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Blindsided: Harassment From Douglas Stauffer Begins

Below, one will find the first set of messages between Douglas Stauffer, Matt Olds, and Crystal Olds (me) that started with Stauffer messaging us multiple times on Sunday evening, June 3, 2018, and ended at the time my husband came home on Monday evening, June 4, 2018. I would first like to draw your attention to the timeline of not only his voicemail and messages late into the evening (close to midnight), but also to how quickly he switched to accusing me of not heeding his “counsel,” merely fifteen minutes after his previous private message.

The harassment continued well into Monday morning and afternoon- and even into Tuesday- as Doug Stauffer continued to harass my husband for a response, despite Matt saying he was at work, to not contact him, and that he would call/message them when he was on break and when he was off from work. Even in the phone call in the afternoon between Matt and Stauffer, Stauffer repeatedly rebuked Matt for not responding sooner.

While Stauffer was esteemed, he did not- and never held- a place of authority at our church, though he attempted to twist Pastor Andrew Ray’s words to say that we “MUST” meet before my family attended any further services. We already did not attend the Bible Conference in the mornings because of Matt’s occupation and the fact that we had three young children, but we decided stay home for the Monday evening service, for Matt and I to finally be able to discuss  Stauffer’s ridiculous comments during the day, as well as Pastor Ray’s messages that I did not know about at the time.  

Facebook Messenger: Crystal Olds, Matthew Olds, and Douglas Stauffer

 

Douglas (Stauffer) (June 3 at 11:21pm): It is 11PM and I just left Matt a 3 ½ minute message on your phone. I am shocked at this method of creating “unity” in the church. You get upset at something that is said and you air those grievances on FB rather than going to the person directly? This is what you wrote:

“I know of families in times past (not recently) that have left literally for the sake of unity and to end the discord. Isn’t Matthew 18 about IF YOU HAVE AN ISSUE WITH A BROTHER, TAKE IT TO THEM, etc and then if they won’t hear one, then before two or three witnesses, then let them be accursed?

 

Did you not fail in the very point that you made? This hypocrisy is also condemned and creating the very discord that you are condemning. The problem is that we can assess other people’s problems and turn a blind eye toward our own.

We need  to need to meet tomorrow. My phone number is ***-***-****. I know that you are close to some of those who have left and that is fine. I had lunch with one couple recently and recently commented on an anniversary post of another.

 

I do not harbor any hard feelings toward ANYONE that left; however, I think any of them bashing the church is wicked. Additionally, I do not view the situation like you do because I also know so much more about some of the details concerning how a situation was blown out of proportion in order to leave. The church needs to be unified and I do not know one person that left over doctrinal matters.

 

You can choose this FB mode of dividing the church but I can promise you that you are not more innocent than anyone that something that you did not like. Maybe what was said in your view was ill-advised and for that I apologize, but I hope you also see that your divisive comments are quite the same.

Douglas (June 3 at 11:21pm): Furthermore, I suggest you take down the post in the mean time or hide it until we can meet. After we meet you will have taken the matter (so to speak) to me and be more free to use FB for this mode of communicating grievances. Personally, I think it is the 21st century definition of 1 Corinthians chapter 3.

 

Douglas (June 3 at 11:36pm): And since you have seen my messages and not done as I have asked in hiding this post until you have responded scripturally by meeting this would seem to indicate you feel justified in how you have handled the situation. It is likely that your public tirade is just an attention seeking ploy rather than an attempt to fix what you perceive is a wrong. Don’t you have the responsibility to do as Matthew 18 instructs? Or do you think God created Facebook for disgruntled church members to spout their disagreements for the world- lost and saved- to see?

Crystal (June 4 at 12:41am): [Thumbs up]

Crystal (June 4 at 12:41am): Accidentally hit the “like”

 

Douglas (June 4 at 8:37am): We need to meet today before the services. What is most convenient for you?

Matt (Matthew Olds) (June 4 at 9:06am): I am working and cannot talk at this time. I will call you when I am on break.

Douglas (June 4 at 9:06am): [Thumbs up}

 

 

Douglas (June 4 at 11:44am): Unfortunately, I was just told that the comments were simply hidden from view from a select group rather than deleted or completely blocked from any view. That is a shame because now the focus is upon this divisive FB post and putting a damper on the whole meeting.

We have found replacements for the nursery and greeter tonight and we MUST meet prior to your attending any further services.

I guess I am shocked at the quote of going to the person first when the person making the comments is guilty of that very sin.

