Product Description

This novel, based on a true story involving the occult.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2823173 in Books
• Published on: 2005-09-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 350 pages

Customer Reviews

Caught Away By Experiences
The book revolves around a Pentecostal type church called Grace Church, pastored by Mark Garrett. His wife, Donna, regularly "prophesies" and gives "messages" in tongues and interpretation. She has been kept in the dark as to what really has transpired between her husband and other women in the church.

We're introduced to a woman named Penny who doesn't really know God, who hopes to marry Rick, a professional golfer. However, she moves to a different state and when a co-worker invites her to Grace Church, she is touched during the singing and gives her life to God. Penny jumps right in at the church and even signs up for their Bible College. Rick comes to visit and is disturbed at the changes in her and doesn't enjoy his visit to the church.

In the opening chapters we find a church which covers up sexual improprieties. In the past, the pastor has covered for a senior elder's affair with a 16 year old member. The pastor himself is currently facing two different accusations of inappropriate contact.

Laurina, one of the accusers and the one the elder had the affair with, has a meeting with the pastor and some church officials and is persuaded by them that nothing wrong happened (an interesting section to read). She agrees to support the pastor in the other accusation brought by Jolene and her husband. Jolene and her family are disfellowshipped during a three hour Sunday evening service and members are no longer to have contact with them or speak of them. It's portrayed by the pastor as an effort of the devil to destroy him and thus the people at Grace Church.

While the church appears at first glance to be a large, healthy, thriving body of believers, we soon discover the many fractures in its foundation. The pastor has a definite problem in regard to keeping himself only for his wife. In chapter four you read about another situation just ready to happen between the pastor and yet another female member of the congregation.

Some may read this book and feel it is pretty far fetched as they may never have heard about spiritual connections. There has been this teaching among some Pentecostal and charismatic type churches for awhile. It is real, it has happened, and unfortunately I believe it still happens today.

Grace Church is one of those churches into "new" moves (so called) of "God". The members get caught up in the different new happenings. The pastor supports and encourages each, sometimes with guidelines. These lead to the church opening itself up to this spiritual wives/husbands move. Though met at first with some hesitation, they soon jump head first into it. While it is said to be something which will take one deeper into the things of God and bring marriages back together, it ends up destroying marriages and friendships. All the while loyal members swear this is God's doing and quickly silence and expel any dissenters.

The story has a positive ending, though all is not well. So we don't have a fairy tale everything is fine closing. The way the book ends actually leaves an opening for a sequel.

June has shown how placing too much emphasis on experiences can lead one down a wrong path. She also shows how following all these experiences and feelings often led the people away from prayer as the experience took precendence. She also shows the ups and downs those who started to see the wrong in what was happening go through. People who question and/or leave may struggle and waver back and forth at first, one day feeling they are right in how they view things and the next feeling they need to stay with the church and think there are devils trying to deceive them into leaving.

I enjoyed the book and it kept my attention. It caused me to look further into what happened at this church.

As a side note, the book does not get raunchy. I figured I'd better mention that since it does deal with sexual matters.

Great Book
This book seems to be a great work of fiction that outlines real events of an actual destructive cult near Seattle, WA. The actual name of the cult written about is "Community Chapel and Bible Training Center" of Burien, WA. The pastor, whose name was "Marc" in the book, was Donald Lee Barnett.

True Story
This is a very good book. It is not speaking about all charismatic churches, but one specific one that did go astray. The book did not put down the charismatic movement, but showed how we are all human and can be deceived if we are not careful.