Cherrydale Baptist and The Gospel Coalition; Plus Why Would a Victim of Sexual Assault want to Call Steve King’s Church Home?

This post looks at Cherrydale Baptist which is an independent Baptist church in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Arlington, Virginia. This post looks at this Gospel Coalition church and asks the question…why would a victim of sexual assault want to attend Steve King’s church? After all when The Gospel Coalition seeks to defend C.J. Mahaney when all the allegations of criminal activity pour of out Sovereign Grace, why would a victim of sexual assault want to attend a Gospel Coalition church?  Today’s post marks the beginning of The Wondering Eagle writing about Cherrydale Baptist Church as issues develop. 

“Reports on the lawsuit from Christianity Today and World Magazine (among others) explicitly and repeatedly drew attention to C. J., connecting the suit to recent changes within SGM. He has also been the object of libel and even a Javert-like obsession by some. One of the so-called discernment blogs—often trafficking more in speculation and gossip than edifying discernment—reprinted a comment from a woman who issued this ominous wish, “I hope [this lawsuit] ruins the entire organization [of SGM] and every single perpetrator and co-conspirator financially, mentally and physically.”

Kevin DeYoung, D.A. Carson’s and Justin Taylor of The Gospel Coalition attack a rape victim in Sovereign Grace. 

“If you want to change the culture, you will have to start by changing the organization.”

Mary Douglas 

No one can be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted.

Proverbs 12:3 NIV 

Cherrydale Baptist Church

The Wondering Eagle primarily writes about the Evangelical Free Church of America. However, this blog is also based in the Washington, D.C. area and I also write about the theological scene in Washington, D.C. There are a lot of troubling and disturbing issues in a number of churches  or ministries here in the shadow of the nation’s capitol.  These are some of the issues that The Wondering Eagle has written about or broken. 

1. In Fairfax, Virginia there is a profoundly disturbing situation at Fairfax Community Church (FCC) which is led by Rod Stafford. This church had placed a violent sex offender in a key position of trust and hid it from the congregation. My re-entrance into Christianity was into a church that had authority problems and lied to the congregation about the access that Eric Nickle has within the church. I blew the whistle and contacted SNAP about this disturbing situation. You can read more about that in “Why Does Fairfax Community Church have a Care Director on the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Sex Offender Registry?” The situation is still ongoing and more articles are pending.
2. On the Maryland side of the Beltway you have the infamous Covenant Life Church. I have written quite a bit about that troubled place and will write more about its issues as they unfold. When the Washingtonian magazine wrote about the issue of child sex abuse in Sovereign Grace and Covenant Life Church; Mark Mitchell claimed that Satan was attacking the church. How original…you allegedly engage in criminal activity and then when it comes to the surface claim you are persecuted. I wrote about this in “An Open Letter to Mark Mitchell.” Here at The Wondering Eagle Mark Mitchell is forever known as The Church Lady of Covenant Life. This author would love to hear Mark Mitchell say “Could it be Satan?” 
3. In Tysons Corner David Platt came to McLean Bible. As McLean Bible is working more with the Southern Baptist Convention they can no longer claim they are non-denominational. Why can’t McLean Bible be transparent and honest about its intentions. I wrote about the issues with McLean Bible in “McLean Bible is Looking for a New Senior Pastor, and Deep Concerns About its New Interim Teaching Pastor David Platt; Plus Here is the Problem with Being “Radical” Plus there are many issues with McLean Bible’s New City Network which is planting churches. 
4. I am an alumnus of Campus Crusade for Christ and I am deeply horrified about the issues in Cru here in the Washington, D.C. area. For example Cru leader Brett Miller at George Mason University is recommending former Sovereign Grace Fairfax (today Redeeming Grace Church).  Sovereign Grace Fairfax has a long issue of criminal allegations, and allegedly covering up child sex abuse and tearing apart families.  It was one of the key churches involved in the Sovereign Grace lawsuit. My question as a Cru alumnus is what type of shepherd points students to a wolf, which is all Mark Mullery is?  Does Cru leader Brett Miller have discernment skills? Obviously not!  You can read about that in “Why Does Cru at George Mason University Recommend Sovereign Grace Fairfax? Is that Wise?” 
5. This will be the last example, as this blog was triggered by a false accusation from an Air Force Captain who attended Eric Simmons and Jordan Kauflin’s Redeemer Arlington. Before the false accusation, Andrew as I call him was trying to get me involved. As I stumbled through a daze in the darkest season of my life all I wanted was to sit down, talk everything out and resolve the conflict. But Christians don’t practice forgiveness or repentance. Christians don’t say words like “I’m sorry Dave, I was wrong will you forgive me and let’s talk it over?” You can read the bulk of the posts I have written about Redeemer Arlington in “The History of Eric Simmons’ Redeemer Arlington: Formerly of Sovereign Grace Ministries now of Acts 29.” 