 

Matt (June 4): Again I am at work. I do not know what you are talking about. I have not even been able to look at these “comments.” I will call when I am on break and we will discuss a [possible] time to meet. I do not know when it will be as this week is proving to be very busy. Please stop messaging me while I am work. I will call you. Thanks

Matt (June 4): Due to my line of work, I am not sure when my break will be…

Crystal (June 4 at 12:06pm): I will step in and say that I was looking at changing the privacy and thought I had just exited out of it because I got interrupted. It’s back to how it was before now. Thank  you for letting me know.

 

Crystal (June 4 at 1:29pm): I misread your comment earlier. Pastor has made a replacement for nursery and greeting?

Douglas (June 4 at 3:22pm): I will answer your question and explain a bit although Matt has asked for this not to happen while he is at work. We need to meet before service attendance by you. You have hurt many people that were hurt by some of the people you felt compelled to defend publicly because you took offense to a statement made in response to a meeting recently that you know nothing about.

 

The problem is that you don’t know the history behind anything. you have simply chosen to post a divisive comment against a member(s) in your church and then hide the comment from us (and presumably Matt since he said he too could not see the comment) yet others who were not excluded from seeing it. You were asked to take it down and rejected that counsel.

We have a very serious problem and one that will require some maturity and humility on your part. At present, I understand that replacements have been found for the greeting and the nursery tonight since no signs of reconciling have been offered.

 

You really have no clue as to the young people affected by your facebook post and you [may] never because generally these things are NOT put forth publicly by those who know since it is not wise to use this forum to make everyone aware of all the sordid details.

Matt (June 4 at 4:29pm): So is this “church discipline” coming from you or pastor?

 

Douglas (June 4 at 5:05pm): Matt: What is the “church discipline” that you are referring to? If Bro. Ray made the decision that he feels that such an egregious act means that he does not want you or your wife involved in things until there is some sort of recognition of the wrong, would you find this unreasonable? I guess we are a bit surprised at this response for someone so disgruntled to publicly voice such opposition to the preaching in one’s home church. That was one statement made that was off the cuff and reflected upon a meeting I had reaching out to someone that had left and I left the meeting disgusted with how they bashed the song book and those working on it. Preachers are human too.

 

(I wrote this you before you called.)

Matt (June 4 at 5:36pm): Ok. My wife and I are talking now.

 

 

In this series I share my thoughts and opinions concerning these ministers and the events which led to my departure. Click here to continue reading: “Blindsided: Private Messages Between Matthew Olds and Pastor Andrew Ray” or click on the link below.

For a list of the complete series, click here.

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Grieving A Loss

Last month my oldest sister passed away after a battle with cancer. I was reminded of a letter I’d written to two ladies in 1990, who at the time had recently lost their mother. It was just four years after my mother had died after a battle with cancer.

I am going to share an edited version of the letter I wrote, hoping that it might help someone else who has lost their mother or another loved one. While this doesn’t pertain to spiritual abuse, nor is it the same, there are some similarities in what many of us went through when we left our former churches. There is grief that one wrestles with, people around you who don’t understand what you are going through, a sense of loss and encountering the ‘what if’ thoughts. May these words help others who are grieving a loss.

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I wanted to share some things with you that may help you in the future. Because I lost my mom four years ago when I was 28, going on 29, I can very much feel for all of you and what you have been going through.

My purpose is to share some things that I have gone through that may be of help or maybe it will just be helpful to know that some feelings, etc. that you have are ‘normal,’ though others may not think so or understand. I don’t care what anyone says, until you have lost your own mother, nobody knows what it is like, nor what a person goes through. Since it has happened to me, I hope to be able to help you through this difficult time, be it in even a very small way.

One thing you find is that world does not come to a halt because of your grief and loss. Everything goes on as normal, as if nothing happened when you feel it should be different. Some people appear insensitive. If they do, it could be that they are that way, but it could also be that they do not know how to be with you… whether it is okay to talk or not, they may be afraid they’ll upset you. So instead of reaching out much or at least doing something, they do nothing. That does not mean all those that react that way are cold and insensitive. You’ll have times that you want to pour your heart out to someone, then there will be times you don’t want to talk about it. It’s normal.

You may well have ‘flashbacks’… times you’ll remember of your mom being ill or concerning her death. This is also normal. You may have them for some time to come. After four years, I still go through this at times, though it’s less now. There are times when I’ll reminisce and have a hard time emotionally, especially the times when I start missing my mom….certain times you’d always share, etc. My mom was always a good person to talk to about things and sort things through. Many times I’ve wished she were here to talk to or to share with. This is normal, expect it. You’re not going crazy! To never think about these things would be abnormal. I used to dream a lot of my mom, yet she’d always be sick and/or dying in the dreams. I never liked that. But my mom was sick for over two years before she died and I guess that’s all my mind could remember, so that’s what I would dream about. Now the dreams are much less frequent.

