‘I’m Changing’—Carl Lentz Discusses Affair, Addictions, Childhood Sex Abuse Following Return to Spotlight

“So I have been given grace by some people, and I appreciate it. And there’s other people who give no grace, and I get that too,” he said. “Because, ultimately, if you have a position like I did, it demands your life looks a certain way, and there was times when my life didn’t look like that.”

RELATED: Former Hillsong Pastor Brian Houston Plans To Start a New Church in 2024

When asked about whether he plans to pastor a church again, Lentz expressed openness to the idea, though not enthusiasm. 

“When it comes to the type of leadership failure I had, it’s appropriate for me to take a really long time,” he said. “And if that ever happens again, where I feel compelled to lead a church, it’ll be a really deep, long, submitted decision to a lot of people who I’m accountable to.”

Lentz later said that he “has no desire” to pastor a church again, but he is “not opposed to anything.”

Speaking about his new podcast, Lentz said that the experience has been “cathartic.”

“We finally—we waited a long time, and I didn’t know if the day would ever come, and I wasn’t really worried about it,” Lentz said. “Once your reputation’s shattered, you learn real quick: Either I’ve got to heal my life or try to heal my image. And your image does not matter.”

RELATED: Few Worship Leaders Avoid Hillsong, Bethel Songs—Despite Controversies and Scandal

“But as it turns out, we have an opportunity now to be able to share our story, not for the purposes of, look, we’re different, I’m better,” Lentz said. “It’s for the purposes of, look at what we went through. And, unfortunately, there’s a lot of people who relate to what we went through in our marriage—a lot.”