Welcome to Church Reviews at TuscanyCircle. As my family searches for a church home, I'll be reviewing the churches we visit and recording my observations here. These observations include how alive in the Spirit they are or not, their doctrine and how close to or far from Scripture it is, and some mundane things like the style of worship, organizational structure, etc.

Anyone who knows us knows we have long struggled in trying to find a church home. All we ask is that the Word not be compromised in major ways. Some churches scream apostasy right away, but others require deeper investigation. The best seem to take about six months before all the dirty, ungodly secrets are revealed. Some reviews, then, will be quick, one-time articles clearly spelling out what's horribly wrong with the church. Other reviews will take weeks or months to explore the pros and cons of a church. We have little hope of finding a church home, really, but we'll do our best to find one nevertheless.

Churches will be clearly named. I'll explain why in a moment. I'm inclined to name pastors and teachers, too, but I'm counseled by trusted friends not to do so. I still need to await the Lord's leading on this point. Here's the reason I'm naming anything: I intend to reveal evil lurking within God's sacred church, wolves in sheep clothing, twisting His Word into perversions designed to hurt His disciples and even cost them their salvation if they follow these evil spirits. I have consistently found today's churches in America to be sickenly corrupt, doctrinally and ethically, so much so that I can no longer lead new believers to any congregation at all for fear of them being led away from the Lord. I have no illusions that my small voice will fix these churches, but I intend to name evil for what it is anyway. I'm also open to constructive dialog with any church seeking to be restored to the Lord and His eternal Word, though I doubt such an offer will ever be accepted. None of this is new to me. I've done this many times but only privately up till now. No more. The light will shine on the evil lurking in churches' shadows, even if it's in the pulpit--especially if it's in the pulpit!

Here is a good article on the dangers of allowing evil to take root in the church:

The fact that God may be doing good things in some people's lives is not a valid reason for allowing the bad to prosper alongside the good. The counterfeit must always be discerned, exposed and dealt with. Otherwise, in the eyes of the sheep, the bad is validated by the shepherds, as if it is good. That is how deception and counterfeit spirits are given license in the Body of Christ - whether it is the deception of false signs, false miracles or false prophecies, all of which we are warned about in Matthew 24. Jesus began this critical discourse on the end-times with these telling words, "Watch out that no-one deceives you."
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As Derek Prince said, "the Bible gives us no liberty to tolerate the incursion of evil into the church."

I ask my readers to hold me accountable in my reviews. I desire to remain factual in writing even while I may be privately angered while embroiled in a battle with evil. I want to leave the door open always to earnest discussion and reconcilation; infested or not, congregations and individuals can be restored to the Lord if they so desire Him rather than their own paths. I also want to be ever mindful of the Gospel, that all may come to the Lord. Feel free to write me privately or comment publicly if you believe I'm missing the mark. In the end, I pray the church may someday be purified. I don't expect perfection in the church, even though it's asked of us all, but I do expect a general trend toward Biblical holiness rather than the common trend of self-serving evil. I pray these reviews may be helpful, even if only by raising awareness in my readers of the dangers of allowing evil into the church.