Birthdays and holidays…you’re probably going to find that these will be hard and you may react as I did and just want to treat them as ‘normal’ days and not make a fuss over them. In fact, any occasion that you’d normally spend with your mother will be difficult. It’s just not the same without her. My birthday came the day after we buried my mom. That was awful. The family had partly forgotten about it and I sure didn’t feel like celebrating. I tried to act like it was fine, but it wasn’t. I’ve never wanted to make a big deal of my birthday ever since, though a couple years ago I did have a nice birthday when my dad came up and brought me a cake and took me out to dinner. It was totally unexpected. But I’d still pretty much rather treat my birthday as a regular day. That may be wrong on my part after four years, but that is how I feel. It’s just hard. I always remember that mom died and was buried right before my birthday and I can’t get away from that.

And holidays, etc. are a tough time, so know that this is also normal as well. With us, the only ones we ever made a big deal of were Thanksgiving and Christmas. Christmas was always my favorite time of year and I guess it still is but to a lesser extent. I found myself not wanting to really celebrate as before. I would’ve been happy if I could’ve gotten by acting like they were regular days, with nothing special going on. In my house, mom made Christmas more like Christmas. So without her it just was no longer the same. I’ve lost a lot of my enthusiasm for holidays we celebrated.

My dad always comes down and we’d go over to my middle sister’s home for dinner. She would usually have others over, who I really didn’t know well, and it was no more a family affair. I’d go, but usually wouldn’t stay long. Finally last Christmas I didn’t go at all. I don’t especially enjoy it. Now that has been my reaction. My middle sister tried to go away over both Thanksgiving and Christmas and I feel she was trying to run away from the holidays, though I never talked to her about it. She did stay for Christmas, though. My other sister lives in Missouri. Everyone reacts differently. You will, no doubt, each react a little differently on these days or around them. I guess it’s because you know it’s different and one you loved so much is no longer there with you to celebrate. There’s a void that can never be filled by something else.

Speaking of differences…all of us girls reacted differently to mom’s illness and death. The oldest cried a lot and showed her emotions more openly. Her & I were with mom the most. She’d come out from Missouri to help be with her for periods of time. I got several leaves of absences from work to be with mom during different critical periods. My middle sister, a year younger than the other, reacted totally different and showed anger. The people she worked with were ready to quit, her daughter was ready to leave home, and my oldest sister was ready to clobber her for how she was treating her. Then I would cry at home in my bedroom by myself as I didn’t like crying in front of people and showing my emotions. I prayed a lot.

You are under enormous stress whether you realize it or not and it’s going to show in one way or another. Mine showed in some abdominal discomfort. So if any of you found yourselves questioning why the other was reacting differently, know that it’s just that way. We all have breaking points. We can all only take so much stress. Let each other react however is ‘normal’ for them and try to give each other space with this. Because the other does not react, or appear to react, as you do, does not mean they’re taking it any less harder than you. Give yourselves time and be patient with one another. We all don’t express ourselves the same way.

You may find yourself treasuring some one thing that your mom liked or had. One of our friends had given my mom a little clip-on Garfield when she was operated on in 1984. Since then she had moved away and when mom was sick in the hospital again, I brought that to her. That has always been special to me as I knew the love behind it from the giver, and that it was with mom at the end. I also very much recall my last birthday and Christmas gifts from her, or at least part of them. One is a stuffed dog I got for my birthday along with some money and the other is a little stuffed bear that I’d seen in the store and liked, which mom got me for Christmas as part of my gift two years before she passed away. The last Christmas she just gave money. Those things are meaningful to me and are special memories. You may find the same holds true with you.

You may also find yourself touching things your mom had. It’s like you feel you still have some contact with her that way. I recall being over at your house when you were going through the jewelry to pick out some items for the viewing. I noticed one of you holding a piece of jewelry and looking at it and touching it. I felt then that I knew what you were feeling. Nobody else probably picked it up. Then suddenly you realized that someone was waiting for you to put it back in its case. There’s just something about touching or smelling something that they touched, wore, etc. In a way in your mind it brings them back for a moment, as if you still had contact with them.

