Recovering From The Recovery

[Avist]

How have others recovered from their time in the "recovery"? Looking for input or suggestions.

[aron]

Originally Posted by Avist

How have others recovered from their time in the "recovery"? Looking for input or suggestions.

1. Hang out with other Christians. Even the ones you don't like very much. The best way to recover your journey of faith is to come alongside others. If you shepherd, you'll get shepherded. Help repentant sinners turn back to the Living God, and God will meet you there, and help you also. "What you do to others is what God will do to you." The LC tends to isolationism; instead why not try to find a sinner and give them a smile, or a pat on the back, or a hand? Jesus wants to flow through you, not just to sit in the same circle 5 times a week under the same teachings. Get out, find people who think differently from you, try to present them with the Christ you found in scripture. Then you'll find out the Christ you have (or don't). Let the fire try your faith. It's not only okay, I argue it's necessary. If you only talk to those who agree with you, what will you learn? How will you grow?
2. Read other Christian writings. Read, read, read. You might need to read 20 things, all seemingly useless or mistaken, until you find the pearl of great price. But that pearl will be worth it. You'll recover from the "Witness Lee-or-nothing One Trumpet" influenza.
3. Don't judge or condemn others. As you judge, so you will be judged.
4. Be humble, if possible. I went into the "recovery" because I was an elitist wanna-be, and got seduced by their exclusivist brand of Christianity. "You were redeemed in Christianity, and you got saved in the Recovery" was how my new handler put it to me. So I admit my involvement in the LC of Lee wasn't just being conned by others. I participated willingly. My motives weren't pure. (They still aren't. Only Jesus is pure).
5. Have a sense of humor. Laugh at yourself. Be patient. God is patient with you, so don't take this all-or-nothing kind of approach. It only leads to collapse. The first sign of failure and you'll give up. "I'll never make it. 1000 years of darkness here I come." No; don't give up. God does everything for a reason. Every failure is a lesson.

Good luck to you and God bless.

[HERn]

Originally Posted by Avist

How have others recovered from their time in the "recovery"? Looking for input or suggestions.

I think it varies with the person and the depth to which the tentacles of Lee's false teaching have penetrated your mind. If Lee's teachings and the practice of the LSM church life were the fulcrum upon which your spiritual, psychological, and social life was balanced I think you are in for a rough ride as you exit. I had to cut off everything polluted by Lee and twisted by LSM. I was finally able to start my exit after I realized that Née and Lee were not MOTAS, oracles, or apostles like Paul, John, and Peter. There is no curse involved with labeling some of their teaching as false or their behavior as sinful. In my opinion today's LSM LCs are a narrow sect of Christianity whose current trajectory is taking them askew of God's will, plan, and heart's desire. First, I cut off all contact with the false elders, then after realizing the saint's concern for me was only to recover me into their false system of religion I cut off contact with them. I stopped reading anything with LSM as the publisher. It was "cold turkey" for me and months of struggle, but I am so happy to be free of Lee! Don't give Lee or his teachings access to your mind, the manipulation of the saints access to your emotions, and NEVER allow the elders access to control your will. Along with this I also practiced most everything bro Aron mentioned above.

Can you share anything about your departure and why you want to leave?

[Koinonia]

I feel this process can be especially hard for "church kids" who have no exposure (and only intense suspicion) to anything even remotely Christian outside of the Local Church. There are some books that have been incredibly helpful to me over the last couple of years. Two of those would be He Loves Me and Finding Church, both by Wayne Jacobsen.

In the former Jacobsen discusses being rescued from the "performance-based" emphasis that plagues so many Christians. I never realized it, but "performance-based" describes the Local Church experience to a tee. It is all about doing more, speaking more, attending more meetings, serving more, striving, straining, trying to overcome, reading the right books, knocking on doors, attending more feasts, spending more time, etc., etc., etc. My experience there was so much stress and very little actual realization of the Father's unconditional love.

