Harvest Bible Chapel founder, James MacDonald, told three elders in 2013 that he’d “lose 1,000 sheep” before he’d reveal his salary. That’s according to former elders—Scott Phelps, Barry Slabaugh, and Dan Marquardt—who resigned soon after hearing that comment, and months later, were publicly excommunicated. (The church has since apologized for its “harsh” discipline of the men.)
However, now that Harvest has fired MacDonald, this long-held secret is being revealed. And given the amount of MacDonald’s salary, it’s understandable why MacDonald would want to keep it hidden.
In 2018, Harvest reportedly paid MacDonald $80,000 per month ($50,000/month in regular salary and $30,000/month in deferred compensation) for a total of $960,000 per year. (This number does not include additional money MacDonald may have received from his broadcast ministry, Walk in the Word, Harvest’s church planting network, Vertical Church, its songwriting and worship ministry, Vertical Worship, and books.)
That’s according to Emmanuel “Manny” Bucur, a deacon and one-time volunteer bodyguard of MacDonald’s, and Mark Banaszak, a Harvest member and captain of the church’s Saturday night security team. Both men said they received the information during a recent conversation with two senior leaders of Harvest. (Bucur and Banaszak told me the identities of the Harvest leaders but requested that I not report them. I have since confirmed the information they told me directly with a senior leader at the church. I also emailed Harvest’s Central Leadership Team for official comment, but no one responded.)
[pullquote]”In 2018, Harvest reportedly paid MacDonald $80,000 per month ($50,000/month in regular salary and $30,000/month in deferred compensation) for a total of $960,000 per year.”[/pullquote]Bucur and Banaszak said one of the leaders told them that MacDonald’s deferred compensation plan totals $2.6 million and was initially set up in 2010. They added that this leader said that the deferred compensation plan has no provisions enabling the church to “claw back” the money. However, given that the church is nearly $40 million in debt, its creditors likely would not release the money until the debt is paid back—or when one of several “trigger events” occur, like death, disability, or reaching a certain age.Your tax-deductible gift helps our journalists report the truth and hold Christian leaders and organizations accountable. Give a gift of $30 or more to The Roys Report this month, and you will receive a copy of “Hurt and Healed by the Church” by Ryan George. To donate, click here.
Bucur and Banaszak said their source also told them that in addition to compensation, Harvest gave MacDonald between $800,000 – $1.2 million annually in discretionary funds. Half of that money reportedly came from a senior pastor discretionary fund, and a similar amount came from a discretionary fund in Walk in the Word.
The church leader with whom I consulted confirmed that these discretionary funds were part of the hidden or “black budget” I reported in my December WORLD Magazine article on Harvest. This budget reportedly comprised about 20-percent of Harvest’s total budget and was kept secret from all but top church staff and the former elder executive committee. The executive committee was a group of four to five top elders who had sole responsibility for approving Harvest’s annual budget and executive salaries.
Bucur and Banaszak said one of Harvest’s leaders told them that MacDonald was supposed to note any expenses from his discretionary funds that were personal and then reimburse the church for those expenses. However, Bucur and Banaszak said their source told them that MacDonald counted as a ministry expense having a bear stuffed and shipped from Alaska.
The men said their source also confirmed that MacDonald had used church funds to give six to eight Harley Davidson motorcycles to people inside and outside of the church. Last week, I reported that both Niles Campus Pastor Mo Zachariah and former Assistant Senior Pastor Rick Donald received motorcycles from the church. (Zachariah says he has since reimbursed the church for his.)
Bucur and Banaszak said the Harvest leaders said the church is examining all the expenses from MacDonald’s discretionary funds and intends to seek reimbursement from MacDonald, or give him a W-2 tax form, for any expenses that the church determines were personal.
Executive Elders Offer Walk in the Word to MacDonald
Though Harvest is seeking to recoup some money from MacDonald, Bucur and Banaszak said one of the leaders told them that elders made an initial offer to MacDonald last weekend, giving him all the rights to Walk in the Word sermons, as well as the ministry’s donor list, and $100,000. Banaszak added that an elder had independently told him the same thing.
