The Thread of Gold - Jane Carole Anderson

UntoHim · 04-14-2008, 05:11 PM

www.TheThreadofGold.com
Home of
The Thread of Gold
By
Jane Carole Anderson

"This book, The Thread of Gold: God's Purpose, the Cross, and Me, tells the true story of Jane Carole Anderson’s twenty-year journey through the Local Church of Witness Lee. It reveals her discovery of the powerful and practical message of the cross, one that saved her from deception and revealed God’s purpose for her life.

The author writes, 'When your goal is to know God, you will find an amazing thread of gold being woven into the details of your life and circumstances. That golden thread will be your very own, unique, personal experience of Him. You will come to know Him as One who takes care of everything concerning you—from commonplace things to the deeply significant matters of the heart. I know Him as both the God who takes care of my washing machine and the God who wipes away my tears. In His way and time, He will unfold the unique purpose He has for your life. Ultimately, you and your thread of gold will remain forever, perfectly woven together with millions of others and their threads of gold into God's masterpiece, and put on display for eternity.'

We at Protus Publications are truly thankful that The Thread of Gold has already been helpful to a number of people as evidenced by those who have given us feedback. We continue to pray that God will put this book into the hands of all those whom He desires to receive it"

-----------------------------------------------------

Chapter 1
Into the Pit

The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.”
(Jer. 31:3)

IN THE SPRING OF 1977, MY HUSBAND AND I DRAGGED our bodies home
after a church meeting in Houston, Texas. During that meeting, I was publicly
humiliated; and after it, I was further shamed, censured, and ostracized. I had
sensed God’s nearness throughout everything that had transpired until that
night, and then it seemed that He had abandoned me to this horrible
experience. Those I loved had cast me into a pit of spiritual darkness and left
me there to languish alone. I went to bed still sobbing as I continued to relive
what had happened.

That Meeting

I was upset, nervous, and fearful as I sat there, waiting for Dan Williams to
speak. I had been in this condition since the time I had been told, several days
earlier, that my attendance in this meeting was mandatory. Dan was an elder
and regional leader from a church in another city who had traveled to Houston
with the purpose of holding this meeting. He was a tall, thin man who always
wore a longsleeved white shirt, a thin tie, and dark pants. He was sitting
forward in his chair on the front row jiggling one of his legs up and down
periodically. Then he rose and began to speak. He asked that the tape
recorder be turned off. This request was extremely unusual and, therefore,
foreboding.

Because of events in the preceding weeks, I knew whatever was coming wasn’t
going to be good. When Dan began to speak, he announced that there was a
“sisters’ rebellion” in the Texas churches and that the sister leading this
rebellion was in the Houston church. According to him, this sister had
committed serious offenses against the church. She and others with her had
encouraged people to open up and talk about their problems. According to
Dan, this was the same as encouraging people to vomit. He disapprovingly
said that when these sisters had told people to pray and wait for direction from
the Lord, they were advocating “passivity.”

As I had sat there listening to him, I had no doubt that I was the person about
whom he was speaking. Though he didn’t mention my name, many people in
the church had already heard I was in trouble and had stopped speaking to me
because of what was considered to be my “leprous condition.”

Dan declared that these rebellious sisters had opposed the Lord’s present
move in the church and had caused a serious division. He proclaimed that they
were seeking to be spiritual giants and that this was unacceptable in what he
called the age of the body, the corporate expression of Christ. Because of
their spiritual self-seeking, they had become deceived. Satan had used them
to cause serious error and trouble and, hence, to damage the church. At one
point, he stated his belief that sisters didn’t have any spiritual discernment,
and that they were, therefore, easy prey for Satan’s deception. He also stated
his belief that sisters could not receive revelation from the Bible. He continued
speaking for a long period of time, informing church members about the
evilness of the sisters’ rebellion and stating that any evidence of such rebellion
would not be tolerated.

A large knot of nausea and almost pain was throbbing in my stomach as I sat
there listening, feeling like time had been cruelly suspended so that the wound
I was receiving would be the deepest possible. When I ventured a glance
around the room, hoping for anyone, anything that might be able to stop this
nightmare, all I saw were faces glancing back at me with looks of pity. Dan
ﬁnally concluded his message: “One of these sisters hasn’t repented or talked
to us. You know who you are. After this meeting, come to the fellowship room.”
My husband and I knew he meant me. It apparently hadn’t been enough to put
me in a public cofﬁn; he needed to nail it shut.

The Inquisition

With many eyes on us, we crossed the meeting hall and entered the fellowship
room. I felt like I was being summoned to the Inquisition. Dan was waiting there
with a number of others who had been invited to attend as witnesses. Most of
the local elders were present. One of their wives was present. An elder from a
third locality was also there. A number of sisters were there, including some
that had become members of the church through our efforts and had lived in
our home for a long period of time. It appeared that the elders wanted them to
be clear that I was not to be trusted. I was directed to sit down on the end of a
couch. Most of the people present were sitting on folding chairs in a semicircle
across the room from me. My husband was given a seat with them. Others
were standing.