It may be difficult for you to be around any other funerals or viewings. With me it wasn’t so bad till I went to your mom’s and that was probably due to the fact that I’m close to your sister and we’d previously shared some things  concerning our mothers. That brought back many memories and I felt so for all of you as I knew exactly what you were going through and would go through. It was all I could do at times to hold the tears back. I could see your pain and sorrow and wanted to do something, yet also knowing at the same time that there was absolutely nothing I could do to remove the sorrow or take away the grief and pain.

It’s over…don’t put yourself down if you feel a relief that it’s over. It doesn’t mean you didn’t love your mother! But it is so very hard and such a helpless feeling to watch for months and months someone suffer and decline in health and there isn’t a thing you can do to stop it. Nobody knows what it’s like if it hasn’t happened to them. It is horrible. Never knowing how they’ll be, if they’ll live or die. It isn’t wrong to be relieved that it is over and you don’t have to watch it anymore. I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy! It’s such a terribly emotional time, so many ups and downs, nerves on edge. Feeling you can’t take anymore or are losing it. Those feelings are normal.

If I’d only….don’t beat yourself with these thoughts. You cannot go back and change anything. It doesn’t help you or the situation to dwell on these things. You’ll just drive yourself crazy with entertaining thoughts like these. Don’t do that to yourself….push any thoughts like that out of your mind as soon as you realize what’s happening. If you could change the past then it’d be okay, but since we cannot, we have to go on and not beat ourselves over what maybe we could have done or not done.

You may find that suddenly, without any warning, you’ll start to think about things and get upset all over again. It’s normal. Sometimes you know why it happens, other times it seems like for no reason your mind starts going back over things. You are not losing it or cracking up. If you find yourself extra emotional for awhile, it’s okay. If things upset you that didn’t before, it is okay. You may forget things, feel you can’t cope with the normal pressures you handled before, etc….it is a normal reaction. Don’t be afraid that you are losing your mind as you’re not….not that it might not feel that way to you at the time! It is a normal reaction. You need to realize that you are still under much emotional stress today. This isn’t something that goes away overnight and you’re healed and back to normal. It will take time to adjust, things will be better down the road and easier. Even if it doesn’t feel that way now. Give yourself time…don’t set a time limit for yourself that you should be over things by any certain time. There will always be a void in your life now, but it won’t always feel this big or empty.

I hope in some small way that something I’ve said will help, even just the thought of knowing that someone else understands and knows what you’re going through. Everyone doesn’t as I’m sure you’ve found. There’s some that won’t ever mention the subject to you as they are unsure how you’ll react, and then there’s the other extreme where ignorant people expect you to be back to normal shortly thereafter.

Be patient with one another and with yourself. The short time I was with you, I noticed all of you react in some different ways. I saw my father change through what happened with mom. I saw him break down. My parents did not have the best marriage. But I saw my father break and he has changed through it. My dad moved away only seven months after mom passed away, and probably would’ve sooner if his mother was not also dying at the same time. (She passed away several months after mom did.) I know he still feels the loss.

There’s probably many more things I could share with you. Just know I do care and feel for each of you.

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Blindsided: Personal Response to Douglas Stauffer’s Voicemail

When my husband found the voicemail from Douglas Stauffer a few hours after the church service, my resolve quickly changed to anxious anger, hearing the deceitful and harrowing accusations from Stauffer’s mouth. My husband, on the other hand, was already exhausted from an illness starting up and had to get up for work in a few shortly hours. Because of this, he did not have the strength or energy to process through the voicemail, and he strongly urged me not to say anything in response, and to allow him to handle it the next day after work. This was common practice in our church for the women to be hushed and expected to allow the husbands to work out any questions and disagreements, followed by their husbands coming back and commanding the order of their homes. Anything that does not follow this order results in the husband being viewed as less of man and leader, certainly one who is not ready for the ministry. I obliged for the sake of attempting to follow my husband’s lead, despite my naturally strong-will. It took everything in me not to say anything as I tossed and turned all night, replaying the trail of events that led up to where we were at that point. Over the course of the last year and half, however, I have finally found my voice and freedom outside of the extreme and spiritually-abusive patriarchal system our church taught and attempted to support scripturally.

