Jill and Stuart came to the States from England. Who hasnt given a friend a friendly kiss once in awhile? There was a period of time, Ill call, The Great Loneliness after that Chicago Tribune article came out, where they were radioactive. Stuart Briscoe died on August 3 "of natural causes unexpectedly" according to a tweet from his son, Pete Briscoe. But when we look at it from some practical ways that God used people to undo this, explain what you see as being the key forces. Please contact us or click here to learn more about how to enable JavaScript on your browser. So thank you. WebLearn More About Pete Today - Pete Briscoe God loves you to distraction, There is nothing you can do to make Him love them more or less, And, that Life with this Lover God is rich beyond description, regardless of your performance. Yeah, they eventually did. Fifteen years later, I joined staff at Bent Tree. Pete grew up in a home with intelligent and committed parents: both WebPete Briscoe answers that question by pointing us to Paul as the perfect example of one who speaks with tender boldness. Mitch is an attorney, a church elder and an advocate for abuse victims. WebHi friend, I'm Pete Briscoe. And what lessons can we learn from Willow Creeks mistakes? I think it took courage and boldness on his part to be able to do that. The news of Petes resignation landed heavy on my heart. And sadly, I think they have still. And something else that you mentioned about the board, which I found fascinating was that the Willow Creek board had an awful lot of lawyers on it. You have to have unity among your vocational staff at the church about, you know, key issues like how do we treat other people? How do spot a safe pastorand can. Today, Telling the Truthis heard anytime and anywhere, thanks to international radio programming, the internet, and our mobile app. I think its incredibly dangerous. Growing up in a ministry family, Pete watched and learned from his parents and witnessed the reach and power of Telling the Truth 's media outreach. Dear anonymous. Amen. and Im going to butcher the title. But now my faith in the whole institution is shattered. At one point, the elder board at Willow became what people call a policy governance board. Hes like, I wasnt trying to protect the man, who by chance was his brother in law. This person or these people were hurt as a result, you have a pride problem. Its not okay. But he had the emotional and spiritual fortitude to say, You know what? Pete Briscoe, our pastor at our church came out in support of the Dyers, which was bold, and it was brave. It was a huge fixture in evangelicalism. Yet Mitch isnt just the lawyer whos seen megachurches as an outsider bringing accountability. Hi Julie, my name is Teresa and I was wondering if Voice of the Martyr was a good place to donate. Posted by Jonathan Deatherage on Apr 02, 2019. WebSince that time he has ministered on every continent, written more than 40 books, pastored a church for 30 years, and founded a media ministry called Telling the Truth which now broadcasts daily worldwide. it is. All the times something didnt seem right. which Hybels assented to including you know, repenting for his behavior and not talking about politics and some other things as well. And theres a lot of people asking, Is that just too great a burden to ever put on one person? How do you respond to that? How are you? Mike is a dear friend and Im sad this day has come. Petes leadership at Bent Tree casts a long shadow with a legacy that will endure. Today were talking with Pete Briscoe, who served as the senior pastor for nearly three decades at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship in Carrollton, Texas, and now consults with and coaches pastors. But theres a sense that the Church of Jesus Christ Universal is represented all throughout not just the United States but the world. They have a responsibility to the larger church to speak. And I feel that way with these pastors. Hes also a strong believer and advocate for abuse victims. But before we begin, I just want to take a minute to thank the sponsors of this podcast, Judson University, and Marquardt of Barrington. And he came back and said, I cant do this anymore.. Today were talking with Pete Briscoe, who served as the senior pastor for nearly three decades at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship in Carrollton, Texas, and now consults with and coaches pastors. So thanks again. Again, thanks so much for joining me today. At least, thats how I saw it. When the when the mans lying on the side of the road, naked and bleeding, theyre the priests who cross the street. Okay. When you say the IT department, its my understanding you came into some information about emails getting destroyed. Was there any evidence found that he actually had an affair? And if you dont have a character to lead, no manual is going to help you. The vanilla bean is incredibly hard to harvest. So Im very much looking forward to our time together today. So you can go to Amazon and enter in Boz Tchividjian and his book will pop up but you need to know what youre looking for because people who are sexual predators, they have an acuity for blending into society in ways that they dont stand out like this is not like, you know, the sexual predator in your church is not some, you know, grease ball sitting outside your kids ministry just kind of looking for a way to get at, like, thats our common image of what a sexual predator is. Yeah, I just saw you ran a story on MacDonalds massive mansion in Illinois being held in the name of Vanilla Bean LLC. We were fighting asymmetric warfare, right? Theyre not holding anybody accountable then. I do. And I think that Bill Hybels created an advocacy structure around him by having that many lawyers on the board. Subscribe Sign up for my daily email devotionals and to stay in touch! In context, I think my meaning becomes clear as I say soon