COLORADO SPRINGS (CO)
The Roys Report [Chicago IL]
July 1, 2025
By Julie Roys and Mark A. Kellner
Embattled Colorado Springs megachurch New Life Church has ousted two more pastors who reportedly knew in 2007 that Robert Morris, founder of Dallas-based Gateway Church, had sexually molested a 12-year-old in the 1980s.
The news that executive pastors Lance Coles and Brian Newberg had resigned was included in a “Frequently Asked Questions” document, or FAQ, distributed by New Life leaders to church members at a “family meeting” Saturday morning. The document, which was printed and not available online, was posted on Facebook by a New Life congregant, and also obtained independently by The Roys Report (TRR).
Coles’ and Newberg’s resignations follow the forced resignation of New Life Senior Pastor Brady Boyd. In a statement to the congregation on June 20, the elders said they did not believe Boyd’s earlier claim that he did not know about Morris’s child abuse until 2024.
Morris resigned from Gateway last year and was removed as a New Life overseer, when allegations that he had molested Cindy Clemishire, from the time she was 12 to 16 years old, became public. Morris now faces five counts of child sex abuse charges in Oklahoma.
According to the FAQ document, both Coles and Newberg were informed of Morris’s sex abuse by Clemishire’s sister in 2007, when the men served on New Life’s pastoral search committee.
The two pastors “raised concerns” about Morris becoming involved with New Life. But Boyd, who was hired in August 2007, “dismissed their concerns and appointed Robert Morris to be an overseer at New Life and began inviting Morris to preach,” the FAQ stated. Prior to coming to New Life, Boyd served as associate senior pastor at Gateway Church, under Morris.
The FAQ also stated that “meeting notes and email records confirmed that the search committee met with Brady specifically to discuss the accusations made by Ms. Clemishire’s sister and then dialogued with him for weeks about the issue.”
Yet, on June 8, prior to his resignation, Boyd swore to the congregation that he “would never ever put a known pedophile in a place of authority in this church. Never, would I ever do that to you—ever!”
The FAQ stated that Boyd’s apparently false statements broke trust with the elders and that’s why they asked him to resign. It added, “Brady has not apologized nor is he repentant for what we think constituted lying to New Life Church, or for failing to disclose to the Elders whatever knowledge he had about Robert Morris . . .”
The document also stated that the elders at New Life believe Boyd “made a series of mistakes that disqualify him from serving as Senior Pastor of New Life.”
In contrast, the document said Coles and Newberg were “repentant, sorrowful, and humble” about their role in allowing Morris to become an overseer at New Life. Yet, because the men failed to act on the knowledge they had in 2007, they were asked to resign, as well.
“Brian and Lance had a responsibility to bring their concerns—and the reasons behind them—directly to the Board of Elders,” the FAQ stated. “They did not do so then or afterward, so we likewise requested that Brian and Lance resign.”
Boyd suggests his innocence online; congregants protest in support
In addition to being informed by the 2007 search committee, the FAQ also stated that in 2011, Boyd “was party to at least 20 emails relating to Ms. Clemishire’s abuse. The document added that Boyd “interacted extensively with those emails, and that many of the emails stated in the subject line the allegation that Ms. Clemishire was 12 at the time.”
Despite the evidence in the FAQ, and other details reported by TRR, Boyd appears to be maintaining his innocence on social media.
Boyd, who has 15,600 followers on X, has recently taken to the platform, where he still identifies as “Pastor at @NewLifeColorado” and lists the church’s web address. (His posts are now protected, but TRR has access to them.)
On June 27, he wrote, “Found my friends and they were more than I imagined. Grateful.” Two days later he added, “Hard times create strong people.” And on June 30, Boyd quoted Psalm 41:12, “Because of my integrity you uphold me and set me in your presence forever.”
Boyd’s X account also has tweets referencing “Pastor Brady’s Blog” as part of NewLifeBlogs.com. TRR has contacted New Life for comment on this and the FAQ document, but the church has not responded.
