Lighthouse Trails has now sent out its 4th letter since early 2016 to over 130 prominent Christian leaders. Along with the letter, we included a copy of the booklet we publish, The Shack and Its New Age Leaven plus a news brief we released recently. Both the booklet and the news brief are written by former New Age follower Warren B. Smith. Here is the letter we wrote to the leaders introducing the material:

Dear Christian Leader:

Please find enclosed one of our booklets titled The Shack and Its New Age Leaven by Lighthouse Trails author Warren B. Smith along with a short news brief we released on March 9th. As you probably know, The Shack movie came out this month, which no doubt will bring renewed interest in the book, The Shack. When you read this booklet and the news brief, we hope you will understand our sense of urgency given that many Christian leaders and pastors are now endorsing The Shack. In William Paul Young’s newest book, Lies We Believe About God, he once again openly rejects biblical tenets of the Christian faith.

We hope you will read and prayerfully consider the content of both the booklet and the news brief.

Sincerely in Christ,

The Editors at
Lighthouse Trails Publishing, Inc.

The letters and booklets were mailed out from our office in Montana on March 13th. You can read the news brief we included by clicking here. And here is the link to the content of the booklet we sent.

Since we began sending out letters and booklets to Christian leaders in early 2016, we have received the following responses:

Short letters of thanks from the ministry offices of: Chuck Missler, Nancy DeMoss, Tony Evans, James Dobson, Pat Robertson, and Beth Moore

Notes of thanks personally signed by Tim Tebow, Kay Arthur, George Wood (Assemblies of God General Superintendent)

A letter of thanks via e-mail from Ben Kinchlow’s ministry manager (Kinchlow is the founder of Americans for Israel and former 700 Club host)

An e-email from the office of Chuck Swindoll telling us to stop sending booklets (we have since removed his name from our list).

It is our hope and prayer that many of the leaders on our list will take a few moments to read the material we sent out on The Shack.

If you would like us to add the name of a leader to our Christian leaders list, please send the name and mailing address to us at: editors@lighthousetrails.com. Because of time restraints, we will not be able to add a name without an address. Plus, because we cannot send out these letters and booklets to every pastor in the country, we ask that you only submit names of pastors and/or church leaders who have written at least one book (you can check Amazon) thus moving him or her into a place of influence throughout the church at large.

We wish we could send booklets to every Christian pastor in North America. However, here is an idea given to us from one of our readers for anyone who feels compelled to reach the pastors in his or her denomination and/or state: Last month, a woman contacted us from Mississippi who learned that we were sending out booklets to Christian leaders and pastors. She said she was burdened for Southern Baptist pastors in her state and asked us to put together a mailing of two booklets and a letter and mail it to every Southern Baptist pastor in Mississippi.  Our reader paid for the list (which we purchased for her), the booklets, the postage, and our labor. At her request, we sent each pastor a copy of 10 Scriptural Reasons Jesus Calling is a Dangerous Book by Warren B. Smith and 5 Things You Should Know About Contemplative Prayer by Ray Yungen. If you have a group you would like us to reach in this manner, please contact our office.

If you would like to view and/or print a list of the Christian leaders we are currently sending booklets and short letters to 3-4 times a year, click here. Perhaps you would like to pray for these men and women who, in total, influence millions and millions of people throughout the world. Incidentally, just because a name is on this list does not necessarily mean that leader is in deception. We have included a wide assortment of names in this list. There are many pastors and Christian leaders who may not be part of the deception but, for various reasons, are not aware of what is happening in the church today.

Dr. George Wood, General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God denomination,  is scheduled to share the platform with New Age sympathizer Leonard Sweet next year in Berlin, Germany at an event called Luther 2017.

Dr. Wood was the subject of several Lighthouse Trails articles in 2013 for his promotion of contemplative teacher Ruth Haley Barton and the invitation by AOG to have Barton speak at a women’s gathering during the AOG General Conference held that year. See our special report “Assemblies of God “Believe” Conference Makes Bold Move – Brings in Contemplative Key Player Ruth Haley Barton” for background on this story. We also did a follow up story to show when Assemblies of God issued a response defending the Barton invitation: Lighthouse Trails Statement to Assemblies of God Response Regarding Invitation of Ruth Haley Barton.”

