Twinky

Jeff, I only know you from here, but I'd say you have a life. A pretty good one, too. You have had some horrible things happen in your life so far, but you've survived to tell the tale, and you something genuine to share with others. You have found compassion and the ability to see through lies and deception. You've been hurt, but you've got over that. You've been belittled, slandered, abused, and you've got over that. You've grown in your ability to discern the truth behind the facade. You've found a strength that you did not know you had. You have found backbone to stand up to abusers. Life is not the same as it was before. Some things aren't going to be as they might have been - your future with your wife, your son. That doesn't mean you don't have a bright future ahead - you can look to God to be a rewarder, to restore the years the locust has stolen. Meanwhile, the person who posted that horrible thing needs to look in their own life to see what they're treasuring: short sightedness, bitterness, lack of compassion, lack of empathy, lack of loving kindness. The spiritual thoughts that that person harbors do not seem to emanate from the God of love. Poor them. They need to get a life, LOL, a real life in community with other people, with all their attendant messiness and difficulties.

Get away, T&O! They could get heaps of positive quotes from people on staff. But they would also say the same thing. "I'm so blessed to be able to serve at HQ." "It's such a privilege to work with such awesome men of God." "I've learned such a lot [in some undefined area] since I've been here." It'd all be in Wayspeak. They could quite easily order staff members to write some "unsolicited comments." What you wouldn't get is: "The organization supported me through getting my [nationally or State recognized qualification] in ..." "TWI sent me to help at the local shelter for homeless people. I got to really help them and could see the difference I was able to make in those people's lives." "I trained as a ... and was able to stretch my ability by ..." "This is the most satifying job I have ever had." And hey, I'm not knocking staff members. The ones I knew were lovely, often talented, people, who were in stultifyingly boring jobs, desperate to find ways to do something worthwhile.

Heh, the girlies have refused to go out at all during all the snow we have had. I would open the door and they would rush to the back of the room, as far as they could from the door. Yesterday was rubbish collection day. It was still very snowy round the access road at the rear of the house. I went up to check the rubbish bin, which hadn't been emptied. I tucked Tuxy under my arm when I went out - she didn't like this and struggled to escape. I set her down beside the garden path but on the garden, with her feet in the snow. She was shocked and scampered back down the garden path, howling as if in deep distress. You know, that yowlll-owwlll sort of wail. Crypto was standing at the kitchen door, gazing with a concerned expression on her face. I guess they won't be building snow-cats, then, if we get any more snow. Today all the snow has gone, many inches, disappeared overnight. The girlies went out (a little reluctantly) - Tuxy's first call was to see if the fish was okay. He is. He is still under several inches of ice but his little white tail was visible, wiggling in his plant pot hidy-hole. I left Tuxy outside assuming the role of protector.

Hooray hooray, the snow has all melted. My lawn went from thick white to yellowy green overnight. Just a few slivers of snow along my wall where the sun doesn't reach at this time of year. Have been watching them melt rapidly during the day. The cats went out today, too, for the first time for about a month. Interesting to see the little shoots that have still been putting on a little growth under all the snow.

Don't know anything about gluten allergy, but I am pretty sure that a lot of allergies today come from too much insecticide, fertiliser, growth hormones, etc, that are sprayed on or around stuff. Also, people are getting bigger (height and girth) - I figure, if you stuff an animal (especially poultry) with things to make it grow quicker, that growth hormone HAS to be within the meat when eaten - hence it will affect growth in top predators (human beings). A particularly good reason for eating less meat and more vegs, and home-growing what you can. Good to hear your news, Kimberley. Bramble, hope your tests reveal something that you can eliminate from diet simply and effectively.