In the second book, Jacobsen describes "church" as the family of God's people, alive in genuine fellowship that is spontaneous, organic, and based on relationships (and not on groups and meetings). This perspective has been incredibly helpful to me and I expect will be much more appealing to the average LC "church kid" or FTTA graduate who (for better or for worse) would almost never be able to wrap his head around what goes on in most institutional church settings.

[aron]

Originally Posted by Koinonia

I feel this process can be especially hard for "church kids" who have no exposure (and only intense suspicion) to anything even remotely Christian outside of the Local Church...

I daresay this is true. As one who came in from "outside", and then was immersed in LC culture for years, separating was hard. But at least I had some exposure to Christianity before my LC experience. And even with that to fall back on, de-programming was long and hard.

The challenge of getting fully out of the LC is that it's such an immersive experience. I literally was in meetings all week long. Sunday was the Lord's Table, often with some social activity afterward. Monday night was the only night without a meeting. Tuesday night: prayer meeting. Wednesday night: home meeting. Thursday night: campus meeting. Friday night: young people's meeting. Saturday morning: ministry meeting, then church service. Saturday night: college meeting.

Plus there were trips and activities, going over to people's houses for supper and so forth. Once a month there was some regional meeting or "retreat" which would last from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Then there were "blending" trips and conferences. Not to mention that the "brother's house" and "sister's house" was 24/7. All the while you were told how wonderful the ministry was, how rich and all-sufficient, and how poor and degraded everything else was.

So you can physically leave, but how to get those voices out of your head? When I went back to the Christian groups that I formerly met with, every time I went to a meeting or read a book or article, I would think, "That's not God's economy." It took years to get the LC program to weaken its hold in my consciousness.

The key for me was to eventually realize how unquestioningly I had absorbed and accepted certain key LC teachings as valid in their own right. Lee would present these logical trains of thought, and he'd slip in contradictory or illogical statements and you'd accept them at face value. Once you'd accepted them as intrinsically valid, he had a fulcrum to pry open your brain and pour in his elixir.

I hardly know where to start... "One church per city"... If you look at the NT, you see 'ekklesia' meant meeting, or gathering, or assembly, not church. You could have multiple ekklesia in a city, just as the LC has Meeting Hall One and Meeting Hall Two, or a prayer meeting in one part of town and simultaneously (!!) a college-age meeting in another. The ekklesia is a meeting. Look at Acts 19:41: "And with these words he dismissed the meeting (ekklesia)". That wasn't even a church meeting, it was an assembly of townspeople.

So Lee took the 20th century meaning of "church", which meant something different from NT usage of "ekklesia", i.e. an organized, standing religious body, and said that there could only be one per city. And lo and behold that meant only one set of elders, picked by him, naturally. But if he got you to accept the first statement, you'd usually accept the second, i.e. control by "the ministry". But the biblical record actually shows multiple ekklesia in various urban settings. Look at the epistle to the Romans: "Greet the ekklesia in their house" (16:5). That was what we might call a home meeting, but Paul called it an ekklesia (church)! You could have multiple ekklesia, existing simultaneously, in the city of Rome! Shocking!

You start to see the word with new eyes, not conditioned by "the ministry", and suddenly the spell is broken and you can get on with your life, the one God intended you to have all along.

But you can't get on with the second, until you figure out how to let go of the first. And for me, it was seeing the first for what it really was, a set of propositions by a fallible human being like myself. Not unquestionable edicts from God's Deputy. Nee and Lee were occasionally illogical, just like everyone else. Occasionally they superimposed what they wished were so, onto the scriptural record, and held it forth as if it actually were so. And if you received their statement at face value, as if intrinsically valid, then they had a hook in you.

"We all must see that..." how often would Lee use such phraseology! He was imposing his vision upon yours! Once you recognize this process for what it is, you can start to resist it.

[aron]

Originally Posted by HERn

Don't give Lee or his teachings access to your mind, the manipulation of the saints access to your emotions, and NEVER allow the elders access to control your will.

