Jews tend to ramble.


corboy Wrote:
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> Back to topic. Apologies for rambling.

Any of you ever work for a "kingdom business"? Like Golden Threads, Impact or Fine Line, to name a few. I recall hearing that the workers were often unpaid or under paid. Some got as much as $5 or $10 a week for full-time work. But at least they got to take breaks during the workday for violent intercession meetings. I sometimes wonder if that free labor was even legal. Of course, the sheepies were told to work hard "as unto the Lord". And not to expect a reward for it, their reward would be in heaven.

I recall when Impact was in Iowa the workers were living in dorms at Shiloh. Rich Lindy was po'd because the Impact workers didn't regularly attend the Shiloh services or violent intercession sessions so Rich wanted the Shiloh workers to move out. Bob Mc Clain said the workers held their own intercession sessions. Maybe that's in part how the rift with Bob began?

At the time the Impact workers seemed to love being part of the business and I don't recall them ever grumbling about the low pay (just Rich Lindy attitude towards them). Note: I shared a dorm room with some of the Impact workers.

When I worked at the Living Word without wages I considered it a blessing to be involved in the Word and didn't think I was being taken advantage of probably in part because I was young and had the energy to also work part time at a paying job. I don't have any issues with that because I made the choice to do it and it was for a brief period of time so I don't think it was sheepie mentality. That said, if I had it to do over I wish I would have volunteered my time to something other than distributing the Living Word of JRS.

I wonder if there were any "Kingdom Businesses" that actually compensated the laborers in a fair manner, paying at least the going minimum wage at the time?
I know Larry mentioned Mike Wood's company being generous with his employees...but I don't think his company met the standard that would qualify it as a kingdom business...which is a bit ironic.

Good point. Federal minimum wage 1976-77 was $2.30 per hour which was the period of time Wood Electric caught the attention of JRS. I think Wood paid his workers the going rate for electricians which was probably much higher than minimum wage.

I don't mean to change the subject but I'm bursting. My sister who attends a Calvary Chapel Church tells me her pastor, who was once a surfer living in Hawaii in the 70'-80's, related the following story during one of their services:

While in Hawaii my sister's pastor started a bible study that was visited by some LW folks who asked the bible study group, "By whose authority have your started your bible study?" The bible study folks were dumbfounded and asked what the LW folks meant. The LW folks said they represented an Apostle and wanted to know by whose authority the bible study was initiated. Long story short, the LW folks explained apostolic authority and invited the bible study group to become part of the LW and of course tithe to the apostle. End of story....the bible study group had the good sense to decline. My sister likes rubbing in the "By whose authority...." pitch. Ha!

Just tuning back into the group. We are all still mysteriously bound to the past and it does seem that many of us continue to have difficulty with organized religion. Fear factor or just a healthy reluctance to embark on another erroneous journey?
I suffered so much in the 13 yrs. I was a member of the walk. My marriage was such a farce, without love. It hurt so much. I did think I loved the man that was deemed to be my spiritual partner during the early years of the marriage. We lived communally very early on and that was difficult. I should have read between the lines when he told me he did not want to have children. I was convinced I could change him. We did have children. We had a son and a daughter. He never paid any attention to myself and had very little time for our children. I still suffer from the experience of having been rejected.
Even though I have been remarried for nearly 30 yrs., the past experiences with the marriage and the walk seem to have such a negative hold upon my mind. This past year my former sister in law with whom I had a friendship with for over 40 yrs, introduced my ex to a former cult member and after just a few months, they got married. Since my former sister in law made the introduction she has behaved very oddly towards me and we have stopped communicating. It still hurts when I consider the years which I spent in a loveless marriage. I see my ex husband treating the new wife in ways he would never have thought to do for me. The sense of muddy water under the bridge brings tears to this day. It affects what I do. I am currently dreading going to my first grandson's 2rd birthday because the ex will be there with his new wife, and also my ex sis in law will be there. Was there true love in any of the walk marriages? The only ones that have survived the chaos seems to be the marriages in which the couple selected one another outside of the walk or before they entered the walk. I feel so damaged by it all.

Jan,

I'll bet it's taken your ex 30 years to grow up and that's why he treats his new wife better than he treated you.

Regarding seeing your ex: Sometimes when I have to see family who hurt and criticize me, I try sending them good thoughts-like have a great day-a few days prior and then at the social gathering I feel a little empowered and don't try to hide from them.

Regarding your question on marriage/true love: I think in life probably only a few find true love so in the Walk it was probably the same...a few found it. Come to think of it though, I don't think there was much love in the Walk as a whole.....period.

Feeling damaged by it all: When I am feeling really damaged I usually take some natural version of an anti-depressant like Sam-E but eventually I just have to immerse myself in the Word for hours or days.

Aside from John, Marilyn and Gary--were there anyone else in the "Walk/TLWF" that dared arrange marriages? The presumption of these people to assume they always know what's best for others still astounds me to this day. Perhaps if I knew what it was like to hear directly from God every day, I would see things differently.

changeagain wrote in part, "Aside from John, Marilyn and Gary--were there anyone else in the "Walk/TLWF" that dared arrange marriages?"

How about the "arranged" divorces? I remember married couples being directed to divorce their spouse and remarry someone else. Can anyone explain how that came about?