Today The Wondering Eagle is going to look at a Baptist Church just a stone throw away from the District of Columbia. Cherrydale Baptist has been serving the Arlington area since 1913. I believe it recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. That makes today’s post incredibly sad when you look at this issues that befall this Baptist church. Just to be clear I have heard from a couple of people over the years that Cherrydale is Southern Baptist. That is not true, as this church is independent. But let’s look at the Senior Pastor and then let’s dive into the issues of this troubled Baptist Church. 

 

Who is Steve King? 

Steve King hails from Macon, Georgia. He attended the University of Georgia from 1967 until 1971 when he graduated. He studied and picked up a degree in business administration and management. In 1973 he then attended the Western Conservative Baptist Seminary according to LinkedIn. Steve graduated with a Masters of Divinity in Pastoral and Preaching. Western Seminary is located in Portland, Oregon and for those of you curious, it most infamous alummus is Mark Driscoll. Yes, this is the same Mark Driscoll who taught that women are penis homes. You can read about that in this New York Daily News article. 

Steve King came to Cherrydale Baptist and became the Senior Pastor in October of 1983. To the best of my knowledge I don’t think Steve King has authored any books. I went through Amazon and did several searches and I could not find anything authored by the Cherrydale pastor. Plus in doing a search at Desiring God and The Gospel Coalition Steve has not authored any articles.  Steve’s favorite books are Tim Keller’s “Reason for God“, J.I. Packer’s “Knowing God” and John Piper’s “God is the Gospel.”  Steve King is influenced by Tim Keller, John Piper, C.S. Lewis and Philip Yancey. One question I would have is the following. Steve King is known for his pastoral counseling. When John Piper taught that a woman in a domestic abuse situation should submit to her abuser for the night, has Steve King offered similar guidance? 

 

Recommended Resources at Cherrydale Baptist 

There are a number of resources that I would like to highlight from Cherrydale Baptist’s recommended reading list. It should be noted that these books are what the elders are recommending. 

One that caught my eye is Wayne Grudem’s “Bible Doctrine: Essential Teachings of the Christian Faith.” Wayne Grudem is an interesting character. Why people respect him in regards to theology is beyond me. I mean after all he flip flopped on Donald Trump which you can read about here and here. Then there is the other debate that I find deeply troubling for someone known for advocating doctrine. Wayne Grudem shares a lot in common with Mormon founder Joseph Smith. Wayne’s views on the trinity are far from orthodox and reveal the deep issues with his understanding on theology. I wrote about this topic in “Wayne Grudem’s Un-Orthodox View of the Trinity and the Question that Must Be Asked: Can the ESV Bible be Trusted?” 

Another interesting book recommendation is Dave Harvey’s “When Sinners Say I Do.” Dave Harvey was Mr. SGM if I remember correctly after C.J. Mahaney stepped down as all his corruption came to light. Dave Harvey was quite authorterian when it came to the subject of church discipline when he was the senior pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. People faced discipline for minor issues while Dave’s kids went off the radar with alcohol and other issues. In most situations you can not hold a parent accountable for the way a child behaves. After all one can have the most “godly” education, retreats and training and the child can still be dealing with issues. So in most situations I would say that it is wrong to say as much. But in Dave Harvey’s case he was brutal with church discipline and he needs to be held to what he taught. Dave left Covenant Fellowship with many unresolved issues and has yet to reconcile and work things out with people despite comments and pleas left on the blog SGM Survivors over the years. Today Dave is an Evangelical Free pastor in Florida which you can read about right here. 

