Addressing “IHOP” + “cult” Googlers for the third time

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In the year since I started blogging seriously, I’ve had many, many people end up at my blog by Googling some variation on “Is IHOP a cult”? (I wrote some posts that used those key words.) Some of them left comments asking questions about IHOP or wanting to debate theology. I answered their comments as best I could. But most times I felt like I was not the right person for the job. I’m writing this post to state that I am not and do not want to be The (Un)official IHOP Apologist.

Reasons

I do blog about IHOP a lot because it’s a part of my daily routine. But I’m not here for life. I don’t think my job is to be an intercessory missionary; my skills and talents lie more in the business arena. So I’ll probably move on in several years. That’s one reason I have no desire to set myself up as the premiere IHOP defender on the Internet. I don’t want to self-identify primarily as an IHOPer, because the house of prayer is just one stop for me. I want to self-identify as a believer who’s on this journey called life.

This leads me to another reason: I don’t want others to think of me as an IHOPer first. I hope that though some readers arrived at my blog because they were searching for information on IHOP, they stayed because they liked my heart for the L-rd and writing style. Wherever the L-rd directs me next, I’ll blog about that, and I hope my readers will be able to come along for the ride. I want to be able to serve them by giving them all of the time I set aside for blogging, rather than having some of that time siphoned away by focusing on IHOP apologetics.

In addition, I don’t thrive on debate. I’m not saying that I want readers to blindly accept everything I say or IHOP says, or to never ask questions. Far from it! I’m definitely open to dialogue and I am willing to answer questions, especially if the other parties are genuinely striving to have a Berean spirit. And I am not saying that I am unable to defend what I think and believe. Believe me, I could bore you all to tears by yammering about the details of the Harp and Bowl model or the Bridal Paradigm. Some of my conversations with commenters have, in fact, dragged on and on. They took time and energy that I would have used for other things—writing about topics that would appeal to a broader audience, spending time with my family on one of my rare vacations, etc. What I am saying is that I do not view this type of debate as the most efficient use of my strengths, resources, or writing time.

Comment Moderation

I do moderate comments on my blog. That means I have the right to block comments. I’d rather not do so, but as I’ve explained in this post, it’s becoming too time-consuming for me to answer the same questions again and again. If I do have to block a comment, I’ll probably send a link to this post to the would-be writer. I will direct commenters elsewhere if they are seeking debate.

The Main Point

In conclusion: I believe that believers should be able to explain and defend what they believe to other believers. But I don’t want that to be my primary mission for this blog. There are many others from IHOP who are ready and willing to engage in long debates about IHOP’s theology, practices, leadership, etc. You can find them on the Onething forums. From this point on, I will direct most people who want to leave comments on the subject of “is IHOP a cult” to those forums. Not because I’m trying to shut you down or because I’m a Kool-Aid drinker, but because I am choosing not to focus my energy on IHOP apologetics any more.

Postscript

I do have some disagreements with the International House of Prayer in areas of their beliefs and practices. Yet on the whole, I’ve learned a lot from this ministry, and I believe that the L-rd wants me here for some time before I move on. My parents have taught me to seek discernment and to weigh everything I learn against the Word—whether I hear it from IHOP’s teachers or elsewhere. I hope you, the reader, will believe that I am trying my best to truly hear from the L-rd and do His will.

I appreciate the people who comment on this blog because they are concerned about me. I hope I’ve treated them with love and respect in my responses to them. But constantly answering questions—however well-meaning—on the same subjects has been tiring and distracting for me. So I’d ask you instead to simply pray Colossians 1:9–10 for me, as I do for you, and trust that the L-rd has me in His hands:

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.