A folding chair was on my right side, about a foot away from the couch. Dan
turned it to face me and then sat down. Looking at me, he began repeating in
judgment of me his pronouncements from the public meeting. He offered no
speciﬁc facts and no clear examples of my “rebellion.” He asked me nothing. I
did not understand his vague accusations. One of these was, “…and the
shameful downfall that you caused to one of us.” I had no idea what he was
talking about, but thought that by “one of us” he might mean one of the elders.
I wondered if his comment referred to a local elder named Steve Smith, who
had broken down and wept in front of me and a few others several weeks
before this. Steve was not present in the room that night.

Dan informed me that he knew all about the “secret meeting” we had planned
for the spring. However, this was news to me because I didn’t know anything
about it. He said that all my rebellious, negative speaking had “come to their
ears,” revealing a conspiracy among the sisters that was undermining the
elders and church oneness. Maybe he used the biblical phrase “come to our
ears” to try and give scriptural support to what he was doing. He wasn’t
interested in learning whether I realized I was the leader of what he was calling
a sisters’ rebellion. He told me emphatically that I needed to repent for my
offense to the church, and from that day forward, I was to “stop all my talk and
be quiet.”

I sobbed throughout his monologue. His non-speciﬁc accusations left me
feeling that my person was being attacked. Near the end of the torment, I said,
“The only solution I can see is just to dig a hole about six feet deep and put me
in it. I think the problem is just who I am.”

I also told him, “Whatever has happened, it isn’t my husband’s fault. It’s mine.”
At this point, another of the elders present, who always seemed to be lurking in
the background, Sam Jones, chuckled and said, “I always wondered why the
Lord put you two together, and now I know.” I had no idea what he meant by
this strange statement. Why had he always wondered this? What did he now
know? I certainly didn’t understand his apparent amusement. How could
anyone ﬁnd anything funny in what was happening at that black moment in that
room? I was weeping and in extreme distress, yet he found humor in the
situation? Sam’s comment, at best, was thoughtless and cruel.

Later that night at home in bed, I tried to pray, but I couldn’t. I was experiencing
an internal, spiritual, and emotional agony. How had such darkness swallowed
us? I had belonged to Jesus since I was a child, and He had never failed me.
Where was He now? I felt like I was suffocating in a deep, dark pit ﬁlled with
blackness.