Leonard Sweet is actually a co-host for Luther 2017. Given his propensities toward New Age/New Spirituality thinking, his organizing participation will no doubt bring this thinking to the Luther 2017.

The implications of this are far deeper than what appears on the surface. This is not just a case of a major Christian leader—Dr. Wood—sharing a platform form with a leader in the emerging church/New Spirituality movement. There is currently a powerful effort behind the scenes to remove the barrier between the Roman Catholic Church and the evangelical and Protestant church and basically get people to acknowledge that the reformation from 500 years ago is over (i.e., it’s not needed anymore).

If you recall, in 2014, Lighthouse Trails reported on Anglican priest Tony Palmer, who had become a go-between for the Catholic Church and the evangelical (and Pentecostal) church. When he spoke at Ken Copeland’s church, he told the enthusiastic congregation that the reformation was over as there was no longer a need for it. He said it was time to unite. Shortly later, Palmer was killed in a motorcycle accident, but the work he was involved with continues on. Luther 2017 is part of that work as is Together 2016, which took place this summer, and The Gathering 2016, which takes place in September with major Christian figures such as Kay Arthur, Greg Laurie, Anne Graham Lotz, and several others.

Lighthouse Trails will be posting more information on Luther 2017, Leonard Sweet, Christian leaders, and the road to Rome. If you question our deep concerns about what is happening, please read the documentation that Lighthouse Trails has been providing for over 14 years.

Incidentally, also joining Sweet and Wood is Dr. Jo Anne Lyon, General Superintendent of the Wesleyan Church.

As for Dr. George Wood, does he not realize that the first major step back to Rome is the embracing of contemplative prayer? When he made the decision to dig in his heels and accept Ruth Haley Barton no matter what evidence was provided to him, did he not realize he was plunging headlong into deception? As we have warned so many times (to the deaf ears of Christian leaders), once someone starts down the contemplative path, their viewpoint on spiritual matters begins to change leading to the eventual rejection of biblical Christianity and the Gospel. It appears that Dr. Wood has made his decision. How many will follow him?

Related Information:

On June 13, Lighthouse Trails reported on an event called Together 2016 that will take place this summer in Washington DC. We explained that organizer Nick Hall was bringing together evangelical, emerging, charismatic, and Catholic leaders for the ecumenical purpose of uniting together. A special video appearance by Pope Francis will be part of the event. A similar event (but without the Pope) has been announced. The Gathering: A National Solemn Assembly will take place in September in Dallas, Texas, and while there doesn’t appear to be any direct promotion of the Roman Catholic religion as there is with Together 2016, there is a definite united-we-stand-regardless-of-our-beliefs scenario in The Gathering.

The Gathering motto is “One Vision, One Voice, One Agenda.” The mission statement says:

The Gathering has one purpose: to unite the Body of Christ in America – all believers, regardless of race, age, or denomination – in prayer for forgiveness, wisdom, and provision for our nation.

To further explain its purpose, The Gathering website states:

Whenever a solemn assembly or sacred gathering has been called in Scripture, it has usually been called by those in leadership – whether that be a priest, prophet or king – and it has usually been called for leadership first. Even in America, our historical records verify that prior to every national awakening, the spiritual leadership of the day has placed a heavy emphasis on gathering in smaller groups for fasting and prayer which then led to larger gatherings and greater change.

National revival must begin in the heart and in the home before it can spread throughout communities and nations.

But a question that begs an answer is: What would “national revival” look like considering the condition of the church and its leaders today?

For example, James Robison, one of the speakers at The Gathering, has shown on many occasions his ecumenical stance with regard to the Catholic Church. For instance, Robison stated in 2014: “I believe there is an important spiritual awakening beginning in the hearts of those truly committed to Christ in the Protestant and Catholic communities. Is it possible that Pope Francis may prove to be an answer not only to the prayers of Catholics, but also those known as Protestants?” (emphasis added) (*see below)

At least two of the speakers at The Gathering, Priscilla Shirer and Max Lucado, promote contemplative spirituality  (a belief system that Christian leaders continue to ignore even though it has been the cause of New Age occultic practices coming into the church).

