[OBW]

I'll get to my take on Igzy's question (further below). But first, I will note that my take on his baby-bathwater analysis was not that Lee was the baby, but the teachings we got from him.

And even if we determine that Lee should be entirely rejected, that does not mean that he could only have given us false teachings. But how we determine which might be true will need a different form of evidence than the way we got there the first time.

I do not propose that we question that salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ because Lee said it. Everyone says it. If he failed to say that, he would have been singled out quickly as a hoax. (Not saying that he was simply a hoax. Just an example.)

But of the things we got that are beyond "ordinary" within Christian teaching, we need to take them on more than how we feel about them Feelings are part of the problem, not the solution. Feelings are part of the answer to how we felt blessed when sitting at the feet of Lee. But feelings are just me getting something that makes me feel good.

That means that we need something closer to proof. We need to go through a vetting that is not directed by Lee's stories and analogies. We need to question the analogies and stories. Just because a story seems to give an explanation does not mean it is sound or meaningful to the discussion.

Originally Posted by Igzy

I know OBW has offered that the source of Recovery blessing was not Lee, but the commitment of the members. That is plausible. But it doesn't explain why the blessing often seemed strongest when we were sitting at the feet of Lee. Can anyone explain?

The positives of the LRC are primarily in the connection of the people. The camaraderie. The common focus.

No matter what you say about it, when you have that kind of connection, it provides positive feedback of its own. You feel good from it. Teams, especially successful teams, often have a connection that is more than just being friends.

And we were truly all of that. But we were much more. We had something special that others did not have. And we felt even better for it. And what we had was because this odd little Chinese man kept telling us about all the unique things that we were associated with but that very few others were associated with. And those who were didn't even know it, and those who weren't didn't know it either. We were special.

And we knew it.

And when the man who brought the speciality to us was actually in the room, speaking more of that special word that others were not getting, we performed like puppets on a string. He didn't even have to say anything about us a lot of the time. We just knew that we were learning something that others were not getting or seeing.

And when we tried to explain some of this to other Christians, that funny look they gave us was evidence that Lee was right. We were special. We had those spiritual eyes it took to understand spiritual things. And all those poor mooing cows could never see it. Might as well be playing Bach to the beasts of the field.

This is even part of the reason that so many of us have problems reintegrating into the whole of God’s people — Christianity. We learned how to pick apart everything about them. But on what basis? Whatever basis Lee gave us.

But Lee is the problem, not the basis upon which we determine that others have problems. We need to see and understand that doing many kinds of “servant” things are pleasing to God. Teach Sunday School. Play guitar for worship. Volunteer at a homeless shelter. Do clean-up and painting in poor parts of town. Build with Habitat for Humanity. Occasionally give a little something to one of those beggars on the street — the fries from your combo meal.

We felt so “high” at the feet of Lee. But what was the content of it? Learning something higher? Finding a better way to say something? We should be getting our “highs” from obedience to serve. To “do justice” as is mentioned throughout the scripture. To love one another, including our neighbor as ourselves.