I read about this on the MMI Weblog.
When young pastor Matt Brown announced he was supporting a ministry for women in the sex industry led by an x-stripper, he was expecting applause. Instead, he got cold stares and an e-mail inbox filled with angry letters. At issue was Heather Veitch, an x-stripper turned evangelist. She looked too much like a stripper and was leading Christian women into the dark world of strip clubs for so-called “outreach.” Capturing it all, was documentary filmmaker Bill Day for his new film “The Pussycat Preacher.”
“Most Christians know that Jesus spent time with prostitutes and tax collectors because that is where the word was needed. But believing the ideal is one thing and living the reality is another,” says Day.
“If we all took a vote on being Biblical versus being respectable , we would all vote for Biblical,” says theology expert Professor Sarah Sumner PhD from Azusa Pacific University in the film. “But the reality is many churches are more concerned with respectability.”
Pastor Greg Laurie from mega-church Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside was one of pastors who didn’t believe Heather’s method of winning souls was worth the risk. He warned Brown to stay away from Veitch.
“When a Pastor you look up to tells you something like that it’s scary,” Brown confesses. “I’m a pastor and I am supposed to love people. But I didn’t love strippers. What Heather did was she birthed that in me and my congregation.”
Instead of backing away from Heather, Pastor Brown put up $50,000 of church money to support the ministry. But in no time at all, a rumor got started that the $50,000 was being used by Brown to buy lap dances for himself. Brown suddenly found himself on the verge of losing his church facility housed on the campus of Southern California Baptist University.
For her part, Heather Veitch claims she is winning souls and that is what matters. For evidence, she has the documentary which shows a number of strippers making their first venture into church. “Now comes the hard part,” Heather smiles.
Day says the film is not rated but very ‘’PG’’ It has no nudity or offensive language. It is available on DVD from Amazon.
What do you think about this kind of ministry? What do you think about Greg Laurie’s response? Is this kind of ministry too risky?
Jeremy, I applaud young Pastor Brown for his desire to reach all kinds of people, as Jesus did, and an ex-stripper is the best kind of person to reach these women. I would love to see them going to church for the first time; I would be deeply moved. That is the place where they should hear the Word of God and grow to Christian maturity. Hopefully the Christians there will lovingly nurture these new babes in Christ. Miss Veitch certainly needs a support group to assist her in the work. She cannot do it alone.
Spreading vile rumors is about as ugly a sin as I can imagine.
I guess we all struggle with ‘what will people think’ but we need to break away from that as long as what we are doing will please The Lord Jesus Christ.
It is good to read about your passion for reaching people with the gospel, Jeremy, but I feel so disappointed that you are no longer with GES. I don’t know any details, but GES is my lifeline for good teaching and messages. I certainly don’t get much of that here in small town Canada.
Jo Ann
Jo Ann,
Thanks for the comment. I wonder if most churches would even be able to accept these women in church? Most churches I know, even those who proclaim grace the loudest, would require some radical life changes to occur in the lives of such women before they were made to feel welcome in the typical church. I do hope that Pastor Brown will be able to help Miss Veitch as she reaches these women who so desperately need the love and grace of God.
I agree with you that vile rumors are about as ugly a sin as there is. Though we Christians condemn most evey sin under the sun, the one which the Bible seems to condemn the most–sins of the tongue–seems to be the one which is most accepted and practiced in our churches.
Regarding me not being at GES any more, I am also disappointed that I am not there any longer. However, there are some rumors going around about why I’m not there, and it is amazing to me how many people are believing and spreading these rumors. That is what I have found to be the most disappointing. I imagine that with the conference being this week, and me not being there, such rumors will only multiply. Oh well…not much I can do about it.
Well, Jeremy, I read your blog almost every day, so I am benefiting from your ministry which comes straight from your heart. Cling to the Lord and He will vindicate you. May He guide you into the work that He has planned for you as you wait on Him. I haven’t heard any rumors, but I would refuse to believe them if I did.
I know GES is going through rough waters too. God’s truth is our solid foundation.
Sincerely,
J
Wow, I just went and looked at the message topics for the conference. What I wouldn’t give to be there. How can you stay away. You live in Texas, right. I am going to see if I can order the CDs right away.
J
Yeah, I live here in Irving. The conference is 30 minutes away. The reason I can’t go is because of my new job…
Oh, That is great to hear that you have a new job.
Blessings,
Jo Ann
Jesus befriended prostitutes and drunks and tax collectors and the like but He DID NOT venture into their workplace to do so. Name one scripture reference where he did. He ate with them at their homes but He did not go into a house of prostitution nor did He venture into an atmosphere of drunkenness. Scripture tells us to flee sexual immorality. Speaking as someone who has been in the world and did a lot on sinful things before i was saved- I must say that someone trying to witness to me in those places at those times would have been laughed out of the place. The best place and time to witness to someone involved in this is after the high is over and when the consequence of sin kicks in- because thats when a person feels the most vulnerable.
You might be right. The tax-collectors, of course, he spoke to at their tax-collecting booths, but this is still a public venue.
I agree that many people will just laugh at witnessing attempts in these sorts of settings. Of course, I really doubt that she is handing out four spiritual laws tracts or trying to get people to go through the Romans Road with her. These artificial witnessing tactics rarely work, even in the most optimal settings. I imagine she just builds relationships with these women, and lets them know that she is there for them if they need anything.
Greg Laurie was very wise in his advice. Scripture also states to come along side a brother or sister and minister to them when they have fallen- but also warns us not to fall into temptation in the process. I as an ex womanizer would be very stupid to venture into a strip club to witness as would an ex stripper. Alcoholics dont go into bars to recruit for AA. Its not wise and could end up in a serious fall for that individual. There are many ways of witnessing to these people without venturing into the den of sin where they reside.
Yes, it would be unwise for you to go into this setting. But what about for her? She is not a womanizer. She is an ex-stripper, and apparently, God has given her a heart for these women.
One of my favorite ministries is Hookers For Jesus, led by a former prostitute named Annie Lobert. No one understands the situations these girls in the sex industry are in like those who have been there themselves. These are girls that are unlikely to ever go to a church, and in fact, most of them think that they are too far gone for God to love anyway. They need people to go to them right where they are, even in the strip clubs and whore houses, and to tell them that God loves them, right there, period. I agree, it is not wise for every person to go to a strip club or to a whore house, God has called some and specially gifted them to this ministry. Women like Heather Veitch and Annie Lobert are going to places where many cannot and bringing with them the message of God’s love. I say support them, even if they have not changed enough from their old life to suit some, like Pastor Laurie. I will say that in my line of work, no one reaches the outlaw motorcycle world like the old outlaws who have come to Christ, and yes, many of my ministers have not changed their appearance significantly from their pre-Christ days, so what. God does not care if you look a little too much like a biker or a stripper, or a punk rocker or whatever, God cares about the heart. I am thankful to God for those who have come to Christ and have not become white washed tombs, but instead have taken their changed hearts back to the mess that they came from to help rescue others still trapped there.
Pastor FedEx
Thanks, FedEx.
I have not heard of that ministry, but I am glad they are serving there. You are right that no one understands the situations of these girls except those who have been there. Furthermore, I think those girls trapped in these places are living in hell on earth, and so it is exactly to these places where Christians should go.
You are doing this yourself with the guys in your ministry, and am thrilled to know you!