The next chapter of life 👊🏻 You CAN move on from the local church and live a great life ‼️
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- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2024
- Just some helpful tips on moving forward from the local churches and how to handle the change. It is possible to leave and have a great life. Don’t believe the lies the local churches have fed you.
If you’d like to be interviewed for the podcast, and share your story to inspire others.. email me at stnding4thetruth@gmail.com
#localchurch #livingstreamchurch #lordsrecovery #watchmannee #witnesslee
I relate to this 100%. I am still trying to construct my own identity after so many years having left.
I also found myself completely alone after having grown up with many "brothers and sisters" around me. But I can take it. It is better being on your own than being surrounded by people who fake love in order to keep you in the group dynamic.
As I told you before I am feeling much better now after having left. So, I can confirm all this "curses" they wish you is just a manipulation tactic.
Thank you for commenting! Building your own identity afterwards is a challenge,and I’m so happy you were brave enough to leave. And yes! There are no curses!😅
Hey @Ritz. Thank you for sharing your videos. Those videos, along with chatting with a few other ex-members, helped me in my recent decision a few days ago to leave the Lord's Recovery. I've been in it for a decade. Other than the doctrinal issues which I believe makes them a cult, and strange practices that would look weird to an outsider, being in the group made me depressed, because of exactly what you said and what the Ministry taught, to hate the self, to not have an opinion, to not trust the natural self and what not. I could never be me, because the self is bad and I would have to put on a front and look joyful and glorious when in the meetings, even though I was dying inside. It's true what you said about the saints when they are singing. The majority of the people look depressed, with the heads down looking at their phone, or blank stares. The 1000 year darkness doctrine really messed me up and put me under a lot of guilt and fear. Talk about manipulation.
I have grieved knowing that I have lost pretty much my entire social circle and community, and also knowing that I may be labelled a certain way. I am untangling the self-hatred, learning to love myself again, and re-establishing my social circle. But I am coming out of it feeling much happier, joyful and free. Finally, it feels okay to be me again, something that would not be encouraged while being in the group.
Thank you for sharing your story 🧡. I know how you feel, and I am so grateful you were able to see the truth! At the beginning I regretted being raised in this group, and didn’t understand why I had to go through such drastic measures to separate myself.. but man.. I have to say that once you separate yourself even more..things will become even more clear and you’ll wonder HOW you ever believed what you did?! Don’t do what I did and blame yourself. We all go through experiences for a reason. Lessons are hiding in every corner of our life. It’s up to us to learn from them and then move on and heal. Feel free to reach out if you ever need a boost of encouragement. My email is in the description.🧡
Thanks! I really appreciate that. One thing that really frustrated me is when I keep hearing, well this is not my experience. My experience with the group was great! Well, that’s great, but you have other people who say otherwise, so the question really should be: why are there some who have really negative experiences? And is it because of a person? Or because of the underlying doctrine of the group that enables it? Plus, saying that is effectively dismissing the other person’s experience, which is terrible.
I can say this, because I did the exact same thing. While I was in the group, I would just dismiss them and say well that’s not my experience. Looking back, there is a lot of regret in saying that. No doubt, there will be positive experiences, but when negative experiences are treated this way, you really have to question it.
@@mrjookoon I couldn’t have said it better myself. It’s the focus of only what they want to see, and the dismal of all the rest.
@@mrjookoon
This right here. It is so frustrating to see those I trusted dismiss others so easily. They do not care to hear what others have to say. Whenever I brought up the issues that I became aware of, I would always be turned away with “Well, that’s not my experience. I like it here” or “just call on the Lord and leave it to him, brother.”
I often think to myself and I’ve said to them “Awesome, that’s not your experience. So, what are we gonna do about these things besides chanting God’s name?” The response is usually “This happens everywhere. Stop focusing on negative things! Are you God to tell people what to do?”
Ok?? So what if this happens everywhere? Does that mean we should just ignore it when it happens here? Aren’t we suppose to counsel and exhort one another? I heard so much about how we were supposedly so much better than the rest, and we allow the same garbage to pollute our ministry and our churches. When challenged, it seems most people just shrug their shoulders and say “Well, just don’t pick fights about it or you’re in your flesh/mind/self.”
I’ve had plenty of good experiences, but that does not excuse the neglect and lack of care that has occurred with the false doctrines, unscriptural practices, and covered-up abuses that are prevalent in this group.
Do not worry❤ about people knowing you
Tis inevitable, ❤love🎉.
@Ritz - I think a podcast related to survivors’ journeys and healing would be very helpful. Thanks!!
Thank you!!🧡 I think so too.