Two of the speakers at The Gathering – Greg Laurie and James Robison – have both endorsed a book by Steve Berger, Have Heart, in which Berger promotes the idea of necromancy.  Laurie has also promoted the ecumenical Rick Warren on different occasions – see more)

Ann Graham Lotz (another Gathering speaker) recently sent out a letter to her followers promoting prayer circles and an ancient mystic named Honi. When she was challenged about this, she responded by defending her statements on Honi and prayer circles. We are not saying this suddenly makes Lotz a contemplative advocate, but why would a Christian leader promote a ritual of prayer circles yet say nothing of warning about mystical practices that have entered the church?

Nick Hall (another Gathering speaker) is the man who is directing the Together 2016 that will occur in July in Washington DC, in which Pope Francis will deliver a video message of unity. There’s no question about his ecumenical persuasions.

Bishop Ray Sutton

Bishop Ray Sutton of The Gathering is Dean of the Province and Ecumenical Affairs of the Anglican Church in North America and is involved in a number of ecumenical (road to rome) activities. Sutton also advocates for the Catholic transubstantiation of the communion elements (a re-crucifixion of Christ) (click here and here for some more information on Sutton).

And last, Gathering speaker Leith Anderson is an early pioneer in the emerging church movement. Anderson once said:

The only way to cope and be effective during this period of structural change in society is to change some of the ways we view our world and the church. It is what some call a paradigm shift—a new way of looking at something. Such a shift will allow us to view our changing world with new perspective. It is like a map. Old maps from 1950 may have sufficed before the construction of interstate highways and the expansion of major cities, but new maps are needed now. Likewise, we need a paradigm shift for the future. (A Church for the 21st Century, p. 17).

Sadly, the evangelical church has gone through that paradigm shift now and presents a “new” Christianity (progressive, emerging, ecumenical, contemplative).

Christian leaders are hoping for a “spiritual” or “national awakening,” but how can the nation be awakened spiritually (and biblically) when Christian leaders are leading “the Body of Christ in America” in the wrong direction and not in a manner that is in accordance with the Word of God?

How is it so many Christian leaders find it so vital to show spiritual comradeship with all people, thinking this is how the world can be saved? We’re not talking about humanity sharing a common kindness and respect toward one another or about people of different social, racial, and political views working together in various projects and efforts. We are talking about spiritual unity. While a Christian can (and should) live together in peace and harmony among fellow humans as much as is possible, there cannot be spiritual communion or fellowship with those outside the biblical faith (which is that faith solely focused on the Gospel message of Jesus Christ through His atoning work on the Cross as the only means of salvation).

How can Christian leaders help our nation when so many of them are deceived themselves and partaking in (whether they realize it or not) blurring the lines that separate the Gospel of Jesus Christ from every other belief system? At the risk of upsetting people who admire and follow some of these leaders, these figures have become the blind leading the blind. They promote all kinds of dangerous and unbiblical ideas, books, practices, and people and show no remorse, humility, or willingness to change when they are challenged for doing these things. These things ought not to be so by those claiming to be the leaders of the Christian church.

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* Regarding Robison’s ecumenism, also see “TV Preachers [Copeland, Robison] Glowingly Describe Meeting with Pope to Tear Down ‘Walls of Division.’”

Where is Kay Arthur’s Precepts International going with this them of “Being Still and Knowing God” that’s currently on their website? We know that the ministry has not shown any interest in understanding the contemplative prayer movement, and we know that Kay Arthur’s assistant told us a number of years ago that while we could send a copy of A Time of Departing, Kay would probably not have time to read it. We hope this advertisement on “being still” is not indicative that Precepts is heading in the contemplative direction. Given that Kay has shared the platform many times with contemplative advocate Beth Moore, we realize some of this spirituality may have rubbed off on her. Hopefully, many of her followers will call Precepts and urge them to bring themselves up to speed on the contemplative issue. Otherwise, we fear that countless numbers of women who turn to the Precepts Bible studies will be led down a very dangerous path.

