Many of you have probably heard that Todd Bentley, head of Fresh Fire Ministries, has filed for separation from his wife, Shonnah.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Aug 13/ THE VOICE magazine: Advancing Christian Life & Culture
The Voice magazine called his office today to confirm the reports. A receptionist named Nicole answered and pointed us to his Web site. Fresh Fire Ministry’s Board of Directors offers a statement and request for prayer:
“It is with considerable sadness then, that we must temper the jubilation we know you all feel with the sobering news that Todd and Shonnah Bentley are presently experiencing significant friction in their relationship and are currently separated,” the statement read.
“We want to affirm that there has been no sexual immorality on the part of either Todd or Shonnah, nor has there ever been. Undoubtedly the pressures and the burden of the Outpouring, which approaches 144 days on August 23rd, have helped to create an atmosphere of fatigue and stress that has exacerbated existing issues in their relationship,” the statement continued.
“We wish to stress however, that the Outpouring is not “to blame” for the current chain of events and that in effect we have no interest in blaming anyone, but rather we deeply covet your prayers for Todd and Shonnah and for Fresh Fire Ministries during this time,” the statement said.
You can read the entire statement at FreshFire.ca.
Contact The Voice magazine editor at editor@thevoicemagazine.com or 954-456-6032.
FREE download of The Voice magazine
As a true Christians we should earnestly pray for him and also it gives us a warning that Todd is mere human like you and me!!!
I’m believing that as long as todd gives to God all the glory there will be a good outcome … ALL things work together for good …
1 Cor. 4:9-13: “For I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last, as men condemned to death; for we have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now.”
What is going on. The world will believe that we have no keeping power. It is becoming quite fashionable to leave our marriage. The same Holy Spirit is able to sustain our covenants. It is a poor example being set. Beware of things that are coming in the church to move us off of what we know that the Word of God has said. It is beginning to be too easy to just put our marriages to the side; and continue in ministry. We need to make our leader accountable for at least going to counseling, taking a leave of absence to work on the problems. Now a days we can just do what we want and just get up and preach without any questions asked. When anyone dare speaks against it, they are immediately labeled as having no love, being too judgmental, hard, and a whole list of other things. It is time for this to stop. God is not pleased and He is not impressed with all of this going on. Pray, yes, pray, but it must come to the place of REPENTANCE. We must all repent for becoming complacent with what the Word of God has already stated. I will pray for the Bently’ that they will heed to the voice of God and get help. I will pray that they will allow God to break each of them. I will pray that they will be doers of God’s Word. I will pray that pride will not stand in the way of humility. I pray for the spirit of brokenness to come up them. I will pray for the Body of Christ; that we would stop just letting everything just go on and not grieve as a whole. I will pray that we will all speak the same things, and that we become a place of healing, restoration, and DELIVERANCE.
Let us remember that the enemy is lurking and is not taking a back seat to the outflow of the Spirit and annointing from Lakeland, FL. This is true spiritual warfare and we, as Christians, have to discern and know what the Bible says. We all fall short and we must judge not less ye be judged. The fact is that Todd Bentley has been appointed during this time. God appoints the right man at the right time.
Is this a test to sharpen us corporately for the time and the ages that we are in?
Do we Christians get unmotivated and go back to the mass mediocrity of our walk or do we move ahead through this corporate storm we are facing?
Pray, discern, ask for direction and pickup the torch that Todd has sacrificially carried. Todd and his family are no less Christians than anyone else. He has shown great leadership through Jesus Christ that has ushered in a movement that can not be stopped. Let us move forward.
The enemy assumes that we will go back to being “Sunday-only, water-cooling” Christians. When the enemy steps up, we must step up. This is a battle for what is rightfully ours.
I think that people need to realize the importance of our marriages. God has not called us to sacrefice our families on the altar of ministry. The Devil is a liar, he is decieving people with his evil schemes. But we cannot forget that God has called us to Him first, our families second, and then to the ministry. It’s not about us or anything we can do, it is about God. His will is for marriage. We cannot sacrefice our families on the altar of ministry. Our spouces our the most important people in our lives. If we cannot be faithful to that, then we cannot be trusted to be any edifying tool for the body of Christ.
Well said Pastor James, well said. The Word of God must govern us all irregardless of our positions, situations, giftings, etc. We must believe the Word and live by it because it is THE standard.
