IHOPKC Says They Will Not Shut Down, Despite Reports of Closure

"To state the obvious, the last six months have been a test to the strengths and fortitude of our missions-based organization. Over the course of these last months, our leadership team has tirelessly endeavored to review and analyze the entire IHOPKC organizational structure and the many missions we have undertaken over our 24 years of existence," the statement added. "That review and reflection has led to internal decisions to begin a transition and reorganization process, which will allow us to focus on our main mission yet deal with the realities of finance."

The news of the alleged closure came from the The Roys Report, which shared a leaked recording from leaders at an internal IHOP University staff meeting as well as an email from IHOP University President Matt Candler, that the ministry closing its doors for good due to the financial impact of Bickle's sexual abuse scandal. Last December, IHOPKC permanently severed ties with Bickle.

However, IHOPKC told The Christian Post that the ministry plans to continue even though its ministry school, IHOPU, is phasing out.

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"We are NOT closing the 24/7 prayer room; it remains a main stay of our existence. We do intend to review the functionality of various operational locations and will likely consolidate several. We have also decided to conclude the operation of IHOPU, our ministry school, after this year's graduation," the ministry said.

Ministry officials also refuted claims they are attempting to escape liability tied to the sexual abuse allegations against Bickle.

"We have supported and will continue to support any and all victims of abuse, sexual or otherwise, whether here within IHOPKC, or anywhere in the community. To be clear, there have been no lawsuits filed against IHOPKC; the allegations of prior misconduct pertained to an individual, not our organization," the ministry said.

"As we seek to create a 'bettered' version of IHOPKC, we may close some windows of our mission while opening others, but once again, IHOPKC is NOT closing," the officials asserted.

As noted by The Roys Report, IHOPKC leaders, including Candler, shared that the ministry was losing about $500,000 per month due to donors being too affiliated with Bickle. 

"IHOPKC as an organization is beginning to wind down," Candler said in the leaked recording of the meeting. "We're going to be maintaining our prayer room and eventually beginning a new organization."

Isaac Bennett, who leads IHOPKC's Forerunner Church, also shared that the minitsy faced “significant liabilities” from the lawsuits from the victims in Bickle's sexual abuse scandal.

"We're the people to sue at the end of the day," he said. "That produces significant liabilities."

Representing one of Bickle's alleged victims is Billy Graham’s grandson Boz Tchividjian, an attorney and longtime advocate of sexual abuse survivors. He told The Christian Post that IHOPKC leaders are living in "fantasyland” if they think the ministry can shut down and re-emerge as a rebranded organization to escape liability.

"The notion that they can just shut it down and start a new organization and all of that prior potential liability is wiped away is fantasyland," he argued. "To suddenly take all the property, put it in name of [a] new organization to limit liability that would what I believe be called a fraudulent transfer. A court would not allow that."

In the leaked recording, Bennett explained that IHOPKC has found no way around the liability in light of the ministry's mishandling of the abuse allegations.

"In cases where there's clergy abuse, where there's allegations that are outstanding — when there's now interest in having an investigation that goes back through all of our 24-year history to find cases where there's been mishandling of abuse, or where there's been cover-up, or whatever else it is people believe has been gone on — those things will produce inevitably a contingent of individuals who are wanting to get restitution," Bennett said. "And they're not going to go knock on Mike's door because, well, he probably won't answer. But they're not going to knock on Mike's door because he doesn't have any money. But IHOPKC has facilities."

Image credit: ©Getty Images/Khanchit Khirisutchalual

Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.