Since then, The Elephant’s Debt and others on social media have reported that the elders increased their offer to $500,000, but I have not been able to confirm those reports. I have, however, discovered a possible reason why Harvest’s leaders are offering to give MacDonald Walk in the Word, a multi-million-dollar ministry that used to air on 2,000 radio and TV stations.
According to minutes from a January 9, 2008, elder board meeting, the elders “unanimously” agreed to give MacDonald exclusive ownership of his sermons “both in note, audio, video and any other form.” However, Dave Corning, who was chairman of the board at that time, said he doesn’t remember discussing, voting, or signing any such agreement. He said the board did not approve minutes back then and questions the accuracy of the minutes. I reached out to MacDonald for comment, but he did not respond.
However, according to former elders Dan George and Mike Dunwoody, Harvest’s executive committee signed an agreement with MacDonald in 2015, granting MacDonald not just rights to Walk in the Word sermons, but to all the ministry’s multi-million-dollar assets, as well. George and Dunwoody said the committee at that time consisted of Jeff Smith, Randy Williams, Steve Huston, and Robert Jones. Smith remains on Harvest’s elder board, but the others have since resigned or rolled off the board.
George and Dunwoody said they first heard about the Walk in the Word agreement at an elder meeting the week before MacDonald was fired. They said Steve Stewart, longtime CFO of Walk in the Word, read the document and said that MacDonald had been contacting him regularly, reminding Stewart of his alleged rights to the ministry’s assets.
George and Dunwoody said the document stated that the agreement was subject to approval by the elder board. But both men were on the board in 2015 and said they had never seen the document, much less voted on it. Yet George said when he argued that the agreement wasn’t valid because it had never been approved by the board, Huston argued that it was valid because Harvest’s bylaws give the executive committee the power to approve contracts.
I reached out to Huston for comment, but he did not respond.
George and Dunwoody said the issue was not resolved during the meeting. A couple weeks later, Dunwoody was cut from the elder board when it reduced from more than 30 members to nine. George remained for another couple weeks and said during that time, he asked for a copy of the 2015 agreement repeatedly but was not given it.
George said eventually Harvest CFO Jeff Sharda allowed him to read the entire agreement off his laptop, but that was it. George said this reluctance to allow him access to this important document was one reason he decided to resign from the board last month, complaining that the elders were continuing the “secretive” and “controlling culture.”
Harvest Gave Millions to MacDonald’s Broadcast Ministry
Over the years, Harvest Bible Chapel has given millions of dollars to MacDonald’s broadcast ministry, Walk in the Word.
From 2014-2018, Harvest gave Walk in the Word more than $6 million worth of free television broadcast time According to Harvest’s 2016 Financial Statement, Harvest sold its property in Aurora, Illinois, to TBN for $15,600,000 in 2014. But TBN paid only $4 million of that amount in cash. The rest was given to the church in free broadcast time, which was then granted to Walk in the Word to use over eight years.
Because Walk in the Word went off the air in January, it wasn’t able to use the remaining 3.5 years of airtime. So Harvest recently sold the unused airtime to TBN for $4.1 million. Interestingly, though, former Walk in the Word Executive Producer Trey Morris said the sale to TBN almost didn’t go through because MacDonald was blocking the sale due to Harvest’s refusal to give MacDonald $1 million.
According to Morris, MacDonald had been acting as a middleman between Harvest and TBN and was demanding a cut of the sale. But Morris said he connected Harvest with TBN executives so the two parties could finish the deal without MacDonald’s intervention.
[pullquote]”(F)ormer Walk in the Word Executive Producer Trey Morris said the sale to TBN almost didn’t go through because MacDonald was blocking the sale due to Harvest’s refusal to give MacDonald $1 million.”[/pullquote]Walk in the Word also received a portion of Harvest Bible Chapel’s annual revenues. The amount of the annual donation is not noted in the church’s financial statements. However, both Trey Morris and a senior church leader told me that Harvest gave five-percent of its revenues each year—$1.2 – $1.65 million—to Walk in the Word.The church also directed a portion of funds from its former church planting network, Harvest Bible Fellowship (HBF), to Walk in the Word. That’s according to Bob Langdon, former HBF financial director, who said HBF regularly “tithed” 10-percent of its revenues to Walk in the Word.