By the Editors at Lighthouse Trails

For over 11 years, Lighthouse Trails has been issuing a warning about a mystical spirituality, known as contemplative prayer, which is coming through the conduit of the Spiritual Formation movement. It has not been an easy road to travel on, but through the Word of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we saw this paradigm shift, which was affecting a large segment of the evangelical and Protestant church and lining up with biblical prophecy of a day coming when there will be great deception and many would fall away from the faith. We also became completely convinced that the roots of contemplative spirituality were based in panentheism (God in all), interspirituality (all paths lead to God), and universalism (everyone is united with God in spite of belief).

Once we saw this, we simply could not quit the work we had been called to do. Today, those convictions are stronger than ever, but the opposition or indifference we have encountered from the ranks of those widely known as leaders of the evangelical church has been stunning and sometimes unbelievable, especially in light of the fact that our only desire is to protect the message of the Cross from an opposite message that carries no hope of salvation or a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Looking back, it is hard for us not to see ourselves as a kind of David in his battle with Goliath. Lighthouse Trails is not a big ministry, at least as far as staff and resources go. If someone had told us 11 years ago that one day most major Christian ministries would know who we were and would resent, despise, or even hate us, we would not have believed it. You see, when we first began, we were under the impression that our warning was going to be welcomed by Christian leaders, and in fact, we thought that our own ministry could be short lived because once they were given the information and documentation about this great spiritual deception, they would take up the banner and run with it, and we would be able to go back to our lives before Lighthouse Trails began. After all, they were the ones who had the money, audience, credentials, and popularity to really make a difference. We had none of these things.

It wasn’t too long before we learned that the Christian leaders were not going to be receiving our message.

Opposition didn’t start right away. But then, that would make sense as we started at ground zero, with virtually no publishing experience and no readership. We had to take online college courses to learn how to build websites and design books. We sent out free copies of A Time of Departing (our launching book) to Christian radio stations, organizations, ministries, and pastors. One of these copies went to Rick Warren. Another to John MacArthur. One to Jerry Falwell, another to Focus on the Family, and on and on. From 2002 to 2006, we gave away over three thousand copies of A Time of Departing.  We heard back from several men and women, many of whom had Masters and Doctorate degrees who told us the book was right on the mark. Dr. Jim Diehl, for example, former General Superintendent of the Church of the Nazarene, called one day and praised the book as “excellent” and “vital.” Chuck Smith spoke with one of our editors and said that our work was meaningful and important. John MacArthur told a staff member, who told us by phone, that he greatly appreciated the work we were doing. Rick Warren wrote us a personal note to tell us the book is a “hot topic” and has a place on his library bookshelf.

But then in 2005, we wrote a special report titled “Rick Warren Teams Up With New-Age Sympathizer Ken Blanchard!” It didn’t take too long after that report came out for us to know that we had crossed a line, and life was never going to be the same again. You can read more about those early years in two articles we wrote: one, “How Lighthouse Trails Began – Part One: “It was a dark and stormy night,” and two, “Lighthouse Trails, the Early Years – Part 2 – “A Hot Topic” That Just Wouldn’t Go Away.”  Warren B. Smith also documented some of the events in an entire chapter in his book A “Wonderful” Deception (chapter 5). Some of the things that took place were like elements out of a B-rated mystery novel like phone lines suddenly “out of order,” e-mails apparently being intercepted, being told by Saddleback that federal agents were investigating us because they thought we had broken into the Saddleback server, and so forth. We wondered what we had gotten ourselves into.

Over the course of the years, there have been many terrible and unkind things said about us in public venues. We’ll give you a brief rundown of some of these things that have been said. Prepare yourself – none of them have anything to do directly with our actual work. In fact, the one thing we have yet to see is any solid and biblical refutation of our work. It’s as if it’s always avoided. Everything is said, but no solid challenge is given.

So what are these terrible things said publically about Lighthouse Trails? Here’s an incomplete sampling: One  pastor, on a popular blog, said we were “like fleas on the back of a dog.” Then there was the time, on stage at a Calvary Chapel event with thousands of young people, where we were called “the haters.” Rick Warren’s former chief apologist said in an article that has been sitting on a high traffic Christian website for years that if we had the legal means we would torture and murder people. One well-known apologist coined the term “discernment divas” and first used it referring to one of the women writers at Lighthouse Trails in 2006. Then there were the generic name-calling terms like witch-hunters, freaks, fanatics, militant fundamentalists, and so forth. After a few years of this, we couldn’t help wonder why these highly qualified men (and sometimes women) had nothing qualified to say about our work.

