Curious Sister

Hello all, I am a local church member and was browsing through the internet when i came across this site. I don't know lurker that I know of but you can call me Curious Sister. I understand that you may feel not like me for being affiliated with the Local Church, but I hope you understand that when it comes down to it I just want to be known as a follower of Christ and His teachings. I feel that I follow God and not any one man or person, I feel like the ministry guides me in the right direction.

I came into the church life from meeting someone on campus and I can only say it has changed my life and my mother's life for the better. I have never felt condemned or judged unlike my experiences with the methodist, baptist and non denominational churches that I had frequent contact with before stop going to any meetings to begin with. I felt like no matter what I did or say or the number of questions I asked at the meetings, that I was accepted and the saints just loved me.

I read many websites about the local church on and off before actually consistently going to Lord's Table Meetings on Sundays and I prayed so much about my concerns. But July 2010 I felt it was finally time that I commit myself to going regularly to the meetings and participate. I feel that becoming a part of the local church saved my life in a very real way. I was a very lost and broken person who was in and out of mental hospitals and rehabs before i contacted the saints and gradually I healed and don't abuse drugs and alcohol like i did. The Lord did this all of course but the local church in my locality loved me when I was very unlovable and look me into there homes when I was in need.

I just can't deny how the Lord used the local church in my life. I feel to question at times is good but I just can't help but feel you are alienating the people you are trying to convince by putting us all in a category. Anyways, take care and grace be with you,
Curious Sister

[ZNPaaneah]

Welcome and thank you for sharing your testimony.

[Paul Cox]

Glad you found something to take the place of the other addiction.

[love4truth]

Originally Posted by Paul Cox

Glad you found something to take the place of the other addiction.

I found your comment to be right to the point. Addictions are addictions, whether it is to drugs, alcohol, gambling, or a religious guru. Jesus wants to be our all in all, and will not share His glory with others. Some religious leaders lead people to themelves and their empires, when they should be pointing to Christ alone. Witness Lee makes blatant statements that establish himself as the final authority, such as there is only ONE local body: his. And that his teachings are the final word. False teacher, pure and simple.

[awareness]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

Welcome and thank you for sharing your testimony.

Yes Curious Sister ... welcome and thanks for sharing.

The local church did similar things for me too. When I came in it was the love that captured me.

I came in the local church with many of my friends that came in too. And I brought other of my friends in too. It was great times. I remember those times fondly.

I guess I needed it. I gave my whole life to it. My friends too gave their whole life to it.

But now, none of them are in the local church, and neither am I. It eventually came to a ugly dead end.

So, if the local church is doing you good, I say don't look to the web about the local church. There's many disenchanted ones on the web, that once gave their whole life to the local church, but now see it differently, and that it became a cult like negative experience.

So dive into the local church, and don't look back. As long as it's doing you good go for it. And when and if it stops doing you good, get out.

But I do have to say, when I came into the local church the web didn't exist. So there was no way for me to learn about the founder of the local church here in America. Had there been a web back then, I probably wouldn't have wasted a decade of my young life on the local church.

[countmeworthy]

Curious Sister,
Welcome...and I for one am glad the Lord led you to some Godly people who gave you a "new lease on life" & Hope in Christ, Who Is our Jehovah Rapha and Jehovah Jireh.

Everyone's experience in the LC is different. Some had terrible experiences which did not start off that way. Others had good experiences, like me. I am forever grateful to God for leading me to the LC when He did back in 1975. I wanted so desperately to be wholly committed and sanctified to Jesus back then ( & still DO !) I did not use those words of course but that is what I felt in my heart. I knew without the help of committed Christians, living a sanctified, holy life in Christ would be & is very difficult. (Life is difficult even when we're among committed Christians!)

Anyway, I grew strong in my Faith and I learned how to fellowship, how to lead people to the Lord and how to minister and disciple one on one. One thing I was never good at was bringing people into the LC !! I only invited people to an LC meeting if I was with other LCrs who did the inviting.

If you stick around, you will read many pros and cons of being in the LC. The most important lesson for you to focus on is Christ Jesus HIMSELF. He is the Living Word of God. He is our Great Physician. He is the One Who restores our Health and Heals our wounds.

Hold on to Jeremiah 30:17 curious Sister ! Thus saith the Lord:
I will give you back your health
and heal your wounds,” says the Lord.
“For you are called an outcast—
‘Jerusalem[a] for whom no one cares.’”


