Worship leader and activist missionary Sean Feucht said Monday marked a “day of vindication” after a California federal judge dismissed without prejudice a lawsuit accusing his ministry of misusing a $250,000 donation made more than three years ago by Christian businessman and philanthropist Steve Bray.
“Since God first put this mandate to worship on our hearts, we’ve seen intense opposition to the Let Us Worship movement. Antifa has hurled rocks at us, satanists have doused us in pig’s blood, and multiple left-wing politicians have threatened us with arrest. And most recently, a well-funded few waged a lawfare war against us,” Feucht wrote in a statement on X Monday.
“The lawsuits were picked up by all sorts of news outlets, with a story framed around smearing us. ... [O]n Thursday, a federal court in California DISMISSED all four claims against Sean Feucht Ministries and Let Us Worship — and even VACATED this week’s hearing,” he said. “Today is a day of VINDICATION. ‘No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. — Isaiah 54:17.”
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter of the Central District of California dismissed Bray’s complaint in an order issued last Wednesday, citing deficiencies in the allegations and insufficient evidence to support several claims.
The dismissal was without prejudice, allowing Bray’s attorneys 20 days to submit an amended complaint addressing the court’s concerns.
Bray filed the lawsuit in March against Sean Feucht Ministries and Feucht’s Let Us Worship movement, alleging fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, unfair business practices and civil theft by false pretenses under California law. The dispute centers on a $250,000 contribution made through the National Christian Foundation, a donor-advised fund.
Bray, through his electrical and temporary power services company, S.R. Bray, LLC, alleged that money intended to support ministry activities was instead diverted for Feucht’s personal benefit. His attorneys further claimed that some or all of the funds may have been used to purchase real estate.
Feucht’s attorneys moved to dismiss the case in June, arguing that Bray’s allegations were made “without any evidence.” They also maintained that Bray placed no restrictions on how the ministry could spend the $250,000 contribution.
The defense further argued that the lawsuit was influenced by an unfavorable 2024 rating from a third-party ministry watchdog, which criticized Sean Feucht Ministries for not filing IRS Form 990 returns. Feucht’s attorneys said the ministry is organized as an association of churches and therefore is not legally required to file those forms.
Beyond Bray’s lawsuit, Feucht has previously faced separate allegations from former ministry workers accusing him of various forms of misconduct across organizations associated with his ministry.