Haven't seen it, but an article in a newspaper today reads: "The utopian 3D fantasy world of Avatar has left some cinema-goers unable to cope with reality - and even feeling suicidal. Fans ... claim they want to stay on Pandora ... The fan forum [has] a topic thread entitled "Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible" and has received more than 1,000 posts. ... Visual realism in the film is causing the depression, claim experts. "It makes real life seem more imperfect," says New York psychiatrist Dr Stephan Quentzel." The article contains extracts from the forum where people claim to have contemplated suiside so that they can be rebirthed in a world similar to Pandora. And suchlike posts. Wow. Just what anyone would want to go and see. :wacko:

Does what we say apply to the current TWI? Well, the top leadership is much the same. In other words, the current TWI is not much different from TWI-1 or TWI-2 or any other version. The style of management is much the same. The separation from other people is still the same, ie, no integration with mainstream Christian groups. No discussions or joint events. Not even a debate, where TWI doctrine could be considered alongside mainstream theology. No promotion of the works of other Christian writers of the current day - just the same old same old. So there isn't so much compulsion to do things (or so we're told). Do current "members" still feel obliged to attend SNS, traveling long distances to do so? Do people still have to tithe, or go beyond the tithe - or get chucked out? In this, I'm mindful that CFFM, which is an offshoot of TWI, had a public debate over a couple of weeks, on the topic of the trinity. It was open for attendance to CFFM, to the mainstream church nearby, and to anyone else who wanted to attend. I'm not debating the merits or otherwise of CFFM - just saying that they are being more open about what they believe and teach, moving in a different direction. No such moves from TWI, which is as anxious as ever to hoard people (and their money) to themselves. So even if the info at GSC is "out of date" - it applies to an out-of-date organization.

They don't know how lucky they are! RC hung very tight with TWI at one time and was on the Board of Trustees, wasn't he? So you'd have to think "like-minded" here. He wouldn't get to BoT level without knowing about the bad goings-on. Geer's "ministry" is a different thing made by selling materials to fellowship coordinators. It doesn't have the same structure as TWI. Geer was in Europe for a while, but it all fell apart pretty quickly at PoP. Don't know that the abuse practiced at HQ was as prevalent in Europe, but there was among some people a relaxed attitude towards sexual liaisons.

mstar - they are very hard workers. They work so hard at "working the word" so that they can teach it. ...oh...you meant practical outworking... I would like to give them a few leftover loaves from the bakery, and some fish or slices of ham or whathaveyou - see them feed 5000 households. Or 4000 households. (Twice is established! It must be possible!). Or they could even do a regular local soup run, with just the basic "unmultiplied" ingredients.

If God is always the same, no shadow of turning, then the so-called OT vengeful God is no other than the NT God of grace and mercy. And likewise, the OT God is a God of grace and mercy, and the NT God is vengeful. There are some lovely passages in Micah (it's only a little book; have a read). "Who is a God like you, who forgives iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? He retains not his anger forever, because he delights in mercy and loving-kindness." (Micah 7:18 AMP, a sort of conclusion to the whole book). What do you want to look for? It's in there. You can see a mean vengeful God - or you can see a caring God. I think there is much in the OT that we of TWI do not fully understand because we were misdirected. A re-read without PFAL-colored glasses might be in order! It's contradictory but there has usually been scope for those who want to escape "God's wrath" to escape same. Good post, Geisha, but I think I have to take issue with this: Is it? Always? "Basically"? God? "Takes you out"? How does that fit with John 10:10a - "steal, kill and destroy" - the mission of "the thief" - the devil? Anyway, to pursue that particular line might be a bit off topic, and what Geisha wanted was to discuss perceptions of God in the OT compared with the NT. Jesus lived in a country under brutal occupation by a feared and greatly hated army. What did he say? "Turn the other cheek." His own supporters were unimpressed with this response, and some walked away. In the OT, Israel commonly got into trouble when it made allegiances with other nations for offensive purposes. God said that he would defend his people. It wasn't always instant deliverance. When it came to defensive purposes, they were to arm themselves but not go after the opposition. When they did, they suffered. How Jesus might advise the President today? He "advised" the leaders of his day. He told the Pharisees and the Sadduccees that they were hypocrites. He challenged them on their behavior. He challenged them to do the Godly thing. He challenged them to have grace and mercy. A soft answer turneth away wrath. Colin Powell tried a soft (less aggressive) answer and got kicked out by the warmongers. Jesus got to stand before the local ruler of the occupying army (Pilate) and what did he say? Nothing at all! (How's that for a soft answer?!) He let the hypocrites expose their own warped standards. The bold prophet Nathan confronted king David on his hypocrisy, greed, lust, murderous behavior. I think a hypothetical Jesus would challenge the US govt on its hypocrisy, its greed, its ill behavior toward other countries. The US has no leg to stand on, for example, when it comes to "democratic elections" when in fact the presidency (any presidency) is not acquired by merit but by the biggest campaign coffer and how many interest groups can be got onside. I could say much on this - but that'd relegate this thread to Politics and Tacks.