Indeed His Word is True and Faithful. He sticks to His Word! He doesn't negate on His Promise. I know it first hand! I also know He will never leave us, forsake us or disappoint us! People might and do but He won't ! Christ is our Solid Rock. All other ground is sinking sand.

The Lord bless you cursious Sister.
Carol G

[zeek]

Welcome CS!

I agree with the comments in the previous posts. People here seem to care more about your well being than they do about their own issues with the local churches. I think that speaks well of them. If there are people who care about your well being in the local church that you attend, that's a good thing. In any case, take good care of yourself.

[Suannehill]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

...

you are alienating the people you are trying to convince by putting us all in a category. Anyways, take care and grace be with you,
Curious Sister

Glad you stopped by!
...but you just put ALL of us in the same category! LOL!

[TLFisher]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I feel that becoming a part of the local church saved my life in a very real way. I was a very lost and broken person who was in and out of mental hospitals and rehabs before i contacted the saints and gradually I healed and don't abuse drugs and alcohol like i did. The Lord did this all of course but the local church in my locality loved me when I was very unlovable and look me into there homes when I was in need.

I just can't deny how the Lord used the local church in my life. I feel to question at times is good but I just can't help but feel you are alienating the people you are trying to convince by putting us all in a category.

We are all part of the Church wherever we meet. The church/assembly/ecclesia where we meet is representative, but not comprehensive of the Christians in a given locality.
Curious sister, I am thankful you are loved and accepted as you are. We all have problems needing to be overcome. It is great encouragement.
Your last sentence however is indicative of the local churches; whether you are currently meeting or used to meet. It gets boiled down to an "Us and Them" attitude which results in alienation. It takes two to alienate. I think when saints leave, whether volunary or involuntarily, it becomes personal. On the contrary what is needed is grace, grace, and more grace.
Just to express what happened today at ERCC. One of the elders has been meeting with the assembly for 26 years and now he's choosen to meet elsewhere in part his needs and his wife's needs aren't being met. Instead of alienation, this brother was thanked for his years of serving, prayed for, and blessed.

[TLFisher]

Originally Posted by Terry

On the contrary what is needed is grace, grace, and more grace.
Just to express what happened today at ERCC. One of the elders has been meeting with the assembly for 26 years and now he's choosen to meet elsewhere in part his needs and his wife's needs aren't being met. Instead of alienation, this brother was thanked for his years of serving, prayed for, and blessed.

This excerpt from my post was done with those that left in the late 80's in mind. Many had been present since 1962-1964. A fair comparison to the elder from ERCC who decided to leave after 26 years. Much turmoil would have been avoided instead of writing multiple negative books (specific and in innuendo) about the elders that left, give them grace, give them love, and give them thankfulness for their years of service. Even for ones who didn't leave on the best of terms.

[Lisbon]

I'm the 41 year man and have to admit it is near incredible that I stayed so long. These 18 months I have dealt with the Lord a lot due to the fact I have very grown kids in the LC. My next door neighbor is a catholic, has cancer, and I pray for her daily. I certainly have no thought of telling her my feelings about the RCC. I sense she is a believer and that's all I need to know. Also she does not in any way speak of the RCC to me. We are both Christians, we have problems, and we pray for each other.

But with respect to the LC, I definitely have some feeling of alienation with those I have known for 40 years. I was there Sunday, the place was pretty full, they sang the one song, they had three short prayers (sometimes they have none) and 26 'prophecied.' Mostly the same speak every week but there is a little variance. Far too many references to WL with little or no references to the Lord or the Word. This is not good.

I'm eating breakfast with two or three brothers from the LC tomorrow. We'll see how it goes. I do feel more and more settled that I'm not a crusader. Essentially the Lord has not done anything with the thousands of sects of Christianity and I greatly doubt He will bother the LC. But I daily pray for those close to me that their eyes might be opened. I do strongly feel the LC is bad news but so I feel about Marxist philosophy and I can do little about either except pray.

I feel there is a real place for forums like this and those who have so well written of the gross cover up of the LC is right on in my thinking. At the same time we have to pray that we don't get eaten up by our thinking.

Lord save us all

Lisbon

[UntoHim]

Originally Posted by Lisbon

I feel there is a real place for forums like this and those who have so well written of the gross cover up of the LC is right on in my thinking. At the same time we have to pray that we don't get eaten up by our thinking.

Lord save us all

Lisbon

Amen! Thank you Lisbon for your valuable contribution to our little forum.