after, agreeing with Mitchs assessment that unanimity is bad: Absolutely horrible. I am with you in this sad place of justified disappointment in the church. Think about the psychology of someone who could be doing what was alleged by Pat Baranowski to have been done to her. I came out of Wheaton College, as I know a lot of kids do when youre in a Christian environment and maybe see some disillusioning things and I just, it was really a hard spiritual time for me. And so when these things happen, they cant just stay silent. You can read about them at their website Teaching the Truth. I think one of the ways that Willow tried to reckon with the situation was to permit Bill Hybels to retire from his role at the church. Ive asked that question many times. For the next 90 minutes, Pete Briscoe enraptured us with his presentation of The Bema.. And this is a huge problem in the Evangelical Church in the southern baptist church, I mean, just absolutely massive problem where so often the predators covered up instead of brought to justice. Pete Briscoe was Senior Pastor of Bent Tree Bible Fellowship in Carrollton, TX for nearly 30 years. I dont know. Im doing well but probably not as well as you because youre on vacation in Florida. And yet, when these issues started being raised about Bill Hybels, the larger church, other than you know, a few people you mentioned the Ortbergs, for example, they came forward and spoke. Briscoe I am thrilled to be here. WebIt is with heavy hearts that the Elders of Bent Tree announce that Pete Briscoe has submitted his resignation as Senior Pastor. I will always have my faith in Jesus but church especially WCCC has been a huge disappointment. Well Mitch, one of the things Ive never discussed is that we used to attend Willow Creek. A man who "dedicated his life to sharing Gods Word with the world" has died at the age of 91. I wasnt throughout the representation. You know, I believe in spiritual strongholds and things like that. There was another documented case where he had oral sex with his assistant back in the 90s at WC. And gratitude is where we must go in this time, as Kurt Baxter reminded us on Sunday. Thank you so much. Basically, theyre a rubber stamp. Yeah, thats right. As I look back on my own four years on staff, Im thankful for the teaching and leadership that Pete Briscoe has brought to Bent Tree, and I know that so many of us have been impacted by his attention to the Lord and quick obedience to however God leads him. But heres what happened when Scot criticized them publicly. So a young person in our high school ministry. That is a very fair question. And I have other thoughts about that and how that all worked out. Gifted with wisdom, discernment, and a bit of English humor, the Briscoe's bring God's Word to life. Hi. Well, and that is one aspect of the story that I wanted to explore together because I know that what happened at Willow from my understanding of speaking with Vonda and several victims is that it was far worse, the abuse there and far more pervasive than most people know, and thats one of the frustrations I know of a lot of the victims is that Willow hasnt publicly acknowledged that or publicly said how bad it was. Its my understanding that was a watershed moment. Stuart and Jill Briscoe have always had a passion for teaching God's Word and speaking Truth into people's hearts and moving them toward God. Well, I want to turn our discussion to what youve experienced at your own church, which is a multi-site mega church there in the Dallas Fort Worth area, because those are things where youve been able to apply some of these lessons that youve learned from watching the negative example maybe of Willow Creek, youve learned an awful lot from going through crisis at your own church. What is it that causes so many people who know better, to look the other way and allow evil to prosper? I will let you know as soon as I figure it all out. It is a collection of people that we are to care for. As a lawyer whos represented some of Bill Hybels victims, Mitch Little has seen a side of Willow Creek that few others have. The church is nondenominational and has woman pastors and elders. They show up, they sell books. At the same time. Id like to share a few things as we navigate this loss together. Judson is located just 36 miles outside Chicago on a beautiful 90 acre campus. It manifested even at the IT level at the church. Mike is a dear friend and Im sad this day has come. You have to have a strong culture of accountability. Im Julie Roys. Amen. But this certainly raises red flags. So your pastor, he chose himself to step down, correct? What I need most is what I dont have. Can you imagine what that does for book sales to be on stage at the Global Leadership Summit among people all over the world and touted as an expert in something? Hybels at one point had a major conflict with a woman who was serving on the elder board, who was trying to hold him accountable and essentially used a reconciliation process involving some other big names in evangelicalism to essentially run her off, put her under an NDA. ) So, Willows pride did not allow them to see any flaws in their leadership, especially their premier leader. But theres something wrong in the whole business of Church. And if you are not willing to as an organism, or as an organization say, We messed up. Yeah, I think youre gonna be waiting a while. Happened so often, I quit altogether. He even cites a conversation with Darrell Bock, a member who disagrees with the elders but who also says it is not an issue worth dividing over. But youre right. And to do that, we must avoid falling into the trap of our Christian beliefs being pitted against culture in the public sphere of debate. WebSince that time he has ministered on every continent, written more than 40 books, pastored a church for 30 years, and founded a media ministry called Telling the Truth which now broadcasts daily