Do you not think that Todd and his wife separate with a heavy heart and with grief? One thing I KNOW to be true is that the enemy is violently attacking anyone who wholly devotes themselves to the Lord and the calling on their lives. Remember that we wrestle NOT with flesh and blood but powers and principalities of the evil one!! He did come to STEAL,KILL, and DESTROY this marriage thinking that it would be a way to stop the coming army that is rising up in large part to people such as Todd. He is a forerunner to this generation and so I am sure that he is in the targets of the enemy even more. Both Todd and Shonnah have to know that its not good to be apart and I am sure that this is not something they took lightly. I am sure this was a last resort and that they are both seeking God for their family in this delicate time. The worst thing that we can do as spectators of lives (Todd’s and Shonnah’s) that have been poured out in sacrifice to the calling of God is to condemn them. THE WORLD CONDEMS, THE SAINTS PRAY AND BUILD UP ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE!!!!! I know my God is a God of restoration and of love and I know all the prayers of the saints are overflowing his throne about this matter. I have nothing but good things to say about the sacrifices that both Todd, Shonnah, and his family have made so that we could benefit from it. NO SACRIFICE TO GOD IS WASTED!!! What the enemy has tried to steal from this family, I call him out on. SATAN HAS BEEN CAUGHT IN THE ACT AND NOW HE HAS TO REPAY THIS MARRIAGE 7 TIMES WHAT HE STOLE…….
My prayer is:
7 times the joy
7 times the peace
7 times the love
7 times the affection
So saints, lets call on God and WAR with the Bentleys!!!! Lets demand that the thief repay these souls and that God will send his overwhelming love and peace to this family.
I want to say that I agree absolutely with everything that April has said. Hers is the voice of mercy, of grace, of humility, she speaks the heart of God which calls us to intercession for restoration.
If you insist in standing in judgment, then don’t read most of the Psalms, because they were written by a man who committed adultery and arranged for her husband to be killed.
What is happening does not invalidate the incredible blessing that this man and his wife have been. So much so I suspect they are on the enemy’s top-ten hitlist. I also suspect that the people who stand in judgment [and believe me there will be thousands of them], have not themselves experienced the level of intense spiritual warfare that the Bentley’s have, because they may not represent such a threat to the enemy’s kingdom!!!!
So to paraphrase Elvis - a little less conversation, a little more intercession!!!!
God bless us all and help us all, we ALL fall down and we ALL fall short EVERY DAY!!!!!!
I think we need to stop blaming the devil and begin to look at sin as the root problem of all our afflictions. Submit to God and the devil will flee from you is what the Bible says. And when referring to Matthew 7 “Judge not, lets you be judged, for with what standard you judge, you will be judged.” we need to read the rest of the verse, where what is being referred to is hypocritical judges that do not examine themselves before pointing out anothers sin. the last verse points to our responsibility to help that brother get the speck out of his eye after self-examination. When we see a brother in sin, we are to correct in gentleness and with a spirit of restoration. So we can stand up here and say, Todd, it is unbiblical for you to separate from you wife-you need to repent. That is mature Christianity. The Bible says:
Better are the blows from a friend than kisses from an enemy.
If a brother strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.
I have to agree with AKD. It is not love to merely defend Todd Bentley without also calling HIM out for his sin, both toward his family, and toward the body of Christ. It is because he has not been corrected by the Body of Christ that things have gotten this far. I have to seriously doubt that Todd Bentley is on the devil’s hit list any more than anyone else, so much as he is simply reaping some things he has sown. You can speak 7 times the love, joy, and peace until you are blue in the face, and God will still honor His Word.
And I’d also like to point out that the Psalms were written by David -an adulterer and murderer- but David REPENTED sorrowfully and left his life of sin. Even after his repentance and forsaking sin, God STILL took his baby and judged David’s house. At the very least, we saints must TAKE HEED from the example of Todd Bentley, or we too are going to reap what we sow.
I do pray for Todd Bentley to be restored - but the restoration I’m thinking of would include public repentance for leading God’s people astray, and a public standing against some of the heresies he has introduced into the church. That would show me that he was truly serving the God of the Bible.
As for his family, it is said he has been in marriage counseling for a while - he ought to have been home with the family, reading his Bible and putting it into practice rather than standing on a stage in Lakeland. You can gain the whole world and lose your own soul, and you can gain fame and fortune, and lose your family. This whole thing has made a mockery of the church, and I fear that Todd has been the devil’s pawn the entire time. May he repent and follow the Jesus of the Bible.
one voice so far, calling for truth, that is, living the Gospel. Forget the praying for prosperity, pray that God will grant Todd and his wife repentance. Now that he’s got a bunch of money, he no longer wants to share it with his bride. The entire Florida thing, umbiblical at best, we are talking about Todd, not the Lord, has born more fruit in the life of Todd. Christians, stand and be strong! Mark those who labor among you and inherit the promises and imitate them… certainly pray for the lost (Todd) that God would grant them repentance.
I have read for most of the day people talking about the situation with Todd and Shonnah Bentley. I have read about Tattoos, piercings, BAM, pushing people down, divorce, decernment, false prophet, angels, just to mention a few opinions.
Here is my response:
Read the 19th chapter of Leviticus in the original text. Examine the context. Read the verses before and after. He who is without sin cast the first stone.
Does anyone’s wife wear makeup, or earings, necklaces, braclets? He who is without sin cast the first stone.
When being prayed for I have heard “HO”, “WOAH”, “MORE”, “FIRE”, “FRESHFIRE”, “JESUS”, and assorted other words such as growns I would not even know how to spell. These were words used by Assembly of God Pastors. He who is without sin cast the first stone.