We want to make one thing clear here. By telling our readers these things, we are not trying to gain sympathy. We don’t feel sorry for ourselves. We understand that in doing this kind of ministry, there is inevitably going to be strong reaction and defense tactics. No one wants to be criticized or challenged, especially leaders who have become accustomed to being followed, not being corrected.

What’s been frustrating about the name calling, however, is that we’ve been very open to receiving solid biblical refutation of the message we are proclaiming. In fact, we said from the very beginning of our ministry that all we really wanted was for the contemplative issue to come to the table, to be discussed, challenged, and considered. Eleven years ago, if one Googled the term “contemplative prayer,” virtually nothing came up on the first few pages of search results that was from a critiquing point of view. Mystical spirituality in the Christian church was being largely unchallenged.

As we learned of all the men who had great educational and theological credentials, we thought there would be some scholarly response and a taking hold of the torch, so to speak. We didn’t expect name calling, innuendos, sometimes downright lies (like the rumors that we often hear), and ad hominem and straw men arguments. That took us by surprise. And we began to wonder why this was happening. Was it possible, we asked ourselves, that some of these educated leaders couldn’t see the big picture of this deception? We just wanted some proof that we were wrong, some good solid biblical evidence that our conclusions were way off.

We got used to the name calling and over time, found some of it humorous (in a way); at least, we found it meaningless. It was the other accusations that got to us though, because we knew they were without merit (or evidence). One of the most common accusations against the research at Lighthouse Trails is that we take quotes out of context. And yet, and this is the truth, in all these years, we have not had one person actually give us an example of where we have done this. As a case in point, about 5 years ago, two educated men, both with doctorates from a higher learning institution in Canada, said that A Time of Departing was faulty because it took quotes out of context. We wrote to them in an amiable manner and asked if they could provide just one or two examples so that we could see where we went wrong. They did not produce one example. Lighthouse Trails has been meticulous about checking and double checking every quote in a book or article we publish to make sure that the intent of any particular author is not misconstrued or taken out of context. If someone did produce a legitimate example, we would speedily correct that. You see, it is not our intention to falsely accuse or villanize anyone. Taking quotes out of context is an accusation we take very seriously, and we take great efforts not to do that. And yet, we hear this often from our critics. But we are still waiting for an example.

The second most common accusation against us is that we use faulty and loose guilt by association reasoning. We have addressed this in many past articles, but we will say it again here: there is a difference between loose guilt by association and guilt by promotion or by proxy. What’s more, there is a legitimate guilt by association. The way our critics would have it, there is no such thing and it doesn’t matter who a person is associated with. But you won’t find backup in Scripture on that. On the contrary, consider all the verses that tell God-fearing people to keep good company, avoid standing with heretics or unruly people, keep oneself unspotted from the world, avoid the appearance of evil, and so forth.

One of the big issues that continuously surfaces is related to guilt by association. Those who accuse us of using guilt by association say that we call people contemplative or emerging proponents because they have been “associated” with a contemplative person. But, we have never done that. For instance, often we will challenge a big name leader for sharing a platform with contemplative and emergent figures. But we have never said that person was now a contemplative or emergent himself just for sharing the platform with one. An example of this is when we challenged Joel Rosenberg and Kay Arthur for attending Canada’s Breakforth contemplative-promoting conference and sharing the platform with emergents like Leonard Sweet and Tony Campolo. We never once said that now this makes Rosenberg and Arthur contemplatives or emergents themselves. No. The challenge we gave was that reputable, Bible-believing leaders should not give credibility to false teachers by standing on the same platforms or being at the same conferences.

Another case in point just occurred. We challenged John MacArthur for using a sermon for many years till present where he favorably quotes the late major contemplative pioneer Dallas Willard. The accusations started pouring in that we were calling MacArthur a contemplative proponent. But we never did. Our challenge was and is that by highly influential leaders favorably quoting false teachers, they inadvertently are giving credibility to that teacher and thereby lessening resistance from the Christian community at large to their message.