There’s a lot of passive aggressive behavior and judgement towards one’s who they don’t deem as absolute as themselves. In every locality there’s like an inner circle that believes they’re more closer to God than others. They consider themselves the “overcomers” of that locality and they pass subtle judgements off on others who they deem as not as inner circle as they are
Sometimes they are referred to as “the front row brothers,” but it’s not just brothers, it’s sisters too. And yes their amount of care for you is predicated on how they view your closeness to their inner circle. Many times they will avoid you if they view you as not overcoming like they are. It’s that subtle elitism that is fostered in the local churches. Nothing overt, but it’s there
One way to prove it is to stand up and prophesy about how degraded other churches are. You’ll get strong amens. Just proves they believe they’re superior to other Christians. It’s how the ministry of Witness Lee is set up. If you read his ministry enough you’ll notice the theme of putting down other Christians and uplifting the inner circle within the local church
At best you’ll get condescending behavior from one’s who think they’re shepherding you. At worst they’ll shun you and turn their nose up towards you
@@Love_Cruelty from my experience it’s based on a few factors
-How much time do you put in going to meetings. Do you go to the Lord’s table meeting, the prophesying meeting, the prayer meeting, and the home meeting. Do you also go to hall cleaning meetings and help preach the gospel
-How much do you function (“functioning” according to the local churches is prophesying, praying in meetings, and calling songs or hymns in the table meetings)
-How spiritual they estimate you are….meaning how holy do you portray yourself as. Do you come across like you’re always in your spirit
-Are you outwardly full of zeal. Meaning are you fervently seeking after the Lord and seeking to function in the meetings. Or are you just kind of passive and seem dormant. Of course this doesn’t take into account differences in personalities. Someone may be reserved and introverted by disposition but they might mistake this for being cold towards the Lord
-Do you come across like you’re confidently “reigning in life.” Do you present yourself as being abundantly spiritual as if you’re overcoming
None of these are “official” qualifications, but they will judge you on these things. I am naturally a person who shows up a lot if I am into something. So I would naturally go to a lot of meetings, however I also felt like I wasn’t quite accepted into their inner circle because I didn’t put in as much time (years) as they did and maybe I didn’t seem as conformed to their inner mold behavior. I believe it’s a cult conformity thing. A weird type of perceived conformity thing that you can only reach if you are as mindlessly dedicated to their system as they are. I think they could sense I wasn’t as conformed as they were based on little things like how I dressed and how I talked. I remember when I was younger trying hard to buy bland clothes so that I could fit in and putting myself under much stress and anguish if I felt I wasn’t as conformed to their outward mold as they were. Looking back this is because I felt pressure to fit into their outward cult mold because I could sense subtle judgements if I dressed worldly or behaved not as godly as they portrayed themselves
But I don’t think this has anything to do with Jesus. I don’t believe Jesus is this way. Rather Jesus looks at the heart
You are not alone. There's are Christians that call me a heretic because I rejected 6 day creationism and the pre tribulation rapture doctrines. They even warned other to not associate with me. It didn't matter how many bible verses I would use to explain why I came to this decision. They just don't care. As a Christian, we follow Jesus. He is perfect. His followers are not and many worship another Jesus.
Matthew 15:8 These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
Your honesty here shows that you're acting Christ-like. Stay strong sister and God bless!
You make great points.
Thank you 😊👊🏻
This must be a video about the Witness Lee cult.
People really like to put God in a box… orthodox groups like this tend to go the cult way when they are soooo afraid of differences and “disorder”. Look at the 12 disciples, they were chaotic😅. I gotta say they are very influenced by Oriental philosophy, it’s so ingrained in the culture.
Agreed! No room for critical thinking or independent thinking!
Oh these horrible people,prayed for you and created an atmosphere of love for you. Specially when you were on the hospital on border of dying, these horrible people were on their knees pray for you and not only that but helped financially and supported your family well you were not unconcise. Yes, they are cult, because they care so much for you and truly love you. Maybe not perfect but they care for you...
Hospital? I think you’re mistaking me for the wrong person. lol. I’ve never been hospitalized. But hey, keep lying to yourself. 🤷🏻♀️ I could easily delete your comment, but it’s comical to me since it’s not even true.
@@Fl0700 Sarcasm means the tearing/ripping of flesh… not appropriate nor becoming of a human being.
Pardon my ignorance for missing your points. The group you referred to is likely expected to perform “good works,” which I would define as love for the Lord Jesus and for brothers and sisters in faith. However, no church is perfect-every church has its issues. But to be clear, I’m not excusing serious offenses like child molestation or any other crime. These should be reported to the authorities ASAP, no matter if happened 20 years ago. If there if enough details the police can create a case and investigation.
This will be my last message. I’m just one of thousands of brothers and sisters who will continue to pray for you.
However, I want to share one thing with you: by creating these videos, you may be setting yourself up for a stressful life. There will come a point when it may become too much to handle. My humble advice is to focus on what brings you true joy and peace. The Lord is the only Savior and righteous judge, and we will all be accountable to Him for the words we speak.
Making these videos has brought me more joy and peace then the 34 years I was in the recovery. Helping people recover from abuse and shedding light on a HUGE issue makes me extremely happy. Siding with a group that has purposefully hidden and manipulated people is disgusting. It’s like being married to someone who is a sexual predator and being like “I know he sexually abuses people all the time, but we all make mistakes. I’ll just ignore that part of him and continue to love him regardless.” it would be different if the group openly admitted all of the sexual abuse that they’ve covered up and all of the problems that have gone on, but they ignore it and they covered it up. That’s my biggest issue. No one comes clean, and no one owns up to their mistakes. It’s a false charade trying to appear genuine.
