Is the church in crisis? When it comes to
integrity among leadership, Larry Stockstill thinks so—and he wants you to do
something about it.
Larry Stockstill, pastor of Bethany
World Prayer Center in Baton Rouge, La., is calling church leaders to do
more than just talk about living right. At the Summit on Integrity, a one-day
gathering of ministry leaders, he’s urging them to commit to a lifestyle of
integrity that encompasses every area of private and public life.
Amid an increasing number of high-profile church scandals,
Stockstill is partnering with Ministry Today magazine and the new
Ministry21 Network to invite leaders to a daylong discussion on Nov. 16 in Lake
Mary, Fla., on how church leaders can combat the sliding morals found in the
ministry world and take a stand for righteousness.
“Isn’t it time we come back to the purity of a Billy Graham,
whose ‘Modesto Manifesto’ kept him free from sexual
embarrassment, numerical exaggeration, financial impropriety and vicious
divisions for more than 60 years?” Stockstill says. “Why is the American
population less inclined to follow spiritual leadership than ever in our
history? Why does the credibility rating of spiritual leaders rate below ‘used
car salesman’ and thousands of leaders drop out of the ministry annually? It’s
time we confront the spiritual, moral and ethical decline in the body of
Christ.”
The summit will feature discussions on financial integrity,
sexual and relational purity, personal character, and other integrity-related
issues that apply to personal, family, corporate and even the national arena.
Along with receiving personal ministry time, church leaders will be invited to
sign both the Statement on Integrity, which will be released to the public, and
a more personal Remnant Covenant. This written oath is based upon Stockstill’s
book The Remnant, which has been distributed to more than 150,000
leaders in the U.S. and overseas, and argues that “accountability in standards
of church discipline, finances, media, Internet, travel, counseling and
appearances can revolutionize the present climate of suspicion and loss of
influence presently characterizing ministry leadership.”
While leading the 10,000-member, multi-campus Bethany World Prayer Center, Stockstill also served as
guest editor for the Fall
2010 issue of Ministry Today, which centers on integrity and offers
the story behind the Stockstills’ commitment to integrity that has spanned more
than four generations. Stockstill’s father, Roy, started
Bethany World Prayer Center in 1963, and two of Larry’s sons, Joel and
Jonathan, both serve as Bethany pastors.
“Integrity is needed in every season of life, yet the church
desperately needs to address and revisit the concept of integrity—and
thankfully, the Stockstills have a reputation for holiness and purity,” says Ministry
Today executive editor/publisher Steve Strang. “Larry is one of the few
people who has earned the right to call church leaders back to this
foundational principle, and I believe the Summit on Integrity will be
invaluable in sparking a new level of commitment for those who attend.”
For more information about the Summit on Integrity,
including how to register, click
here.