One last accusation that we want to address in this article is an accusation that comes primarily from a few popular public figures in the Calvinist/Reformed camp, and that is that all or most of the writing done at Lighthouse Trails is done by one woman (or a “discernment diva” as they  say – incidentally a diva is typically a self-centered, egotistical, arrogant woman (often a performer) who is domineering and rude to those around her. If you read our articles you’ll see this is not an accurate description of what we are trying to do that springs from a heart-felt love for people, which is the opposite of diva behavior). Three things on this issue: first, calling women who are believers in Christ “divas” is a derogatory and ungodly remark – period! Second, it isn’t true that most of the writing at Lighthouse Trails comes from just one person. Take a look at any of our e-newsletters, our blog, or our printed journals, and you will see  the names of many writers, both men and women. As you can see on our authors’ page, we currently use the writings of 11 women and 19 men. For anyone to say that our material is written by just one person appears to be a dishonest effort to minimize the value in the work of these 30 some writers.

Relating to the issue of women, as far as the accusation that women shouldn’t be in a ministry of this kind at all – all we can say to that is that if God can use a donkey, surely He can use a woman (Numbers 22:21-38). It is interesting to note that in the case of Balaam’s donkey, God used the donkey to warn and save Balaam’s life.  Is it so unthinkable that God would use women to warn of impending spiritual danger? To cry out to their brothers, of whom many have fallen asleep on the watch? Of all those labeled “discernment divas” whom we know, each of them is a loving mother, wife, and in some cases grandmother who has, not by her own choice, but by God’s apparent choice, accepted the role much like Balaam’s donkey. And remember, that donkey was struck several times by Balaam before God finally intervened – then Balaam’s eyes were opened, and he saw that the donkey’s efforts to warn him were legitimate.

All of this that we have said in this article leads us to ask the question to Christian leaders, where have we gone wrong? Please tell us. Not by name calling or accusations without proof. If we have taken something out of context, please show us some examples of that. If have wrongly called someone a contemplative advocate or sympathizer, please tell us how. But all we ask is you present us with the documentation, the evidence. We only ask for the same standard to be applied to us that we have tried to use ourselves: honesty, accuracy, and Christian charity.

While we know we are all fallible, and as humans we don’t have a full understanding of the things of God according to Scripture, we, like others in the body of Christ, are attempting to walk a life that is honoring to God. We know we fail at that at times, and we are totally dependent on Him to lead us and strengthen us. We have attempted to report to Christians information that is pertinent to the health of the Christian church. If we have erred in our deductions and conclusions, then we want to be corrected. If we can be shown that our warning and work is faulty and against Scripture, we will apologize and even step down from this work.

We do not see ourselves as better than anyone else, and certainly we know we do not have the “qualifications” (from a human point of view) that would entitle us to be in any kind of authority over another (we do not even desire such authority). We have endeavored to stand beside our brothers and sisters, not above, not below. But because we believe so strongly that we are living in the days the Bible predicts will occur before the return of Christ where there will be a great falling away (of faith), we are gravely concerned that most of the Christian leaders seem to be either ignoring or going along with this major paradigm shift in the church at large. And while Lighthouse Trails is just a small ministry which could end at any time (as God sees fit) and certainly we have not come to the church with the splendor, finesse, support, or backing that most of the major Christian leaders have, we beseech these leaders to consider that God often uses the foolish things and weak things to speak His message (like Balaam’s donkey).

And so, if we are wrong, rather than using name calling, which is unprofitable, show us where we are wrong. If you, dear Christian leader, are  on the side of truth, then consider our warning. Maybe you don’t like our delivery, but if there is no solid evidence to prove us wrong, wouldn’t it be wise to humble yourselves and listen?

We have written this article, not as a means to defend ourselves but more so to defend our work.

On the Lighthouse Facebook account, the question was asked this week: How do I find materials for our ladies Bible study that aren’t emergent/contemplative … it seems almost everything has been “contaminated?

A number of comments came in. One comment suggested that women read Nancy Leigh DeMoss and Kay Arthur. However, we have concerns about this suggestion. Here is what we answered. You decide for yourself.

