Tell the truth,

I think that I understand what you are trying to say, and I don't disagree. I guess that just have a slightly different take. I think that we need to reach a certain point in the healing process before we can acknowledge our own responsibility. Otherwise, it's akin to kicking someone when they are down and we risk blaming ourselves.

I am responsible for keeping my own heart in check, but it's not my fault that I was abused or taken advantage of (please understand, I do not believe that you are making this claim). There are things that I can and will do from here on out to protect myself, and to keep it from happening again (though I have to guard my heart, that it doesn't become hardened). I don't believe that I was fully equiped to protect myself the first time around. Even many who were better equiped, found themselves knee deep before they even realized it. Such is the way of deception.

I also can understand your "rush to healing". It's very difficult to watch as those you love are hurting and going through such a difficult time, and it's a heart full of compassion that desires healing for others. Everyone will heal though, at their own pace, and for some it will take longer than for others.

someone had asked Pastor David if ties were cut with Tony Cunningham and his response on Facebook was:

David Luster at 8:30am February 26
"Ties were never cut. Pastor Tony taught last year at SOMA as well for one day."



there ya go everybody. Turning Point is STILL connected to Tony Cunningham, so get out, and get out fast!

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180Reject
someone had asked Pastor David if ties were cut with Tony Cunningham and his response on Facebook was:

David Luster at 8:30am February 26
"Ties were never cut. Pastor Tony taught last year at SOMA as well for one day."



there ya go everybody. Turning Point is STILL connected to Tony Cunningham, so get out, and get out fast!

180reject
Thanks for posting

I have to ask the people reading this blog, and specifically you people at Turning point why then did Kim Barns lie to me regarding the churches association with Tony?

Why did Kim lead me to believe that they were cutting ties with Tony and part of that would involve changing the name of the SOMA School?

What the heck are they hiding with Tony and why?

BraveHeart

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Brokenhearted
Tell the truth,

I think that I understand what you are trying to say, and I don't disagree. I guess that just have a slightly different take. I think that we need to reach a certain point in the healing process before we can acknowledge our own responsibility. Otherwise, it's akin to kicking someone when they are down and we risk blaming ourselves.

I am responsible for keeping my own heart in check, but it's not my fault that I was abused or taken advantage of (please understand, I do not believe that you are making this claim). There are things that I can and will do from here on out to protect myself, and to keep it from happening again (though I have to guard my heart, that it doesn't become hardened). I don't believe that I was fully equiped to protect myself the first time around. Even many who were better equiped, found themselves knee deep before they even realized it. Such is the way of deception.

I also can understand your "rush to healing". It's very difficult to watch as those you love are hurting and going through such a difficult time, and it's a heart full of compassion that desires healing for others. Everyone will heal though, at their own pace, and for some it will take longer than for others.

Brokenhearted,
Thank you for your relevant post. your point is well taken. I would not want to kick anyone while they are down. And it is very true that it is not the fault of those who are unaware and are caught off guard and deceived by beauty, and love and feelings of love extended to them by what has become a heart entwined family with tendrils of seduction. We, as humans with sin as our constant companion, are always susceptible to this type of seduction because we want to be loved in a true and relevant way and experience it and taste it and feel it and at times we can lust for it. When we think we have finally found this wonderful paradise of being human in a spiritual wrapping, it is as heaven on earth. We begin to feel a part of something so deep and beautiful only to wake up one day and realize that these people we put on pedastals were deceivers because they began to believe they are the chosen, the favored or the prophet and apostle. Woe to those who have hurt vulnerable young people or people who were open to the love of christ in their family church. somewhere it says in the Bible that it is better to tie amillstone around your neck and hurl yourself into the sea than to hurt even one of God's children. I can't remember the exact reference, but I remember reading it and realizing what a profound responsibility we have as Christians to be responsible to the word that God has breathed into our lives.

Matthew 18:5-7 (New International Version)
5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
7"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!


Mark 9:42 (New International Version)
42"And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck.

Luke 17
1Jesus said to his disciples: "Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. 2It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3So watch yourselves.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/28/2009 12:26AM by Brokenhearted.

I think when I hear Pastor Cyndi sing she sounds like Barbra Streisand!

A woman recently contacted me stating that Turning Point tried to lure her 11 year old child to an evening and games and expresso, offering to give her a ride, all without the parents knowing. This MySpace message was sent to the 11 year old:

"Hey, 628 tonight!

6 o clock, free espresso for visitors. Super rad games and activities.

Hang out with cool people. Plus you are really cool so it would just make it that much cooler.

Are you going to be there? If you need a ride, I can hook it up :)"

She also contacted the authorities, the school, the school district, and many media outlets. Turning Point is now under official investigation and there are media outlets using Turning Point and Cult in the same sentense. Here is a February 26th, 2009 article on Turning Poing:

[slog.thestranger.com]

How it starts: "A church in Marysville has crossed the line from volunteering at local public schools to recruiting kids into a “cult,” says the mother of one of the students."

Also, my latest video, Turning Point Satire #10: Christians Should be Sex-Perts is up. It's different from the jumbled audio of Mike's sex sermon joke video I made. If you care to see it, here: [www.youtube.com]

-- Sam

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Brokenhearted
I don't think Pastor Cyndi has "stepped down" from leading worship....she's just taken a different approach to leading now. She is still in charge, and everyone knows it. She runs things, and I'm sure that she signs off on everything before they are allowed to *perfom*. She must approve anything new that they do, and she comes in at the last minute and makes changes to programs for special events and such. I know that at Easter last year, she had been pretty much uninvolved, until the Thursday practice before...then she came in and changed songs, and the dance routines....everything. She expected the changes to be made, no questions asked, no complaints. That's the way everything is done at TP.

Brokenhearted,

Thanks for the info about Cyndi still being involved. It is sad that she does what she does and that they all must comply like little worship lemmings. I think they have taken the submission piece way too far and all the hard work people put in to please the leaders, and also God a little bit, is just changed at the end anyway. I would find that exhausting to deal with. You would think that people would get tired of being bosed around and treated badly and finally stand up for themsleves but I honestly feel that if Mike and Cyndi said jump off a bridge that most people in ministry would do it. I wish they would start thinking for themselves a lot more and then that way they could have more self respect and less abuse from the pastors. I hope someone will find it in them to say something sometime soon for everyone's sake.

-giftofsong

Does Pastor Mike still pray 8 hours laying out on the floor and does he still give his brand new clothes of his back to the poor? I can remember Pastor Mike telling everybody in the whole world how wonderful he was for doing all these acts of righteousness! Prideful, Boastful and a Hypocrite! Matthew 6:1-2 Be careful not to do your acts of righhteousness before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward, from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men! Matthew 6:5 And when you pray , do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on street corners to be seen by men! Notes from the Pentecostal study Bible Life in the Spirit (My favorite study Bible, General Editor Donald C. Stamps) Jesus speaks of acts of righteousness in three areas; giving, prayer and fasting. His condemnation of doing acts of righteousness to be seen by others challenges much of contemporary Christian activities, including competing for bigness, advertising one's success, performing and entertaining in the church, and wanting to be first!

What is Pastor Mike going to do now that he can't send his SOMA grads to the middle schools any more? Where is he going to get his spiritual children and his future SOMA students? Now the school district thinks TPWOC is a cult!