Hello I am a former member of the George Geftakys assembly and I would like to start a web site where former members can contribute and dialog. Is anyone willing to help me do this? I need pictures, Testimonies etc.. Thanks!

Hi David and other Ex-Assemblyites,
My name is Mark Campbell. Joe Sperling will remember me as he lived in our Brothers house in the Valley. I left in May of 91 and began with the group around 71. I don't know if you are familiar with Ronald Enroths' books that mention the Assembly, "Churches that Abuse", and "Recovery from Churches that Abuse". The 2nd book includes a couple of pages with Myself and family mentioned where my story is told in part.
I am concerned with those who have left the group as they often need help sorting out their lives. When I left I was basically shown the door and left believing many of the things taught in the Assembly. Also, I left in a terrible state of emotional shock; these people had been my only family and friends for 20 years! It took the help of some of those who had left before me to help me to face life on the outside. I also found help by many books that related to spiritual abuse/ recovery.
I tried reaching out to those in the group. I wrote a doctrinal letter to each member in the Assembly in The Valley where I showed from scripture how George's teaching was off. There were no personal attacks and the letter had a very gentle attitude. I was responded to by personal attacks from them where they called me, "Satanic, a liar, and etc." One individual called me up to tell me they had not read the letter, but tore it up and then proceeded to tell me how it was full of lies! It is very difficult to reach the minds of those in the group.
More to the story later, Mark Campbell

HI Mark

I could not agree more with your post. Many ex-members have trouble because they can't sort out what went wrong and why, and they have too much pride left over from their Assembly programming.

You should know that I read your article, 2 years before I left, and it was a great help to me. We, my family and I, were able to skip alot of the shell-shock, because by the time we left in june of 2000, the body of evidence left from those who left earlier, like yourself, was undeniable.

Now, what with court documents on public record regarding DAvid's abuse of his daughter and wife, there is no excuse for people to stay, except that they really are brainwashed.

I am also Satanic, Divisive, Disparaging, a Liar, etc. I have had people who used to live in my home send back mail unopened. (They did accept the wedding gift we sent them though...)

Since I know that many Assembly members will read this, my advice is to be bold and courageous and speak the truth. The leadership run away like cockroaches when you do. By all means, find someone you can talk to who understands. Very few people understand what you are going through except an ex-member.

Also, don't let George and his servants spoil your faith. There is true Christianity out there, and it is not like The Assembly.

God Bless all those who read this,

Brent Trockman

Hi Brent and others,
It is encouraging to know that Dr. Enroth's book was helpful to you. ( BTW: do you know who I am? I was from the Valley. I'm sorry I don't remember you) You are absolutely correct re. the pride that the Assembly grows in the hearts of its' members. I was struck when attending my first church service "outside" of how critical I was; "they don't worship right, the music is so worldly, they are all caught up in program, they don't seem on fire for the Lord, and etc." Slowly it began to dawn on me that many of these individuals were far more godly than I ever had been. Why? because they were not there to earn one thing, but like the one leper who returned to give thanks after Jesus healed him; they just wanted to! That started my discovery of what the Christian life is suppose to be. Grace gains a willing heart full of love for God vs. the life lived by trying to earn God's grace. The Assembly changes the terms of performance to,"laying hold by faith" and etc., but it is still a merit system. George's, "reckoning faith", is nothing more than an act of human will and produces either hypocrisy & failure, or depression & failure= the personality traits found in the group! My heart grieves for the pain I know many there must have if they take George's message seriously. I hope that some from there will read these posts and find help. God Bless, Mark C.

