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That sounds so TWI-ish. The "standing in the gap" dange and "participate and be special." Ugh. Good if Christians can come together to pray for common cause. Bad if Christians get elitist about it. "Remind" God ???

The book Emotional Inheritance finally became available for pickup at my library. I might bring up some ideas for discussion under the Books forum.

“Street culture,” Really? Hmmm…ok. I think T-Bone included a definition of euphemism in a recent post. Chris, the subject of this Soft White Underbelly video, is a mentally ill homeless drug addict. A disproportionate number of homeless are mentally ill, and drug abuse often goes hand in hand with mental illness - a sinister irony that simultaneously provides a sensation of relief while exacerbating and advancing the disease. What I find remarkable about Chris is that he is so self aware. He knows the voices and delusions are symptoms/manifestations of his disease. He seems to so easily switch between the rational and irrational. He is articulate and honest about his disease, if in denial about how the drugs are making it all much, much worse - delusions all the way down. The Haldol is probably helping with his clarity. Much of Chris’ behavior in this video (legs and hands) are due to his methamphetamine use, which he readily admits he is high AF on at the moment of filming. Chris seems like a very sweet guy. Just very sick. No devil spirits to be found here.

You know, it wasn't so much Bickle's belief about the end times being what he claims they would be. I was hoping to see how he was misapplying scripture to say the end times were near (possibly during the next generation) and since you've already studied about the topic in general, I'd take a shortcut and ask you . Thanks again for your responses. Where I had gone overboard (without wearing a life jacket) was in the cult he built upon this doctrine. You can see he's still at it in my earlier post about this upcoming "prayer for Israel" in May. I agree with OldSkool on there being a gathering together but like you say, we'll know for sure when it all plays out so in the meantime, we not only get to work on being strong in the Lord and in the power of his might but we also get to play dress up (seriously you know, put on the full armor of God...). P.S. Thankfully, I was able to climb back into the boat!

wow! I love how you succinctly described the issues. "Once a teacher always a teacher"

Wierwille, the founder of twi, "heard from God", focused on one goal (the rightly divided word over the world), pushed the abundant life to attract (young) people who would then "volunteer" their lives to achieve that goal by means of participating in his classes and leadership programs. Bickle, the founder of IHOP-KC "heard from God," focused on one goal (bringing about the end times), pushed worship and prayer to attract (young) people who would then "volunteer" their lives to achieve that goal by means of participating in his 24/7 prayer room, classes and internship program. Both have people who remain totally committed to the cult's beliefs. Both have people who were hurt and left with some/many needing a long time to heal emotionally and spiritually. For this latter group, ex-followers from both cults have online support groups to help each other with the healing and to warn others of the harmful aspects of their cults. I took what I learned about IHOP very personally because of my own experience and the experiences of others in twi. And maybe because it's only been 5 months since beginning to deal with all things twi, I'm having such a hard time dealing with all things IHOP as it is connected to my involvement in a church that is not like IHOP in their practices but supports Bickle's doctrine all the same. After going through the confusing "should I stay or should I go" scenario for the past couple of weeks, I'm coming to realize that leaving is "the way, the truth and the life" choice to make (gotta love my use of quotation marks !)

It's impossible for a layman to gauge someone's level of severity. It's been shown that the voices can vary dependent on the culture the person is in. In other words, people in some cultures hear friendly voices rather than scary ones. Suppose you're sitting in the waiting room at the dentist. Somewhere down the hall, you can hear a muted conversation through the closed doors, and perhaps the sound of a chair being moved . There's no screaming, sounds of violence or any such thing. As far as you know, it's just business as usual. It seems real enough. You don't give it much thought. Except, there's no one in that room. Would you tell anyone you hear someone in that room? No one else in the waiting room has any clue as to what you're hearing. This is why I say that a layman sitting in that waiting room with you has no idea you even have this condition or how severe it might be. edit: interesting link.

i believe people who have more birthdays live longer than people who do not.

Hmmmm. Maybe it's Brown 25.

Careful…that’s not cookies in those jars!

Well, it’s sarcasm, parody. It’s not my conclusion. It’s victor’s. And, demonstrably, Loy hasn’t gone beyond what victor taught. This idea of victor’s is absurd, and I have never agreed with it. It has been discussed elsewhere in the forum. Either you or Word Wolf pointed out that one must be WILLING to go beyond what one is taught. That’s right. If one is not willing, one can’t.

Agree

That's kinda what I was trying to assert. Discussions, even when including one or more arguments, should not necessarily be about winning. Rather, about expanding our understanding and imagination about the possibilities. I appreciate your thoughtfulness, Raf.