Then there is John Piper who appears to have a lot of influence on Steve King. As you can see on that list there are multiple books being pushed. John Piper has a lot of issues and quite frankly shouldn’t be a pastor nor a teacher. The old man needs to retire and he needs to exit form the spotlight which he hungers and thirsts for. What John Piper exemplifies is a personality cult. Yes the same thing that existed in the Soviet Union and today in North Korea.  You can read more about that in “The Little Red Book…of John Piper?”  Then there is the issue of John Piper always having to have the final word on many topics. For example recently he had to take a stand on guns. It was entirely inappropriate for him to do. The problem with celebrity pastors and why I am so adamantly opposed to them is that in the end they cripple people. They prevent people from being able to think for themselves, and figure out issues for themselves. I am more about teaching people how to think and not what to think. I wrote about this in “John Piper and Guns: How the Celebrity Pastor Movement is Crippling People’s Faith.” Then there is another problem that many people have yet to officially acknowledge. Neo-Calvinist/Neo Puritan theology makes the problem of evil worse, as it turns God into a monster with acts being nothing but determinism in the end. I used the Sandy Hook shooting in Newtown, Connecticut to make my point as I studied what John Piper had to say to that situation. You can read more about that  in “How Reformed Theology/Neo-Calvinism Make the Problem of Evil Worse: John Piper, Adam Lanza and a Massacre in Connecticut.” 

The last person I want to point out who is being recommended is Mark Dever, who is the Senior Pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist. Cherrydale Baptist wants people to read “9 Marks of a Healthy Church” for spiritual growth. 9 Marks was shown for what it is in the C.J. Mahaney fiasco. When thousands of documents were dumped on the internet about C.J. character and people learned about all the allegations of criminal activity, blackmail, and more what did he do? What did C.J. Mahaney who called his church the “dearest place on earth” do? The bastard fled when all the allegations of criminal activity came forward. In the process of fleeing Covenant Life he ran and hid behind Mark Dever’s ass and who gave Mahaney cover.  In the process Mark Dever violated 5 of the 9 Marks I would propose.  Violated were “Membership”,”The Gospel”, “Leadership”, “Discipline” and “Discipleship.” The lesson that Mark Dever taught is that due to cronyism 9 Marks rules and regulations are subjectively applied. That is most true for the topic of church discipline. In the end church discipline applies only to the people at the bottom of the totem pole. Individuals like Mark Driscoll, C.J. Mahaney, Matt Chandler, John Piper, David Platt, and Steve King will never face church discipline. They will always be applied to applied to lowly members, but never to the pastor of the executive pastor of church leadership. Mark my words, if criminal allegations or corruption  were to come out of Cherrydale Baptist like they have Sovereign Grace or Mars Hill Seattle, Steve King will never face church discipline. It will be a circle the wagons situation which is what happens when money and finances are on the line. You can read more about this in “9 Marks: What is it? How Mark Dever Undermined it and Made it Worthless.” 

The overarching question I have is the following. In Cherrydale Baptist recommending these resources further proof of Mark Noll’s The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind? To recommend authors who are corrupt, not sound, and more show that Cherrydale Baptist struggles with discernment and critical thinking skills? You can read more about Mark Noll and his thesis in “From Mormonism in Montana to Sovereign Grace in the Washington, D.C. Area; The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind Comes Full Circle.“

 

The Gospel Coalition and the Sovereign Grace Ministries Lawsuit

A number of stories detailing child sex abuse in Sovereign Grace Ministries were quite riveting on a blog called SGM Survivors. SGM Survivors documented spiritual abuse, child sex abuse and the behavior of an organization that many likened to a cult.  A lawsuit commenced against SGM on October 17, 2012 by several former members alleging the cover up of child sexual abuse, forcing young toddlers to forgive their molester, and giving free legal advice to the sexual abusers themselves and helping them flee from the law.  This lawsuit would grow and expand again on January 14, 2013, with deeply disturbing revelations about additional child sex abuse and domestic abuse. Included in these revelations was a claim that an adult woman was physically spanked by a then SGM pastor. This lawsuit was spearheaded by Susan Burke, an attorney who cut her teeth on military rape cases.  This lawsuit would also grow to be the biggest evangelical sex scandal  to date at the time. Even with the lawsuit against the ministry Bill Gothard established, Basic Life Principles,  I don’t think anything has surpassed it.