Hello all,
I see that there isn't much interest in others entering into conversation on this board. I know there probably are many silent observers who are afraid to enter into discussion. This is understandable and as such I hope you don't mind if I kind of monopolize the discussion here and hopefully strike a helpful chord to those who can't bring themselves to talk. If you wish to send me an e-mail and ask any questions please feel free and your privacy will be protected.
When I first left there was a bulletin board , like this one, that I went to and read stories of those who were from groups like the Assembly, but I was too shy to enter into discussion right away. One story impressed me greatly at the time re. a man and his family who were in a group that isolated them from the world around them. When they left they tried to visit churches, but those in the churches didn't understand the recent ex-cultists and thought they were weird. Finding no help in the churches he visited the man decided to print out stories from the Bulletin Board re. those who had come out of abusive groups and read them to his family as a Sunday morning devotional. It was just so helpful to them to see that there were others who had been through similar things and that they weren't crazy.
Also, I had a lot of doubt re. what exactly to throw out and what to keep re. the past experience in the Assembly. I knew that the Gospel was true, as I was saved outside of the group. I also knew that there was much truth in the group as well as some very sincere wonderful people. I always knew there were some things that were wrong, and after all every group has some problems. The main difference in The Assembly is there is no means to recognize and solve problems, so they are just denied and explained away. Ususally the person bringing the problem to light is blamed instead of facing the problem itself. Any group can fall victim to this and thus loayalty to the group becomes more important than God himself; indeed the group becomes an idol!
A story from the Assembly illustrates this: I was a leading brother in a Assembly and a brother who left contacted me re. a charge that a brother in the Assembly had molested his daughter when he lived in his home and he had just discovered it, as his daughter had finally told him. The brother admitted the molestation and the whole thing was swept under the rug as the brother was very loyal to the Assembly. The molested one was out of the group and as such not worth even an apology! I was very disturbed, as was another leading brother. However, the Fullerton leadership had talked to the molesting brother and he had asked forgiveness from God and so the the whole issue was dropped. I wonder if this same brother is still having problems with his sin? I think he was surprised that we dealt with the situation as if nothing happened. Relatively minor infractions of Assembly dictums would have received much more severe discipline if it challenged The Assembly itself and its' absolute rule as God's representative. God and his truth, not loyalty to the group, are the values to pursue in our walk with God. I gave way to doubts in the above situation, as I then believed the leaders were God's men, but I know better now. God Bless, Mark Campbell

Mark---

Tried your E-mail address but it failed.It's been quite some time since I left the Assembly but the scars seem ot take a long time
to heal. I'll never forget my last conversation with an Assembly Member--it was George himself. I finally worked up the nerve and called his house--the conversation( I swear upon the Lord Jesus Christ this is the absolute truth) went like this:

"Hello" "Hi, is this Brother George?" "Yes it is, who's calling please?" "My name is Joe Sperling and I used to be a member of the Assembly. I went through a lot of pain there and wanted to talk to you about it". "Oh, this is George's brother, george isn't here right now". "What? I thought you said you were George"
"No, I said this was George's brother." "Well, Can I talk with Brother George then?" "Brother George isn't here right now".
(CLICK). I couldn't believe what I had just heard. I called back
immediately and a woman answered. I asked for brother George
and she said he had just left. I then asked if George's brother was there. "George's Brother??" she said. "Why would you ask for him. "because someone on the phone just said they were him"
"Well George's brother lives in Chicago I think, and he hasn't visited here in quite a while." "Well, someone just said they were George's brother after saying at first they were George." "Well
George was the only one here, and he is a holy man, why would he lie to you?" She promptly hung up the phone. I tried to explain this to some members and they all called me a liar and said george was incapable of such a thing. But he did--he was afraid to confront and talk to a former member of the Assembly, or he simply felt it wasn't worth his time. But he chose lying as a way to deal with the problem. I FINALLY realized who this person and this Assembly was--it truly was way off base. believe it or not this event began to really bring me closure and I was able to REALLY investigate some of the teachings without a supreme feeling of fear overwhelming me for questioning doctrine. You see, I had felt that because I left the Assembly God would no longer bless me as those who were still in the Assembly. But when you turn that thought around you see how "pride-filled" and horrendous it is!!!! To think that God would bless 300 people far more than all of the other children in all of his other churches, and give them deeper insight and spirituality is spiritual pride carried to it's highest level. I've gone on a bit here--I'll share more another time. Mark please E-mail me again @ jsperling@fralock.com--I would really like to see how you have been doing lately.

