what those needs are and how we differ as a man and a woman. The reason I mentioned the book, is because it was very helpful to me and the members of my church that red it. Mr. Jimmy Evans was having a problem himself in his marriage. They were on the verge of divorce and couldn't stand each other. Jimmy Evans begin to pray after he had told his wife to leave after an intense argument. That's were their journey began. God began to reveal to him and his wife what they needed to do in order to mend and fix their marriage relationship. Now they've been married for over 35yrs and is more happy and more in love than ever before. They grow more in love everyday. There are things that people may reject, because of how they feel. But the Lord has let me know and my Pastor know that He approves of this book. If the Lord approves, then I'm going to pay attention! I feel ya though, I do!God Bless youSharme
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