Pastor Keion Henderson is done with having to turn hundreds of people away from Sunday worship.
So, he’s asking that congregants and donors pitch in to help The Lighthouse Church reach a $4 million goal to not only rebound from damage that occurred when Hurricane Beryl battered their north campus, but to start anew with a larger house of faith.
“God gave me a vision and he said we can do it in 21 days. I’m asking 2,100 people to give $2,100 in the next 21 days,” he said in a message to supporters on Sunday, Aug. 11.
He named the fund “Out of the Harbor,” using the analogy of a ship leaving the safety of a harbor to sail into its purpose. The congregation boasts more than 20,000 members across its four campuses — located in the northeast, south, north, and west regions of the Houston area.
The Texas-based faith leader said that up to 600 people were being denied entry week after week and that parking was a nightmare for those who managed to be seated for service. “I told my church we were going to start over and yet again I believe God said, ‘Keion, your faith was too small. So let me blow the building down. So you can build what I put in your heart,’” he said in his impassioned plea.
“I want to increase the size of our sanctuary by two. I want to double the size of it so that no one who has an opportunity to get in is turned away because we don’t have a seat,” continued Keion while seated on stage at Lakewood Church in Houston.
Pastor Keion asked his good friend and mentor fellow Pastor Joel Osteen if he could host Lighthouse’s services throughout their Sunday revivals in August at Pastor Joel Osteen’s church after three other Lighthouse campuses were closed due the hurricane damage. They agreed but service details are reportedly still being worked out.
The “Lazy Love” author insisted, “We can’t wait on the insurance company to that,” but never specified why. “I need you. I won’t pretend like I can do this by myself,” he added.
Keion encouraged people who had ever been touched by his messages to give so that churchgoers would not be displaced for years to come.
In July, the north campus sanctuary sustained extensive damage rendering it “indefinitely closed” when Hurricane Beryl touched down in the Lone Star state, leaving thousands without power for days.
Among the issues are a collapsed roof as well as electrical and water damage. The preacher shared photos of the sanctuary as well as warned congregants not to fall for scams seeking donations.
Pastor Keion’s message has been met with doubt and criticism from those who view it as disingenuous and a manipulative ploy to extract money from followers during a vulnerable time. Skeptics turned their attention to the pockets of Keion and his wife, Shaunie Henderson, who is also the ex-wife of retired Miami Heat star Shaquille O’Neal.
The VH1 reality star caught flak when she released her memoir, “Undefeated,” this summer. In it, she disclosed the revelation that she was unsure if she was ever in love with O’Neal. Shaunie clarified that while she did love him, she was more in love with the idea of building a life with him. They were married for nearly a decade and share five children, one of whom is Shaunie’s son from a previous relationship.
In the past, she has also been outspoken about not receiving a hefty divorce settlement despite blogs suggesting she was loaded. Shaunie claims she had to start over on her own.
However, one of her lucrative endeavors is launching the “Basketball Wives” franchise in 2010. According to Keion, the series has raked in a billion dollars in revenue for VH1. “Ask your wife,” said one person. “Always scamming the poor people whose lights are off.”
Another critical observer wrote, “Shaunie said she was never really in love with Shaq, but married this con artist preacher who wants to take advantage of people to build a bigger church to take advantage of more people.”
Another said, “Aint he married to Shaq’s baby mama???? Better get a loan from the big fella.”
A third individual advising Keion and Shaunie to pool their money to finance the mission wrote, “Man you better ask Shawnee producer of Basketball Wives!, And we already know you got it too so go dip in that bank account bruh.”
According to Sakariexam, Keion has an estimated net worth of $8 million, while Shaunie has an estimated valuation of $35 million. Someone else fed up with the preacher’s increased time in the spotlight wrote, “Every time I see this man, it is for something RIDICULOUS.” Another declared him to be “another scam artist.”
A fifth said, “Others would say God totalled the church due to the insane amount of shady business being done. Ion know tho.”