On Sunday, a handful of protesters gathered outside New Life wearing yellow shirts that read: “We stand with Pastor Brady.” The protesters also carried signs saying, “Forced Out Not Forgotten,” “Better with Brady,” and “Compassion Grace Mercy.”
Inside the church, New Life’s new senior pastor, Daniel Grothe, addressed the recent turmoil by quoting Charles Dickens’s “A Tale of Two Cities.”
“‘It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.’ It’s kind of a summary of the last week or so around here, around New Life,” Grothe said.
Grothe mentioned the FAQ document and elders being available to answer questions. But he also admonished New Life members about their conduct last weekend, regarding Boyd’s departure.
“Last Sunday, at the 9 a.m. service, we had some people screaming and cursing, and they were passionate,” Grothe said. “I understand the emotion, but a 13-year-old kid came up to me after the service weeping, and he said, ‘I just wanted to stand up and say, “We don’t talk like that in the house of God.”’ So, can we just agree we don’t talk like that in the house of God?”
Pastor Daniel Groethe – New Life Church – June 29, 2025 – please see original article for YouTube video
Texas church affirms support for Boyd
Meanwhile, in west Texas—at multi-site Trinity Fellowship Church—Senior Pastor Jimmy Witcher expressed support for Boyd during a question-and-answer session there.
Witcher told members that Boyd would remain one of three “apostolic elders” at Trinity.
He said that while he and his church’s leaders were aware of Boyd’s issues at New Life, “We can find . . . no disqualifying conduct that Brady committed.
“Therefore, Brady continues to be a friend and an apostolic elder of Trinity Fellowship,” Witcher said. “I’m proud to call him a friend and I’m proud to call him an apostolic elder.”
The Texas pastor added, “I probably will not comment on New Life (Church) and their choices and their situation. . . . I want to respect—though I don’t necessarily agree with—their decision. I respect that they are the elders of the church, and they have a right to make decisions the way they want to make decisions.”
Another apostolic elder at Trinity Fellowship is Jimmy Evans, who has also denied knowing about Morris’s sexual abuse of a 12-year-old prior to 2024, despite copious documentation suggesting otherwise.
Evans said he became aware of Morris’s sexual misconduct in 2007 but claims Morris told him the girl was 16 years old, the age of consent in Oklahoma at the time.
Evans was also a Gateway elder with Boyd in 2007 and earlier. And an email obtained by TRR names Evans as one of the Gateway elders present at a 2007 meeting to discuss how to respond to the disclosure at New Life about Morris’s prior abuse. Boyd was not present at the meeting but was sent the email, detailing the meeting.
Witcher claimed that Trinity’s “apostolic elders” provide “wise counsel” when matters come up and can have the final say on some issues at the church.
He added that he had also spoken with the overseers at New Life Church about the situation with Boyd. These overseers are Greg Surratt, president of the scandal-plagued Association of Related Churches (ARC), and Larry Stockstill, founder of Bethany Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
“I reached out to them in this process, as well—just basically saying, ‘Hey, is there—you know, just as a matter of due diligence—is there something I’m not seeing?’ and ‘Are we missing something?’ And both of them said ‘Absolutely not.’”
Stockstill was also an overseer at New Life in 2007, and documents suggest he was informed about Morris’s abuse of Clemishire at that time.
In an 2007 email to Cindy Clemishire’s sister and New Life’s search committee, Lance Coles wrote that he is “making every effort to inform all of the appropriate New Life authorities” about Morris’s abuse. Coles specifically mentions notifying the church’s overseers.
Pastor Jimmy Witcher – Trinity Fellowship – June 30, 2025 – please see original article for YouTube video
Julie Roys is a veteran investigative reporter and founder of The Roys Report. Mark A. Kellner is a reporter and contributor to The Roys Report based in Mesquite, Nevada.