This is what I meant when I said it was an immersive experience. Mind, emotions, will; body, soul, and spirit. The LC church life tries to penetrate all aspects of your human existence. Once you give them the ground (pun intended), they'll try to take everything.

[Cal]

My advice to anyone trying to recover would be to simplify your Christian life to its essences. Love God, love people (the first and second commandment), receive all believers, meet with any and all Christians without a view to judge them. Take care of your relationships, with God, others, and even yourself.

Hold to a simple gospel. God came as Jesus to bring us back to relation with himself. Look at each person as someone God deeply loves and wants to know. Go about your daily business looking for ways to share God's love, which will mostly come out in ways of service to others.

You will begin to notice that while the LC was process-centered, most churches these days are people-centered. The idea is to truly love people. You will be annoyed at times that many of your pet LC doctrines are not appreciated. Just keep focusing on the basics. Focus on relationships. How are you treating people? How do you feel about them? Do you love them as God does? Are you willing to truly sacrifice for them?

Be on the alert that wanting to straighten people out on knowing the right doctrines is often not the best way to love them, but rather often an exercise in ego. Don't look down your nose at gospel efforts the LC would categorize as "worldly," especially when it comes to youth. Continue to "enjoy the Lord" if that is what you want to call it. But the idea is to walk in simple relationship with God, spreading his love. Much good fruit will come from that. I've seen it happen.

[aron]

Originally Posted by Igzy

... receive all believers, meet with any and all Christians without a view to judge them.

The LC isn't the only exclusivist, unbalanced and controlling church group out there. So watch out; some "Christian" groups will lure you in, claiming that they are the true disciples of Christ, and everyone else is in darkness. Sound familiar? They'll present their 'special' verses, which they'll pressure you to accept according to their interpretation. And if you yield, then the pressure only increases. I've been there. Peer pressure is hard to resist. We all want social approval, and these groups have honed this practice.

Stick with the safe, boring groups, at least at first, until your discernment gets more exercised. Otherwise you could end up somewhere even worse than the LC.

Other than that; yes, seek out Christian fellowship. And don't judge your new associates. "Receive one another, but not for the purpose of disputation". See e.g. Rom 14:1

[Cal]

Originally Posted by aron

The LC isn't the only exclusivist, unbalanced and controlling church group out there. So watch out; some "Christian" groups will lure you in, claiming that they are the true disciples of Christ, and everyone else is in darkness. Sound familiar? They'll present their 'special' verses, which they'll pressure you to accept according to their interpretation. And if you yield, then the pressure only increases. I've been there. Peer pressure is hard to resist. We all want social approval, and these groups have honed this practice.

Stick with the safe, boring groups, at least at first, until your discernment gets more exercised. Otherwise you could end up somewhere even worse than the LC.

Other than that; yes, seek out Christian fellowship. And don't judge your new associates. "Receive one another, but not for the purpose of disputation". See e.g. Rom 14:1

Good advice. Honestly I think the best churches are those of normal, everyday people who aren't "weird"--people who have hobbies and interests which aren't just church stuff.

Be wary of and even avoid churches which are isolationist--which think they have the inside track on "the right way" and which set themselves above or apart from others groups. A good thing to look for is does the church fellowship and cooperate with other groups, not only churches, but mission organizations, community services and other ministries. Healthy churches respect and welcome the works of other groups. This is true unity.

[NewManLiving]

If your looking for transitional fellowship many ex-LC people have found very good fellowship with the assemblies founded here by Stephen Kaung. I myself included. I was surprised to see how many former LC members were at last summer's Christian Family Conference (another one coming up 7/4). Even some still attending the LC but on their way out. Stephen is the exact flip-side of WL; meek and humble. Since WL subverted (building upon another's work) the Church in New York which was started by Kaung, the members that left the WL coup and stood with Stephen, are normal, dedicated lovers of Christ who are extremely watchful that the cult-like and man-idol aspects of the LC do not creep in. They respect Stephen but they do not exalt him. The Holy Spirit has the freedom to speak freely through anyone and to supply experiences of many historical saints via their extensive and rich library. If you care to have a look you can find the website Christian Testimony Ministry. I encourage anyone who can to attend the CFC conference in July. See the CFC website. Bill Mallon and his wife were present at the last one. It was a joyous time full of Liberty. I can say I really had a great time. Met so many normal people

[Cal]

Originally Posted by NewManLiving

If your looking for transitional fellowship many ex-LC people have found very good fellowship with the assemblies founded here by Stephen Kaung.