Take care, Joe

I wanted to add a bit more to what I shared earlier. I remember in 1 Corinthians when Paul is chastising the church there for it's spiritual pride and division. He says kind of a strange thing. He says "There be divisions among you..One says I am of Cephas, another Iam of apollos, and another I am of Christ..." That is actually very interesting. There are many that say they follow a
particular person, but why say "and another says I am of Christ"?
I believe it's simple: there were those in the church who felt they were uniquely blessed, or above other Christians... "WE are of Christ". This is the Assembly in a nutshell. WE are not like other churches who are worldly, WE follow a higher path of spirituality,
WE are following God's Pattern". I think the reason I left is because I could never accept this. I was always "at odds" with the teaching there---something was "off". Grace had taught me differently, so when I faced all of the legalism and fear I yearned to return to that Good Shepherd who had called to me softly and blessed my heart with comfort and love. I yearned for the first day of my salvation and cried to God. "Is this REALLY your true teaching--is this REALLY your system?? Are these people REALLY your spokesmen on earth??" Through time I've seen that they are not God's spokesmen,a nd that the Assembly is an ingrown group of legality, whose brother's houses try to take the place of the Holy Spirit--by trying to make one "spiritual" through physical means, instead of the Spirit working in a person individually. It took time to see this, but I am so grateful I do see it now. More later. --Joe

Hi Joe

I couldn't agree more with your posts. If I was still in The Assembly I would probably have to say, "Amen! Praise The Lord! Selah..."

Your conversation with George doesn't surprise me at all, many have said things like this, but since no one ever "told the church," is such a way that they couldn't ignore it, saints find it hard to believe.

I think that is what is important about the web, and these forums. Thanks for sharing.

Also, Mark Campbell, your email address doesn't work. Please give me your correct address.

Brent

:) Hi Brent, Joe, and others:
I tried to e-mail several individuals via the Board and it doesn't seem to function correctly. I have used computers for years and still mess up! Oh well here is my e-mail address for one and all: "MC3073@aol.com" without the quotes. I hate it when I write a big e-mail and find out it vamishes into cyber outer darkeness (this is similar to where all non-overcomers will be obliged to spend eternity. This joke would only be understood by former members of the Assembly). I especially would like to ask you Brent re. Judy as we both started in the Assembly at the same time in the Valley. I remember her as a joyful new believer and it grieves me greatly to hear of all the abuse she has had to suffer. I wonder if she is getting any help and if the assistance is also for the spiritual and emotional abuse.
For the sake of those from the Assembly who may be visiting I would like to try and explain why many who left say the Assembly is an abusive system. My first encounter with the group was very edifying and indeed there were many positive things about the Assembly. I came into the group ready to give my life to God and the Assembly uses that energy and diverts it to it's own self serving goals. (I say diverts it, but not in a conscious act of evil manipulation; the Assembly leaders think they are serving God by doing this.) The diversion is very subtle, but once you understand that the group is God's representative on earth all submission, in order to be correctly aligned with the throne, must be to the leadership of the group. I know the Assembly would say they are not elitist and that they don't control the lives of their members. Indeed, I was free to leave at any time. But, to the one who believes that God does not speak apart from his government on earth to leave the Assembly means to leave God! God Bless, Mark

Mark---

Just so you know---the mc3073@aol.com address does
not work---I've tried it several times via direct mail and
the E-mail always comes back as undeliverable. I believe
Brent may say the same thing. I also want to ditto what
you said about there being many edifying and good things
about the Assembly too. I have a tendency to get kind of
bitter when retelling experiences that happened there. The
people themselves were some of the kindest and most sincere
people I have ever met. But as I have heard many times--
you can be sincere, yet be sincerely wrong. The statement I
made about the brother's houses taking the place of the Holy
Spirit I do believe to be true in many ways. But I must say Mark that when I lived in your house that wasn't the case--it was the houses I had lived in before with all of their silly rules and laws
and fines that I was referring too. It was the tendency of those leading those houses to take their being "spokesmen for God" a bit too literally. But I had many laughs, times of real fellowship and love and true spiritual comradrie there also. My bitterness comes from memory of Leadership and teachings that haunted and brought great fear to my heart. Unfortuantely, when I entered the Assembly I had no real spiritual understanding and I was suffereing under the delusion I had commited the Unpardonable Sin. Imagine having that fear and then entering an Assembly which teaches it is possible to lose the Inheritance and have God shut the door on you. I was in constant torment. I'd finally find a bit of peace and then attend a Sunday worship where George would get up and teach about losing the Inheritance and the vicious cycle would start all over again. So, maybe you can understand a little of my bitterness towards that place. instead of comfort I received fear of Judgement in the teachings all the time. It's funny how my only comfort came from reading sermons by Charles Spurgeon and many wonderful Puritan writers like John Owen. I'd read this to counter the effects that Goerge's teaching was having on me. Thank God for those writers!!! To everyone here i wish you all the best, and thanks for listening. --Joe