Before we turn to our subject of “Illusion(s)”, I must share some thoughts. Today is April 9, 2011. In looking back, April 9, 2008 was a pivotal day in my time at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). That Wednesday evening after a church service, I was summoned into a meeting in a small office on WOFF property. That meeting lasted from just after 9:00PM until around midnight. In attendance were GS, LS, RF, JF, BC, AK, my wife and myself. It also included a cameo appearance from Jane Whaley. Her part was screaming and pointing her finger at me as she proclaimed that I was “full of the unclean”! She then turned to my wife and declared that she “allow(ed) him to be so…” On that cue, my wife turned and took up the screaming fit toward me. At that moment, she took on a piece of the WOFF modus operandi. Results of that meeting included, but, were not limited to me losing my job and the accessories that went along with the position. The relationship with my wife also took a fatal turn that night. It was coincidentally our 20th wedding anniversary. WOFF members do not celebrate that, so it was not on the discussion list for the evening. One of the biggest shocks of the whole evening was that those in attendance other than me considered the events that transpired as NORMAL! That is what jolted me into doubting that WOFF-ways were God’s ways.
At this time, my life is in yet another transition. Life issues have come and gone, battles not related to WOFF have come and been won. Some battles have been lost. Other battles are ongoing. (Jane talks a lot about “battles”…) The tone of this blog is in transition, as well. The main subjects have moved from retelling only my experiences to including resource material that helps explain what I went through and how WOFF compares to other groups labeled as cults. I have begun to read material written by cult experts and survivors of other groups. I have found that my experiences are not abnormal compared to other survivors or other groups. Several survivors of other cult groups have contacted me to confirm that their experiences have been very similar. Readers have come, consumed several posts and then moved on to other concerns in their life. Some only read enough to confirm their own suspensions that Jane and her group are “bad” and should be avoided. Others continue to read to learn just why things were/are not healthy.
Admittedly, the subject matter of cults has lasting appeal for only a certain group of folks who have been touched in some way by the behaviors, methods and outcomes of either their own involvement or a loved one’s involvement. I would like to think that it is forever settled in my mind and heart that Jane Whaley and her WOFF-ways were/are dangerous. There is nothing else to prove in my thinking. WOFF is what it is and the years I lived in that group cannot be changed or restored. Lives have been forever altered as me and others have lost pieces of our beings to the group called Word of Faith Fellowship in Spindale, NC. How could all this take place? One tool used to accomplish these things was/is by illusions. Continue reading The Illusion(s) →