worldwide. I think thats dangerous. So Im guessing youre not against lawyers being on board. Well, to answer your question, very bad. For the next 90 minutes, Pete Briscoe enraptured us with his presentation of The Bema.. Thats a bad default state. Also, make sure you subscribe to The Roys Report on Apple podcasts or Google podcasts. Because we represent their interests. With that purpose in mind, they launched theTelling the Truth ministry. Pete is the son of Jill and Stuart Briscoe. Yeah, yeah, I think I think thats a good word to Julie. I have been a child of God since I was four and in ministry most of my life. How does our elder board navigate things differently with that Pastor? And you mentioned to me that there were some stop signs along the way. It was like trying to fit a battleship through a set of French doors. They made a lot of friends a lot of money over the years selling books, promoting programs, platforming them at conferences, platforming them at the Global Leadership Summit. Its a calling of God. I learned that from Bill. I think youre absolutely right about that. And my understanding was the elder board set some boundaries for Clinton to be able to come and speak. I cant do this authentically anymore. And as hard as the last year and a half has been, I applaud him for that. And there was also a service at WC where the board interviewed him and was he was questioned about an affair. Serving in the role of elder is a huge responsibility. Boy, and if more churches did that, how much pain and heartache among the sheep would have been spared? I think there were a few major events. Stuart Briscoe died on August 3 "of natural causes unexpectedly" according to a tweet from his son, Pete Briscoe. Bent Tree is a multi site mega church in the Dallas Fort Worth area thats had its own share of crises over the past several years. And some of it also involved a culture that was willing to cover for wrongdoing. So he said something about so and sos clothing. Now, I coach pastors and business leaders in communications and self-care. I was just trying to build a relationship, or whatever you just go, But I see you for what you are and youre gonna have to go.. I was a member of WCCC for many years. He even cites a conversation with Darrell Bock, a member who disagrees with the elders but who also says it is not an issue worth dividing over. My husband and I actually bought our last car from our court and we had a great experience. James MacDonald was friends with Ed Stetzer. WebPete Briscoe is a podcaster and evangelical pastor. You can read about them at their website Teaching the Truth. If anything has a whiff of impropriety, we would jump on it immediately. At the urging of a friend working in the radio industry, the Briscoes followed God's leading and used the tape sales proceeds to purchase local radio time, which launched Telling the Truth's radio outreach. God uses the faithful and generous support of people like you to continue to change lives through the ministry of Telling the Truth. I hear you say that and I believe in accountability really strongly. Welcome to the Roys report, a podcast dedicated to reporting the truth and restoring the church. This is simply a place where I share the message of Gods unadulterated grace through my preaching sermons and bible teaching. And these men are good actors. When you have a woman who says I was molested by a staff member, or you have a staff member who says, Bill Hybels just threw a punch at me, or dog cuts me up and down the hallway, those arent matters of policy, Julie. It is. Keep in touch with Julie and get updates in your inbox! And Im good friends with her husband Scott Dyer as well. Jill Heres my belief, Julie, I think the church at large, the big leaders in evangelicalism, we can name names if we want to, and Im sure that people have names on their mind when theyre hearing this, Why were they silent? And so I do think its a healthy thing when youre afraid of doing wrong, because it will be brought up and you will be held accountable. He, Becky and their kids have been part of the fabric of BT for so long, it is He, Becky and their kids have been part of the fabric of BT for so long, it is I think the larger the platform, the more rigorous the accountability needs to be. And I do think theres a spiritual stronghold, I hope and pray that it will be broken in our area. So there were more than 10 women that came forward and said that there was sexual misconduct by Bill Hybels. And yet youre still in a megachurch, multi-site church. And so when I looked at that in the context of James MacDonald going, you know what, thats the type of accountability that man needed and was denied. WebBriscoe says that he wants Bent Tree to be a place where people can agree to disagree over this issue. Inside their system, they need to be guarded, governed, guided. Would you consider making a tax-deductible donation to help our journalists continue to report the truth and restore the church? And that that was something that taught you an awful lot about how elder board should deal with sexual impropriety or sexual abuse within their own walls. Briscoe stepped down as senior pastor at the end of 2000 but remained involved in the church and active in overseas missions. And he committed sex acts with her. Briscoe stepped down as senior pastor at the end of 2000 but remained involved in the church and active in overseas missions. But they spoke. I was the senior pastor of Bent Tree Bible Fellowship for nearly 30 years. And presented them with the information, he essentially tossed it to the side and said, So what?, No consequences. WebIt is with heavy hearts that the Elders of Bent Tree announce that Pete Briscoe has submitted his resignation as Senior Pastor. Later Telling the Truth began airing in several countries in southeast Asia and across 10 countries in southern Africa. 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