Oh, and less TV.The Healer Scandal
August 21st, 2008 by 
James
I know I’m a day late in posting about this. It’s deliberate. I tend to write out of emotion and often need to take some time to get the cognitive processes working so I can approach subject matter appropriately. Hence, I didn’t post about the Healer scandal yesterday, nor did I comment on it at any of the many blogs that posted on it. Besides, I think there was something of a hysteria surrounding it and some people were simply buying in to that. Anyway, I digress…
In a nutshell, for those of you unaware, Pastor Mike Guglielmucci penned the song ‘Healer’ that appeared on a Hillsong CD and it was, essentially, a smash hit. The story behind the song was that Mike had a terminal illness and was believing for God to heal him. He even sang the song live one time with an oxygen tube up his nose. It turns out that it was all a lie. Another Pastor is ‘exposed’, another high profile ‘fall’ gets documented, and the Body of Christ gets another public bashing.
The most unfortunate thing about all of this is that the song along with its story has become a bit of an anthem for an entire youth generation. It’s them I am most concerned about. Literally thousands of kids are seeing someone they looked up to and respected and trusted engage in fraudulent behaviour. How many of those kids are now going to have a hard time trusting anyone in church leadership? It’s incredibly sad.
I’ve never done the song at The Summit, only because I just never thought it would really fit, but it doesn’t mean that I won’t do the song sometime in the future, even in the light of this unfortunate set of circumstances. Why? Because it’s still an annointed song. The words still speak truth. And just to be clear on why I maintain this position, many of the Psalms that encourage us and speak to us and instruct us and exhort us to worship God were written by a lying, deceiving, murdering adulterer. This, my friends, really is no different when it comes down to it.
Also, consider Paul’s reaction to those with selfish or deceived motives. Phillippians 1:18 tells of how Paul purposed to rejoice in the declaration of God’s goodness and the declaration of Christ, regardless of whether the motives of the person making the declaration were selfish and insincere. Who are we as fellow sinners, let alone brothers and sisters in Christ, to declare an anointed song null and void?
As for Mike and his family, the best thing we can do for them right now is pray. At the end of the day, in God’s eyes, the sin in this situation is no different to any other sin that you and I have ever committed. Remember, we are forgiven so that we can forgive. He’ll be hurting right now. His wife and kids will be hurting right now. The enemy will be doing everything possible to use this situation to bring about division and destruction and hatred and negativity. So cover them in prayer.
What’s more, God can restore Pastor Mike to ministry again. Does anyone remember the Kevin Prosch situation some 8 or 9 years ago? Look how God has taken a broken, fallen man and restored him to ministry. Heck, I don’t even need to point to Prosch. I can just point the finger at myself and say the same thing.
At the end of the day, folks, Pastor Mike isn’t any different to you and I. We’re all subject to temptation; we’re all likely to fall. No, we’re all probable to fall. Our nature as fallen humanity mean that the odds are stacked against us in that regard, but that’s where the real beauty of God’s unending grace steps in. That’s just how it is when you lived a blessed life in a cursed world.
Posted in Faith, Ministry, News, Worship, Worship Community | 
August 21st, 2008 at 11:21 am
exactly…we all have fallen short…
difference is how many he has affected with this…
my thoughts
http://cecworship.wordpress.com/2008/08/21/healer-thoughts-now-what/
August 21st, 2008 at 12:32 pm
I love this line… “At the end of the day, folks, Pastor Mike isn’t any different to you and I.”
If we could only get that through our heads. He should never have been exalted, and now he should not be publicly bashed. That’s why we always, always point to Christ.
August 21st, 2008 at 12:34 pm
“Heck, I don’t even need to point to Prosch. I can just point the finger at myself and say the same thing.”
True dat James. I am a restored failure as well.
August 21st, 2008 at 2:16 pm
[...] James [...]
August 22nd, 2008 at 12:01 am
That is truly sad, makes me want to draw close to God since my heart can be so evil…
I totally understand sometimes people don’t want to listen to that song, some one said… well I connected to God not him, we’ll the Psalms are written with prayers of repentance (even thou they where sinners) but it was prayers… this song was based on a lie (not a prayer) testimony is powerful because it’s the truth not a lie! We have to makes a different, of course we want to show compassion and love… yet as a high profile leader (God did forgive David, but his whole household was a mess)… God is a God of mercy…yet we do have to face the circumstances… and only God knows… it just strange to me that you compare *this lie* to David Psalms when it comes from prayers of repentance and hardship, not lying… but that’s my own opinion! Yet my heart goes out for him and his family and for the whole body of Christ, when one is sick it’s sure affect the rest of us… In prayers!
August 22nd, 2008 at 9:29 am
Klampert - Interesting that we should both pick up on the verse in Phillippians. I think its encouraging.
Alex and Billy - Right on. Speck of dust versus plank of wood, right?
Lipa - Just to clarify a couple of points though…
The song isn’t based on a lie. The song itself is based on truth. God IS our healer. We CAN trust in Him. The story that Mike spun behind the song is the lie, but the song still declares truth about God and to God and for God. Now I’m not comparing the song to David’s Psalms, but I am making a comparison between the fact that two God glorifying entities (this song and the Psalms, and not all of David’s Psalms are songs of repentance or laments, many of them simply declare who God is) were born through two fallen men, and in that respect I think it is important to recognize that what God anoints supersedes the sinful nature of man. If I were to disregard the content of Healer based off of Mike’s sin, then I would also have to disregard the content of David’s Psalms based off of his sin. And that, as I’m sure we do agree in, is not what God wants.
Thanks so much for stopping by and joining in!
August 22nd, 2008 at 11:27 am
Thanks for a very well considered and well written piece. The tragic part of this whole saga is that sin has consequences, and a very public sin like this has very far-reaching ramifications. We need to extend grace and love and forgiveness, but everyone who has been duped feels ripped-off and offended, and so we all need to work through those feelings too. It’s a process for everyone, and that’s the reason why the whole thing is so messy - that’s one of the consequences of the sin.
Personally, even though I love the song and the sin behind it doesn’t change the truth of the lyrics or the power of the melody and arrangement, I won’t be using this song in worship because I don’t want people to be distracted by the scandal of the writer during their worship time.