Tag Archives: WOFF

Grace to Shun and Ignore

May 9, 2010 Admin Leave a comment

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

30Jesus, [f]taking him up, replied, A certain man was going from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him of his clothes and belongings and beat him and went their way, [[g]unconcernedly] leaving him half dead, as it happened. 31Now by [h]coincidence a certain priest was going down along that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32A Levite likewise came down to the place and saw him, and passed by on the other side [of the road]. 33But a certain Samaritan, as he traveled along, came down to where he was; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity and sympathy [for him], 34And went to him and dressed his wounds, pouring on [them] oil and wine. Then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35And the next day he took out two denarii [two day’s wages] and gave [them] to the innkeeper, saying, Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I [myself] will repay you when I return. 36Which of these three do you think proved himself a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers? 37He answered, The one who showed pity and mercy to him. And Jesus said to him, Go and do likewise. (Luke 10:29-37, Amplified Version, emphasis added)

Recently, a review of the parable of the Good Samaritan revealed new insight for me. I read about the priest and the Levite who shunned and ignored the man in need, AFTER SEEING him. Unlike possible circumstances today, it was not as if there were already medics at the scene, caring for the man who was beaten. The inference is that the man, who had been beaten, was in a very helpless desperate state. The priest and the Levite represented the religious order of the day. What kept them from taking time to help? For sure, in this example, their religious position did not lend itself to stoop down and help one in need.

After reading the parable, I was reminded of things I had done while a member of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). When a member was put “in discipleship”, other members were expected to withhold fellowship and restrict speaking to that member. You may have been able to say “hello”, at times, but no “foolish or loose talk”. I can remember a few times, I went and asked a person in leadership, if I could talk to the person in discipleship. The reason given to not speak or fellowship was so you would not “pull them out of the dealings of God”. For new folks or members who were unaware, it was the first steps to teaching the “grace to shun and ignore”. If you wanted to continue as a part of WOFF, you learned this “grace” or things did not go well. This “grace” was the “law” at WOFF.

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Behavior Control, Uncategorized

Mother’s Day at Word of Faith Fellowship?

May 8, 2010 Admin 7 Comments

Recently, a friend replied to an email. He had to get clarification on something I sent him. He asked me if I meant to imply that Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) does not celebrate Mother’s Day. I chuckled when reading his question. Though the WOFF website lists one paragraph with one scripture reference and a short list of holidays; they do not specifically mention Mother’s Day, Memorial Day or Fourth of July. (In years past, WOFF has had a Veteran’s appreciation program. Not sure how that works now.) But, none of these are officially celebrated at WOFF. (NO on the fireworks, for sure!!!) Certainly, in this country, we are not required and should not be required to participate in any national, regional or cultural celebration regardless of the origin. Freedom to opt out or in is still a freedom.

However, looking at the whole picture and not just number 17 on the list of “Beliefs” on the WOFF website, one gets a clearer picture of the effects of this non-participation. Mother’s Day is a busy time for the post office, flower shops and telephone/cell services. It is a normal practice in the American culture to take time and show your mother your love and appreciation on that day. Yes, gifts, cards and other things may lead the way for the “evidence” of the love. There is always a group of folks that allow the commercial side of anything to replace the meaning. It is so easy to do in this culture.

From this blog we learn a little more about the origin of Mother’s Day:

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20100508/LIFESTYLE/100509629/1349?p=2&tc=pg

“It was a hardworking mother and teacher, Anna Jarvis, who came up with the idea of Mothers’ Work Days to improve sanitation in her small West Virginia town in 1958, according to the Santa Rosa-based National Women’s History Project. In 1872, Boston poet, pacifist and women’s suffragist Julia Ward Howe established a special day for mothers as a call for peace after so many sons were lost in the bloody Franco-Prussian War. But it was Jarvis’ daughter, also named Anna, who pushed Congress to officially establish Mother’s Day in 1914. Jarvis herself railed against the selling of Mother’s Day.”

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Behavior Control, Criteria for Cults, Uncategorized

November Seminar 1994- What is the worst thing that can happen?

May 7, 2010 Admin 1 Comment

At the beginning of a November seminar at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) in 1994; (could have been 1993) Jane Whaley came in and started the service with this question- “What would be the worst thing that could happen to you?” She then listed things like illness, divorce, death of a parent or child. After some discussion, she stopped and told the congregation that God had showed her the worst thing. Reading from Matthew 7:22-23. (New International Version)

22Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ 23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

Jane went on to say that the worst thing for her would be to come to the end of her life and stand before God and having Him say to her: “I never knew you. Away…” At that time, it was a very serious thought. Obviously, it has stuck with me all these years. Could this time have been a turning point for Jane? What happened? How could the thoughts about this passage of scripture be so serious and yet not produce lasting changes in a person’s life? Certain things in life are a mystery.