This system gave the men in our church an unprecedented amount of power and position over women, from restricting the roles a woman can do in a church (including greeting without a man and being assigned “women’s work” before conferences) to restricting the majority of business meetings to “the men of the church.” Around the time of the exodus, however, the pastor finally established business meetings for “women without [male] representation.” While a large portion of the men remained humble and meek, for men like Doug Stauffer, it provided the perfect arena to expand their already inflated ego. Unfortunately, one of the most dangerous aspects of dealing with men like Doug Stauffer is that when their actions are brought into question, the majority of their statements are not only loaded with accusations and obnoxious remarks to cover up deceitfulness and quickly de-rail the listener’s thought processes, but they are often speckled with trifling amounts of truth to render their obscurities believable.  Because of this, their skewed versions of the truth require analysis and correction, focusing on one fabrication at a time.

The Matthew 18 Distraction

“Hey Matt, this is Doug Stauffer. I just had somebody to bring Crystal’s comments on Facebook to my attention. Um, actually Pastor Ray. I guess somebody brought it to him and I guess some people went to Lula about it. Uh, you know, it’s pretty disheartening for her to be quoting, uh, Matthew 18 about if you have an issue with a brother, take it to them, etc. I’m just dumbfounded how this, these comments can be on Facebook if they aren’t brought to the pastor or the person preaching. I mean, isn’t she guilty of the very thing that she’s saying should have been done all along?”- Stauffer’s Voicemail to Matt Olds 

As already pointed out and proved in the blog post about the original Facebook message, I never accused Stauffer of not following Matthew 18. A friend, Will Hess, brought up the passage and I merely asked Will for clarification about the subject of the passage. This passage will continue to come up in later conversations with Doug Stauffer and Andrew Ray, both likely attempting to reflect any truthful accusations by questioning the validity of my character and convictions instead.

Use of Online Mediums

“And, you know, we probably need to talk as soon as possible. Um, I would suggest that, you know, she probably remove those posts, you know, from Facebook. It’s really, you know, childish, divisive, destructive to the church to air that type of, um, material on the internet. I mean, REALLY? Is that the maturity that she is trying to gain and, and put out there? It’s really quite destructive, divisive and immature, carnal even, for her to put those notes out there. ”

While it is a reasonable suggestion to take down the Facebook post, neither Stauffer nor the church had any intention of editing or taking down his sermon. His most recent message, “Hindrances to Building,” was preached in a large meeting with over thirty visiting churches. The message was live-streamed and posted immediately following the service, and Stauffer even continued to share his message on Twitter a week later (June 9, 2018) without any changes or remorse.

As for the publicity of the internet, Stauffer was well-aware on all three occasions that his messages were not only live-streamed and uploaded to YouTube, but the audio files were uploaded to Stauffer’s personal page on sermon audio. By our demand, both the YouTube video (was since made private) and the sermon audio file of “Hindrances to Building” were edited, but Antioch Baptist Church delayed significantly in editing the two malicious messages from January (arguers are gone/cutting away of the flesh), and even as of December 2019, Stauffer has left them in their original format. I feel Stauffer’s concern was not carnality or divisiveness, but rather his own pride because of the embarrassment of being called out about his actions.

Being Gracious with a Preacher

“Um, a person preaches. They say things, it doesn’t always, you know, come across exactly the way they would necessarily say it every time.”

Stauffer is correct in that we should be gracious with preachers because they are human and make mistakes, but Stauffer publicly admitted his purposeful error this the first time, chuckled, and then said sometimes preachers say things they shouldn’t say, “No matter how truthful it is.” Only a week later, he compared the mass exodus of people to a circumcision, a “cutting away of the flesh.”  Then, five months later, he states at a large conference that a church rupture was “the best thing that could have happened,” and compared the people to babies sucking their thumbs that can be heard slurping on the milk! The Bible is clear, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.”

Destructive, Immature, and Carnal?

It’s really, you know, childish, divisive, destructive to the church to air that type of, um, material on the internet. I mean, REALLY? Is that the maturity that she is trying to gain and, and put out there? It’s really quite destructive, divisive and immature, carnal even, for her to put those notes out there.”

Am I truly the one that is destructive, immature and carnal when Douglas Stauffer used the pulpit to, again, accuse the people that left of wanting to argue about everything, about their leaving being a circumcision/cutting away of the flesh, and then to call them a bunch of babies sucking their thumbs, slurping on milk? I expressed my concerns about restoration, reconciliation and hurt on both sides, with less detail than he ever gave on the situations. In my opinion, Stauffer had shown nothing but destructive and immature means of dealing with this situation while attempting to deflect that spotlight on me.

“But um, the people that left that were complainers, and whiners, and left and split because, most of them, had to do with um- whether somebody was dating somebody else. Um, you know, most of that is completely childish. We helped many of the people out, um, beyond comprehension, and then, you know, basically get stabbed in the back.”