In response to the sexual abuse scandal churches began departing SGM.  Ground zero for the lawsuit was Covenant Life Church and Sovereign Grace Fairfax.  As the lawsuit developed SGM’s response was to claim the First Amendment as its defense in claiming pastoral assistance to those emotionally injured by SGM. (On a quick side note could you imagine Jesus pulling out a First Amendment Defense?)  On May 17, 2013 most of the lawsuit against SGM was thrown out on a technicality. The problem was the statue to limitations had expired. It didn’t mean the sexual abuse claims never happened, it meant that the legal avenue had run its course. In SGM culture members were discouraged from reporting child sex abuse to the local law authorities, so many of the law authorities were unaware of the abuse having occurred. Then in an act of brazen corruption which made one wonder why the Protestant Reformation even occurred on May 24, both T4G and The Gospel Coalition “The Neo Calvinists Rome” released a statement in support of CJ Mahaney. In this post I will just focus on The Gospel Coalition’s statement as I am writing about Cherrydale Baptist. 

In a statement by D.A. Carson, Justin Taylor, and Kevin DeYoung that was called “Why We Have Been Silent About the SGM Lawsuit” the TGC stated the following, and in the process verbally attacked and went after a SGM rape victim in the process:

Reports on the lawsuit from Christianity Today and World Magazine (among others) explicitly and repeatedly drew attention to C. J., connecting the suit to recent changes within SGM. He has also been the object of libel and even a Javert-like obsession by some. One of the so-called discernment blogs—often trafficking more in speculation and gossip than edifying discernment—reprinted a comment from a woman who issued this ominous wish, “I hope [this lawsuit] ruins the entire organization [of SGM] and every single perpetrator and co-conspirator financially, mentally and physically.”

We are not ashamed to call C. J. a friend. Our relationship with C. J. is like that with any good friend—full of laughter and sober reflection, encouragement and mutual correction. He has regularly invited—even pursued—correction, and we have given him our perspective when it is warranted. While the admission of friendship may render this entire statement tainted in the eyes of some, we hope most Christians will understand that while friends should never cover for each others’ sins, neither do friends quickly accept the accusations of others when they run counter to everything they have come to see and know about their friend. We are grateful for C. J.’s friendship and his fruitful ministry of the gospel over many decades.

 ***This next segment will be difficult to read if you have been the victim of a sex crime, I am just trying to warn you if you don’t want to read some difficult material***

 

The Gospel Coalition and Doug Wilson of Christ’s Church in Idaho

Doug Wilson is a controversial Reformed theologian and pastor in Moscow, Idaho, who subscribes to dominionism of Christians controlling their culture. He fits the mold of “aggressive Neo-Calvinism” even though me might not describe himself as such.  In addition he has a number of controversial and deeply disturbing views that should make many Christians concerned.

• Doug Wilson is a conspiracy theorist on HIV and AIDS. You can read about that in this post here.
• Doug Wilson describes himself as a “Paleo-Confederate.” He believes and wrote a book that stated that the way the American South practiced slavery was Biblical. He also stated that blacks benefited from slavery. Those troubling views on slavery can be read in detail here.
• His views on sex are just as disturbing as Mark Driscoll’s. In describing sex Doug Wilson says that “a man penetrates, conquers, colonizes, plants. A woman receives, surrenders, accepts.” You can read more about that in this post here.
• Wilson’s views on “classical schooling” are quite disturbing and should give pause to educators. Again to read more go here.
• When patriarchal leader Doug Philips sexually assaulted an underage female, Doug Wilson blamed the victim for the sexual assault. That can be read in detail here.

As deeply disturbing as all that is the most troubling aspect of Doug Wilson came when his church arranged a marriage of an unsuspecting female to a pedophile after the second date. Doug Wilson oversaw that marriage. And that is what I am going to focus on in this section. As disturbing as this topic is, this needs to be discussed and explained in detail especially after The Gospel Coalition promoted Doug Wilson for years.

In 2003 Steven Sitler moved to Moscow, Idaho, and enrolled in Doug Wilson’s New Saint Andrews College.  He also got involved in Doug Wilson’s Christ Church. Sitler is  a pedophile and he came to New Saint Andrews having sexually abused a number of children in his wake. He had preyed upon boys and girls from the ages of 2 to 12 for his own sexual pleasure. In 2005 one of the parents notified Doug Wilson that Sitler had sexually assaulted their child. Wilson told the parent to retain an attorney from Christ Church. This is the beginning of Sitler’s legal problems. Wilson who had no capability to provide professional counseling for a serial sex offender counseled Sitler six times. Sitler was tried, prosecuted, and convicted by the State of Idaho for child sex abuse. The judge who presided over that trial was John Stegner. While Sitler faced life in prison during sentencing, Doug Wilson wrote a letter which can be read here that asks for leniency. Doug Wilson’ s letter to the judge opens up by saying;

I am grateful Steven was caught, and am grateful he has been brought to account for these actions so early in his life. . . . At the same time, I would urge that the civil penalties applied would be measured and limited. I have good hope that Steve has genuinely repented, and that he will continue to deal with this to become a productive and contributing member of society.

