On Easter Sunday we heard of Pastor Danny’s “retirement” which we knew in our hearts was wrong. We knew he would never leave the church he loves without a head pastor to take over.
Two weeks later we were shown a video, by him, admitting to a problem that he had, but was delivered from 18 months ago.
Deep inside our souls we asked “what is really going on here?” Our spirits told us something is wrong. And it is. Very wrong. This is spiritual attack against our pastor. Matthew 26:31 says, “Strike the shepherd and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.
We were shocked to learn three pastors instigated this plot to remove Danny. They contacted an outside source to start a review of him over 5 months ago. They didn’t go to the Calvary Chapel Association, like they should have, but instead went to Pasterserve.
According to Pastorserve’s website they were supposed to talk to the Elders and to the small group leaders. Only the Ruling Elder board of five were interviewed and none of the small group leaders or the remaining elders. No one else knew or was consulted. It was done secretively.
ECC 12:14 says “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”
Some of the leadership are committing two major sins. They are bearing false witness, not just against their neighbor but against their leader and they are coveting the position of senior pastor.
Anytime we questioned one of those pastors about it and they told us the church is trying to protect our senior pastor and it is a deep sin issue or a financial matter. If we didn’t leave it alone we were just going to hurt him. These are lies. Our pastor himself confessed to what he had done wrong in his video. Remember that. Anything else said hear is malice and slander.
They talk of ‘restoring him’. If that were true then why have they worked so hard to get rid of him? And why is he no longer on the website?
This really has nothing to do with Danny not being there. It has everything to do with what they have done to him. If he were actually retiring or going somewhere that God called him to go then okay. We would miss him but so be it. Jesus Christ is the head of our church but Danny is its heart. He is God’s anointed teacher and rightful head pastor of this Church. Pastor Danny’s love of the Lord is evident by his messages and those messages have grown this congregation from a small Warehouse to the huge church it is today. All along he gives glory and credit to God. He loves this church body.
What he has done recently is try to keep it together and that’s what we’re doing. Our actions are not meant to divide Calvary but to save it. The congregation is already dividing and the numbers are decreasing every week. The leadership behind this don’t care. They said they expect to lose 25 to 35% of the congregation without Danny and they are okay with that. That’s not okay! The bible teaches in Luke 15:4, a good shepherd will leave the 99 sheep to find the one that is lost.
This is what God is telling us to do. God is good and his ways are pure. He is orchestrating all of this. We are just listening to Him. It is all overwhelming but we trust the Lord. We have no way of knowing all of this inside information without God being the coordinator of this. None. We are sure they will try to discredit us and say that we are misinformed or lying. We can assure you that our sources are extremely reliable. We have no reason to lie.
In My fasting and prayer I asked God why did it get this far. He told me “It had to”. It took the vote against Danny to see how far the yeast had spread among the leadership. And now he knows that nine pastors and assistant pastors were actually affected. 9. We are sure some of them are good men whose hearts have been led astray, but they still voted for him to leave. Only three pastors stood up for Danny. They are Pastors Art, Frank and assistant Pastor Luis.
Bottom line: Nothing Pastor Danny spoke of on the video is grounds for him not being senior pastor of this Church. It didn’t affect his teaching and he should remain as head pastor. He spoke of his issue of pride. If everyone who was prideful in some way couldn’t teach there would be no pastors. Pastor Danny is not perfect and has always been transparent about his shortcomings. The only perfect one was Jesus and He said “Let He who is without sin among you cast the first stone” None of us can do that.
If you are a new believer please do not let this dishearten you but to serve as a warning instead. The devil is out to destroy all believers, new and seasoned. The only way to combat that is to have a relationship with Jesus and know the truth of the Bible. Stay in it. Read it. Pray daily so that you will know when you’re being led astray. Listen to the Holy Spirit inside of you. If it feels wrong, then it probably is. Don’t be discouraged. 1 John 4:4 says “Greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.” God always wins.
Right now many of you probably have a full range of emotions and want to know what you can do. First and most importantly-pray. I know many of you have been. Continue to pray for Danny, Wendy and their whole family. Pray for the ones doing this to come to repentance. Pray for this Church to continue teaching the way it has for 34 years. Pray and do what God leads you to do.
