A burgeoning multi-ethnic church based just east of Kansas City is raising $2 million to purchase two key properties owned by the scandal-plagued International House of Prayer Kansas City (IHOPKC).
These include IHOPKC’s former sanctuary and a nearby property that matches the description of a former children’s center, but neither were officially listed. Leaders at The City KC, located in Raytown, leapt at the possibility of moving to prime real estate in Grandview, 11 miles away in Kansas City’s southern suburbs.
“Two incredible properties in Grandview, Missouri sitting on more than 38 acres of land have become available,” The City KC Pastor Armour Stephenson III said in a fundraising video esta semana.
The first, a 52,000-square-foot building with a 1,400-seat sanctuary, is the former Forerunner Church on Grandview Road. Another unspecified property “a few blocks away,” he said, has 30 acres of land with a building with a large auditorium, classrooms, offices, and a full commercial kitchen. This was IHOPKC’s Children’s Equipping Center.
“This is a redemptive moment,” Stephenson said. “The very spaces the enemy once tried to destroy, God is now positioning his people to redeem, to bring purpose and power back into the places that were always meant for his glory.”
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At first, Stephenson requested $500,000 to secure the two properties.
But he later added a segment to his video saying he’d met with IHOPKC’s chief financial officer and now needed $2 million. The church hopes to raise the money by Dec. 15, according to its fundraising website.
“We need a little more cash,” Stephenson said in his video, “actually, a lot more. . . . Before you panic, I want you to hear me out. This ain’t no setback, baby. This is a time for our faith to be stretched.”
Stephenson didn’t state whether the $2 million is a full cash payment or a down payment. TRR reached out to Stephenson, but he didn’t immediately respond.
TRR also reached out to IHOPKC’s CFO Eric Oppriecht and Executive Director Joseph Taylor, but neither responded.
TRR couldn’t find any public sale listings for IHOPKC’s properties in this area. However, Jackson County records show a $848,000 market value for Forerunner Church’s property, with an additional $415,000-valued parking lot next to it. The building and 28-acre property that used to house IHOPKC’s now-closed Children’s Equipping Center, also on Grandview Road, is valued at over $1.1 million, county records show.
Jackson County property listings show six additional IHOPKC-owned properties throughout Kansas City and outlying suburbs to also house its prayer room, offices, and now-closed IHOP University.
Property sales
IHOPKC has been dwindling in size since October 2023, when acusaciones surfaced that its founder Mike Bickle sexually abused multiple women, including minors.
A investigación de terceros reported that he abused 17 women and that other IHOPKC leaders “shielded perpetrators.” At one point in 2024, IHOPKC was bleeding $500,000 a month and would have to let go of 90% of its staff to continue, El Informe Roys (TRR) previamente reportado.
Plans were to close its ministry completely and open under a new name to avoid legal liability, which the church ultimately didn’t do. IHOPKC is also being sued by an adult on behalf of a minor who was allegedly abused at an IHOPKC-hosted youth retreat.
The church now is apparently selling off its real estate. Given its history with abuse, former IHOPKC staff are calling for the 24/7 ministry to be above-board in handling these property sales.
“I would like it to be transparent because they are a tax-exempt organization,” said former prayer room staffer Susan Tyrrell. “Because they don’t even have to file a 990 as a church, I have lots of concerns, absolutely.”
Tyrrell has been researching and documenting IHOPKC’s building sales, including a sale of IHOPKC apartments last year, for her substack Dr. Denouement.
Last year, Forerunner Church, one of the properties The City KC hopes to purchase, cerrado, along with all its other ministries except for its nearby prayer room.
But “the enemy” will not deter IHOPKC’s buildings from fulfilling God’s work if Stephenson, who also goes by Pastor AD3, has anything to say about it.
“Sacred ground”
Stephenson said in his fundraising video that The City KC has been outgrowing its church building for the past few years and needs a new space. He also has a vision to transform both Kansas City and the world through a campaign called Aroma.
“The AROMA Campaign is how we turn vision into reality — by building a house big enough for generations to encounter Jesus, discover purpose, and spread His fragrance across Kansas City and beyond,” the church’s website states. “It’s not just about raising money. We are also raising capacity — for Jesus to change everything, everywhere.”
These IHOPKC properties are a key piece of making this happen, Stephenson said in his fundraising video.
“They are sacred ground for the next season of revival, discipleship and leadership development in Kansas City and even beyond,” Stephenson said.
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5 Responses
“the former Forerunner Church on Grandview Road”
That’s not a church, that’s a corrugated steel industrial building.
In the words of Christian Monist, the type of quick-and-dirty church building you throw up when The World Ends Tomorrow (at the latest) and It’s All Gonna Burn.
“a campaign called Aroma…”
IHOPKC has always had an “aroma” about it, and it hasn’t been a good one.
It is interesting to note that there was a severe attack to prevent the very effective spiritual warfare story from being made into a movie some time ago. (Fall of Lucifer).
Almost everyone who supported this project heavily were targets of severe demonic attack to make them fall, kill them, or destroy then any way possible. Even the author almost died.
Prayer is what is needed in this time of heavy spiritual attacks on people in the Body of Christas Jesus instructed.
Then again, maybe God didn’t want the movie made. Most of the “spiritual warfare” teachings out there are non-scriptural and deny God’s sovereignty.
Why isn’t Bickle in prison for assault?
Who profits from the property sale?
Susan T., quoted here, previous wrote a Substack post entitled: “IHOPKC sells off some property for $1 to ELT member’s new LLCs.”
She quoted X posters who wrote:
“I’d be willing to bet [Mike Bickle’s] net worth is millions upon millions…. There is zero way he has no $. All the ELT currently and ex live in large homes. Mike has pretended his entire career. “The humble goofy prophet who lives in a duplex…” yet owns ALL of the properties and MORE unknown properties.”
In his book about Bickle, “Some Said It Blundered,” former colleague Bob Scott wrote about the Shiloh property theft in the 1980s.
“Mike was… leading the charge to build Shiloh. He raised over a million dollars…
“[His sister] Sherry said: “I am so sorry for what my brother is doing to you…. Sadly, Shiloh will never develop like God wants because God is offended by his theft.”
“When they finally bought land not far from the church… Mike put the property deed in both Bob [Jones] and Paul’s [Cain] names…. After Bob was caught [in sin], Mike took Bob’s half of the property back. After Paul was accused of sexual impropriety, he took Paul’s half back.
“There has always been a great deal of secrecy as to who actually owns the land. If it was bought through a Not-for-Profit, once that organization closes, it can only be donated to another Not-for-Profit.”
Can the friends of The Roys Report at The Trinity Foundation who have investigated ministers’ property ownership for 30 years find out if Bickle profits from the planned sale of the property?