IHOPKC says new firm will assure impartial investigation into sexual misconduct claims

The International House of Prayer-Kansas City has hired a third-party firm to conduct what it says will be an “independent and impartial investigation” into sex abuse allegations against founder Mike Bickle.

The action was announced Sunday morning at the Forerunner Church service in Grandview by IHOPKC’s new spokesperson, Eric Volz, and in a statement issued by the executive committee of IHOPKC’s board of directors. The move comes as the evangelical prayer and missions organization continues to grapple with allegations against Bickle that were made public in late October.

IHOPKC Executive Director Stuart Greaves introduced Volz during the church service. Volz, managing director of The David House Agency — a Los Angeles-based international crisis resource agency — then outlined what the IHOPKC statement said were the steps it was taking to address the allegations.

IHOPKC is not naming the firm or the investigators, the statement said, “in order to avoid any interference with their ability to conduct the investigation.” The firm has never had ties to IHOPKC or any relationship with any of the involved parties, it said.

“The firm has extensive experience conducting independent investigations into high-profile cases across the KC metro area, including those involving clergy abuse allegations,” the statement said. “They are highly sought after due to the skill and thoroughness by which they conduct investigations.

“Importantly, they are also trauma-informed.”

While IHOPKC is responsible for paying the firm, it will not control the investigation and has no ability to dictate the process or outcome, the statement said.

“The investigators have already started: IHOPKC has turned over its documents, and the investigators are in contact with the Advocate Group and all known alleged victims,” it said.

But Dwayne Roberts and Wes Martin, two of the former IHOPKC leaders who took the sex abuse allegations to the current leadership team and are part of the so-called advocate group, told The Star on Sunday night that they had not been contacted.

Roberts is a founding member of IHOPKC and a former member of its executive leadership team, and Martin is former pastor of Forerunner Christian Fellowship and former vice president of student affairs of IHOP University.

“My hope is that truth comes out,” Martin said.

Bickle, 68, founded IHOPKC in 1999 as a 24/7 charismatic prayer ministry with its world headquarters in south Kansas City. The allegations against him were presented to IHOPKC leaders on Oct. 24. The leadership team then called a meeting to inform staff on Oct. 27.

They originally described Bickle’s alleged actions as “misconduct,” then later said the allegations were “unsettling” and involved “sexual immorality.” The leaders said Bickle had been asked to step away from public ministry “to allow for a proper inquiry to be conducted.” He has not responded publicly to the allegations.

The day after IHOPKC leaders told the staff about the allegations, Roberts, Martin and former IHOPKC leader Brian Kim issued a statement describing the incidents as “clergy sexual abuse” and said they found the allegations “to be credible and long-standing.”

But on Nov. 15, IHOPKC leaders released a report of their initial findings involving the case. The report discounted some of the allegations brought forth by the former IHOPKC leaders.

“After three weeks of examination, IHOPKC has identified five of eight alleged victims,” the report said. “Three of those five have publicly called the allegations lies, a fourth has not wanted to communicate with IHOPKC’s attorney, and the fifth’s allegations relate to incidents that preceded IHOPKC’s founding.”

The former leaders said in a response that IHOPKC’s initial findings and other public statements “have been replete with mistruths and obfuscation.”

“The truth is that multiple witnesses over the last 2+ years have brought concerns regarding wrongful contact with Mr. Bickle and women who are not his wife to the ELT (executive leadership team) and to the concerned leaders, which many eyewitnesses have corroborated,” the response said.

On Nov. 30, The Roys Report, a Christian media outlet, published an online story featuring an interview with Bickle’s main accuser. The woman, whom the report referred to as “Jane Doe,” said that Bickle sexually abused her from 1996 to 1999, starting when she was 19 and he was 42. She said Bickle told her repeatedly that God had spoken to him, saying his wife was going to die and that they would then be married. She told The Roys Report that during that time, Bickle gave her a key to his office, put her up in an apartment and had sexual interactions with her.

The IHOPKC statement on Sunday said the amount of time the investigation would take will depend on several factors, “the main one being whether or not the alleged victims and parties involved are willing to participate.”

“We hope that they will participate, so that truth can be brought to light quickly,” it said.

IHOPKC leaders also announced Sunday that they were passing off management of the Bickle “crisis” to the executive committee of the organization’s board of directors.

“As a matter of wisdom, governance and the growing size and complexity of this crisis our Executive Director, Stuart Greaves, along with IHOPKC’s legal counsel, decided it was best for him to pass off the day to day management of this crisis to the Executive Committee of our Board of Directors,” the statement said. It said that would allow Greaves “to focus on our community, the body, our base, and the healing of hearts.”

Greaves spoke to followers during the Sunday service, receiving a standing ovation when he told them that “I’ve done my utmost best to lead this process.”

“Our conscience is clear,” he said.

Volz then detailed the IHOPKC statement. He said he’d visited IHOPKC about seven years ago when a friend introduced him to the prayer movement. He said that while it was “awkward” to now be a professional spokesperson for IHOPKC, he also considered it “a high honor.”

In addition to the third-party investigation, Volz said, the IHOPKC board of directors was establishing “The Truth and Reconciliation Commission.”

That commission, according to the board’s statement, “will include an advisory panel of outside leaders, a thorough examination of everything that has taken place in the past weeks, human resources experts, pastoral programs, regular community meetings, and much more.”

It said more details about the project would be shared “in the near future.”

Sunday’s announcement received mixed reactions on IHOPKC’s social media accounts. Many praised the leaders for their handling of the issue.

“My heart was so full, watching this service,” said one supporter on IHOPKC’s X account, formerly Twitter. “We are so with you in prayer, @ihopkc! You’re doing great and we love you!”

Others, however, were skeptical and angry.

“Now that you have your ducks in a row you can finally get an independent 3rd party,” one man wrote on IHOPKC’s Facebook page. “Something that should have been done immediately, but you never believed your friends, our former leaders who came to you with these accusations…I am deeply saddened as a 4 year graduate and former staff member. Even if Mike is innocent you all have handled this so poorly it’s incredible. I honestly can’t believe it. I don’t know how we can trust the current leadership anymore.”