Our comments:

#1: A number of times over the past 11 years, someone would call our office and ask, “What can our women’s Bible study use if we can’t use Beth Moore.” Personally, I always marvelled at this. Commentaries, concordances, and other Bible helps definitely have their place, but so many of the “Bible studies” coming from the mainstream Christian publishers are tainted (to say the least) with terribly poor theology and now contemplative propensities. Perhaps the best thing to use for a Bible study is just the Bible, allowing the Holy Spirit to quicken His word to us.

#2 (after DeMoss and Arthur were recommended): But even there, one needs to use discernment. Kay Arthur may have some good material but shows a terrible lack in discernment when she sees nothing wrong with sharing a platform with Leonard Sweet and Tony Campolo, both emergent figures. We’ve talked with her organization about this, sent them our books, and their answer is, she’ll speak anywhere she is allowed to speak even if it is on the platform with heretics. She is giving these men credibility. Here’s our recent article on that situation: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/?p=11053

#3: As for DeMoss, once again another Christian speaker/author who is not showing discernment. In this link from her website, https://www.reviveourhearts.com/radio/revive-our-hearts/potential-pitfalls-servanthood/#transcript/, you can read the transcript from one of her shows last year where she recommends both Richard Foster and Brother Lawrence. This tells me that DeMoss is reading the mystics. And now she is passing this along to all her trusted followers. And anyone who minimizes Richard Foster’s spirituality (as some of the people on the comments section did) does not understand contemplative spirituality and how it is devastating the church.

#4: We’re not saying that DeMoss and Arthur are suddenly false teachers because of these things, but we are saying that they are not showing discernment, and because of that, they could end up doing more harm than good. It’s when morsels of deception are hidden within quantities of truth that the most danger lies. That’s how deception usually works. People have come to wholeheartedly trust some of these teachers without question. That should not be so. They are mere humans and should be challenged and held accountable.

You are welcome to join our Facebook account. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lighthousetrails/.

Kay Arthur Will be Sharing the Platform Again With Contemplative/Emergents at the  Break Forth in Canada in 2013. Why does it matter?

In 2007, Bible teacher Kay Arthur shared the platform at the Canadian Break Forth conference with mystic Tony Campolo and other emergents. Lighthouse Trails spoke with Ms. Arthur’s assistant that year. We were told that Kay Arthur would speak any where with anyone in order to get her message out. We beseeched her to reconsider. This year she will be speaking at Break Forth again, sharing the platform with New Age sympathizer Leonard Sweet, contemplative proponents Gary Thomas, Brad Jersak, and John Ortberg, and several others in the contemplative/emerging camp. To understand why we believe this mixing of “good” teachers and “bad” teachers is harmful to the body of Christ (not to mention confusing to both believers and unbelievers), please read our 2011 article below.

Below is an article we wrote in 2011 about Break Forth, still relevant today:

“Break Forth Conference in Canada – Causing Confusion by Mixing Truth with Apostasy ” – 2011

Lighthouse Trails has written in the past about Break Forth, an annual conference that takes place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada each year, because of its promotion of emerging and contemplative speakers. What makes this conference even more spiritually dangerous is that the speaker list is a mixture of truth and apostasy. For example, one year both Kay Arthur and Tony Campolo shared the platform. When we contacted Arthur’s ministry, we were told that she will speak anywhere she is invited to share her message. Another year, Joel Rosenberg and Frank Peretti shared the platform with Leonard Sweet, a New Age sympathizing colleague of Rick Warren’s and William Paul Young, author of The Shack. Rosenberg’s defense: he’ll speak anywhere he is invited to.

The problem is, by seemingly solid teachers sharing platforms with those who outright teach and promote anti-biblical ideas (such as contemplative/centering prayer) a lot of confusion and misleading information is brought into the church. If Kay Arthur gets up on stage just before Tony Campolo, those attending will assume that Arthur has no serious problems with Campolo’s teachings, and so on. Of course, if Kay Arthur got up and told the crowd that Tony Campolo was teaching anti-biblical doctrines, then maybe she could justify herself. But to our knowledge, no such brave talk goes on by speakers at the Break Forth conference (or any other Christian conference where there is this mixture of truth and error).

