Creflo Dollar Tells Megachurch Assault Reports Were Exaggerated

By Audrey Barrick, Christian Post Reporter Monday, June 11, 2012

Creflo Dollar assured a packed house of attendees at his Georgia megachurch on Sunday that "all is well in the Dollar household."

After receiving a long standing ovation from the World Changers Church International congregation, Dollar denied "sensational" and "exaggerated" reports about him choking and punching his teenage daughter last week.

The popular pastor affirmed his love for his 15-year-old daughter and said he would never inflict any bodily harm on any of his children.

"I love her with all of my heart," he stressed.

But as the father of five children, he admitted, "As everyone knows, raising children in our culture of disrespect is a challenge ... Like all of us who are parents, there are times when disciplining and training our kids can become pretty intense."

In solidarity with their pastor, the congregation remained standing throughout the 13 minutes that Dollar spent addressing his arrest from Friday. Dollar was arrested on battery charges after his youngest daughter called 911 and claimed she was choked and punched by her father.

He explained to attendees that a "family conversation ... got emotional" and that "things escalated from there." But he added, "The truth is, she was not choked, she was not punched."

Throughout the address, World Changers attendees applauded and gave shouts of "love you" and "amen's" to express their support.

Hundreds have written supportive messages on the pastor's Facebook page, expressing empathy in raising a teenager.

Despite the challenges of raising children, Dollar said he believes "there's a powerful destiny and an awesome divine assignment on the inside of each one of my children."

"I know that all five of them are going to do great exploits in the Kingdom of God," he said.

According to a Saturday post on his Facebook page, Dollar said the "facts in this case will be handled privately to further protect my children."