These “tithes” are noted in a summary document that was used in a 2017 financial review of HBF. Though the document says the donations went to HBC, Langdon said the money actually went to Walk in the Word, a sub-ministry of HBC.
From 2012-2014, HBF gave $137,000 a year to HBC, i.e. Walk in the Word, for a total of $411,000. In 2015, HBF’s contribution jumped to $310,000. And in 2016, the contribution more than tripled to more than $1 million.
David Wisen, a pastor of a former HBF church who participated in a financial review of HBF, told me he believes some of HBF’s contribution that year came from 40 Mighty Men funds. This fund was the result of wealthy donors who gave at least $100,000 per year to Harvest for “church plant acceleration efforts.” According to a 40 Mighty Men report from 2017, Harvest allocated a “10% tithe” of all 40 Mighty Men funds from 2015-2017 to Walk in the Word, totaling $452,477.
So from 2012-2017, HBC and its sub-ministries gave more than $20 million in cash and air time to Walk in the Word. During that same time, Harvest was $40 million to $59 million in debt.
ECFA Failed to Police Harvest
These recent revelations raise additional concerns about the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), which until last month, accredited Harvest. In November, I contacted the ECFA, specifically inquiring about MacDonald’s salary and the church’s “black budget.” The ECFA responded that Harvest was “an ECFA member in good standing,” but said the organization would soon be conducting an on-site review of Harvest.
The ECFA conducted that review in December. After the review, ECFA released a statement saying that it had specifically examined Harvest’s compliance with ECFA’s Standard 6 on compensation-setting and related-party transactions. This standard states: “Every organization shall set compensation of its top leader and address related-party transactions in a manner that demonstrates integrity and propriety in conformity with ECFA’s Policy for Excellence in Compensation-Setting and Related-Party Transactions.”
Apparently, MacDonald’s compensation package worth nearly $1 million, and his $800,000 – $1.2 million in discretionary funds, satisfied the ECFA’s requirement because the ECFA stated after the review: “Harvest Bible Chapel is in full compliance with each of ECFA’s Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship and remains a member in good standing with ECFA.”
As I have for the past several months, I reached out to ECFA President Dan Busby and requested an interview, but did not hear back. I also sent questions to Busby, asking what the acceptable salary range is for pastors of churches with over 10,000 attending. Again, Busby did not respond.
UPDATE: The ECFA terminated Harvest’s membership on April 17 due to “significant violations” of four of seven of ECFA’s Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship. The ECFA said Harvest did not share “crucial information” with the organization during its on-site visit in December. Had Harvest done so, the ECFA said it would not have reported that Harvest was a member “in good standing.” The ECFA said it obtained new information on April 15 that “validated significant violations of Standards 2, 3, 4, and 6.” The ECFA added that “restoration to full membership was not a viable option under the circumstances.”
Though I am glad ECFA finally stripped Harvest of membership, its excuse for failing to find violations in December is extremely weak. I told ECFA in a November email about the “black budget,” yet it seems the group did very little digging to get to the truth. Here’s what I wrote: “Two former staff members told me that Harvest has a ‘black budget’ — about 20% of the budget that only very select people within the organization see. For example, the person who used to do payroll for the church said he paid 380 of the church’s 400 employees, but the top 20 executives were paid by Fred Adams, presumably under the authority of the executive committee, but he wasn’t sure. Similarly, the former comptroller said 20% of the budget was kept secret from him. This included money for top executive salaries and other unspecified projects.”
ECFA never even asked me for the names of the two former staff members so it could conduct its independent investigation. It seems the group simply came in, reviewed some documents Harvest gave it, and once again gave the church its seal of approval.
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166 Responses
Julie, How does one effectively reach out to Walk in The World and forcefully ensure all their data is removed from that donor list? No one should allow their data to remain on his rolls and enable him to continue in ministry with an unrepentant heart.
You bring up a great point JohnMark. Is it legal for Harvest to distribute donor lists to a terminated employee? If Walk in the Word was a HBC ministry, then all intellectual property (including sermons and donor lists) belong to HBC. In the corporate world. if an employee (including the CEO) is terminated, they are NOT entitled to nor granted any intellectual property belonging to the organization – ESPECIALLY client / customer / prospective customer / donor lists. That would be a HUGE violation of trust between the donors and HBC and possibly illegal.