NML,

I was wondering if you have enjoyed any other type meetings, like those of community churches and so forth. I was wondering if you think CFC appeals to you because it is more like what you are used to, or because you genuinely think it is "better" (more living, etc.). Just wondering. How exactly do they meet? Is it LC-like, with a lot of "amens" and plain clothing, etc. Hopefully this doesn't sound like a loaded question, because it's not intended to be.

[NewManLiving]

Since I don't live close by an assembly fellowship I attend an Evangelical Baptist church and have friends in other groups . I find that anyone who loves the Lord is more than adequate to supply my own fellowship needs. I like the assemblies because of my persuasion. Personally I am very convinced concerning the doctrines of the centrality of Christ and the Kingdom doctrines. I read Govett, Lang, Pember. I always have. The assemblies by Stephen read pretty much what I do and speak pretty much the same. They often quote Sparks, Tozer, Spurgeon..It's easy to have a dialog with them. And most importantly they are more consecrated than many in the LC who are more for WL than for Christ. I am not one of those that think all Christians have the same light. A cursory look at the TV evangelist genre will persuade any intelligent person that there are major differences. One good example is the Bible study I attend. It is full of rich experiences and fellowship. But not to long ago after finishing Revelation, a suggestion was made to read a book about some kid that died and went to heaven, had a hot dog or something and came back to tell about it. If that book got the vote then I would not be interested. Thank the Lord it did not.

My early LC days remain. We read those books and talked about them in meetings. I threw out the bath water but not the baby ( early LC) This is why I say if your looking to transition. Others who left no longer accept the kingdom doctrines so they would be better in a group that is more vanilla and believe that all will be raptured no matter how they live etc..

[NewManLiving]

As to your second question my answer was " It was nice to meet a lot of normal people. There is no dress code, sports are watched and played. There are Amens of course but normal ones. No special linguistics just to be different. At the last conference during a break some of us headed over to the well equipped gym at the school (also open to the public) It was fun working out and talking about our wonderful Christ with the other brothers.

Oh yes. I forgot - there is facial hair - as much as you want

[Cal]

Originally Posted by NewManLiving

Others who left no longer accept the kingdom doctrines so they would be better in a group that is more vanilla and believe that all will be raptured no matter how they live etc..

Just as an aside, evangelicals believe in reward and loss, most of them just don't necessarily tie it to the Millenium. But the idea that our works will be judged is well-known and accepted. We just had a message on it last week. Here's the video if you are interested. The title of the message is "Grace and Reward." A good place to start it would be the 21:00 mark. Or for just the 1 Cor 3 part, pick it up at 29:00.

Quote from the message: "There will be some people who walk into heaven smelling like smoke, and I don't think that's what we want."

http://acfcommunity.org/media/messag...ce-and-reward/

[Intothewind]

some folks throw out the baby and the bathwater. Do what you need to do. Realize what you know is not normal nor particularly real-yes, even compared to the life experiences of the poor "thirsty" people all around you who know way more about life than you get in the lc

[aron]

Originally Posted by Intothewind

Some folks throw out the baby and the bathwater. Do what you need to do.

You may need to throw out the baby, bathwater, bathtub, and bathroom.

In my case I went from the LC into a community church, then into an even more extreme sect than the LC (without details, suffice to say they took religion very seriously, and felt everyone else was "Babylon").

