If I hear one more TLWF leader say "we're on our faces before the Lord" I'm going to go through the roof. How about you get off your damn faces, on your feet and take some action and RESPONSIBILITY! Prayers are not enough. It's lip service. Do something real and then I'll believe you care, AMIRIGHT?! Cloudwatcher Wrote: -------------------------------------------
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Yes, it was $40 per person. I don't know if locals to Shiloh had to register and pay, but we were coming from out of town and were told by our local pastors that if we wanted to attend the Shiloh funeral, we had to register on the TLWF Members site and pay the fee. I would assume some people didn't do this and just showed up, but that was what they were asking people to do, nonetheless.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

FROMSOUTHCHICAGO, I'm glad you asked about Marilyn's funeral because it's something I have thought of posting about on here for some time. I was there and it was very, very odd. One, we had to pay to attend. No kidding. We were told we had to register if we wanted to attend the funeral, and pay $40 per person to "cover costs". I found this extremely bizarre and supremely
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

The "I don't want your shit on my calendar" response on the part of that pastor is so indicative of LW shepherds' dismissive and demeaning attitudes towards sheep. You can't tell me that woman has a "shepherd's heart", LOL. They are so careless and reckless with people's feelings. One thing I became acutely aware of as I started to wake up was how none
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

It’s all good. :) Thank you for your kind response. One thing I think we can all agree on is that we have to have a lot of compassion and grace for one another here. We’ve been through a really damaging experience and though we all process it differently, we still share that experience, and so we have the unique capability to be truly empathetic with each other. Like you I am also trying to come
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aleutian, while I agree that arguing such things can, at times, be counterproductive to the purpose of this forum, I also believe it's important to give people the space to express their feelings on such topics in a constructive way. Calling people out in a demeaning way, i.e. referring to them as arguing "like high schoolers" is unnecessary and insensitive, and could potentially p
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I love what everyone has been posting lately. I feel like so many of us have been holding our tongues for a very long time and we have somehow collectively realized that the time has come to SPEAK UP! Someone mentioned recently the concept of "doing your own thing" and do I ever relate to that. I was certainly labeled as such on many occasions. Oddly, when I look back at the times when
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Well said, cultfree. I have heard now from two separate sources about the announcement in service yesterday of Rick & Lorena being put on administrative leave. I was at first very excited, but I too wonder if this is just another one of Rick's "timeouts" at the end of which he'll be put right back into his usual position of power. I think we have all seen enough to know th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Ok, NickleanDimed. Let's just assume for a moment that brainwashing doesn't exist. It doesn't change the fact that TLWF uses manipulation, coercion and emotional blackmail to convince members to accept things that under normal circumstances they would find totally unacceptable. They have created a culture of fear and intimidation, in which they threaten to ostracize those who quest
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I think it’s important to remember that although we all have a shared experience, we all process it differently. We are all in varying stages of healing, too, so we must respect each other’s process. For some, talking about God, Jesus, Christianity or religion in general is very triggering, and for others it is their life raft. There isn’t just one answer, there are many. I think we have to try a
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Yes, cultfree, I can 100% corroborate what you said about the Rick & Lorena situation. After reports that they were carrying on an inappropriate liaison, Lorena was sent to Shiloh for what lasted I think only a year or so, and then after summer camp that year Rick loaded up her car on one of the trucks they used to transport amphitheater show equipment from LA to Iowa, and brought Lorena back
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Unless Gary is preaching against hierarchy because he has seen the error of his ways, then I find that extremely ironic considering he has been a huge perpetrator and beneficiary of the intensely hierarchical structure of TLWF. Hierarchy is basically the fabric of the Fellowship. Not once did I hear Gary, Marilyn, or any of the other leaders tell people not to treat them any different than the sh
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Some interesting food for thought...Knowing that TLWF monitors this site and reports its findings back to Kevin and Gary, isn't it telling that rather than using the information they find here to help fix what is broken and wrong about the church, they instead threaten and persecute those who speak out? If they spent even a fraction of the effort they put into the persecution of those who ar
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I’ve thought about posting here for a long time, and have been working on this post for months. I have been wary of it because, as I mentioned in my initial post, I know for a fact that TLWF monitors this site. Creepy! I also just really want to move on with my life, and wasn’t sure if it was the right thing for me to do in my healing process, to come forward. However, it’s been weighing on me fo
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

The last post by Nickleanddimed is extremely disturbing. He/she sounds like an absolute crazy person! Every time they post it's in these oddly broken up sentences, which only adds to the creepiness. WTF is his deal?! I've been reading this forum for a long time and have wanted to post because I have A LOT to add, but I know for a fact that TLWF has their people monitor this site (th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families