Also, I would like to add that I am very concerned that Harvest does not seem to exhibit any concern or care for the welfare of those who may still fall prey to the charms and deceit of James MacDonald. Even if not illegal, their carelessness in offering to distribute donor lists is appalling. Anyone who attends this organization should leave immediately. FLEE from evil – don’t walk – RUN for the exit. There are plenty of solid churches in Chicago that preach (and live out) the gospel message faithfully. This organization (which may not be an actual bible believing church) is clearly not one of them.
While I understand your logic Jennifer the intellectual property issue will be determined by the legality of the agreements made between the church elders and JM from 2008 when the leadership first developed and signed them. That being said, if HBC is relinquishing their rights per those agreements then JM does have legal right to “own” them for whatever purpose he has for the information.
That is why both sides I assume have a stable of lawyers involved and negotiating the issue. it is also why I previously commented that the congregation hears nothing. That is the legal aspect where they are most likely being told to not say a word for potential liability issues. It is truly a mess resulting from one man’s sin and the inability of those around him to properly execute the role they were given.
As a point of clarification, there was an understanding from the beginning of Harvest that James would have rights to his IP although there never was a signed contract. (There was some dispute from the elders if they should be considered “works for hire” since the Minutes even state that HBC paid James to prepare and present these messages).
The Minutes of 2008 that you reference say nothing of assets or donor lists which were not and could not be offered by the elders in 2008 because WITW had its own Board of Directors entirely separate from HBC. Apparently in 2015 when WITW was part of HBC, and no longer had a separate Board, the elders of Harvest made some sort of agreement with James.
No donor lists should be released to a fired employee and no assets whatsoever to a disqualified pastor.
I feel nauseous and want to throw up. I bust my tail at this crappy job and give 10+% of my salary to this church, and this guy takes it and lives a rock star lifestyle with it. I am in tears. I have a few choice words for MacDonald and the elders should I ever run into them. They will one day answer to the Lord for having an idol before Him…the almighty dollar. You should be ashamed of yourself MacDonald. And now you want MORE??? Hope I don’t see you around my man.
I’m with you Former HBC Menber!!!
I am in no way trying to discourage you from giving, anywhere but Harvest right now. But you do know that tithing is not required of the New Testement church right? Scripture says to give from a. Cheerful Heart not under compulsion. To purpose what you want to give. If that’s 10% fine, if its 5% or 50%, that is entirely up to you. But Harvest used to teach about giving tithes , and it had to be on the Gross, and how they wouldnt want Gods money in their house at years end. And if you weren’t paid up on your tithes you hadn’t even begun to give an offering. Well this is manipulation meant to guarantee a steady stream of money. You decide what you feel the Lord wants you to give, and I would suggest you spread it around to other good and respected ministries, Pro- Life organizations etc. dont let anyone guilt you into what should be your choice and a decision between you and the Lord.
Yes Sir that’s true
Patriot… you are exactly right! And while McDonald’s sin has devastated many people we all have another chance to put our forgiveness in place.
Grace knows no ends.. so if James McDonald has repented that should be the end of it… but even if he hasn’t God will deal with him. I know that’s easy to say and hard to do for we are human.. God demands of us that we forgive him or God will not forgive us…personally I’m not willing to hold any offence. Food for thought!