I think we might be beginning to have a bit of a thaw too. I'm sure there is a garden somewhere out there, under all that white stuff. It's been interesting seeing the tracks in the snow. There is a fine blackbird family lives nearby, and Mr Blackbird visits frequently. He churned up a surprisingly large area in the fresh snow on the lawn looking for crumbs underneath. He has hopped around in other areas, leaving quite a distinctive track where feet and his tail have been. Other bigger birds have been there too. I have been putting out bits of bread and chopped up bacon rind and other meat fragments for them. The collared doves might have visited but they don't seem as smart as the blackbird. I haven't seen Mrs Blackbird; hope she has survived. Way above the lawn, on the vege part of the garden, I saw footprints from some small four-legged critter, probably a cat. Just the one set, and only one set in a week. My girlies (see "Cat Whispering") refuse to go near the door and when it is open, rush off to the back of the room to hide. I've enjoyed several walks through snow-laden woods over the weekend and am amazed at the number of small birds there are about. They must be finding it hard. I saw a wren yesterday, the smallest British native bird. How do these tiny creatures stay alive, when human beings have been found frozen in the streets or their own gardens?

The following shows forthcoming donations within 25 miles of zip code: 45871, within: 25 miles, date range: any. (The zip code is for Corps mail, not HQ mail, in case you're wondering, but it would bring up a session at HQ itself) http://www.redcrossblood.org/make-donation?distance[postal_code]=45871&distance[search_distance]=25&date[min][date]=&date[max][date]=&distance[search_units]=mile (Info below, as some of it will probably auto-delete as dates pass) Distance Date Time Location and Details 0.00 mi January 08, 2010 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM American Legion 204 N. Mill Street New Knoxville, OH 45871 Donation Types: Blood, Double Red Cell Donations 20.16 mi January 09, 2010 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Shelter House Burkettsville 100 W. Main St. Burkettsville, OH 45310 Donation Types: Blood 10.96 mi January 11, 2010 11:30 AM - 6:30 PM American Legion 8140 State Route 119 Maria Stein, OH 45860 Donation Types: Blood, Double Red Cell Donations Click here to schedule an appointment to donate 16.92 mi January 11, 2010 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM American Legion 601 N. State Route 118 Coldwater, OH 45828 Donation Types: Blood, Double Red Cell Donations 21.86 mi January 12, 2010 1:00 PM - 7:00 PM Rite Aid Pharmacy-Russells Point Site: Rite Aid 120 W. Main Street Russells Point, OH 43348 Donation Types: Blood 24.54 mi January 14, 2010 10:30 AM - 4:30 PM Eagles 471 Site: Eagles Delphos 1600 East 5th Street Delphos, OH 45833 Donation Types: Blood, Double Red Cell Donations Click here to schedule an appointment to donate 19.48 mi January 19, 2010 1:00 PM - 7:00 PM American Red Cross Allen County Chapter House Lima 610 S. Collett Street Lima, OH 45805 Donation Types: Blood, Double Red Cell Donations ...and so on... Conspicuous by its absence, the session on Jan 9 is at HQ is NOT listed. Maybe Brainfixed has a point...! As a regular blood donor myself, I'm keen to encourage others to donate because I understand how needful it can be. A donor usually has no control over who may receive the donation - although it is possible to donate for intended future operations for oneself. Points to ponder: Question 1: would you donate your blood if you knew it would be used to benefit some of the head honchos at TWI? Question 2: if you were to receive a donation and knew it was from (say) RFR, would you accept it? (Edited cos the link didn't work)

