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Spiritual Abuse and the Church: Why Should We Listen? with Teasi Cannon—The Alisa Childers Podcast #129

11/12/2021

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The Alisa Childers Podcast · #129 Spiritual Abuse and the Church: Why Should We Listen? with Teasi Cannon

My friend Teasi Cannon and I have walked through a lot together. We decided to give my viewers a bird's eye view of what our conversations have looked like as we've processed the spiritual abuse we walked through together. We pray it will edify and encourage the body of Christ and possibly be a vehicle of recognition and healing.

Recommended resources from Teasi

Watch on YouTube:

6 Comments

Kristy

11/13/2021 12:54:47 pm

It is so tragic that this sort of abuse is so prevalent in the Body of Christ all around the world. You guys have handled your experience with more grace than I managed. It is still painful years later and I struggle whenever bump into the minister who abused the members of our church, (he retired in our town).
Thank you for sharing your journey in a way that sought to highlight a problem and let folks know they are not alone, but also to point the way to handling the situation in a godly manner and not in bitterness and anger.

AriseMyLove

11/29/2021 03:52:04 am

(wow, sorry this is so long)

I think you guys misapplied Matthew 18 here: it's not the way to deal with the pastor in this situation.

When a pastor publicly invites apostasy or aberrant teaching into the church community
(as was apparently done with a NAR speaker) and you guys had a problem with it, it isn't
a "personal" problem with a friend. It is a public and doctrinal problem hitting at the foundation of your church.

Falling for the Pastor's false “guilt-inflicting" attitude that this was a personal attack on him, rather than a problem of false teaching in the church, gave him the upper hand to manipulate Teasi into a false confession of "her sin" to humiliate opposition to his unaccountable positions... as he then used her “confession of sin” to trample on her good reputation!

Anyway, when a Pastor preaches falsely or allows false teaching publicly,
he is not to be rebuked privately as per Matthew 18. It's not a personal problem between friends, nor was it “gossip” when the NAR speaker's teachings were at issue!

Teachers and Pastors are held to a higher standard: it is not “backbiting” to discuss doctrine or question leadership on their teachings. It should probably be done via a public writing or group email or small group meeting where the teachings in question are the subject matter. This man needed to be held accountable for the phony NAR stuff being passed off to his flock.

A good Pastor would be like Paul commending the Bereans with Alicia and Teasi for their attempts at a careful handling of the Word of God.

Here is an old article on the NAR that may shed some light.

The NAR is itself a system of spiritual abuse in the church!
(And boy, was I abused after I started to realize what an evil counterfeit it all was.)
But the Lord is still in control, and He will avenge us as we trust Him, even with all of this church chaos.

I personally believe in order to fight the NAR you must believe in gifts of the spirit are for today as you bring all questionable charismatic practices and supernatural experiences -- such as prophecies and dreams to the Word of God for discernment. (As God cannot contradict Himself, and the Bible is written in a way to interpret itself, the Word is the final arbiter of even of supernatural experiences, prophetic words, or even dreams for the Spirit-filled believer.)

Being Spirit-filled while “trembling at His Word" is the only way to fight the demonic spiritual counterfeits and familiar spirits at work in the NAR and other cults. The NAR's spiritual positions are infectious and dangerous and we are to "study to show ourselves approved" regarding this counterfeit.

THE SPIRIT OF DIVISION IN THE NAR
(AND SPECIFICALLY AT HARVEST ROCK CHURCH)

(This is an updated article I wrote years ago when the dangers of being in a NAR (New Apostolic Reformation) church were first being talked about. Because "a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand" -- and we are a nation divided, I thought the following insight into the Spirit of Division the NAR brings into the body of Christ might be helpful now.)

As a background I've only been at Harvest Rock a few times, but sat under a church under Harvest Rock for five years. At Harvest Rock I attended weeks of fasting with Rick Joyner’s people. I attended one or two services in the early 2000s, and I attended “Prophetic” meetings with self-proclaimed “Prophets” there some years later. I attended a meeting there with Todd Bentley (before his Lakeland false revival) and my spirit was grieved, because it was obvious the man had no authority in the Spirit. (Bentley's sins during Lakeland were unfortunately only exposed after Lakeland). Other than this,
I heard Che Ahn preach maybe half a dozen times on the radio and I had always liked what I heard.

So the following “word of knowledge” was a shocker during a month of fasting and prayer:

“Division was seeded at (my church) through Harvest Rock when the leadership declared they were the “Apostolic and Prophetic leaders for the End Times” -- which made their sheep the “lesser-thans”, the “wounded sinners” in comparison.

A false spirit of theological Division came into Harvest Rock leadership when they began to believe they were “Super Prophets” and “Super Apostles”. Leadership was divided from their "lesser-than"flock" in their new, lofty positions as big “P” Prophets and big “A” Apostles.

Instead of serving their flock and laying down their lives for them, the NAR leadership of Harvest Rock reversed it: the sheep were to serve them.

They began to see their sheep as “weak" and "wounded sinners”, lesser-than their elevated position as the Super Apostles and Super Prophets who were going to personally usher in the New Jerusalem!

When the false doctrine of the Five

AriseMyLove

11/29/2021 04:04:36 am

Sorry I spelled Alissa's name wrong in what I just wrote!

Christine

12/3/2021 09:23:38 pm

Thank you so much for sharing your story. Sadly, I have just walked away from a second abusive church situation. You have put to words that I struggle to find to explain my thoughts and emotions. In trying to process, I often end up feeling like I am the crazy one. You shared so many thoughts I have had through all of this. This so breaks my heart for all of those involved. I pray God frees more of His own from such hurtful, confusing circumstances.

Juliet

11/29/2021 10:20:43 am

I mulled over this podcast for several days because I felt there is such a fine line. We've been on the other side of being in a leadership position and people calling us heretics and "processing" with other believers.We really felt like they were just gossiping and would have preferred they come to us directly and voice their concerns. I grieve that the church is suffering with a generation that is nitpicking over the correct vocabulary and over sensitivity to just about anything. I'm sure that Teasi and you were hurt and obviously leadership did not handle the situation well. So where is the unity in the body of Christ? And how do we come together over these sensitive issues that are plaguing our society?

Melanie

8/15/2022 08:11:06 pm

Thank you so much for both of these videos about yours and Teasi’s spiritual abuse experiences. I have been trying to process my own spiritual abuse experience for quite some time and found so much validation in your words. I kept trying to brush off so much of my personal experiences as “reading too much into it.”

The worst part of my experience is that it started right after the death of my daughter. I chose to speak at her celebration of life service because I knew that it was a good opportunity to witness to my many unsaved family members who were in attendance. God gave me the strength to speak in my most difficult moment as a mother.

This particular pastor attended that service and began to passive-aggressively spiritually abuse me right after that. I have endured 3 years of this abuse and am still trying to navigate how to address it. I met with someone on the pastoral care team, but I don’t think they took it to higher authority at all. Other than that, I have mostly avoided this pastor and stepped down from any area where I would encounter them.

I know that avoidance is not the solution. However, I go to a very large church that seems much more invested in their congregation members who are famous, wealthy or prominent political leaders than they do in their little everyday people like me. I honestly don’t feel valued at all, except by the leaders of my serving team and by my friends.

I HAVE been able to continue leading studies in my home and participating in other small groups with wonderful friends from our church. I am thankful for that. But, there is nagging need in my heart for resolution to my experience.

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Spiritual Abuse and the Church: Why Should We Listen? with Teasi Cannon—The Alisa Childers Podcast #129

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