This is funny. People generally like success, and MacDonald did seem like a star. I like and admire his chutzpah, creating a growing movement, and giving opportunity to others to bust their tales in ministry. In some organizations, the people overcome a moderate or large amount of debt and continue building through tough times via sweat equity. This guy was a driving force, and it could be said a rock dj he reached out to lovingly was pulling him down along with a gossip columnist – standing as accuser of this brother – are finger pointers, doing the devil’s work. Jesus could come back and point a finger if he wanted to. Jealousy and lack of organizational polish seem to be the driving force here, and easy to blame the leader. The people around him are up in arms – yet he is the one immersed in the word and preaching Christ. I could say grow up McChurch babies and get your McMansions you are jealous about. This guy could probably have done well in other types of businesses. And I found his teaching edifying and refreshing. I’d like to be honestly successful too. We want mercy. We should show others mercy and stick together as church family. The one making the dollar an idol seems more like the letter writer. MacDonald was shrewd buying Harleys and making friends, not hoarding all for self. They accused Jesus of being a wine bibber and killed him, much like Roy’s and all the other self righteous church nazis. Great entertainment. Christ preached, mercy preached, win-win-win for all. Why the glum faces? Pay off 40,000,000 fast with 380 employees busting their butts for Jesus, but you can’t do it when you get jealous and then angry. Anger is at God. MacDonald in His and His son’s image reaching out to sinners, not the righteous. Reign him in, but no need to crucify him. Christ died for Him too and making a good living from a ministry you are working hard on with board approving laudable – my perspective- jealous of success and knowing difficulty of building functional team. I could only hope to achieve something a fraction of Harvest’s size. He capitalized the place (and himself) with 40,000,000 in organizational debt selling a great product, the promise of eternal life. I’d think many more of the grateful would be willing to pay off the community’s debt If the powers that be squandered much, they could get back on track or declare bankruptcy- businesses do it all the time without shame. Going bankrupt sharing Christ is nothing to be ashamed about. Maybe the others pros there could have been bolder, asked for more, paid the debt and avoided a split. Hard to do with negative people with feet dug in. Kiss and make up. Be happy for one another in your poverty and wealth. Don’t lord authority over others. Don’t be jealous of chief’s success – make Jesus king. MacDonald graciously stepped back and is allowing weak to step up. He’s strong. But he is merciful enough not to call you weak. This poor schmuck is not. Wish more ministries were so bold as to take on that kind of debt load and rally so many. I’m not a leader, just a gadfly. Trump took on debt, declared bankruptcy made a fortune and became president. A hero to many, but others mad in similar ways. Polarizing? Or just good for the community? Your character frames your perspective and I’m not saying my answer is right. Bitter roots not supposed to be allowed to spring up in our midst. Be dead to the situation and don’t let anyone cut in on you in sharing God’s word. All voices important. Don’t be anxious. If your a hand, don’t try to be a foot. Endless talk that centers on MacDonald not on Christ is idol, bitterness, poor focus, not ministering, not edifying, not getting the work done. Roll up your sleeves. Can’t give with a happy heart? Don’t. God doesn’t want it.
We will all stand naked in front of the judgement seat. We are all weak. Christ and the cleansing power of His blood are all that strengthen us. We should tremble and worry each about our own walk. Public display of these conflicts I fear crucifies Christ all over again and leaves Christ’s crucified body hanging on that tree, inglorious, shaming us as a church to the the world that needs us united in love.
Sorry for the church nazis comment and cavalier attitude of my post. Not my intention to shame. No shame in pursuit of truth, but I understand there can be too much truth for a community.
Hard for many to be exposed naked to such bright light. Did Christ do such to us?
So who do we ask to have our data expunged from the donor list RIGHT NOW? And how do we let the masses know how to do the same?
Unfortunately, if you name is in the Walk in the Word database(MPX), it cannot be removed. The best someone can get with requesting their information would be placed on a DO NOT CALL or NO CORRESPONDENCE. There are 10s of thousands of names with people/organizations that have donated or purchased from them over 15+ years of that system being in placed.
Best thing is to inform each donor what has happened with their donations. A list of top misuse of funds for easy view and links to Julie’s blog, The Elephant’s Debt, articles in World magazine, Chgo Tribune and the DailyHerald should suffice. This should warn the donors of JMac, the false prophet premiere.
The list of annoying, galling, and nauseating behavior in this whole nightmare is long. To me, top of the list is the glaring spinelessness for some many years of men called “elders.” Dare we wonder why the world mocks us?
God asks how can you rob Him of tithes and offerings.
Anyone with a decent knowledge of the Bible knows this doesn’t apply to today’s Christians. It is so obvious that it is comical.
Christians can NOT rob God of offerings. It is THAT simple.
But, who could?
BAHAHAHA.