Because of Wilson’s intervention, Sitler only served a year in prison and was assigned probation for life, and was permanently placed on Idaho’s sex offender registry. But it was also believed and encouraged by Doug Wilson that marriage would take care of Steven Sitler’s pedophilia. Katie Travis who was a student at New Saint Andrew’s College (NSAC) expressed her desire to be married. She was arranged by NSAC to meet Steven Sitler. They had two dates and on the second date Sitler expressed his desire to marry Katie. Because of Steven Sitler’s conviction and him being a registered sex offender, the marriage had to be approved by the State of Idaho. The State of Idaho was concerned about the marriage going forward because of how future children could be placed at risk, and the lack of a stable family environment. Judge Stegner ruled that the marriage could take place. Afterward, on June 11, 2011, Doug Wilson married Katie Travis and Steven Sitler. You can watch Doug Wilson officiating the marriage here.

Katie and Steven had a child and strict regulations by the court system were in place. Steven could not be alone with his own child due to the high risk he posed to children. The only approved chaperones are Dave and Roxanne Sitler and Katie Sitler, Steven’s wife. While following up with the Department of Correction’s and having to undergo a series of polygraphs as part of his probation requirements, Steven Sitler admitted that he was sexually stimulated when he held his infant child. Latah County Procector said the following about the revelations of Steven Sitler. “In some extent the state’s worst fears appeared to be realized by some of the recent disclosures in the polygraphs,” Thompson said. “The actions that he has engaged in and disclosed are a compelling basis that he cannot have anything close to a normal parental relationship at this time with his child,” Thompson said. “Everybody would love for Mr. Sitler to become a normal person, but the fact is he is not. He is a serial child sexual abuser. The best way to protect is to prohibit contact except in direct line of vision with a responsible, approved chaperone. At this point in time, that means he would not be able to reside with his wife and child.” The Moscow-Pullman Daily News wrote an op-ed on the fact that Steven Sitler posed a threat to his own child. The State of Idaho intervened in the situation and prevented access to his son, for the safety of his child. Idaho’s Child Protection Services opened up an investigation into the situation.

So why am I writing about all this and why is this relevant to Cherrydale Baptist? The Gospel Coalition which Cherrydale Baptist has joined had promoted Doug Wilson despite his disturbing views and his behavior for a long time. While all of this has been unfolding in Idaho the last several years, The Gospel Coalition ran and featured Doug Wilson articles 52 times. Although it looks like The Gospel Coalition has taken down a number of articles from Doug Wilson, many of his articles stayed up during the controversy and problems Doug Wilson was generating. I’ve found no retraction notice or explanations for their disappearance. Also some articles remain (I found three) though many references to him still exist in articles and interviews. I think some evangelicals like Doug Wilson because he debated Christopher Hitchens. That said, I don’t get it, I think William Lane Craig is much more scholarly and did far a better job in debating Christopher Hitchens. This comes from a guy who drank the Christopher Hitchens Kool-aid for years.

 

Why Would any Victim of a Sex Crime Want to Attend Cherrydale Baptist or any Church Affiliated with The Gospel Coalition?

The Gospel Coalition is a tainted, and corrupt organization. I’ve likened it to a spiritual version of Tammany Hall.  For those who do not know, Tammany Hall was known for its exorbitant corruption. It was the political machine ruled by Boss Tweed that influenced New York city politics. However, the one difference between Tammany Hall and the Gospel Coalition is that Tammany Hall was at least open and honest about their corruption. They had more integrity in their corruption because they were forthcoming about it. So when The Gospel Coalition has promoted a man who is a conspiracy theorist on HIV, or who believed that blacks benefited from slavery, what does that do for churches affiliated with the Gospel Coalition? What does it say about The Gospel Coalition when it promotes someone like Doug Wilson who believed that marriage would help cure a serial pedophile, or by having Justin Taylor, D.A. Carson, or Kevin DeYoung attack a Sovereign Grace rape victim to defend their pal CJ Mahaney? Is CJ Mahaney that sacred? As a part of Neo-Calvinism has God foreordained in his sovereignty child sex abuse in Sovereign Grace Ministries or Churches as part of “The Gospel”?

