Major TW: SA I remember attending the Awakening one night. I was on my way transitioning out of IHOP to go to college but I had immense fear of missing out on the blessing, so I attended a few evenings. Apparently the theme that night was sexual healing. The (very prominent) worship leader was singing his testimony about how god had healed him from same-sex attraction. Then a student got up to share his sexual healing testimony…. Through tears, he confessed to molesting his younger cousin multiple times. He said he had repented and thanked god for healing and forgiving him. I remember being absolutely speechless. The vibe of the crowd and leader was “we forgive you, there is healing,” etc. I wish I would have known at the time that he needed to be reported to the police. Obviously, that was not a thought on any leader’s mind at the time either. This night haunts me and I wish there were archives of the awakening but I can’t find anything. I can’t help but feel guilty and responsible for not raising a huge concern to leadership about it. There was a room full of people who should have said something, but that’s just not what they do at IHOP. It is a safe place for abusers, and always has been.
- Full-time staff2007-2010