If you don’t agree with what is happening let the pastors and ruling elders know. What we are doing is putting our tithe away or tithing elsewhere until our Danny is restored to his rightful position. Pastor Danny has always taught that the tithe is to God and should be done through your home church. That’s true but with what has happened, this is no longer our home. But it can be again. It’s not too late. As a congregation we need to unify in the truth and come together to save this Church. We need to insist that Pastor Danny is reinstated and given full authority to remove the ones responsible for all this.
We need to be accountable to others, and we don’t need to worry about calling someone to account as long as it’s truly done in love? If that’s what I hear you saying, that’s a good word and wise advice to follow.
As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. Proverbs 27:17
Word.
So hrateful that you did that Tony. You didn’t have to do that, I know. But you ARE Calvary Advisor…
Tony, can you help us understand how a bunch of Christian men can conspire together and continue in a course that is so obviously against God’s will? How could this happen? And how do we keep it from happening g to US? Teachable moment, my friend.
*grateful
Jesus had an inner circle men Peter and his brother Andrew, and the sons of thunder John and James (Mark 3:17) These guys hung around with Jesus and most of us in Calvary Chapel have very close guys (elders) that we watch each other’s back not matter what’s going on we could come and share with one another and if we see the other guy slip… we are not scared to slap him on the head and corrected him and that goes both ways. Chuck Smith had Romaine as a very close friend and a wife that stood by Chuck… Read more »
I just noticed that I only addressed point B of your two-part question. A bitter individual can do horrible things and in Hebrews 12:15, the author states “Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.” Bitterness can be tricky to recognize because it’s not a symptom or visible on the surface like anger usually is. Many claim that they aren’t an angry or hateful, but that’s not what bitterness is all about. Bitterness is an underlying problem… Read more »
As we all are, the Church Elders and Board will be obviously brought to humility, and find out the hard way, how they have used their disgruntled feelings to throw out Danny Hodges, whom God had appointed leader of Calvary Chapel St. Pete
They also forgot it was pastor Danny Hodges gift from the lord that built ccsp to begin with. Without him the once vibrant church is nothing but a building now. With the overhead of that place it won’t be long before it’s all over for them!
I personally flew down to speak with Dave Dodge and warned him what was about to happen to CCSP if they didn’t reconsider and also asked him why is it the sheep that always have to suffer for the actions of those Wayward Shepherds.
Just curious if in light of Danny’s comments regarding stopping social media if this website, FB and other pages will be removed?
Don’t count on it Bob.. ?
We miss Pastor Danny n we need Pastor Danny!!!
We are going to be reunited with our beloved Pastor Danny for the first official worship and information service as Calvary Chapel Fellowship St. Pete. That’s taking place this Sunday at 9:00 and 11:00 AM, at the Pinellas Park Performing Arts Center, which I believe is on 78th Ave. Google that place Eva to get an exact address. I’m Rebeca Gallegos and I am looking forward to meeting you!
Hi,
Will the services be held @ Pinellas Park Performing Arts Center moving forward? Or theres a chance of venue change?
Next week pastor Danny will be at the Palladium Theater downtown St. Pete. See today’s blog post for further details.
I get Jesus bumps thinking about it!! =)
Enjoying Calvary Chapel Palm Harbor
Enjoying Calvary Chapel Palm Harbor
Hi-side note for clarity regarding a link on the right side…
Calvary Chapel Global Network is headed by Brian Brodersen at the old website, https://calvarychapel.com.
Calvary Chapel Association is headed by a group of pastors, such as Mike McIntosh, Joe Focht, etc. http://calvarychapelassociation.com
May the Lord give truth, guidance and wisdom, healing and reconciliation, to all that were and are a part of CCSP. Praying for you.
Thank you for the correction.
Something in my spirit has not sat right since Pastor Danny announced he was leaving CCSP….there was a still small voice speaking to me but I could not yet interpret what God was trying to show me. I patiently continued to attend services at Calvary Chapel standing in faith that God would reveal Himself and His plan. Today He did just that. This morning Dave Dodge announced that there would be a meeting at 12:30 and if “you consider yourself a member of Calvary Chapel you should attend”. This was the first I had heard about this. What took place… Read more »
danny always said beware of false prophets. he is our teacher, calvary chapel is just a building without danny’s teachings. keep up the good work.