Then I got discouraged and basically gave up on a consciously goal-directed "spiritual journey". Interestingly, this is where my professional life took off: it wasn't that I forgot about God so much as God quietly began presenting a set of continual challenges at the workplace. And I loved it! At that point, church was the same old, same old, but work was full of revelations, possibilities, and experiences. But "Christianity" was forgotten for several years.

Eventually, the God of my Fathers, who raised Jesus Christ from the dead, began to seep back into my consciousness. But things were different; I'd been trained to think independently, and to take responsibility for my thoughts and actions. If something was true it was because I found it to be so, not because God's self-appointed oracle had spoken, or even because Pastor Bob down at the community church said so. And if I failed, which I did often, I had to "man up" and admit it, and learn from it.

The LC bedrock is thought-suppression, but what a liberating moment when I could do the same as WN did: go through sources both modern and ancient, and figure out for myself what to keep and what to modify, or let go of.

Lastly, my experience here on this forum has been an example of Christian fellowship. Not everyone on the forum was bowled over by my thinking. That's a necessary corrective. Not only do I not agree with everything I read or hear, but not everyone is going to agree with everything I say. That, my friends, is called a discussion. It's okay. It's not the sound of division, but rather something like "the sound of many waters" (Rev 14:2). That is the new song (Rev 14:3).

[JJ]

Originally Posted by aron

You may need to throw out the baby, bathwater, bathtub, and bathroom.

In my case I went from the LC into a community church, then into an even more extreme sect than the LC (without details, suffice to say they took religion very seriously, and felt everyone else was "Babylon").

Then I got discouraged and basically gave up on a consciously goal-directed "spiritual journey". Interestingly, this is where my professional life took off: it wasn't that I forgot about God so much as God quietly began presenting a set of continual challenges at the workplace. And I loved it! At that point, church was the same old, same old, but work was full of revelations, possibilities, and experiences. But "Christianity" was forgotten for several years.

Eventually, the God of my Fathers, who raised Jesus Christ from the dead, began to seep back into my consciousness. But things were different; I'd been trained to think independently, and to take responsibility for my thoughts and actions. If something was true it was because I found it to be so, not because God's self-appointed oracle had spoken, or even because Pastor Bob down at the community church said so. And if I failed, which I did often, I had to "man up" and admit it, and learn from it.

The LC bedrock is thought-suppression, but what a liberating moment when I could do the same as WN did: go through sources both modern and ancient, and figure out for myself what to keep and what to modify, or let go of.

Lastly, my experience here on this forum has been an example of Christian fellowship. Not everyone on the forum was bowled over by my thinking. That's a necessary corrective. Not only do I not agree with everything I read or hear, but not everyone is going to agree with everything I say. That, my friends, is called a discussion. It's okay. It's not the sound of division, but rather something like "the sound of many waters" (Rev 14:2). That is the new song (Rev 14:3).

I love to hear what others went through after exiting TLR and attempting to recover. Thanks for sharing your experience Aron. My experience is that "it aint easy" (to use improper English). It aint easy to be in TLR either, but that's human and Christian life.

Interesting that Aron uses the sound of many waters quote from Revelation. It is also used by Ezekiel to describe the voice of God. When I went to Niagara Falls, I finally understood what the sound of many waters is in nature. Following is an attempt (unfortunately somewhat feeble) to capture it that someone else posted on the internet (view and sound from a tunnel that looks into the underside of Horseshoe Falls (Canadian side of Niagara Falls, and the most awesome side). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCYeb2bL0Tk

Getting anywhere near Horseshoe Falls is absolutely deafening (and drenching). Just like when we human "ants" hear God's awesome voice. When He speaks, all other sounds and consciousness of anyone but Him are drowned out. What an awesome God we have! His voice is not cornered in the LC, in spite of their claims.

Hello. I've been lurking for awhile. Thanks for this forum.

I was in the lc's for many years. I've been out for awhile now. Meet with a really good church, the opposite of the lc's. Lots of grace and healing.

