There are times when ignorance is embarrassing. As I look back, I regret showing my ignorance in such a bold fashion. Let me explain. At some point between March of 1992 and May 1992, I was allowed to speak during one the “Training Sessions” held at Grace and Truth Fellowship. This was a very informal setting. Different members, as they “felt led”, were allowed to stand up and tell the listeners “what God was showing them” about a certain subject or topic being discussed. On one occasion, I stood up and said something that showed my great ignorance. Previous to coming to Greenville, I had spent time in a library looking up different religious groups. One group I read about was called the Molokan Jumpers. My reading was brief and I only took away from the text one main observation.
It was this observation, which I was so anxious to share. I was new to this type of setting and I would “learn” much during the next few months and years. On that day, it was glaringly obvious that my words would be out of place and only show my desire to be seen as “knowing something others may not”. As best as I remember, I mentioned the Molakan Jumpers and said; “These folks think they are in the Spirit in their services only when they are jumping up and down”. I will never forget the look of the Associate Minister-GS. He looked as if someone had uttered a loud socially unacceptable body sound. He looked at me and it was evident that he wanted to move on and forget that I had ever brought up the issue. I could sense that I had violated some unwritten rule, but I had no idea why until later in May of that year.
During the May Seminar of that year, I would attend my first service of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). It was there I met the WOFF form of worship which included people jumping during the singing of songs. During all the years of being in churches, it was my first time seeing this exact type of behavior. It looked very similar to what had been described about the Molokan Jumpers! Now about the time the jumping started, I realized what I had said and why it had been met with utter disbelief! GS never brought it to my attention. It was just ignored and left to die on the vine, so to speak.