Plans for new IHOPKC church scrapped. What it means for troubled ministry’s future
Plans for a new church that appeared to be part of a rebranding effort by the International House of Prayer-Kansas City in the aftermath of the sex scandal involving its founder have been scrapped.
And Isaac and Morgan Bennett, senior pastors of IHOPKC and its recently closed Forerunner Church — who were working to establish the new church — have left the evangelical missions organization.
An email sent to IHOPKC staff Tuesday afternoon and to the “IHOPKC community” on Wednesday morning said the Board of Trustees met on June 26 “to review and determine the strategic direction” of the 24/7 global prayer ministry. The email said plans for the new church had been dropped.
“As many of you are aware, it had recently been reported that Isaac Bennett planned to form a new church called Sanctuary in collaboration with IHOPKC,” the email said. “We have been informed that those plans will not be moving forward. Despite the short-term disappointment, we are excited to see how the Lord will lead Isaac and Morgan, and bless any future ministry the Lord has for them.”
The Bennetts could not be reached for comment. When asked if they had resigned, IHOPKC leadership responded in an email to The Star Wednesday afternoon:
“Isaac Bennett’s formal involvement with IHOPKC came to a conclusion shortly after Forerunner Church’s final service on May 19th,” it said. “We are trusting the Lord to lead Isaac and Morgan, and bless any future ministry the Lord has for them.”
The board’s email to staffers and supporters also stressed that IHOPKC was not closing.
“Allow us to begin this letter with a clear message: IHOPKC is not shutting down,” it said. “We are committed to sustaining a vibrant spiritual community of believers wholeheartedly in love with Jesus, and are persevering in a more focused scope because the need for 24/7 prayer in Kansas City, America, and the nations has never been greater. Intercession for Israel, revival in the church, and the Great Commission must continue with urgency.”
Ministry remains in upheaval over allegations against founder
The email comes three months after confusion erupted over a leaked recording of a staff meeting that revealed IHOPKC planned to close its doors and open a new, smaller organization. The ministry has been in upheaval since sex abuse allegations against founder Mike Bickle surfaced in late October, accusing him of using prophecies to groom, sexually abuse and manipulate women over multiple decades.
At that April staff meeting, Bennett said IHOPKC had been hit hard by the sex abuse allegations. He said IHOPKC had been losing donor support and that expenses had been outpacing revenue by about $500,000 a month for the past six months “with no end in sight.”
Bennett also said the scandal put IHOPKC in legal jeopardy that could produce “a contingent of individuals who are wanting to get restitution.”
The best option, Bennett said, was to wind down IHOPKC, maintaining “a 24/7 prayer sanctuary” while planting a new organization. The new organization, he said, “is not going to be a parachurch missions base, but rather a missional church.”
That was followed by a statement from IHOPKC attorney Audrey Manito saying IHOPKC was not closing but going through a “transition and reorganization process.”
Many, including former followers, said IHOPKC’s move to reorganize and restructure under a new identity smacked of a ploy to protect itself, not to help or comfort those hurt by the organization.
The day after Manito’s statement, IHOPKC executive director Joseph Taylor said in a news release, “We have come to the conclusion that we will wind down many of the ministry and training expressions of IHOPKC.” Those included IHOP University, Forerunner Church, the Children’s Equipping Center, and the organization’s internships, Taylor said.
IHOP University held its final graduation ceremony on May 18 in Grandview. Forerunner Church held its final worship service the next day.
Documents filed with state created new ‘Sanctuary Church’
What wasn’t revealed at the time was that on April 18, Bennett, his wife, Morgan, and Matt Candler — president of IHOP University — had filed incorporation papers for a nonprofit called Sanctuary Church. The paperwork, filed with the Missouri Secretary of State’s Office, described the corporation as a “religous church.”
The IHOPKC board’s email to staffers didn’t say why the church plans weren’t going forward or what happened with the Bennetts. It was focused more on assuring supporters that IHOPKC’s night-and-day prayer room would remain open.
The email said that on May 24, IHOPKC had concluded the process of winding down many of its ministries and “training expressions,” including IHOPU, Forerunner Church, the Children’s Equipping Center and internships.
“Since that time, our focus as a ministry has been the 24/7 prayer room and intercession for Israel,” it said. “During the process of planning and carrying out these changes, incorrect statements were made about IHOPKC’s future and reasons for shutting down various ministry expressions. As we said earlier, IHOPKC is not shutting down the prayer room.”
It said the board had decided not to place the governance of the Prayer Room under a church structure.
“It is the decision of the Board of Trustees that the Prayer Room will remain independent of any external church and continue to be the heart of IHOPKC,” it said. “Further, the Prayer Room will remain in its present location at Red Bridge Center.”
“...We realize that the long term health and wellbeing of the prayer room requires a formal governance structure for oversight, accountability and spiritual strength. We are exploring the best fit moving forward and are committed to ensuring systems are in place for solid decision making and responsible leadership.”
The email angered some critics, including former staffers and leaders, who said it seemed IHOPKC cared more about preserving the ministry than it did about abuse victims.
“How disrespectful to all those who went through so much pain in that place at the hands of leadership and especially Mike Bickle,” Cheryl Turner posted on X, formerly Twitter. “ … Just turns my stomach.”
The email thanked “those who have served and continue to serve as part of IHOPKC, and those who continue to financially partner with the Prayer Room.”
“Your unwavering support of our mission of continuing 24/7 prayer here and sharing it worldwide through webstream is deeply felt,” it said.
The email also revealed the names of IHOPKC’s board members, something critics have long been pushing the ministry to do. The trustees, it said: Chairman Kurt Fuller, a retired U.S. Army Major General; Malachi O’Brien; Ed Hackett; Bishop Wellington Boone; Cindy Dodd; and Steve Brandt.
“We believe God is not done with IHOPKC,” the email said. “We intend to honor the Lord Jesus Christ in every way and in every decision, because there is no other way. We intend to serve and support those who have been called as intercessory missionaries and the ones God will call in the days ahead. The way forward is by, with and through faith.
“We will continue to pray for and stand with Israel, to pray for and contend for the next generation, and to pray for and cry out for the church in this hour of human history. May the fire on the altar never go out.”
This story was originally published July 24, 2024 at 11:34 AM.