I thought when I saw Belle’s post that this was going to be something that ought to be in Just Plain Silly! I thought it was interesting that there is another also in NK the previous day, which invited people to attend – whereas the TWI one is rather baldly written. See the following notes: Red Cross Blood Drive Friday, Jan 8 12:00p to 6:00p at New Knoxville American Legion, New Knoxville, OH If you weigh at least 110 pounds and are in good health, you may be eligible to donate blood. To schedule an appointment, go to www.redcrossblood.org call 1-800 GIVE LIFE. Red Cross Blood Drive Saturday, Jan 9 8:00a to 2:00p at The Way International, New Knoxville, OH Follow signs at the East Shelby Road entrance. So no appointments offered - is it not a public donation session? Or have all the appointments been filled already - by "volunteers" from staff and Wayfers in the area?

Kimberly, well done with your cat rescue. Five weeks is too little, and you did an excellent job. Gatorade is funny to raise a cat on, but hey, you could start a new fashion. Obviously it did the job for your little beauty. She will have a go at hunting, though. It's instinctive - but because she hasn't learned the best tricks from mama and has no real need to hunt, she may never make an excellent hunter (good!). My two, who have only ever been indoors and never free at all till I let them out last summer, hunt butterflies, at which they are quite proficient, and birds, of which so far they have never caught one. Don't know if they have tried for rodents. There is also interest in the one remaining fish in the pond; Tuxy assumes hunting pose but can't work out what the wet stuff is. They love to eat the sticking-in end of feathers. If she does start to chase critters, you might be able to deter her by making a loud noise or squirting with a water pistol. But you can't watch her every move. I hope she gives you much joy to help overcome your loss of Alfalfa. Ham and Geisha, your babies are absolutely gorgeous, all of them. I wish my two would have a cuddle occasionally but physical contact seems now only to be licking each other's faces, sniffing each other's bottoms and smacking each other around the head. Ham, Administrator Cat has that look of patient endurance that marks Administrators who know everyone else is off beam. "See what I have to put up with?" as the kitten explores her back. LOL.

That is funny, Rummie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oh4EPcOpSy8&feature=player_embedded (this latter might only work for males, but females can probably think up a similar scenario)

An "Administrator" cat... maybe that's what mine are, for each other. Often one will whine but doesn't want anything - but the other wants feeding, or something. LOL, chasing the squirrel. Mine have yet to see one. Ham, let's see a photo of your beauties.

Geisha, you do have some fun with your cats! Truly, a mouse won't hurt you...much... and they don't eat people for breakfast. Your cats might, though, if you take their toys away. These cats...they do know what they are supposed to do, and not to do. Twinkle used to catch a bird or mouse, and then made this particular noise. When I went to see what she had, she would show me from a safe distance, then run off and hide behind a bush in the garden. She knew I could only be one side of the bush at a time and we would sort of play peek-a-boo while I tried to make space for the prey to escape. So far the girlies have only caught butterflies. I am not certain what they would do if a real mouse arrived. Tuxy would probably start off all scared, then hit at it. Crypto would probably stalk it and leap upon it. She is a fearsome hunter of toys, bits of string and plastic bags. Geisha, do post about your hubby and the chicken. I think you told me in a PM or email and I had tears of laughter rolling down my face as I pictured the scene. And just thinking about it. Or do you have another hilarious story?

Good question, soul searcher, but perhaps you'd prefer to start another thread to cover that? Maybe in Doctrinal? It is a question that many, Christian or otherwise, wrestle with. There is a pat TWI answer, but it doesn't match reality in any way.

Just thought I'd start a new thread, because the other one is so very long, but will include a link to the last page. Right now my garden is probably not growing anything...subzero temps have left the whole garden covered in frost. Looks pretty with everything rimed in hoar frost, but the paths are slippery with ice and my visits to the compost bin are few. My fishpond is under ice, which at least protects my solitary remaining fish from the hungry heron. The brassicas this year did very badly and are cowering down and refusing to stick their heads into the freezing fog. Maybe they will develop a bit better in a month or two. gc, is it any warmer where you are?