God revealed Himself and saved me while attending Calvary chapel and I deeply respect and admire Danny and thank God for gifting him as a wonderful teacher of the Bible. I grew so much and learned so much underneath his teaching and am grateful because I needed it desperately in my early walk as a Christian, not knowing anything about the Bible or what it looks like to follow Christ. I have to say how sad I am about this whole thing. This division makes me sad, the sin that has led to this break up, and honestly this website… Read more »
I was absolutely broken hearted when I read the news, but that news seemed to imply he would be there until the end of May. I decided at that point I would attend every service so as to “soak up” as much of Danny and the way he delivered God’s word, like no one else. I found out that I was tricked when I went to see him and he wasn’t there. I thought maybe it was a mistake. I then called and was told he would not be returning. Well, then, neither will I! Danny IS Calvary, whether anyone… Read more »
We are happily transplanted at CCPH.
Please, Please tell us the truth and let the congregation decide. We love Pastor Danny and want him to return.
No one takes pleasure in what is occurring in CCSP and everyone is being impacted by the recent obscure decision of removing Danny from what God has called him to do. The (so called) leadership sorta reminds me of Numbers 16 when Korah thought that he could do a better job leading God’s people than Moses and lead a revolt against God’s divinely appointed leader. By doing so Korah demonstrates the grim consequences of usurping the authority of God and of those whom He has chosen to be leaders of His people. By no means am I suggesting what Moses… Read more »
God is a God of new beginnings. If I was Danny, I would start a small fellowship like he did in the early 90’s back in the warehouse and watch the Lord continue to use the shepherd that He has called to St Pete. God is not through with Danny like He was not through with King David or any of the other Patriarchs in the Bible when they sinned. This just might be a pruning process that Danny is going through, God cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit… Read more »
TonyE, YES, YES, YES! I’ve suspected all along that God may use Danny to build a brand new fellowship from the ground up. There’s something very real that happens when God gathers a group of outcasts (which he, and we, now are from CC St. Pete), puts a faith-filled and battle-proven man of God as their leader, and begins a new move of God. It’s revival! It’s living life on the edge, it’s hard, it creates bonds that will never be broken. It’s amazing, worship-inspiring, life-changing, purifying. As for the building, let them have it and each other. I’ll take… Read more »
Thanks Rebeca, the entire history of Calvary Chapels began with God using Chuck Smith to reach out to those who society deemed as out casts (hippies back then) and give them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The theme of Calvary is… Come just as you are, Hear the Spirit call, Come just as you are and receive Life everlasting, Strength for today; taste the living water you will never thirst again! (¬‿¬)
So true! I forgot that I knew that!
What it boils down to for me is I was growing in my christian walk under a good teacher who spoke the words straight from the bible, that is no longer the case, I like the other pastors but have trouble keeping up with ANY of the remaining pastors, I’m not learning anything new and the WORD is not being explained where I or others I know do not feel like they are growing. After 18 years we find it very hard to believe pastor Danny food anything to deserve this. The board and their secrecy as well as senastians… Read more »
Exactly!
Did anyone watch calvary live-stream today? In the beginning the camera showed a lot of people in attendance. After the singing, Fancy Renard did the church announcements.
Then as Sebastian began the mornings service the camera slowly panned in toward him. There were a lot of empty seats.
Sidney, I noticed the same while watching online last night. Can’t bring myself to go back there right now, maybe never depending upon the outcome.
With all of this truth why will the owners of this website and the contributors come out and say who they are? Why won’t they say where they are getting their information? In the absence of the full truth I will continue to call this gossip and darkness intended to spread division. There is no biblical principal at work here. Where are your biblical references for delivering this truth in this way? Danny always gave biblical reference when he offered his opinion. Did you learn nothing from the man?
Bob, why did Calvary Chapel St. Petersburg hire an outside source (PastorServe) to secretly investigate My Pastor?
