Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Date: September 04, 2018 02:24AM
I heard through the grapevine that in the service yesterday morning at Church of the Living Word North Hills, Rick Holbrook and Lorena Holbrook were placed on administrative leave. The official message seems to be from Gary "Hey, it's come to my attention that some of the people in this church might not be happy, and that they perceive a hierarchy in the church and feel they can't say anything about it. Rick and Lorena both have been placed on leave, so we can get to the bottom of this" Those people were also encouraged to send letters about what they think about the situation.
Now, keep in mind, this is grapevine information, but let me respond to it directly as if it were true:
This is not real change, this is a loyalty test, and they've done it before. Back when Rick and Lorena were caught and exposed, they removed Rick from power, and they then encouraged people to write in and express their feelings on the matter. Well, I know of people who wrote letters at that time and were a) never responded to about it, and b) felt like they were completely sidelined once Rick had returned, and c) Rick was reinstalled in power after a brief timeout. No real accountability, just more dodging and power games. Is there any reason to think that this time is any different than all the other times Rick was placed in a time out?
Gary, let me also ask you this: Will you be asking the forgiveness of the people (your people) for all of your wrongdoing? You're the one who has been Rick's apologist all these years, making things right and taking the heat when he couldn't keep himself in line. You created the environment that allowed Rick to continue on with his dirty ways. For 30 years you've been telling people to "put it on a shelf", "give it to the lord", "stay positive", "no sniveling", etc. You built the collective mindset that allowed people like Rick to operate freely. You raised him up, brought him in front of the people, and told them that this was their leader. That was you that did that Gary. You've made plenty of choices over the years that implicate you in all of this. You can't scape goat Rick for all your sins. Aren't you the leader of the church? Who's in control of this thing if not you? If you really want a "New Day", then you need to tell all your people what you've been up to all these years. All the lying, and the control, and abuse. Confess it all, and then you might have a chance at a new day. You can distance yourself from Rick, but you can't distance yourself from all that you've personally done and been a part of. You're a key player in this story, and you need to face what you've done.
Anyone else have something to add to this? Any additional news?