One thing I still deal with though is flashbacks. Does anyone else here have them? I mean that I often have negative memories come back for no reason. I often think about what I should have said or done (especially because of abusive elders). I rehearse what happened as if it could be different. I remember so many meetings filled with condemnation. Elders shouting at the saints for little things (being late, not setting up the chairs right, not inviting people to meetings, not being one with the ministry). When I'm alone I even have conversations with the "leading brothers" even though they're not there. I know it sounds crazy. It's like I wish I could go back and stand up to their bullying, but it's too late. For some reason I can't let it go. Sometimes for no reason it's like a tape recorder in my brain goes off, and I'm reliving it

Does anyone else have the problem? If so, how do you deal with it? I'd really like to leave all this behind me, but I still look back all the time.

Thank you.

[TLFisher]

I can relate. From January 2001 until my uncle passed away in April 2014, I couldn't set foot in the Bellevue meeting hall. It wasn't until my uncle's memorial service that I did. In between many nightmares.
From an attendance perspective, some might have a problem to churches that have one man speaking. Problem that I have is from churches following a singular ministry (Anaheim or Cleveland).

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by new poster

Hello. I've been lurking for awhile...

Sure. Sounds normal to me.

I think it's part of life. It's also part of the way we learn. By rehashing difficult or painful times, we gain new perspectives and practices for the future.

Like you, I'm still mad that I didn't stand up to all the public abuses, but then again I am reminded of one time I did stand up to an abusive elder and he beat me up pretty good. (Or should I say pretty bad.) I had a black eye, a headache, a sore neck, and it could have been much worse. It was painful for a while, embarrassing to all who saw me, and I must have rehearsed that day in my mind a thousand times. Not once would I have done things differently. I needed to say what I did, and not accept blame for something he did. It's not my fault he had a temper tantrum all over me.

On another front, just the other day I was rehearing a bad interview I had 31 years ago. It was an engineering position with Rockwell, and as I walked into the director's office, he pointed me to some derivative Calculus problems on the board. I did well until I bombed the last one. He said goodbye. I'll never forget that interview. Rehearsed it many times. Got that problem right each time.

[JJ]

Originally Posted by new poster

Hello. I've been lurking for awhile...

Welcome new poster. I think all of us here have local church memories that haunt us. I do. That's one of the reasons I am here. Sorry you were emotionally abused by leading ones. You don't owe them anything.

"Hanging out" and posting here plus the better church experience you described may help you work through remaining anxiety over time.

In addition to finding other Christians to fellowship with in the area I live in who are not interested in dominating others, I found it comforting to find many here who share the same revulsion to many of the things going on in TLC. And, they love and pursue the Lord Jesus in faith together with other Christians in a spirit of love (versus self exaltation). I have found myself praying, thank you, Lord you set this board up so I could see I'm not crazy and alone in my thinking after all.

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by JJ

Following is an attempt (unfortunately somewhat feeble) to capture it that someone else posted on the internet (view and sound from a tunnel that looks into the underside of Horseshoe Falls (Canadian side of Niagara Falls, and the most awesome side). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCYeb2bL0Tk. Getting anywhere near Horseshoe Falls is absolutely deafening (and drenching).

JJ, Isn't that beneath Goat Island on the American side of the Falls?

[HERn]

"Lastly, as you can see, I find writing to be therapeutic."

Aron, you are funny, and that is true.

I too relive certain LC interactions now that I think about it. Your comment about forgiveness is very good and much needed (at least by me!).

[JJ]

Originally Posted by Ohio

JJ, Isn't that beneath Goat Island on the American side of the Falls?

It could be. I don't know if both sides have tunnels like that or not. I went in a tunnel on the Canadian side with views that look like the video and assumed .... Uh oh

[TLFisher]

Originally Posted by Intothewind

some folks throw out the baby and the bathwater.

In the analogy of the baby and the bathwater, what is the baby and what is the bathwater?

[HERn]

Originally Posted by Avist

How have others recovered from their time in the "recovery"? Looking for input or suggestions.

Does any of the advice sound reasonable to you? So, where are you regarding your exit?