Something ie very wrong within Calvary, but it’s not, and never was Pastor Danny. I do know that God will make right a wrong! I continue to pray for Pastor Danny and his family. Do not accuse me of worshipping Danny………I worship God becaus Pastor Danny’s teachings were “taught right”‘which allowed me to see God and know that love. Ive always been a believer, but for 60+ years i spent time in many churches, many denominations and didnt really know why i was never satisfied…..UNTIL I WALKED INTO CALVARY TEN YEARS AGO….Immediately upon hearing Pastor Danny i knew what i… Read more »
God chose Danny over 20 years ago to feed the flock (preach and teach God’s Word) and Calvary Chapel St Pete today is a testament of God’s work in Danny’s life. Mary Magdalene’s testimony speaks volumes of how Christ’s compassion for sinners surpasses even the self-righteous edicts of man. She was considered to be a spectacular sinner… a prostitute who was caught in the very act of adultery (John 8:1-11) She felt the love that Jesus has for the sinners and expressed it in a way that would anger the self-righteous spectators by slowly pouring a pound of spikenard, a… Read more »
Prayers that God’s Will will be to heal, mend and meld together, the congregation, all leadership INCLUDING PASTOR DANNY AND HIS FAMILY. This is a very hard time. It is already taking a toll on the church, I can see it. People can see it and this situation is making people question. I have to believe that if the majority of the congregation chooses to leave, it is showing Calvary a vote that this is, or has been done in an unjust way by so called Christians. It is still causing me sleepless nights and worry…..and that’s with leaning onGod… Read more »
We have to take Pastor Danny at his word. He said he is retiring and his farewell address will be May 27 and May 28. People recognize Christians by their love. What would it mean if Danny is not allowed to preach that weekend? What does an ecumenical group like PastorServe have to do with the Calvary Chapel organization?
Rick, I have those same questions.
State Of Florida Corporations website no longer shows Danny Hodges as the president of Calvary Chapel of St. Petersburg Florida INC as of 04/26/2017. View the 2016-2017 annual report filings for further details.
This website is provided to publish information. Due to troll and hateful comments the admin will moderate all comments. The old saying “don’t shoot the messenger’ applies here. Thanks for understanding
Is this the “official” stance of the Calvary Chapel leadership? Who is the Blog Master and did this person write the article? How do we know these facts about the leaderships’ support of Danny are true? The Bible is very clear about the standards a Pastor and elders must uphold. If Danny failed in these areas and the leadership knew three years ago, why was there seemingly so much pressure on Danny now? It would seem the elders and leadership did not resolve the problems with Danny in a Biblical way. This is also very troubling.
Yes Mike, I feel the same way!
Might want to inquire about the accuracy of Florida state division of corporate records. A link is provided in this article for your convenience.
Amen!!!!
I find it interesting when people accuse others of playing Bible bingo… when they themselves do the same! James 3 speaks of those who teach will be judged more strictly, God is the judge not the elders! King David was well aware of this and said, “I’m in a desperate situation!” David replied to Gad. “But let us fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is great. Do not let me fall into human hands.” 2 Samuel 24:14 When it comes to church discipline the church has a very bad track record and church history can testify… Read more »
Tony, what a wonderful article! This is my thought too! God will not let Danny’s teaching be silent! What you wrote is exactly what my gut tells ,e and it’s what I feel. Danny said he will always be in ministry and I will be where he is. God will make right this wrong!
AMEN!
Thanks Brother,
AMEN AMEN AMEN
I read your opinions with a lot of thoughtful consideration. There have definitely been a lot of issues on all sides and this hasn’t been an easy situation to work through. I think there are some important things to consider though. I think it is very ironic that you would accuse so many of divisiveness when this post clearly has such a motive behind it. it is possible for a person to be delivered from sin, however just because you admit it does not mean you should remain qualified in your position. Pastors are held to a higher standard as… Read more »
Ok, what did Pastor Danny not heed to? What did anyone including pastorserve think was wrong. And what is the healing that needs to take place. And POSSIBLY FOR ONE YEAR! And why are you anonymous? Put your name out there. If we knew who you were maybe we could trust what you say?
Danny was NOT ousted by a hostile takeover. An independent company was called in to look into how the church was running under his leadership. Danny had a choice, to leave on his own or have a vote of the leadership to decide his position. The church is a very large business that cannot be controlled by one person which was the way it was happening. He had opened the church up to many potential lawsuits for wrongful terminations. If you looked around you could see the many different employees were no longer there, have any of you ever reached… Read more »
Wow. Whoever this Ray person is, I don’t want to go to any church you attend, and you would not be welcome in my home. The expression of hateful self-righteousness articulated here frightens me. OF COURSE it was a “hostile takeover,” the contempt you have for everyone by talking down to us like children is FAR AND AWAY more prideful than anything I have ever seen from Pastor Hodges. People like RAY are precisely the reason the churches in this nation are dying and why no one wants to go.