Expressing concerns about unbiblical directions and desiring that the church follow the Bible is not whining and complaining. Unbeknown to me at the time of the voicemail, when Stauffer said that a majority of the people leaving had to do with who was dating who, he was partially correct. The problem is that he covered up the blaring corruption:  Most of them left because Pastor Ray and his wife were strongly pushing their children to either go into or remain in serious COURTSHIPS, not only against their parent’s wishes, but by purposefully advising teenagers how to sneak around the parents to do so. Oh, but the people that left were whiners because they cared for their children and expected their wishes as parents to be respected. As for helping people beyond comprehension and then getting stabbed in the back, I did not realize that if a person does something kind for someone else, it is no longer acceptable to disagree with them, and one should be willing to accept any level of disrespect and abuse. Is that just gaslighting, blackmail, or both?

On the Matter of Reconciliation

“Listen. We are all for reconciliation. I still meet and talk to those people that left. Um, but I think it was the worst thing in the world that those that are complainers and gripers and destructive in the church left, and I’m upset about it? I’m not. I think it was good for the church.”

Let us begin with the blatant lie: Anyone I asked about Doug Stauffer meeting up with and talking with them about laughed in my face. Though it sounds great on paper and I guess he can give himself a pat on the back for commenting quickly on someone’s anniversary post on Facebook who he never had a falling-out with, his actions never constituted being open to reconciliation. Neither does showing up at someone’s door and demanding your money back immediately, even at the expense of their child’s safety. But that is not the carnality we should be highlighting and calling out, correct? It is mine, right, for daring to say that a church split is never a good thing and that there are usually people hurting on both sides?

Additionally, concerning Stauffer’s actions against my own family in the months to come, I did not realize that harassment, manipulation, and threats were considered part of being “all for reconciliation.” Doug Stauffer and Pastor Andrew Ray both caused nothing but stress and strife in my family for months to come, using my husband’s desire for ministry as a means of manipulating me into silence. Being silenced does not equal reconciliation.

The Publicity Issue

“I think that, um, division and divisiveness, um, you know, there’s no place for it in the church. There’s no place for your wife’s comments on Facebook. Um, I’m not going to respond back publicly because I think then that just worsens the situation.”

While it appears harmless at first mention, pay close attention to the numerous times in the next few days and months that Stauffer uses going “public” with comments and details as threats, even down to setting up the very last meeting where, if we did not sweep things under the rug, he was supposedly going to step down, leave the church and send my letter of harassment to “the men of the church.” This is reverse psychology and a form of manipulation and control.

Complainers to a Complainer

“I think what she’s going to do is then draw some of those people that have liked her comments to her and then she will create a worse problem, so if she’s truly trying to, uh, help a situation, she’s going in the opposite direction. This will draw complainers to a complainer and she’s going to be guilty of the very carnality that she’s so worried about.”

Question #1: What was my complaint exactly? I simply disagreed with godly people being called out from behind the pulpit without the opportunity to defend themselves. Calling me a complainer- Stauffer’s beaten, dead, horse during preaching for the last year- only serves to attempt to prevent his hypocrisy and destruction being brought to light.

Question #2 What information is he afraid of getting out if he is concerned about “drawing complainers to a complainer”?

This will come up in future posts, but in my opinion Pastor Andrew Ray and Doug Stauffer were obsessively concerned with the availability of information, not only to hide their skeletons in the closet, but also to use as manipulation to keep others silent. Their actions, by definition, constitute spiritual and emotional abuse, as I will continue to prove throughout this series, actions that no one except a select few were to be aware of the details of what happened.

Key Information Going Forward: “I know it’s late tonight…”

“So, anyway, you give me a call tomorrow if you’d like. I know its late tonight. ***-***-**** [Phone number]. Uh, we do need to talk about this, um, as soon as possible. Thanks. Bye.”

While this is a common, respectful way to end a phone call, Stauffer follows it up with private messages and accusations because of a lack of response to those private messages close to midnight. As for talking the next day “as soon as possible,” because my husband did not respond immediately while at work all day, Doug Stauffer attempted to enact church discipline, stating that we had to meet with him before we could attend any church services that week, even though he was not the pastor and had no actual authority.

The Heart of the Matter

Stauffer should have NEVER vilified the people who left, especially not to abuse the pulpit as a place of corrupt influence. One vulgar statement, though distasteful and harsh, is understandable. To repeat the actions several times after recognizing the offense, however, reveals not only a lack a discretion and remorse, but in my opinion a man void of character.  Should I have gone to Stauffer first? Probably before two or three witnesses, as I have since realized would have been appropriate (1 Timothy 5:19).