Actually Ritz, it's like being married to a child predator who claims to speak the words of God. What I mean by this, is that they'll quote scripture, and say that they're holy but all the while they're setting things up to take advantage of those who are weak. In all reality this is what's been going on, but they're called Elders and leading ones.
When my wife and I left the group, we were shunned. Our children were not allowed to play with the local church children. It’s like people you thought loved you, immediately dropped you and considered you a leper. They are so brainwashed. They think they are the only ones faithful to the Lord. Their culture became quite toxic after 1989 when many pillars left. Leeites were left.
@@Fl0700 There is so much more joy and peace doing what the Bible tells us to do - not taking part in unfruitful works of darkness but rather exposing them (Eph. 5:11). We Christians are supposed to hold each other accountable for sinful actions (1Cor. 5:12).
The original comment by F10700 reads like a passive aggressive threat
If you witness such behavior, why not go directly to the authorities and “stop the predators”? That’s why the Lord has established them-to hold people accountable and press charges when needed. Instead of going around in circles, go straight to the source and address the problem. Posting online and continually complaining about it without taking action it is cowardly.
This IS taking action, and this is not complaining nor the least bit cowardly. My sister is sharing how she recovered from cult treatment. She and those who can relate need to be able to help others and find help through sharing our experiences - that is fellowship and being members one of another and caring for each other. There is much research on how finding and being in community - especially with fellow survivors of trauma - can promote healing.
Many cult-like behaviors are not technically against the law. Please refer to Scientology and Its Aftermath and other cult documentaries, if you aren’t clear on that. And survivors of abuse may take decades to be able to speak about it…. often too late to appeal to earthly authorities.
There are many instances in which widespread sexual abuse has been exposed in churches, and it always begins with people like this woman who opened their mouths to finally speak up.
And there are always wicked fools who try to shut them up.
How about you? Are you taking actions or most importantly, prayers, w/ the little power u have, to defend & protect your bros & sisters in the church against bullies & predators & to voucher for them & to allow them to voice their pain as part of the healing process?
I’m not sure what’s worse… the fact that you’re on here shaming me for helping people and warning me that my life may get worse for doing this.. or how you still defend a group that has (per the hundreds of comments) done extensive damage. I don’t need to defend myself, especially not to some coward who anonymously trolls a young woman. But let me be 100% clear. I HAVE been to the authorities. I HAVE testified in court.. Unfortunately, when someone comes to you and exposes a dark secret of being a victim, it is not your choice to call the authorities. It is theirs. I’ve always encouraged victims to take action if they can handle that. Not everyone has family support/finances/energy to be publicly questioned and humiliated on a public stage like a court house. You may think you know who I am by the minuscule details of my life you’ve posted publicly, but I can assure you.. the justice that is coming back to the people in this group hiding these things will be 10x worse then any justice I seek out. What have you done recently to actually help someone in this position?
One thing is that the LC fosters an environment of hiding and covering abuse. Which pressures victims to keep quiet in fear of offending the whole group. That is a type of cult abuse
Maybe one day the local churches will be investigated for this, but just because they haven’t yet doesn’t mean that abuse isn’t happening or hasn’t happened
I think it’s pretty sick to question and grill those who got abused. There are a lot of testimonies and letters floating around about sexual abuse and subsequent cover ups by the leadership. The leaders have even lied to delegitimize the testimonies of victims. I believe at the core of it is they don’t want any scandals to go public such as if a news station picked up the story and ran it to the public. But their fear of this exposes the fact they care more about their cult system than they do actual victims. Which is a clear sign of sickness
You are correct! It was your husband who was ill during the last months of 2018 and early 2019, not you. The cultic group you mentioned opened a GoFundMe, which allowed their members worldwide to get involved. They would likely do the same again if there were a need.
I’m glad my comment made you laugh! The Lord doesn’t need help justifying Himself. Truth and light will always prevail in the end.
I never said the group doesn’t do anything good. You’re missing the point here. Just because they do good things, doesn’t mean we should ignore the massive cover up and abuse that goes on. Cults do “good works” all the time. That’s how they keep people in and attract others. If they were blatantly “evil” it would be too obvious. Sorry you misinterpreted my messages.
I know several people who they declined to help who were going through hardships in life. One of them went homeless while meeting with them and they ignored him when he repeatedly asked for help because they judged him based on his background
Another one was disabled and they declined to help him. Which all goes against the Bible
They send millions of dollars to Anaheim to fund their publication works but fail to help the poor, sick, and needy amongst themselves because their church model is run like a business
Where in the Bible does it say any of the apostles sold their ministry and made millions of dollars? Living Stream ministry is worth over $100 million dollars yet they won’t even help the needy amongst their localities. Despicable