This is an example of a good church gone bad. I was a member of this church from 1998. I remember when the Spirit of the Lord was in control, and high praise was the order of the day. I joined as a backslider and rededicated my life to the Lord because of the worship in the church, and was active in the drama ministry for the 6 years I was a member. We used to meet at a school. Things changed when the church moved to Carson and the ministry began to grow.
Slowly but steadily the amount of time spent in worship decreased, as the amount of people increased, and there was more concern for getting a bigger building and having an extra service. Things began to feel rushed. It didn't happen all at once, but it felt different. Church started to get crowded and the sancturary was full, and there were people in the overflow. So it was a good idea to break down the walls and make a bigger sanctuary, so that everyone could worship together. People contributed, little by little we could see progress, and it was a congregational effort. Then when that work was completed, it seemed like the Pastor was not satisfied with that, and wanted even more. That is when things really started to change, and no amount of praying would help.
I remember the income tax refund requests, which seemed strange (I did not contribute as I was not in the position to do so) posted everywhere.in my opinon, it was a little off-putting and presumptive to do this, so I chose to igore them and give as I was led. I remember the Money Management Classes, which appeared to be a good idea. But since I was in school, I didn't have time to attend. The Pastor was concered about people having a good credit rating and good FICO scores so they could buy property etc. And I thought that was great. But apparently there was a hidden agenda.
When the spirits of Greed and Pride get in, watch out! Those two spirits destroyed this church. I remember a lot of the subtle messages that were being sent out in church bulletins, when everything started to point towards "A Time to Build".instead of the Word of God being put up on the walls of the sancturary, there were posters up with those words. The messages began to change, everything was about money. They even stopped sending out birthday cards, because I was told by the church receptionist, that "We are focusing on the Build-Out". No more ministry, I guess.
I didn't let anyone come to my house to play tapes of the church financial plan, I was too focused on getting out of school. Anyone who didn't listen to the tape could not have Thanksgiving dinner with the Pastor and his family. It began to be an "Us and Them" church. Many things happened, the last straw for me was when the Pastor got rude with me one afternoon over something that someone did to me at church, and he didn't want to hear my side over theirs because, after all, they gave a lot of money.By the end of I wrote my letter and moved on.
I had a dream about Glory Christian Fellowship in 2006 in which a large grave marker the size of a church was sitting on a lot, there were no windows and no doors. There were many smiling faces outside, just floating in space. I asked God what the dream meant, and He said "The building fund is going to be the death of that ministry". Some people don't believe God speaks in visions and dreams, but He does and He will.
Now it has come to this. It is sad that these things are true, another ministry rocked by scandal, not by someone coming into the church to do dirt, but a ministry torn down by the Pastor who stopped listening to the Holy Spirit and focusing on satisfying his flesh. Look at all of the people who have been harmed and turned off from church. Look at the ridicule being brought to God's Name. He preached the Word with conviction, but didn't follow his own messages. I have since joined another church and am happy to be there, but I will never step foot inside that building again. I cannot. It would be like walking over dead men's bones... ICHABOD! The Glory has departed.
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