Chrystalwuzhere
08-26-2007, 12:17 PM
Get a load of this...
The married duo pastoring one of the nation's biggest churches is planning for divorce.
Randy and Paula White of Without Walls International in Tampa, Fla., announced their decision to split at their Thursday evening service, shocking most congregants and bringing some to tears.
"It's the most difficult decision I've ever had to make in my entire life," Randy White told the congregation with Paula by his side at the podium appearing choked up, according to Tampa Bay Online.
Married nearly 18 years, the Whites, who have both been married and divorced before, said in interviews that the split is amicable. They also mentioned that the divorce comes after years of visits to counselors.
Trouble in the couple's marriage was picked up by The Tampa Tribune in May as the two were rarely seen preaching together anymore.
Both blamed the two different directions their lives are going.
Paula, 41, the church's senior pastor, leads her own ministry, making frequent trips as a sought-after speaker, author and televangelist. She leads monthly services at her newly opened Life by Design Empowerment Center in New York, appears regularly on "The Tyra Banks Show" as a life coach and serves as oversight pastor at Family Praise Center in San Antonio, Texas.
Meanwhile, Randy, 49, has been traveling to Malibu, Calif., where he plans to start another church, he told his Tampa congregation. He already signed a one-year lease on a beachfront dwelling there but plans for the new church are on hold, according to TBO.
Randy White will remain at Without Walls as senior pastor and Paula will remain based in Tampa and pledged to return frequently to preach.
Some congregants said the surprising announcement won't deter their continual attendance.
The announcement "didn't weaken the church in any way," said Kerran Fuller, who has been attending the church for less than a year, according to the TBO.
To read the rest of the article, click HERE (http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070826/29058_Megachurch_Co-Pastors_Announce_Divorce.htm).
The married duo pastoring one of the nation's biggest churches is planning for divorce.
Randy and Paula White of Without Walls International in Tampa, Fla., announced their decision to split at their Thursday evening service, shocking most congregants and bringing some to tears.
"It's the most difficult decision I've ever had to make in my entire life," Randy White told the congregation with Paula by his side at the podium appearing choked up, according to Tampa Bay Online.
Married nearly 18 years, the Whites, who have both been married and divorced before, said in interviews that the split is amicable. They also mentioned that the divorce comes after years of visits to counselors.
Trouble in the couple's marriage was picked up by The Tampa Tribune in May as the two were rarely seen preaching together anymore.
Both blamed the two different directions their lives are going.
Paula, 41, the church's senior pastor, leads her own ministry, making frequent trips as a sought-after speaker, author and televangelist. She leads monthly services at her newly opened Life by Design Empowerment Center in New York, appears regularly on "The Tyra Banks Show" as a life coach and serves as oversight pastor at Family Praise Center in San Antonio, Texas.
Meanwhile, Randy, 49, has been traveling to Malibu, Calif., where he plans to start another church, he told his Tampa congregation. He already signed a one-year lease on a beachfront dwelling there but plans for the new church are on hold, according to TBO.
Randy White will remain at Without Walls as senior pastor and Paula will remain based in Tampa and pledged to return frequently to preach.
Some congregants said the surprising announcement won't deter their continual attendance.
The announcement "didn't weaken the church in any way," said Kerran Fuller, who has been attending the church for less than a year, according to the TBO.
To read the rest of the article, click HERE (http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070826/29058_Megachurch_Co-Pastors_Announce_Divorce.htm).