Copyright 2005 by Jane Carole Anderson

04-14-2008, 05:11 PM	#1
UntoHim Οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον For God So Loved The World Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 3,824	The Thread of Gold - Jane Carole Anderson www.TheThreadofGold.com Home of The Thread of Gold By Jane Carole Anderson "This book, The Thread of Gold: God's Purpose, the Cross, and Me, tells the true story of Jane Carole Anderson’s twenty-year journey through the Local Church of Witness Lee. It reveals her discovery of the powerful and practical message of the cross, one that saved her from deception and revealed God’s purpose for her life. The author writes, 'When your goal is to know God, you will find an amazing thread of gold being woven into the details of your life and circumstances. That golden thread will be your very own, unique, personal experience of Him. You will come to know Him as One who takes care of everything concerning you—from commonplace things to the deeply significant matters of the heart. I know Him as both the God who takes care of my washing machine and the God who wipes away my tears. In His way and time, He will unfold the unique purpose He has for your life. Ultimately, you and your thread of gold will remain forever, perfectly woven together with millions of others and their threads of gold into God's masterpiece, and put on display for eternity.' We at Protus Publications are truly thankful that The Thread of Gold has already been helpful to a number of people as evidenced by those who have given us feedback. We continue to pray that God will put this book into the hands of all those whom He desires to receive it" ----------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1 Into the Pit The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.” (Jer. 31:3) IN THE SPRING OF 1977, MY HUSBAND AND I DRAGGED our bodies home after a church meeting in Houston, Texas. During that meeting, I was publicly humiliated; and after it, I was further shamed, censured, and ostracized. I had sensed God’s nearness throughout everything that had transpired until that night, and then it seemed that He had abandoned me to this horrible experience. Those I loved had cast me into a pit of spiritual darkness and left me there to languish alone. I went to bed still sobbing as I continued to relive what had happened. That Meeting I was upset, nervous, and fearful as I sat there, waiting for Dan Williams to speak. I had been in this condition since the time I had been told, several days earlier, that my attendance in this meeting was mandatory. Dan was an elder and regional leader from a church in another city who had traveled to Houston with the purpose of holding this meeting. He was a tall, thin man who always wore a longsleeved white shirt, a thin tie, and dark pants. He was sitting forward in his chair on the front row jiggling one of his legs up and down periodically. Then he rose and began to speak. He asked that the tape recorder be turned off. This request was extremely unusual and, therefore, foreboding. Because of events in the preceding weeks, I knew whatever was coming wasn’t going to be good. When Dan began to speak, he announced that there was a “sisters’ rebellion” in the Texas churches and that the sister leading this rebellion was in the Houston church. According to him, this sister had committed serious offenses against the church. She and others with her had encouraged people to open up and talk about their problems. According to Dan, this was the same as encouraging people to vomit. He disapprovingly said that when these sisters had told people to pray and wait for direction from the Lord, they were advocating “passivity.” As I had sat there listening to him, I had no doubt that I was the person about whom he was speaking. Though he didn’t mention my name, many people in the church had already heard I was in trouble and had stopped speaking to me because of what was considered to be my “leprous condition.” Dan declared that these rebellious sisters had opposed the Lord’s present move in the church and had caused a serious division. He proclaimed that they were seeking to be spiritual giants and that this was unacceptable in what he called the age of the body, the corporate expression of Christ. Because of their spiritual self-seeking, they had become deceived. Satan had used them to cause serious error and trouble and, hence, to damage the church. At one point, he stated his belief that sisters didn’t have any spiritual discernment, and that they were, therefore, easy prey for Satan’s deception. He also stated his belief that sisters could not receive revelation from the Bible. He continued speaking for a long period of time, informing church members about the evilness of the sisters’ rebellion and stating that any evidence of such rebellion would not be tolerated. A large knot of nausea and almost pain was throbbing in my stomach as I sat there listening, feeling like time had been cruelly suspended so that the wound I was receiving would be the deepest possible. When I ventured a glance around the room, hoping for anyone, anything that might be able to stop this nightmare, all I saw were faces glancing back at me with looks of pity. Dan ﬁnally concluded his message: “One of these sisters hasn’t repented or talked to us. You know who you are. After this meeting, come to the fellowship room.” My husband and I knew he meant me. It apparently hadn’t been enough to put me in a public cofﬁn; he needed to nail it shut. The Inquisition With many eyes on us, we crossed the meeting hall and entered the fellowship room. I felt like I was being summoned to the Inquisition. Dan was waiting there with a number of others who had been invited to attend as witnesses. Most of the local elders were present. One of their wives was present. An elder from a third locality was also there. A number of sisters were there, including some that had become members of the church through our efforts and had lived in our home for a long period of time. It appeared that the elders wanted them to be clear that I was not to be trusted. I was directed to sit down on the end of a couch. Most of the people present were sitting on folding chairs in a semicircle across the room from me. My husband was given a seat with them. Others were standing. A folding chair was on my right side, about a foot away from the couch. Dan turned it to face me and then sat down. Looking at me, he began repeating in judgment of me his pronouncements from the public meeting. He offered no speciﬁc facts and no clear examples of my “rebellion.” He asked me nothing. I did not understand his vague accusations. One of these was, “…and the shameful downfall that you caused to one of us.” I had no idea what he was talking about, but thought that by “one of us” he might mean one of the elders. I wondered if his comment referred to a local elder named Steve Smith, who had broken down and wept in front of me and a few others several weeks before this. Steve was not present in the room that night. Dan informed me that he knew all about the “secret meeting” we had planned for the spring. However, this was news to me because I didn’t know anything about it. He said that all my rebellious, negative speaking had “come to their ears,” revealing a conspiracy among the sisters that was undermining the elders and church oneness. Maybe he used the biblical phrase “come to our ears” to try and give scriptural support to what he was doing. He wasn’t interested in learning whether I realized I was the leader of what he was calling a sisters’ rebellion. He told me emphatically that I needed to repent for my offense to the church, and from that day forward, I was to “stop all my talk and be quiet.” I sobbed throughout his monologue. His non-speciﬁc accusations left me feeling that my person was being attacked. Near the end of the torment, I said, “The only solution I can see is just to dig a hole about six feet deep and put me in it. I think the problem is just who I am.” I also told him, “Whatever has happened, it isn’t my husband’s fault. It’s mine.” At this point, another of the elders present, who always seemed to be lurking in the background, Sam Jones, chuckled and said, “I always wondered why the Lord put you two together, and now I know.” I had no idea what he meant by this strange statement. Why had he always wondered this? What did he now know? I certainly didn’t understand his apparent amusement. How could anyone ﬁnd anything funny in what was happening at that black moment in that room? I was weeping and in extreme distress, yet he found humor in the situation? Sam’s comment, at best, was thoughtless and cruel. Later that night at home in bed, I tried to pray, but I couldn’t. I was experiencing an internal, spiritual, and emotional agony. How had such darkness swallowed us? I had belonged to Jesus since I was a child, and He had never failed me. Where was He now? I felt like I was suffocating in a deep, dark pit ﬁlled with blackness. Copyright 2005 by Jane Carole Anderson