The much-heralded changeover ended disastrously, with Schuller Jr. disappearing from the "Hour of Power" broadcasts and abruptly leaving the church altogether last year, less than three years after he took on his father's mantle. He recently announced his own weekly show on AmericanLife TV Network.

From now on, Coleman said, the "Hour of Power" will feature a stable of up to six preachers, including herself and her father, and all decisions big and small will be made by ministry teams whose members bear equal responsibility for results.

Coleman declined to discuss the details of what triggered her brother's departure, but said the yearlong leadership vacuum that followed was disastrous, with viewership, church attendance and donations all dropping. Her father, 82, was also devastated.

In her first sermon earlier this month, Coleman apologized to worshippers for the family rift. She lugged a bucket of corn seed to the pulpit and urged followers to help the church return to its original mission by sowing the seeds of faith among family and friends.

"It caused a lot of pain and a lot of people were hurt because our family was not the ideal Brady Bunch family that they thought we should have been," she said in a later interview.

"I feel it's my responsibility, I wanted to tell the people I'm sorry for the pain that you've had to endure. . .I'm very excited about the future. My call is to help my dad finish strong," she said. "I really think our best days in ministry are ahead of us. I really do."