‘I sadly admit I sinned’: IHOPKC founder repents, but denies ‘intense sexual activities’

Facing clergy sex abuse allegations, Mike Bickle, the founder of the International House of Prayer of Kansas City, admitted on Tuesday that he had “sinned” and “my moral failures were real.”

Bickle, 68, however, was vague on details. He said his “inappropriate behavior” occurred more than 20 years ago, but he did not admit to engaging in any sexual misconduct.

Allegations against Bickle, leveled on Oct. 24 by three former IHOPKC leaders, were described as “clergy sexual abuse.” After seven weeks of silence, Bickle released a lengthy personal statement on X, formerly Twitter.

“With a very heavy heart I want to express how deeply grieved I am that my past sins have led to so much pain, confusion and division in the body of Christ in this hour,” Bickle wrote in a letter addressed to “Family and Friends.”

“I sadly admit that 20+ years ago, I sinned by engaging in inappropriate behavior — my moral failures were real. (I am not admitting to the more intense sexual activities that some are suggesting).”

Bickle went on to say, “Some may wonder why I am just now making a public statement 20+ years later? It is because I was recently confronted about things that I said or did 20+ years ago — things I believed were dealt with and under the blood of Jesus. Since this has now become public, I want to repent publicly.”

Bickle’s statement comes two days after IHOPKC leaders announced they had hired a third-party firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations and introduced Eric Volz as IHOPKC’s new spokesman. Volz is managing director of The David House Agency, a Los Angeles-based international crisis resources company.

Bickle, in his statement, apologized for taking so long to release a statement. He said that on Oct. 28, just days after he was accused, he drafted a personal statement but said he was given legal advice to wait to release it so as not to create “misunderstanding that I was confessing to the false allegations that were circulating.”

Bickle said the delay “created additional pain, anguish, division and more so for many people that I love. I am deeply sorry for this.”

Although admitting to inappropriate conduct more than two decades ago, Bickle wrote that some representations of his words and actions are “greatly exaggerated, or blatantly false.” He did not detail which accusations he claims to be false.

“I ask my family and friends do not defend me,” Bickle wrote, having confidence that “the Lord will speak concerning what HE sees and says about me in HIS timing.

“Please do not engage in debates on social media to defend me and please do not criticize those who are voicing their disdain for me. Please only speak blessing to them and about them. … Some who are (sic) have spoken against me are friends. (I will continue to view them as friends).”

Bickle wrote that he would not engage in any public preaching, conferences, social media or meetings via Zoom and leave it to other leaders to determine how long his absence would be.

“I will only reengage in my public preaching ministry, if God confirmed it through others. I am at peace with whatever HE wants.”

In bold type, he wrote, “Jesus, I love and trust You!”

Bickle founded IHOPKC in 1999 as a 24/7 evangelical and missions organization with its world headquarters in south Kansas City. After the allegations against him were presented to IHOPKC on Oct. 24, IHOPKC’s current leadership team 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.”

The day after IHOPKC leaders told the staff about the allegations, Dwyane Roberts and Wes Martin — two of the former IHOPKC leaders who took the sex abuse allegations to the current leadership — issued a statement describing the incidents as “clergy sexual abuse” and said they found the allegations “to be credible and long-standing.”

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.

Volz said Tuesday on his X social media account that Bickle’s statement was “a step in the right direction.”

“We are glad to see a public statement from Mike Bickle addressing the allegations against him,” Volz said. “He clearly admits to engaging in inappropriate behavior 20+ years ago.”

He added, however, that Bickle’s denial of other sexual activities and calling many of the allegations “greatly exaggerated” and “blatantly false” raise questions.

“In contrast, the Advocate Group claims that Mike Bickle has been engaged in “predatory sexual behavior and pathological misconduct spanning five decades. The Advocate Group refers to former leaders who brought forth the initial allegations.

“Now we clearly have two sides to this story. Someone is bearing false witness and this is 100% why we need an independent third party investigation. While there are more questions to be answered, we won’t stop until we establish proof of truth.”