Because it is so often said, "You will never hear this anywhere else;" It can be very beneficial to someone recovering from the recovery, to visit as many different places of worship as possible. Listen to a variety to speakers online and read some different ministries. You may be as shocked as I was that the ministry of Witness Lee is not that unique. I think it's funny how LCers will think these speakers/preachers are reading "the ministry". I did too at first. Now I just realize that the reason they may sound the same is because they are reading the Bible!

I found this website/forum just a couple days ago through a Google Search. I was having flashbacks recently and was curious to see how people coped.

I grew up in an LC church as a kid (NYC). The first Bible I owned was the Recovery Version given to me in 1986 when I was 12. That was also the year that "Summer School of Truth" was started. I caught onto a lot of the ideas taught, but there were times when I just didn't understand while everyone around me (including my peers) seemed to understand everything. I knew I was not an overcomer and probably never would be. Just about everyone I knew went to the conferences and the FTT. I never went to the FTT.

When I no longer was interested in going to church meetings and saw going away to college as THE opportunity to escape, I found it really hard to relate to the outside world. Fast forwarding to today, I function as a normal person, but I no longer identify as a Christian. Instead I live in this world as an atheist. Today it is just too painful and traumatic to read the Bible; hear familiar verses, hymns or phrases, or listen to a sermon6

Strangely enough, I currently play the piano for the Sunday morning service at a Methodist Church, afterwards I help out another church with Sunday school for kids, and during the week i listen to Christian music while driving to work.

[aron]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I knew I was not an overcomer and probably never would be. Just about everyone I knew went to the conferences and the FTT. I never went to the FTT.

Fast forwarding to today, I function as a normal person, but I no longer identify as a Christian. Instead I live in this world as an atheist.

A few years ago, I stopped by an LSM church where I'd met. None of the young people were still there. Of perhaps 30 to 40 that had been in the meetings, as children, fifteen years prior, none were in attendance; they were either "in the world" or off somewhere "serving the ministry".

Instead of allowing youngsters the opportunity to find their way, they're force-fed a program to make them ministry zealots. This all-or-nothing scenario causes many to abandon the faith completely.

For what it's worth, I lived apart from God (more agnostic than true atheist) for several years, post-LC. Eventually I found my way home, on my own path, not someone else's.

Jesus burned with holy and passionate fire, but the only ones who seem to have been truly and consistently alienated by this weekend the religious know-it-all. Other than that, he seems quite accessible.

Originally Posted by Avist

How have others recovered from their time in the "recovery"? Looking for input or suggestions.

Hi, I'm new here. Just began reading some of the forums on this site a couple of weeks ago after John Ingall's passing. I grew up in the LC in Anaheim from the late 70s to the early 90s. Even went to the inaugural High School FTT training in Taipei and then the subsequent YP's training in Irving (in July/August 1987)...which ultimately troubled me deeply, but I didn't totally leave the LC until I was in college. Took about 4 or 5 years from the initial time I felt the nature of the recovery had changed to the time I left, which speaks to how fully I identified myself and every aspect of my life with the LC. No doubt it was a difficult transition for me as I lost virtually all of my friends due to my contrary ("negative") views of the ministry.

Looking back now, though the path has not been all rosy, I feel it was definitely God's blessed sovereignty that led me out of that situation. To this day, I still dearly love the LC saints -- which means that although I have not seen any in quite a while, I would welcome and cherish any fellowship I might possibly have with them if our paths were to cross. The reason I left was due to the exaltation of one man and one ministry, and some of the toxic teachings & practices that increasingly grew from the mid 80s to early 90s. EVERY church has its flaws/problems, but the flaws in the LC grew to a point where there was no more blessing of the Spirit, at least in MY life. And in my conscience, I could no longer justify to myself or God that I should stay. Basically, I had resisted the prodding of the Lord for me to leave, until I had simply run out of excuses.