Most of the speakers at the Break Forth conferences would fall into the contemplative/emerging camps (At least one in 2012 is a Catholic convert). It is difficult not to wonder why they are even bringing in people like Kay Arthur, Josh McDowell, and Frank Peretti, names that so far are not promoting contemplative prayer or emerging spirituality. Could it possibly be to give their emerging conference some credibility among the general populace of the evangelical church? Whether intentionally or not, by bringing them, it is indeed giving their agenda credibility.

Below is some research one of our Canadian readers sent us last week about the upcoming Break Forth in 2012 where Ann Graham-Lotz and Josh McDowell will share the platform with emerging figures Erwin McManus and Tony Campolo. Contemplative advocate Gary Thomas will also be there. (We have a few comments of our own, which you will find in brackets [  ].

To Lighthouse Trails:

I read most of the 12-page Break Forth newspaper last night, and it is a real mix.

Some of the topics appeal to me:

John and Sean McDowell on “The New Tolerance” “. . . See how research shows that the majority of our church people have distorted beliefs about Christ and Christianity. Josh teaches critical steps we need to take to reverse this alarming trend . . . .”

Joe Amaral (don’t know him) “Understanding Jesus”  “. .  .back in time to the Jewish culture of Jesus.”                  ”God’s Holy Days.”                  ”The Passover Prophecies”                  ”Ancient Wedding Feast”

Hans Weichbrodt (don’t know him)  “Jet Tour through Ezekiel”                  ”Daniel’s 70th Week”                  ”The Jewish Temple”                  ”Heaven — Our Eternal Future!”

Here’s my biggest objection to BreakForth 2012.  The Main Assemblies.

Registrants attend four main assemblies and may choose elective for five sessions. Friday night main assembly      Erwin McManus and Arlen Salte (Arlen is a musician and the organizer of BreakForth) Saturday morning         “       Anne Graham Lotz and Brenton Brown Saturday night           ”        Tony Campolo and Paul Baloche Sunday afternoon         “       Nick Vujicic and Robin Mark

That’s means every registrant will hear Erwin McManus and Tony Campolo!

Many of the speakers I don’t know.  Some of them I read years ago, but I don’t know their doctrinal position now.

Others I recognize as false teachers: Tony Campolo “Red Letter Christianity” [Says he is born again through mystical experiences]1

Erwin McManus  “Capacity:  Increasing Your Leadership EQ”  “. . . Come learn about leadership that brings intrinsic change.”

Dr. Chris Alford  “A pioneer on Ancient-Future renewal . . . .”                  ”Robert Webber said ‘The road to the future runs through the past.’”                  ”. . . then defines and unpacks Ancient-Future Worship Renewal.”

Gary Thomas  “Sacred Pathways”  “Experienced spiritual directors recognize the futility of ‘one size fits all’ spirituality. . . . ”                  ”Growing with the Classics”  “Gary will explain why the great ancient writings are so important for everyone to be familiar with.  You’ll learn guidelines for getting the most out of this spiritual discipline and show how our pursuit of seeking intimacy with God can be greatly bolstered with ancient wisdom.”                  ”The Ministry of the Thorn”  “Paul had a thorn in the flesh.  Teresa of Avila had splitting migraines.  Augustine was threatened by a marauding horde . ”

Other sessions I don’t know the speakers and I’m not sure of the content.  I would put a question mark beside them until I could do more research.

Mark Virkler             ”4 Keys to Hearing God’s Voice” [Mark Virkler is a contemplative advocate]                           ”Prayers that Heal the Heart”                           ”Prayer will allow you to use the language of the heart to break generational sins and curses, sever ungodly soul ties, replace negative beliefs with God’s promises and experience healing.”                           ”. . .We will try this together and learn to listen to God’s voice.” Julie Drew               ”Painting Prayers” Simon Guillebaud         “Screaming Injustice” Bill & Pam Farrel       ”Red Hot Monogamy” 3 electives under       ”Soaking” with Jared Anderson, Dr. Chris Alford, and Brenton Brown Audrey Assad             ”. . . This hour will be focused on deepening prayer in the interest of true spiritual rest . . . . ” [Assad is a convert to Catholicism.]

What a state the church is in when we need to be suspicious of sessions on Prayer!