To complicate matters, however, Stauffer and Pastor Andrew Ray had a tight-knit relationship, spending countless hours together writing books. Pastor Ray should have dealt with Stauffer’s comments after the first two occurrences, and if he had, Stauffer would not have had the liberty, confidence and even support to abuse the pulpit at Antioch Baptist Church in such a manner during a Bible conference. Pastor Andrew Ray said “Amen” on multiple occasions in response to these outrageous statements, opening the door for Stauffer to continue to stroke his own pride.

To take it a step further, vocalizing a disagreement of my own, would have resulted in me being labeled as non-submissive, and in my husband being viewed as less of man because of a supposed lack of leadership in our own home. Pastor Ray said before that when two men are discussing the Bible, a woman should not add anything “because it will look bad on her husband.”

As far as could be seen, NO ONE was doing anything about the atrocities thrown out behind the pulpit and something needed to be said. These are sweet, compassionate, godly people that he was throwing under the bus and I could not force it down any longer. My husband is not the confrontational type, and for me to say anything would reflect poorly on my husband. Even with his eventual approval on a much softer post, was Facebook the best method? Probably not, but even my Facebook post does not justify Douglas Stauffer’s use of harassment to silence my family. According to Doug Stauffer, however, the end justified the means.

In this series I share my thoughts and opinions concerning these ministers and the events which led to my departure. Click here to continue reading: “Blindsided: Harassment from Douglas Stauffer Begins” or click on the link below.

For a list of the complete series, click here.

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Blindsided: Douglas Stauffer’s Voicemail to Matthew Olds

On a normal day, Antioch Baptist Church was a calm, peaceful place, as it usually is in an Independent Fundamental Baptist Church. That is, until someone dares to stand up against the actions of a person of prominence, particularly one who is in ministerial work of some fashion. When that disagreement is voiced, especially in a way that is more public, the wolves come out and attack, all the while portraying their actions as protecting the poor, helpless sheep. A few hours after the evening service, my husband, Matt Olds, noticed he had a missed call and a voicemail from Douglas Stauffer. It was not too surprising, though still anxiety-inducing, considering the recent post, but we had no idea of the harassment that would ensue after that, beginning with this voicemail. [Voicemail is also transcribed below.]

Transcript of Doug Stauffer’s Voicemail to Matt Olds on Sunday, June 3, 2018 

“Hey Matt, this is Doug Stauffer. I just had somebody to bring Crystal’s comments on Facebook to my attention. Um, actually Pastor Ray. I guess somebody brought it to him and I guess some people went to Lula about it. Uh, you know, it’s pretty disheartening for her to be quoting, uh, Matthew 18 about if you have an issue with a brother, take it to them, etc. I’m just dumbfounded how this, these comments can be on Facebook if they aren’t brought to the pastor or the person preaching. I mean, isn’t she guilty of the very thing that she’s saying should have been done all along? And, you know, we probably need to talk as soon as possible. Um, I would suggest that, you know, she probably remove those posts, you know, from Facebook. It’s really, you know, childish, divisive, destructive to the church to air that type of, um, material on the internet. I mean, REALLY? Is that the maturity that she is trying to gain and, and put out there? It’s really quite destructive, divisive and immature, carnal even, for her to put those notes out there. Um, a person preaches. They say things, it doesn’t always, you know, come across exactly the way they would necessarily say it every time.  But um, the people that left that were complainers, and whiners, and left and split because, most of them, had to do with um- whether somebody was dating somebody else. Um, you know, most of that is completely childish. We helped many of the people out, um, beyond comprehension, and then, you know, basically get stabbed in the back.

Listen. We are all for reconciliation. I still meet and talk to those people that left. Um, but I think it was the worst thing in the world that those that are complainers and gripers and destructive in the church left, and I’m upset about it? I’m not. I think it was good for the church. I think that, um, division and divisiveness, um, you know, there’s no place for it in the church. There’s no place for your wife’s comments on Facebook. Um, I’m not going to respond back publicly because I think then that just worsens the situation. I think what she’s going to do is then draw some of those people that have liked her comments to her and then she will create a worse problem, so if she’s truly trying to, uh, help a situation, she’s going in the opposite direction. This will draw complainers to a complainer and she’s going to be guilty of the very carnality that she’s so worried about.

So, anyway, you give me a call tomorrow if you’d like. I know its late tonight. ***-***-**** [Phone number]. Uh, we do need to talk about this, um, as soon as possible. Thanks. Bye.”

