"There is a genuine Christian life outside the Potter's House"
April 2001
By a former member
I believe it is important for me to write something concerning my experience in the Potter's House [Christian Fellowship Churches]. Even though my husband and I were married there, my involvement in the Potter's House was far more intense and longer than his. I was a member of the Potter's House for almost five years.
Some apologists for the Christian Fellowship Churches say, "For every bad or controlling pastor there are thousands of good men around the world who are serving God." But this is not the case at the Potter's House. And the focus here is whether the Potter's House fits the general category of " bad and controlling." Certainly if a church is labeled "controlling," which I believe is the case with the Potter's House, the next question should be, "Why have they been labeled by many people as "controlling" and/or abusive.
I don't believe we are talking about one man and/or one isolated congregation (e.g. the one I attended). If that had been the case, then perhaps we would have attended a different congregation within the [Christian Fellowship Churches] when we realized that ours was controlling. But after attending many of the Fellowship's revival meetings and conferences it was obvious to me that not only did everyone think and speak alike. And it was also considered wrong to think outside the walls of the Potter's House--not to mention visit other churches without being totally ridiculed by other members of the Fellowship.
I was made to believe that "God" placed me there and who was I to "move and worship God elsewhere." Over and over again I was made to feel guilty if I believed anything other than the beliefs proscribed by the Potter's House, even when I believed they contradicted The Word of God time and time again.
It seemed like everyone there was just a product cloned by the Potter's House. And that Fellowship members were only accepted when they conformed to their rules. There were so many ploys used at the Potter's House I don't have the time to mention them all.
How could I believe them and accept their teachings? I actually once defended the Potter's House saying much the same as current apologists who defend the group now. It is difficult to even think objectively when you are involved with them.
Again, the controlling nature of the Potter's House was apparent at every Potter's house congregation I attended and I attended many. This type of control and/or abuse is my central point.
My husband and I met the Christian author of a book about spiritual abuse at a conference. And after we explained that we were once involved with the Potter's House, that author comforted us and said, "Yes, I know about the Potter's House--it must have been hard." It seems ironic that some apologists associated with the Christian Fellowship Churches recommend this same author's book--since it was that very book, which confirmed my suspicions about the Potter's House. Perhaps such apologists should carefully read this book themselves before recommending it to others. It describes the Potters House so accurately.
When I was in the Potter's House someone once told me, "You better pray for your spiritual life because it's in danger." At the time I didn't know what that meant, but now I thank God it got my attention. I'm here to tell you that there is a genuine Christian life outside the Potter's House. I no longer live with the fear that God is always angry with me because I don't measure up to a strict routine. A routine, mind you, that in many ways is not biblical.
I have forgiven those who hurt me. I hold nothing against anyone who attends the Potter's House. But I believe this organization should be exposed.
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