Former Hillsong NYC Pastor Carl Lentz is back in church leadership, this time with Transformation Chuch in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In 2020 Lentz admitted to an extramarital affair, among other issues, and was let go from his role with Hillsong Church. Now, nearly three years later, amidst other problems at Hillsong, Lentz is back in ministry as a strategist with the Tulsa, Oklahoma megachurch and predominantly black congregation led by Pastor Mike Todd.
“We gladly welcome Carl Lentz to our Transformation Church staff, helping TC with strategy as we continue to move forward in our vast vision,” said executive pastor Tammy McQuarters. “We believe in Carl, his marriage, his skill set, and his restoration.”
The hiring comes as FX is set to release a new 4 part mini-series on what they call “A troubling pattern of misconduct” at Hillsong Church based in Australia. The documentary series features the first interviews with Carl and Laura Lentz since their dismissal from Hillsong NYC and the church’s prominence in drawing musicians, actors, athletes, and other celebrities into the church.
Transformation Church believes the Lentz are ready for ministry and affirmed their decision publicly. “After two years of Carl being in his own discovery and healing process, he has shown readiness to use his God-given gifts towards the local church again. We believe in Carl, his marriage, his skill set, and his restoration,” Tammy McQuarters continued.
ChurchLeaders.com reported Tim Ross, Transformation Church’s oversight pastor, stated that it is the church’s responsibility to restore people to the faith reading from Galatians 6:1-3, which says:
Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other’s burdens, and in this way, obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important.
“I’m going to let the Scripture speak for itself and turn my attention to my assignment,” Ross said.
“Transformation Church, founded in 1999 in the historically black Greenwood District of Tulsa, home to the city’s 1921 race massacre, now meets in the nearby suburb of Bixby at the 4,500-seat SpiritBank Event Center, which the church owns.
“The arena, purchased by Transformation in 2019 for $10.5 million, was among the nearly $67 million in real estate properties the church has bought in the area in the past four years.”
