What….is…..THIS???

(My first blog post…for all five of you…thanks for being here ..who reads blogs anymore? hi mom….)


Hello. You may think you have stumbled upon yet another deconstruction page, a blasting of the church page, or an IHOP smear campaign. You have not. That is not what is happening here.

What you have miraculously found in the ocean of the internet is a website that is attempting to hold the International House of Prayer accountable for the harm it has caused.

Accountability is rarely if ever taught in Christian spaces. This leads to rampant mistreatment of people, both inside the church and out. You will find many painful stories on this page.

These are the stories of deception, exploitation, and spiritual abuse experienced by former members of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City. This ministry is beloved by many and has had a global reach through God-tv with a 24-hours a day prayer room and year-round conferences. Like many church or ministry organizations, Ihop-kc is not without its flaws, however it has continuously avoided accountability. This has led to the tremendous, in some ways irreparable harm for of its former members.


Many churches and faith-based organizations are able to avoid accountability for hurtful, even illegal behavior & IHOP-kc is no exception. This is largely due to lack of adequate teaching on accountability as well as failure to maintain systems that appropriately carry out accountability when needed.

So…what IS accountability?

Webster’s Dictionary defines accountability as “An obligation or willingness to accept responsibility for one’s actions. In other words, the term doesn’t mean punishment; instead, it describes a willingness to accept responsibility for our own actions and their impact.

Another definition: 

Accountable– answerable for actions and decisions. (of a person, organization, or institution) required or expected to justify actions or decisions; responsible.

example: “parents could be held accountable for their children’s actions.”

Ihop-kc needs to demonstrate a willingness to accept responsibility for its actions, and the impact of its leaders decisions.

You may hear the word ‘accountability’ and think of small groups or “accountability buddies” but that is not what we are talking about here. We are talking about responsibility. We would like to see this ministry own responsibility for actions taken and their resulting impact.

The prevailing teaching on accountability in evangelical church culture comes from Matt 18. 15 “If your brother or sister[b] sins,[c] go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’[d] 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

This describes a brother to brother situation. (*notably mentioned just after the parable of the Good shepherd leaving the 99 for the one lost sheep.) Unfortunately, the church across denominations widely applies this scripture to all situations of conflict from a casual verbal slight, to sexual assault/rape.

We have seen why this is problematic, particularly in the Catholic church in the last decade. (And more recently..the SBC…) Matt 18 simply does not cover ALL situations of wrongdoing. It does not apply to criminal matters, or address power dynamics, such as exist in an employer/employee relationship, or Pastor/church member, or in Ihop’s case:  the relationship between a spiritual leader with a student or a community member. 

Ihop is not a brother who faulted another brother. It is not a peer in a local church community. It is an institution thousands have served faithfully for many years, giving to its ministry countless long-hour days, deep loyalty and love, and lots and LOTS of money.

To IHOP-KC I gave the best of my 20s, upwards of 16k in tithe and school fees, love, sweat, tears, pain, and countless…countless hours.

This is why I may hold it accountable to its harmful behavior. I may hold IHOP-KC accountable for how it has treated me, my husband, my friends, and the many who came before and after me that I don’t even know.

It is time for IHOPKC to justify its actions and decisions, and accept responsibility for its colossal harm.

to that end, we are here to tell the stories…
(*the many…painful..stories)

’til next time,
-a concerned, grieving,  former Ihopper.