Escaping Being Bamboozled, Hoodwinked, & Led AstrayEscaping Being Bamboozled, Hoodwinked, & Led Astray
Resilient Truths
Dr. Bell discusses the experience of being manipulated and used by others, emphasizing the importance of discerning the spirit behind actions. She warns against trusting actions that are not based on a person's character or the Spirit of God. The gifts of...
55:07•5 Jul 2024
Resilient Truths: Spotting Spiritual Manipulation and Church Narcissism
Episode Overview
- Gifts of the Spirit can operate in a person whose life and character are not aligned with God, so behaviour matters more than performance.
- Prophecies and spiritual words should be confirmed by God and scripture; unconfirmed words can send people down painful, unnecessary paths.
- Not every tongue, miracle, or emotional display in church is from God, and true tongues should be accompanied by interpretation or clear confirmation.
- Narcissistic and controlling leaders, especially around money and power, can spiritually oppress people and keep them from growing.
- Studying scripture personally and staying close to the Holy Spirit is vital protection against being misled or financially exploited.
“If we're looking at the gifts and we're not looking at the person's life, that's how we get bamboozled, hoodwinked, or led astray.”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety and faith when church life itself has left them bruised? This session of *Resilient Truths* with Dr. Theresa M Bell goes straight at that problem, zeroing in on spiritual manipulation, flashy gifts, and leaders who look holy on stage but live very differently off it. Working from Romans 11:29 and 1 Corinthians 12:4–11, Dr.
Bell breaks down the gifts of the Spirit and keeps repeating one key warning: gifts are "without repentance". In other words, someone can preach, prophesy, sing or pray powerfully and still be completely out of step with God. As she puts it, "If we're saying one thing but doing something else, that's not lining up." You’ll hear her talk frankly about being "bamboozled, hoodwinked, or led astray" by people she trusted, including well-known preachers.
She shares how following hyped-up offerings and unchecked prophecies left her financially and emotionally hurting, saying she learned the hard way to stop "just throwing my money everywhere like that" and to go back to scripture for herself. The mood is real, raw and at times funny, with Dr. Bell joking about her torn-up bible and how she "ain't one of those" preachers who does dramatic stage moves.
Pastor Ronnie adds short but strong comments on renewing the mind daily and the emotional weight pastors can carry. This session speaks strongly to anyone in recovery who’s wary of church culture, has been pressured by religious authority, or feels confused by all the talk of gifts, tongues and prophecy. You’ll come away with practical checks: test the fruit, look at character, watch for narcissistic control, and never say amen to what your spirit and your bible don’t agree with.
It might leave you asking: who actually has access to your spirit right now, and do they really reflect God’s heart?
Do you want to link to this podcast?
Get the buttons here!
More From This Show
The latest episodes from the same podcast.
Related Episodes
Similar episodes from other shows in the catalogue.