Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Posted by:
changedagain
()
Date: March 18, 2020 04:41AM
I agree with the content of these four posts...and will not let the fact that they were posted on page 666 impact me one way or another :)
Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Posted by: Lifeontheotherside
Date: September 04, 2018 04:25PM
I want to share with you what I was going to post originally. I have some pretty strong feelings about what is happening now so got a little side tracked:)
I was 15 years old when I came in to TLWF in 1970. I spent 40 years of my life in in it. I married and raised my child in it. I experienced all that you all have expressed. It was so incredibly messed up. My biggest regret is that I subjected my child to this horribly abusive upbringing. (Who now I am so thankful to say is free from it and getting healthier and happier every day...and has forgiven me).
I want to address what "TheyCallMeJonah" brought up awhile back about adjusting to life outside of the cult. I too felt like I didn't have this massive change the Earth plan anymore. For a long while I felt like an unteathered balloon. I didn't feel like I had anything to "ground" me. It all felt so new and scary. Therapy really helped!!!! I began to realize that this was freedom. Freedom to explore who I am, what I believe, what I like to do etc., etc. It's an adventure and so much fun. And oh yes...FREE TIME to do whatever I want!
I was extremely lucky in that I had a couple of people who left at the same time as I did. We did and still do support each other. It is so helpful to have others who "get it", to talk about it - and talk about it we do!
What I found with us was that it was a gradual process in how we came to the truth. For me at first it was "This just isn't for me anymore", but they (TLWF) were ok in my mind to as they pleased. Then it began to become more and more apparent that they were really WEIRD. I remember the first time I told someone that I had been involved in a cult. It felt so scary to say that! Then the next step to say that I thought MH was crazy...I waited to be smitten down but I wasn't. The list goes on and all the way back to JRS. Now I acknowledge what a truly messed up organization it is.
My heart breaks for the people that are still stuck. Especially the one's who I know would leave but feel like the cost is just too great, losing their families. So so sad.
I am thankful for all of you brave and good people who have had the courage to begin new lives.
Here's to the journey of FREEDOM
Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Posted by: Road to Damascus
Date: September 04, 2018 08:16PM
Becoming free of the feeling that someone is watching and judging you constantly is a wonderful experience, even though it is scary in that how do you know who can you relate to safely. As for me I had been basically told I was never good enough and that my relationship was a Plan B. I watched as I and others were shunned and treated like we were trash. I am making new friends and finding that I am worthy of being loved and that I do not need to live afraid that anything I say or do will cause me to be rejected. I just wish I could help those I love discover this. Hoping I can find some others to talk to safely. I am looking forward to discovering the world around me and who I am and how I fit in to everything and being free.
Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Posted by: dirtybrushes
Date: September 04, 2018 08:34PM
I love that Reveal brought up that quote from Gary referencing the indifference with which his mother's pastors treated her. That IS the way of the Living Word...the very antithesis of "the Kingdom is relationships." My husband and I, rather than detaching from the cult suddenly, slipped away as we realized that there wasn't one person in the church whom we would call in the event of a personal or family emergency, but that the entirety of our "real tribe" exists in our blood family, immediate community, and my artistic community. Revealing, eh? I think we spent too many years holding each other at arm's distance, not making real friends, being told that bonding is "bad." Humbug!
My goodness...a lot of things came down while we were playing in Portland! I am so grateful to be observing this drama safely from the outside on my computer, rather than from the dungeons of Winterfell or Castle Black as winter descends. (Sorry for the geeky metaphor...some of you will get it.) Long story short, I'm grateful to be alive, awake, and aware that the king...as impotent as he may be...really has no clothes!
And when one sits the Iron Throne with no pants on, after awhile, he MAY "get the point!"
Re: The Living Word Fellowship, The Walk, John Robert Stevens
Posted by: Cloudwatcher
Date: September 04, 2018 09:43PM
It certainly is a strange journey being out from under the bubble. My first experiences were going in to shock as I looked at the world around me--people--places---nothing like how I have lived so separate or safe from that horrible world.
Hello World!! I now can interact with you according to how it really is. It has been scary and lonely and all--but to actually finally have your own mind. That is the best no matter how bad it gets. Life on the inside was hell on earth.