Is the writer of this article a lesbian and feminist? Just wondering…
Aleta – just wondering huh? Deflect deflect deflect. I believe the author is married to a man but what the hell does that have anything to do with JimmyMac getting a $940K salary + $1.2 million expense account (fun money)??? What does your statement have anything to do with Harvest losing ECFA financial stamp of approval?
https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20190419/harvest-bible-loses-financial-stamp-of-approval
David, it seems that you are a very smart and driven man, but your attack on Aleta makes me question the integrity of your comments. I wondered the same about Julie Roys as I had never heard of her before and by first appearances thought they she may be strongly feminist. I don’t mean that hatefully, just that I would filter the information she presented differently if she was not a Christian. I was very thankful for the detail and information she provided. To be honest, JMac reminds me a bit of Judas. It always bewilders me that he went out and ministered with the other disciples and yet money (Satan) had its hold on him. I would have to say that anyone who heard JMac and came to Christ came because of what Christ was doing, not JMac. To me it’s not the presenter but the Savior who brings people to Christ. It makes me thoroughly sad that so much money could have been used to do so much good and wasn’t, but God knows. It seems troublesome to me to that we can shred James when none of us are far from the snare of sin. It grieves me that unbelievers will hear about this scandal and turn away from seeking the gospel.
Ms. Roys, my apologies for making a knee-jerk judgement about you. Thank you for doing your research and writing this article.
My god you are as sick as James MacDonald wanting to plant kiddie porn on Mancow’s computer…
I’m actually wondering if Aleta is James
MacDonald?
Would that make her arguments less valid? I keep wondering who would stay at such a corrupt church. Thanks for bringing clarity.
Aleta, when one does not have a credible argument or class, always attacks the truth with abuse!
It is interesting that when somebody cannot refute something factually they often resort to vicious nasty dishonest ad homenum attacks even though the Bible commands us not to bear false witness.
Well Susan, I’m pretty sure ol’ Aleta has nothing to do with the Bible but rather of a reprobate mind.
For the rest of us, Mat 5:10-12 says it all
This entire situation makes me sick. He was a gifted teacher and to find out all of these things about his incredible personal failings just shows how his ego went completely out of control which happens so easily when a controlling man begins to believe that he has power over others. My heart breaks for his wife, while she may have understood his personality disfunction toward being an over bearing bully and his treatment of others I bet she wasn’t aware of the extent of the financial corruption. My prayers are for his family and that God would truly use this situation to break him, humble him and bring him to his knees in repentance.
Not sure about that. Hard to not Notice the expensive vacations, the huge homes, the expensive cars, flying all over the world on private jets. I’m pretty sure she knew exactly what was going on, and just chose to enjoy the ride. I’m under the impression she was also “employed” by WITW, anybody that can corroborate this. And for quite a salary, not sure what she was doing since she was constantly posting pics online of going here or there with a group of Pals.
Yikes Laurie your entire post seems to be you projecting your personal relationship pain into this situation. My prayer is for you that God would truly use this situation to break you, humble you and bring you to your knees in repentance for not dealing with yourself sooner before it is too late like it is for jimmy and mrs canuck and the rest of the reprobate HIRELINGS at harvest inc.
His wife was receiving a salary of $100,000. Did she have an office or a work schedule? Don’t you think their lifestyle would have raised some question in her mind?
Kathy and the kids are in on the scam. Kathy has been present during the many lies James has preached from the pulpit regarding their finances. For example: “Our money comes from book sales”, “we make no money from book sales”, “our goal is to give more money back to the church than we have ever received” (said during 5G Campaign kickoff…who else remembers that?)and the list goes on. The boys were in on it to and planned to take over the “church” one day. Abby, his daughter, made 60k working part-time at the church…unskilled labor, no college degree. The family was in on it. In fact, I believe James, Kathy, Rick, and Lynne moved to the states with the intention of running a scam. Far away from Canada where people knew James’s character.
Yes they were all in on it. Kathy made $100K for doing absolutely nothing! Abby made $60K working part-time at a church! She had zero skills! No college education! It was written that Luke made $250K a year salary. They milked the Harvest congregation. And ran the debt up to $69 million at one point.
I am feeling the same way. I had no idea any of this was going on and was looking into visiting HBC in Chicago while I am visiting soon. I haven’t listened to James in awhile, but ALWAYS thought he was a wonderful expositor of the Word. I am sickened by all of this and so, so sad.