In this series, I share my thoughts and opinions concerning these ministers and the events which led to my departure. Click here to continue reading: “Blindsided: Personal Response to Douglas Stauffer’s Voicemail” or click on the link below.

For a list of the complete series, click here.

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Blindsided: Silent No Longer

After hearing Douglas Stauffer’s carnal message that morning, I grabbed my son and stormed-out of the auditorium- silently, of course- and went downstairs to the church kitchen to inform my husband of the malicious words Stauffer used behind the pulpit. How can a man that is supposedly a Christian have no remorse for such seething words against those godly people? Several of them were still my friends and their hurt was more than evident every time we spoke. Why did our pastor not stop Doug Stauffer, no matter how close he is to him in the ministry? I was too angry to return upstairs for the rest of message, so we gathered up our other children from the nursery and went home for the afternoon. I messaged the Williams’ [name changed for privacy] about the occurrence because they were considering visiting at Bible Conference that year, and they needed to be warned to stay away for the sake of their family.

All afternoon, furious that a supposed man of God would use the pulpit in such a vindictive way for the THIRD time, with over thirty visiting churches, I concocted several ideas for telling Stauffer off, all shot down. It was not like I had the man on a pedestal, considering how he had been entirely deceitful at our expense just two years before when we were about to go on a missions trip, but I did not realize that it was possible to respect him less as a Christian and as a human being. I developed numerous drafts for Facebook posts, all of which my husband shot down because they were unkind.  He was right, though I felt that they were appropriate.

We quietly returned to the evening service to hear Evangelist Ken McDonald preach (great preacher) and left shortly after the service concluded. By the time we got home, I finally had a post toned-down enough that my husband would approve of because I could not stay silent any longer. This had gone on for too long and I could no longer stand by as my friends were torn apart without remorse. My original Facebook post is provided below. I have also included certain comments below because after a friend, Will Hess, a pastor and creator of The Church Split, commented about Matthew 18, I asked Will for clarification on the subject of the chapter. Doug Stauffer and Pastor Andrew Ray repeatedly took this questioning out of context to attempt to accuse me of hypocrisy. They manipulated the truth to falsely portray that I accused Doug Stauffer of not going to the people directly while taking the disagreements directly to Facebook. Despite the numerous times Stauffer and Andrew Ray brought this up, I NEVER accused Stauffer of not following Matthew 18, and that is proven below.

Original Facebook Post on Sunday, June 3, 2018

As we finish the first day of Bible conference tonight, my heart is heavy after racing through a million emotions today. What are we doing with those in our church? How are we helping them? How are we encouraging them? How are we treating those who have gone?


If they are babes in Christ, do they not need admonition and exhortation? If they are carnal and “slurping on milk,” do they not still need the same? How about finding out why. Paul said, “Who hath hindered you?” Obviously, something has hindered someone that is carnal. Or maybe they aren’t the ones that are carnal.

If they have left the church because of sin, are we not yet still required the ministry of reconciliation and trying to help to restore them in Christ, rather than bashing them from the pulpit?

A church split is never a good thing. The quantity going down for the quality to go up isn’t entirely accurate. If at all. It’s not a cutting away of the flesh because that isn’t how God works.

Those that leave, for whatever reason, are usually hurting. Those that are left are hurting. And it surely doesn’t help that spiritual altitude of a church. Bitterness usually ensues on one or both sides and it hurts the cause of Christ.

Will Hess’ Comments to Original Facebook Post

Will Hess: Agreed.
1 Cor 3 though makes clear that disunity is due to worldliness. If people leave a church for any other reason than a strong biblical issue (not one of opinion) then they are causing division and refusing to work in unity and as Matt 18 and many other place make clear… If they refuse to repent…they are to be as a “heathen”

Crystal Olds (me): I know of families in times past (not recently) that have left literally for the sake of unity and to end the discord. Isn’t Matthew 18 about if you have an issue with a brother, take it to them, etc. and then if they won’t hear one, then before two or three witnesses, then let them be accursed?

Will Hess: Crystal Olds, yeah exactly. Paul goes on similar lines, but leaving for the sake of unity is actually entirely contradictory to unity. If others are sowing discord, follow Matthew 18, and the Pastor should always support such.

In this series I share my thoughts and opinions concerning these ministers and the events which led to my departure. Click here to continue reading: “Blindsided: Douglas Stauffer’s Voicemail to my Husband” or click on the link below.

For a list of the complete series, click here.

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