I never thought I’d say this, and it churns my stomach to state but I’d prefer to have Mark Driscoll preaching than Doug Wilson teaching. Before I continue there is another thought I have to say – D.A. Carson’s participation in that bastardized statement on the SGM lawsuit is not just the lowest point of The Gospel Coalition but also modern evangelicalism as well. When it came out that Mark Driscoll plagiarized from D.A. Carson, Carson was very silent on the plagiarism. You can read D.A. Carson’s thoughts about plagiarism here. I would be fascinated to know if Carson participated in academic discipline at Trinity Evangelical Divinity school of any student for plagiarism. If he was engaged in disciplining a student at Trinity while giving Mark Driscoll a pass because he was a Neo-Calvinist then I would suggest that Carson’s corruption disqualifies him from being in academia. You can’t have it both ways on plagiarism. In many universities plagiarism is a serious issue, and this situation also highlights how many evangelicals struggle with ethics and conflict of interest issues.

But returning to the greater issues at hand, the question relevant to people who attend Cherrydale Baptist is the following. If Cherrydale Baptist is going to be in bed with an organization that has a horrific track record when it comes to child sex abuse, why would any person who has been molested, raped, or the victim of  sex crime want to attend Cherrydale Baptist, knowing its participation and support for The Gospel Coalition? Does a sexually assaulted child count as one of the “least of these“?  Is child sex abuse a sin? Or is this truth too inconvenient to hear?  The blatant corruption within the Gospel Coalition is a grave threat to the very Gospel that Jesus preached himself. By ignoring the least of these and normalizing corruption a class of Pharisees has arisen that spits in the face of Jesus by their behavior. Jesus came to serve not be served. The Gospel Coalition has it backwards in that they are not here to serve, instead they expect their pastors to be served.

These are difficult and unpopular questions, I know. I don’t enjoy asking them, but someone has to ask the difficult questions for the health of the organization. There is also another concern that members of Cherrydale Baptist should be concerned with and its this fact. A church that changes its polity or doctrine can have adverse consequences in ways that members haven’t considered. Let me explain many Evangelical Free Churches and Southern Baptist Churches have been hijacked by Neo-Calvinists. In the process, long-established members of those churches and denominations found themselves facing “church discipline.” Why you ask? Was it because they engaged in something sordid like an affair or other unethical behavior? No…people have faced discipline for not believing in TULIP or full Neo-Calvinist doctrine, questioning material now being preached by a pastor or not “submitting to authority” under some twisted and bastardized application of Hebrews 13:17.

I, in good conscious, could never get involved in a church affiliated with The Gospel Coalition. It’s too dirty, I would feel like I’d have to shower before church and after church due to how corrupt The Gospel Coalition is as an entity. Ministry that is pure should not act like the Italian mafia in how it conducts itself. Along with the corruption which harms Christianity, it’s also fueling the rate of people leaving Christianity and joining the ranks of the “nones” and “dones.” For atheists who talk about how corrupt Christianity is as an entity, the behavior of organizations like The Gospel Coalition only play into atheist thinking and legitimize it. We’re called to be Bereans and these kinds of questions need to be asked in the long run.

 

The Wondering Eagle will Write About Cherrydale Baptist if Child Sex Abuse has Been Covered Up or if Other Issues have Occurred

With today’s post The Wondering Eagle is going to start to write about Cherrydale Baptist church and monitor it. If there are problems with child sex abuse that are covered up, this blog will write about it. If there are questionable uses of church discipline or finances; then The Wondering Eagle will write about it. If any of the former members from Cherrydale want to tell their story this blog will give them a platform. Another reason why this church is on my radar is because in the past it has worked with Eric Simmons and Jordan Kauflin’s Redeemer Arlington. As I have written about this blog was born out of an incident of spiritual abuse from Eric Simmons church; and it was never resolved. That pain and trauma is what drives this blog forward and has resulted in me writing about 300 posts a year. So if you have any issues or situations with Cherrydale you can contact me at wonderingeagle261@gmail.com. That is it for the day and as always guys, please know that I love you.