Actually it was a hostile take over. It was NOT the Calvary Chapel organization as Pastor Danny requested. Why was that? Hostile take over. May all the people involved in this nasty business be judged severely by the Lord, in this life and the next.
Is this Ray Franklin? The missionary?Ray, you were free to take your family elsewhere if you were not being fed by Danny’s teaching. Just as we are free to leave Calvary Chapel St. Pete because we are not being fed. Freedom is what Christ came and died for.
I so agree. If you are somewhere you don’t like or you don’t like the person preaching or teaching don’t let the door hit you on the way out. You gave the right to leave and go elsewhere. I have known Pastor Danny for 44 years. Always enjoyed his teaching. I know Danny is a Godly man. He lives for God. He has a Godly wife and family. What people have done to him and what people are saying is NOT of God and you will reap what you sow. For the first time a few weeks ago my son… Read more »
Well said Rebeca. For me, it’s not about division, or a “doctrine “……..it’s about what’s right and whats not right. It’s about the true meaning and teaching of the Word, God loving Christianity and honesty! Pastor Danny is the best. Now Calvary doesn’t have it and THEY DONT GET IT. Very sad. God will tell me in His time where I need to be. I believe God is as angry as much as we are. Does no one fear our Lord? I think there are some situations caused by UNGODLY acts towards one another. “THOSE” should be fearful of such… Read more »
Ray, I’m 76 and never smoked or drank anything because I chose not to, however, I have friends of all ages and while out with them quite often one can’t help but possibly being in an area with an odor of something. One time i asked a much younger friend while in a restaurant, ” Hmm, what is that smell”, those who knew it told me it was pot. Now I have never seen pot, smoked pot, or smelled pot, however, the smell was nice so why wouldn’t someone say, “Wow, I still love the smell of pot”? I love… Read more »
In the corporate world this scenario is called a hostile takeover. In a nutshell he was ousted from his own church.
Prove it to us if Danny was ousted from his own church, and why. PROVE IT TO US!
I think I meant to say……prove it to me/us that Pastor Danny WASNT ousted by the church and others!
I have messaged pastor Danny to call me for a recorded interview. Hopefully we can find out what’s going on.
Honestly FidoSysop, I won’t believe anything I hear, good or bad, unless I hear it straight from Danny’s mouth in the presence of many witnesses. Why can’t we plan a potluck bar-b-que at a park somewhere and invite Danny and Wendy to come and tell us whatever THEY want to say? How fun it would be to hang out and just fellowship with them and each other! We can have a list of non-guests, including the haters on this site and the Pastors and elders and who agreed to oust Danny, and not allow them to attend our welcome back/appreciation… Read more »
Rebeca, I think your idea is excellent! I’m all for it! Many of you must know Danny and Wendy personally…..and the other leadership too. With such a large congregation it was difficult to personally get to know them, howeve, one week before the April 15th service I had an opportunity to talk to Danny and I asked him to pray for me and with me which he did. I know who he is by the way he teaches, etc. ❤️
That’s a good idea.. Y’all set it up and I’ll be there.
I’ll see what I can do❤️
I didnt think he answered any messages from FB. Maybe you have another way of contact. Anyway, it would be wonderful if Pastor Danny would do it! Since he has resigned he may feel free to tell it as it is. I have a hard time believing that Pastor Danny would leave or have his congregation with so many unanswerd questions, so much anxiety, hurt, and even many psychologically affected. This has been more than devastating and it hurts deep within us. Right now I cant imagine being/hearing any other pastor. Im 76 now and just found the right pastor/teacher… Read more »
Maybe normally he does not answer fb messages, but maybe he will this time under the circumstances. Guess he is in Israel now or just leaving. Seen a video in the group shot from the tour bus in tel Aviv.
Maybe because of the circumstances he will. I believe they are headed home now.
It’s not his church. It’s God’s church. I loved his messages but I will not worship him over the church and create a division.
Who the Chuch belongs to is not in question by any person who supports Danny. What we have issue with is the life’s work of a man who is twice the man of God as any of you, being hijacked and usurped by accusers of the brethren. It is Danny’s ministry to his God and the sheep placed under his care that we are defending. You can never take that away from him, no matter how hard you try. God recognizes him for the servant that he is and so do we.
Rebeca, im so happy to read your comments. You are really right on and I totally agree with you! Its about defending Danny’s ministry! ❤️
I will not worship in that church without Pastor Danny!
Amen! It’s GOD’s church!