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Uncategorized

The Day the Protestors Were Beside the Road…

May 5, 2010 Admin 1 Comment

During a court battle over child custody, there were a few (not sure how many) church services in which protesters standing out on Oakland Road. There were some thoughts and observations during that time which I will share.

First a little background, I had participated in a few anti-abortion demonstrations previous to attending Word of Faith Fellowship in Spindale, NC. The group I was a part of in Charleston, SC, would hold signs along a highway and just stand without shouting at passing motorists. We would stand for a while and sometimes move to another spot. It was totally meant to be non-confrontational. I remember no incidents of violence or hostility at these protests.

The first Sunday, in which we encountered protesters while driving to the church, we came upon them and had not been warned. Quickly the children were told not to look and put their heads down. I was driving and could not spend time looking, but I did glance toward the protesters and recognized no one. There were signs and people were shouting. As I remember, the expressions on their faces looked angry. At that time, it made me wonder “What had we done wrong?” The other thought I had was “Why do I attend a church that is being protested?” I had been a demonstrator in years past and now our group was the subject of a demonstration? Are we being persecuted because we are “right”? Those thoughts stuck with me.

Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) was being protested by a group supposedly brought together by Shanna Muse. I say supposedly, because after I left WOFF, I found out we did not get the complete story about several things while on the inside. If any readers were in the protest group, please comment and share your thoughts at the end of this post.

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Criteria for Cults, Uncategorized, WOFF and Money Issues

Simple, Financial Disclosure- Why Not?

May 3, 2010 Admin 3 Comments

Today, as I was leaving church, I was handed a Quarterly Financial Report! Everyone that left through the front door was offered one, even the lady in front of me, who was a first time visitor! Wow, not only annual financial reports from this church, but QUARTERLY! Is this a great idea or what? I was stunned at the openness about the tithes and offerings received and the telling folks how the money was spent. The name of the church is Grace Community Church located outside of Marion, NC

Since it has been years since I had seen a church quaterly report, I reviewed it closely. Here is what I found… This report covered January, February and March of 2010. The first section was titled: Exalting Christ. In that section were listed different basic statistics from the ministry to different age groups. Areas of ministry reviewed included Children’s ministry, Youth ministry, and Prayer ministry as well as stats showing numbers who attend and how many are actual members. The average attendance on Sunday mornings during the quarter was 639. The number on the membership roll is 525. There were 5 new members during the first quarter.

The next section was titled, “Transforming Lives” . This section revealed the direction of different groups. Some bullets listed upcoming events and some listed activities that had taken place. There was a bullet about the students from a local college that attended as well as listing different mission trips and how many folks participated. The last bullet said that Adult Bible Fellowship had grown by 41% during the last year.

On the back page was a section titled. “Embracing a Community”. Here was listed bullet points explaining some of the outreach projects to the local community, also telling about some of the missionaries who were supported. The Student Ministry had started supporting a child through Compassion International. 312 boxes had been distributed through the food pantry. 29 families were helped through the benevolence ministry. The support given to a family when their house burned was listed. There was bullet point for the number of families active in the prayer chain as well as new baptisms in the period. The church also participated in the “Buckets of Hope” ministry to Haiti. And get this; there was a recap of the offerings and budget needs. There was also listed a balance in the New Building Account! Actual dollars! They are actually planning and saving for a new building! What a great idea!

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Behavior Control, Uncategorized

Misinformation Abounds

May 1, 2010 Admin 1 Comment

Today, I was made aware of several bits of misinformation about this blog and the circumstances surrounding its creation and support. First, I take no financial support from any other group for the expenses incurred in writing or promoting this personal blog. The Faith Freedom Fund does not contribute to the expenses incurred for publishing this blog. I actually donated the space they have on this blog to them. The content for their page met their approval, but they do not “approve” or direct beforehand the content of posts on this blog. The material in this blog, except in two posts as noted; (one by Faith Freedom Fund and one by Jerry Cooper) is solely from my reflections, memories and observations. The line of discussion, content and order of publishing is entirely up to my discretion and choosing.

No one is forced to read these posts. No one is forced to believe or act on these posts. In several places, I note that the writings from my time at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) are totally from my recollections and memories. My time spent in the group started in 1992 and ended in 2008. The first ten years, I was a member of a church in South Carolina that was a sister church to WOFF. Our trips from Greenville to WOFF increased over the years. In the beginning we were only coming for seminars. I was not inside the church during the “Inside Edition” era, my information about that was filtered back through a few other folks. My memories are not perfect in every detail. However, certain dates and events are imprinted in a vivid way. Since we were not allowed to take notes during the sermons after a certain time, the content of sermons may not be in exact time order. (However, I have found some old notes and will be posting on them in the future.)

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