Overall, I still have VERY fond memories of the LC because the church life was amazing up until the mid 80s. At least, this is my perspective as a young person during that time. I definitely saw and experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the church and on me. I had many deep personal experiences of Christ. I really enjoyed the YP's meetings, the retreats and all the after-church activities (lots of sports outings at Modjeska Park); but most importantly, I miss the indepth study/exposition of the Word that has been difficult to find to this day in churches outside the LC. Also, another thing I appreciated and miss was a certain "culture" of the LC where there was a lot of encouragement/exhortation to walk in the Spirit (eg. encouragement to deny your flesh in day-to-day life, to exercise spiritual discipline, having morning watch/devotion, reading the Bible, etc). Maybe some people think these things are ritualistic, but in its pure form, they were such a blessing and salvation, and they are what we need to survive in this evil world. Unfortunately, many churches in Christianity don't emphasize these things as much, esp with regard to the reading of the Word, which I find to be alarming and very discouraging. Yes, the LC had/has some cultural peculiarities, but the constant encouragement I received from others (whether manufactured or geniune) is something I still miss to this day. It is the closest to Hebrews 10:25 in terms of encouragement that I have ever experienced in my life.

But the reason I feel God sovereignly brought me out of the LC was because I have since discovered a deep personal walk with Him that probably would not have been possible had I stayed. I say this because having stepped out of the environment where there was really only one teaching/interpretation of anything, and being always taught to "drop your concepts", I have now seen the importance of INDIVIDUALLY opening my heart to Him and letting Him speak directly to me. This has been precious. Yes, God speaks through other people, but He also speaks directly to each of us in a personal way.

Although the church we choose to meet at/with is important, the most important thing is our heart; that EACH PERSON would have a heart that is humble, teachable, God-fearing, and seeking. Really, the "secret" to a blessed life boils down to having such a heart every day. Wherever we meet, whatever situation we are in, I hope we all can live in such a way. If/when we all as His church do this, we will become like the bride that is beautifully portrayed in the Song of Songs/Solomon that shows how much delight our Bridegroom takes in us as His people/church. So, while no church on this earth is perfect -- all churches and all people have many flaws -- may our desire be to be perfected more into His glorious image every day.

[Nell]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

...
But the reason I feel God sovereignly brought me out of the LC was because I have since discovered a deep personal walk with Him that probably would not have been possible had I stayed. I say this because having stepped out of the environment where there was really only one teaching/interpretation of anything, and being always taught to "drop your concepts", I have now seen the importance of INDIVIDUALLY opening my heart to Him and letting Him speak directly to me. This has been precious. Yes, God speaks through other people, but He also speaks directly to each of us in a personal way.

Although the church we choose to meet at/with is important, the most important thing is our heart; that EACH PERSON would have a heart that is humble, teachable, God-fearing, and seeking. Really, the "secret" to a blessed life boils down to having such a heart every day. Wherever we meet, whatever situation we are in, I hope we all can live in such a way. If/when we all as His church do this, we will become like the bride that is beautifully portrayed in the Song of Songs/Solomon that shows how much delight our Bridegroom takes in us as His people/church. So, while no church on this earth is perfect -- all churches and all people have many flaws -- may our desire be to be perfected more into His glorious image every day.

I think you've found the key. Without a deep personal walk with the Lord and a humble, teachable heart, what do we have? There are spots and wrinkles in the church, but it's up to Him to love and care for us as willing children who love our Daddy above all else and grow us up together with all our brothers and sisters until there are no more spots...no more wrinkles. Then He can come to take his children home. Amen Lord. Come quickly.

Nell

[aron]

Originally Posted by Nell

I think you've found the key. Without a deep personal walk with the Lord and a humble, teachable heart, what do we have?

Reminds me of a story I read:

Originally Posted by ----

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AL CLARK: We don’t need 15 points to tell us what to do. We just need to continually hear from this One Who is within us. The more you try to keep so many points, the more you will fail, and then you are under condemnation. Eventually what you have is not a ministry of Life, but one of condemnation. You have been switched from Christ to Moses. And the veils start stacking up over your head until you cannot see anything.