Hey Shari , who do you think wrote those messages? NOT jimmy canuck. So you ALWAYS thought he was a wonderful expositor of the Word ? Now I am sickened and so, so sad for you because of all the wisdom and discernment you could of had if you had only asked the Heavenly Father.
Then you would have know that jimmy canuck was was just another shooting star HIRELING like all
the rest that make money off the whipped back of Jesus.
Does anyone remember the message when he spoke about how “they had no money and they would buy a hamburger from a fast food restaurant to share but they always received a blessing when they gave”?
Kind of bothers me now when I think about that statement from the pulpit a he was trying to use emotion to get those of us in the congregation to give.
Yes, I do remember that. Does anyone remember when James talked about how he would not leave an inheritance to his kids? At the time I thought it was avoiding entitlement about teaching hard work. Now I think it was a ploy to steal the inheritances that would have been passed on to congregants’ children. The man is sick. Julie, I would love to see a post with a collection of lies that james told to the congregation over the years. Let’s make sure everyone knows who he is and that he never steps foot in the pulpit again.
“Mr. Trump’s comments released yesterday — though 10 years ago (he was 60) — are not just sophomoric or locker room banter. They are truly the kind of misogynistic trash that reveals a man to be lecherous and worthless — not the guy who gets politely ignored, but the guy who gets a punch in the head from worthy men who hear him talk that way about women,” James MacDonald
How a man can be so hypocritical and ordain his own punishment!
Peter Brown, I was there when Macdonald said this, and I left after the sermon and never returned. I was not a regular attendee, not rooted like many others, but I enjoyed the sermon and James explanations of the Bible. When James spoke on Trump from the pulpit, because I am a Patriot and had a firm support in Trump and the need to reverse the course of the nation, I was suddenly aware of an improper influence James was exerting. In hindsight, I now see this-that POTUS had spoken derogatory words about women, is absolutely nothing when compared to the impact James had on many women with his years of literally stealing dollars from them, his deceit-a few, I knew who struggled with income needs and still gave, and gave and gave. Is the talk anything, anything, in contrast to Macdonald’s actions?
Hi Everyone! Doug Bartholomew responded to one of my posts on the previous page and said:
Doug Bartholomew
April 23, 2019 at 9:28 pm
Davy – after reading your comments, the Baker act seems like a good idea after all
So I looked it up and thought about it and responded with:
But Dougy you are the only one in Florida so yes it is a good idea especially for you and jimmy
canuck , I’m pretty sure a few people here can figure out how to do it.
Thanks for the great idea! It seems that you still can not contain yourself.
“To Baker Act someone means that you initiate the process for an involuntary and emergency
psychiatric examination of a person with a mental illness at a Florida hospital or crisis unit. This refers
to a specific Florida law and it only applies to proceedings within the state of Florida.”
Hopefully some Chicago people know some Florida people and history can be made!
Did j-ac & k-ac file tax returns jointly? If so she signed off on their joint income!
Oh…..I’ll bet she was told to sign ‘this’ and never knew what she was doing! HAHAHAHAHAHA
By the way we never forgot the beautiful Sunday, in rolling meadows, walking in we noticed the
new white Audi convertible license plate ‘k mac’ parked prominently at front door, as a ‘in your face’ statement.
Wonder what (ashley) the daughters’ ‘father-in-law’ has made @ harvest as j-ac hired him and probably other in-laws of j-ac & k-ac’s children.
this nightmare/ story like hell is a never ending/bottomless pit.
I did not read every other comment and wonder if anyone wants their donations back?
I would like back every penny donated to Harvest and Walk In the Word.
Donna J I joined the WITW class action suite not so much to get my money back but to force the books open. If I get money back I will donate to local ministry. But I truly understand your feelings. I’m just praying our money did help someone somewhere to be born again or help them stay in track with God. God is sovereign over all this and I believe even though the messenger was horribly flawed God can & did use his messages to help someone
Listen and read JMac’s Hot Mike (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-H74qlcCnts). Wondering if prolific fiction writer JMac’s book “Vertical Living” will be ever be printed this fall by David C. Cook as he stated. Since JMac and Jerry Jenkins enjoys to gamble; Las Vegas taking bets if this will happen or if it will be self-published w/ sign authentic copies by photocopy..