My family and I were in Lakeland and received prayer. Unless you were there how can you say anyone pushes anyone down. I really don’t care what it looks like, as you well know looks can be deceiving.
What I know that I know is this. The LORD touched my family in Lakeland simple as that. People got saved, healed, delivered, restored, to mention just a few miracles from the LORD.
My question to you is this. If GOD chose to use Todd Bentley who are you to question GOD.
Christians are a strange breed. We have a tendency to eat our young when trials and tribulations happen. Todd and his family need our support, and prayer not our bashing.
I wonder how many of the critics have actually spoken with Todd and/or his wife to minister to them. Isn’t that what we are suppose to do? Who among you can even repent without the help of JESUS?
My prayer for Todd and his family is that the LORD restore to him a double portion of what the enemy has tryed to steal.
BODY OF CHRIST for once in our life lets stand on the promises of GOD. Did you all notice that the Prodical son left with ALL HIS INHERITENCE?????? He had it all, and the FATHER still RAN to him when he came back. Such is my prayer for Todd and his family.
In JESUS MIGHTY NAME AND FOR HIS GLORY ALONE.
I must say there is some wisdom on here but also some rubbish. Who are we to call Todd Bentley out - I am willing to stake that none of the people pontificating even know him.
Those who do know him ARE calling him on it and have made it clear that it is NOT God’s will for this separation or breakup and that he should be focussing on his family restoration and not ministry.
I am disgusted at the number of people making their pronouncements when they do not know the circumstances or the people involved.
To be able to call someone or rebuke them requires a level of relationship - I certainly would not entertain strangers telling me what I should or shouldn’t do; especially if I was in the middle of such a struggle.
It may only serve to harden the heart further, all this interference by complete strangers.
Do not pull that old chestnut about him being a public figure - that is just an excuse by Christian busy bodies to poke their nose into other peoples’ business.
The best thing all of us can do is stop the gossip and increase the prayer for this couple, whom I know love God.
Back to make another comment lol….
Loved what John said on his post. That is my whole point too. I was thinking about the fact that GOD HIMSELF sacrificed his son willingly to us and why???? So that we could experience the mercy of God instead of his judgment that we were due!!!!
How can Christians not extend a hand of grace and mercy to this family and lift them up in prayer? Trust me, Todd spends hours and hours of his time in God’s presence and I am sure that God is dealing with him about repentance. I think the man knows about this subject very well. I, as a spectator expect no explanation on Todd’s personal life to me. That is between him and God.
What ticks me off though is that the WORLD is just watching and waiting for a man of God to fail. But a greater tool of the enemy is when CHRISTIANS ATTACK CHRISTIANS!! We cant be passive about this. We may have differences in how we interpret things but we all serve the living God!!
We should be extending ourselves in fasting, intercession, and love for this family. Not standing in the place of judge over them. They are precious people to the Lord and he has given us the privilige of responding in a mature way to these people.
INTERCESSION IS STANDING IN THE GAP FOR ONE ANOTHER. WHEN SOMEONE IS WEAK, THE OTHER CAN BE STRONG FOR THEM. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE CALLED TO DO FOR ONE ANOTHER.
I spoke of warring with the Bentley’s on this and we can do that. We can extend mercy instead of judgment. If your first reaction to this matter is “I knew it”, or “AHA, SEE” then you are in the wrong. Todd is a man just like us and even in the midst of this trial for him, it does not take away from what he has done in the body of Christ and for non believers as well. He is an awesome man of God that I deeply and humbly respect and wish the best for.
So as I said before:
7 times the love
7 times the joy
7 times the peace
7 times the affection for this man of God!!!!
Come on and lift this family up to the throne of God and intercede for them. Fast for them and stand with them. For these are the true weapons of a warrior of God!!
my question is….why does everyone automatically think it is all Todd…there are two in this marriage…just something to think about…
not saying his wife has done anything…but it takes 2 to make a marriage work..
we just need to pray for them and their marriage….
Wow, John said it. RELATIONSHIP rules in every area of the new covenant. We have no idea who is talking to Todd and what their even saying but i guarantee you it is people that love him and that he loves.
It makes me sick to my stomach that we as believers, think we are called to be judges. If you want a picture of what God thinks about this just look at the RELATIONSHIPS in the gospels.
Whether you liked or even agreed with how Todd ministered we should all be lifting him and his family up in prayer. True, heartfelt prayer for complete restoration in his family.
The “Pharisee spirit” is very easy to identify…..it’s critical and judgemental.
It is a mystery that bad things happen to good people, and that hearts can be hardened and division comes! However, what the enemy means for harm and evil, God can work all things together for good! We speak healing, wholeness, and restoration for the Bentleys, and His Will done on the earth!
There seemed to be 3 in the marriage! That may be 1 too much.
its sad to hear this…….
paul says “any brother is overtaken in fault ,we with the spirit of meekness should help him out………….
and one can also learn from others mistakes……lets look on the positive side , keep praying and fulfill the law of christ