Welcome! Settle in with cake and coffee. Enjoy the debate around here. In answer to your question: I never believed Jesus was God before; it never made sense. And it doesn't make sense now. The idea of "killing" God is too bizarre for words. Killing the creator of the heavens and the earth? :wacko: Why would anyone want a mortal "God"? And how could a different - being, for want of a better word - be the perfect sacrifice of a "lamb of the first year"? Wouldn't that be like sacrificing an elephant and calling it a lamb? Or calling a turtle dove, a genuine substitutionary sacrifice, a "lamb"? It's not even sacrificing a goat in substitution for a lamb.

Well, maybe for you, Bolshevik, but most of the people I met were what you'd call "normal." Everyone has needs of one sort or another, even if just the need for companionship. Are you, or were you, so perfect, then? Huh? Who is perfect, who has no needs, no "screw ups"? Don't you think that is a bit harsh as a generalisation? Are you really accusing everyone here at the Cafe of being "mentally handicapped" or "just screwed up in general"? What interested me was simply that there was some sort of coherent teaching. I was fed up with churches and wishy-washy stuff - nice people, but no Bible teaching to speak of. And here was someone who took me all sorts of different places in the Bible and (mostly) made it hang together. I'd already been reading for myself and wished I could understand better. The errors in PFAL I flagged away as imperfect knowledge that could be developed or expanded later; after all, it was a research ministry, and I was told that as research gave new light, the Ministry's teachings might change to take account of that. The Dead Sea Scrolls, I was told, were still being examined (for example). I wasn't mentally handicapped or screwed up. I just wanted to know. And, it appeared, so did all the people who took the class with me or who subsequently passed through various classes. I don't remember any "weirdos", nor were any of the established grads, Corps or other people around, "weird". Some were a bit hard; some were a bit too "black and white", but all were confident in God, and that was a real change from the "if it's God's will" or "maybe" brigade of too many churches. If you read posts here, you'll find that a lot of other posters also "just wanted to know." The biggest handicap I had to deal with - was that it was taught by an American! Who was a bit creepy and didn't know the English language as well as he made out. But he still appeared to know more Bible than any church minister I'd encountered. And nobody who taught the Bible would deliberately lie, would they? Guess the joke was on me.

Rummie, they have been threatened (not by me) with becoming a pair of mittens! Tuxy wanted (yes, wanted) a good cuddle this morning. And boy, does she go at it with those claws, needling away. No further progress with Miss Ultra Timid (Crypto) but she watches Tuxy enjoying being fondled, so perhaps eventually she will get the idea. I think they have their own ideas about my solitary remaining fish outside in the pond. I suspect they whisper "tartare sauce" to him. However, he is a wily critter and is not fooled by them.

Thanks, Pond. Yes, I'm careful when I get injured by them. Tuxy has bitten me twice and the first time I was on antibiotics (strong ones) for 3 weeks, having let the infection go too far. Second time, I deal with it straight away and was on the antibiotic that worked, straight away. When Crypto scratched me, I washed immediately with soap and water and sprinkled the wounds with hydrogen peroxide. Everything has healed up perfectly, no signs at all left. But I hear what you say. I am mindful that they use their litter trays, leaving very smelly parcels, scratch around (perhaps) to cover that, and they don't wash their paws afterwards. If they puncture me, there's too much potential for cat poo bacteria getting into my body (yeuk). Don't think they bite or scratch a lot - they don't. Just if something really scares them. They're very gentle, really.

I am not sure if Tuxedo has made some new year resolutions, or if she has had a brain transplant, or there is an imposter in the house. Heck if she didn't want another good fondle this morning, curled up and slept in my lap, purring mighty contentedly. My poor sweater sleeve is looking bedraggled due to her needling of it. Hey, she's getting like a normal cat!