I’ve always thought that the local church should never be so big that the Pastor couldn’t know his sheep. There is a beautiful accountability that goes both ways in a reasonably sized church where the Pastor knows his sheep and the sheep know their pastor. As an example, I’ve been to my pastors’ home, I pray with him at a men’s group, along with mid-week and Sundays. I’ve been told MacDonald was almost a “cult-of-personality” that the average sheep couldn’t have a relationship with him.
I must tell you, I’m primarily disgusted with the elders of this church. It’s one thing for a man to fall into sin, but for a group of men that should have known better and not be able to find strength among themselves to do the right thing. That is the greater sin.
Yeah , Why are all the sheep feeding the Shepherds anyways ??? Something’s wrong , run for your eternal lives , IT IS ABSOLUTELY TRUE , run run run before it is too late……..
COME OUT and BE SEPARATE and touch not that unclean thing…….
Guys he fleeced you for 42 million
$42 Million is just today’s debt if I’m not mistaken , this Corporation has taken in over 1/2 BILLION $$$
($500,000,000 ) in the last 15 years, so there is MUCH MUCH MUCH more missing than $42 million.
I would like to know what $500,000,000 minus the value of the real estate looks like even in just a rough estimation and I bet we all would see an absolutely outrageous amount still that has just sort of poofed away , even after all the HIRELINGS wages. Is anybody ashamed yet? Is there any repentance? Is there any restitution? ETERNITY IS COMING BOYS and GIRLS………….
It’s sounds like the majority of the comments are upset about what they don’t have and what they gave that may or may not been used in a righteous way. If you gave out of a great full heart them god will or has blessed you for it!
I can’t or I will it believe that the money I sent didn’t help bring someone to the lord.
The lord said or fight isn’t flesh and blood but against principally.
I meant to say I can’t or will not believe the money didn’t bring someone to the lord
Years ago Greg Laurie would let Pastor MacDonald preach from his pulpit and he would also speak well of him. Curious about this guy since I always examine a pastor’s teachings/bahvior before I would ever listen to him teach I listened to a few of his sermons and watched him on television (This was a couple of years ago).
James came across as a bully and I was turned off by his overbearing demeanor and never listened to him preach again. I would never submit myself or my family to some pastor or elder who likes to throw his weight around in an ungodly manner. I wouldn’t stand for that. I don’t understand how Christian men are so easily bullied and manipulated by leaders in the Christian Church.
When all of this news came out it only confirmed my initial impression of James Mandonald. Christians need to be Bereans and examine the fruit of any Pastor before we submit ourselves or our families to them. It is our responsibility to do this while relying of God to shine His light on our path so we don’t stumble.
Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. (Matthew 7:1-2) – ALL His disciples abandoned Him when He was arrested. He forgave them as well as those who pierced His flesh with nails. Yes wrong has been done. ALL things work together for good for those who love the Lord. James MacDonald nor any of us are immune to temptations of this world. Those who do good for the Lord are far more valuable to His enemy than those who have not had such GREAT impact. I feel for him, for everyone and I understand the emotions but hope they can be tempered with less judgement, anger and ugliness, it’s sad; so was the crucifixion yet God works wonders. From our perspective we cannot see His side of the beautiful needlework, we see the knots and messy stitches underneath. One day, God willing we will see clearly. God bless.
If a public company behaved this way, those involved might be facing jail time or fines. I think it’s time for the IRS to require churches to disclose the compensation of their leadership in order to maintain their tax exempt status. Public companies are required to disclose this information to their shareholders. Why not have the same level of accountability in a church funded by its members?
So sorry you were actually a member of his church, you must feel so betrayed, but remember, God is just and He holds these people in authority to an even higher standard. James may be scrubbing toilets if he gets to Heaven. I was a change partner for years and somewhat feel your pain, but have no intention of wasting my time thinking about it. Again, God is just.
Hi Ms. Julie, I am a bible college student and is doing a project currently in “biblical concept of leadership class,” my group and I are doing a case study on James McDonald, and we need a personal interview on blogger, will you be willing to do this for us?