A Daytime Drama-Worthy Storyline Unfolds At Daystar

DALLAS — It presents itself as a faith-based network that has won awards, dedicated to spreading the word of Christ in an omnichannel way across the globe. Founded by Marcus Lamb in 1993, Daystar Television Network has attract legions of evangelical viewers across its 31 years of operation.

Now, Daystar is dealing with an ugly family feud of sorts — one that involves allegations of abuse from the founder’s son, who has been ousted from the organization as a result of his claims.

Matters started to unfold on November 15, when a reporter formerly associated with Moody Radio contacted Daystar regarding allegations made by Jonathan Lamb, the son of Marcus and Joni Lamb.

One day later, Jonathan Lamb was fired, after the reporter — Julie Roys — contacted Daystar for comment. On November 20, Lamb and his wife, Suzy, took to Instagram in response to the concerns of their online followers about how they are doing. Jonathan Lamb’s reply? “We no longer work at Daystar. A lot has been going on over the last couple of years that we just couldn’t talk about.”

With Suzy Lamb nodding affirmatively, her husband noted that all of their evidence has been handed over to “multiple reporters,” including the police department. Suzy Lamb then opened up, sharing that “some scary things” happened to her and her husband — including being followed, having private investigators monitor their every move, and “intimidation threats.” She added, “We felt that we had no other option but to reach out to a journalist.”

Jonathan and Suzy Lamb made the Instagram post six days ago from an “undisclosed location,” as they do not feel safe at their home.

Within the last 24 hours, Lamb took the story to full tilt, posting on TikTok and on Instagram of how, while at Daystar, Jonathan and Suzy Lamb “were spiritually abused” by Joni Lamb, and “close allies” including XO Marriage founder Jimmy Evans. Evans, in a conversation with Jonathan Lamb, told him that his mother “was the voice of God” at Daystar – something Jonathan challenged Evans on.

Joni Lamb is remarried, and her current husband is sex therapist Doug Weiss. Marcus Lamb passed away on November 30, 2021, from complications tied to the COVID-19 novel coronavirus; he was actively advocating against any vaccines to prevent contagion from the virus. Jonathan and Suzy Lamb objected to the union, consummated on June 10, 2023, on the grounds that Weiss lacked biblical grounds for divorcing his previous wife. A comment from a listener praising the marriage was rejected by Jonathan and Suzy Lamb, and they refused to put it on the air.

Then, on November 16, 2023, a Daystar TV board meeting brought Jonathan Lamb a dilemma: sign an NDA or be removed from the board and from his role as a Vice President. He did not sign the non-disclosure agreement, a move Daystar claims made him “an employee” and nothing more. Audio of this meeting was disclosed on social media five days ago by Roys.

SILENCE OF THE LAMBS 

In early 2018, Julie Roys was terminated from a prominent role at Moody Radio, allegedly over a theological rift. Today, she runs “The Roys Report,” an online blog devoted to “reporting the truth” and “restoring the Church.”

Last Wednesday, it was Roys that got the exclusive on how Jonathan and Suzy Lamb believe they are the victims of sexual abuse. Her report begins with a retelling of an August 2021 incident in which an adult male relative had followed their then- five-year-old daughter as she was going to change into a swimsuit. Suzy was frightened, and summoned Jonathan about how the man “went black, and he’s like in zombie mode.”

Jonathan Lamb followed the man upstairs. He told Roys, “To my horror, when I got up there, my daughter was completely naked, and (he) was in the room.”

This was at a beach house rented by Daystar for an annual retreat near Destin, Fla. But, it seems their daughter was previously molested, and this allegedly had occurred more than eight months prior to that incident. The day the girl disclosed the potential abuse, Suzy called her mother-in-law, now-Daystar President Joni Lamb. After a one-on-one meeting, the girl stopped discussing the matter; memories of the incidents have apparently faded for the girl, Jonathan Lamb said. Jonathan and Suzy Lamb then pointed fingers at Joni Lamb, saying a cover-up was in progress.

Roys’ account of the alleged sexual misconduct is lengthy. And, it has not gone unnoticed by the mainstream press in Texas, as the Dallas Morning News and Houston Chronicle have each reported on the story.

Daystar has not been silent. The network wrote in a statement to Roys that an internal investigation “concluded with no wrongdoing found nor evidence provided that corroborated the allegation.” Additionally, a Daystar spokesperson told Roys in a written note, “There is clearly a misunderstanding of what transpired, and the facts are quite different than what appears to have been reported to you. We simply do not support [Jonathan and Suzy’s] false allegations and are saddened by the continued relational incongruity between Jonathan and Suzy and the rest of their family.”

As such, it is business as usual for the Lamb-led Daystar, pending any further moves from Texas investigators, or Dallas-area police.

Daystar is owned by Word of God Fellowship Inc., which is the formal licensee of Daystar-aligned broadcast televisions stations in the U.S. Its FCC attorney is Mark Denbo of Smithwick & Belendiuk. Word of God Secretary Arnold Torres has signed off on all asset purchase agreements on behalf of Lamb in recent years, including a July 26, 2022 agreement to acquire KVSD-LD in San Diego from D’Amico Brothers Broadcasting Corp. for $1.3 million.

— With reports from RBR+TVBR in Grapevine, Tex.