qtana

So there was no encouraging people to seek God to find their own "gift ministries" I presume? It seems like to me there was a blatant discouragement of it. That is just odd to me, but I guess it did keep vpw at an elevated level that nobody could attain and served a purpose for him. Also, did I understand right that there was a hierarchy within the gift ministries? Certain gifts were better than others? Or are you trying to say that the more gift ministries you had/have, the higher in rank you were if you chose to operate in them?

HAHA! That was pretty funny waysider! It also brings me to my point... In my opinion, semantics wouldn't be such an issue if we used multiple words for the same thing depending on meaning & context. For example, the word "love" might have multiple translations in another language depending on meaning and context. Or another example, isn't it the eskimos that have 100s of words to explain "snow". Each word for "snow" indicates something different. One of the tragedies of the English language is that we have stripped down meanings in order to have one simplified word. Therfore, there tends to be a lot of confusion because people interpret words differently depending on their own experiences and expectations of meaning. I think semantics become an important thing then because otherwise we are all just talking at each other instead of truly understanding what another person is saying. Am I totally missing the point here?

Will someone please tell me what a "gift ministry" is? I have always believed that God has given ALL of us gifts...did TWI say that only certain people had gifts and that others did not?

The only time I DON'T fill up is on the weekends...gas prices always rise here right before the weekend and then go back down at the beginning of the week. If that weren't the case I'd fill up whenever I needed to. However, I have this weird compulsion about checking gas prices. I cannot drive past a gas station without looking at the gas prices. I feel like I have to go back and look if I make myself drive by without looking...OCD?

Clearly you're a man cool if you don't think the type of kotex that's selected is important...haha Anyhow, my big beef with cell phones is people who think that they are being a safer driver by using a hands free set. Sure it frees your hands up a bit, but the amount of distraction level that one is under while talking on the phone remains just as high. If your reason for using it is that your hands are free, don't you think your instinct would be to drop the phone immediately if you see an accident coming? Thus both hands are again free. Your reaction time is already slowed down because you were distracted by the phone call...having a hands free set will not improve reaction time all that greatly. Sorry...I'm on my soap box! :)

How true! They're on to something there...haha

I disagree...it wasn't a friendship to begin with if it only takes one thing. I thought I had my first true friend these last few years. I bent over backwords for her and cut her slack all the time. I did one thing wrong (at least wrong in her eyes) and she refuses to talk to me now or be my friend. She was no friend at all to begin with.

Just curious...does this year seem to be in particular more difficult than other years for anyone?

This is an interesting topic. Thank you for bringing it up T-Bone. I was only involved in TWI as a child, but still it has left a lasting effect on me since I continued to be raised with it's doctrines despite not being officially involved. As a result I am always confused now about what the true voice of God is. I have a never ending battle always going on in my head over decisions, even small things...I'm always analyzing if it's my desires or God's desires that are being decided upon. Now I'm trying to break free of it all and I feel like I'm betraying God at times. That still small voice shouldn't have to fight for its way out, should it? Makes me think that it was squelched and really all I'm arguing about in my head is two worse options then what God would like me to do in the first place. Who knows? I'm sure having a hard time learning how to decipher what truth really is, since I'm learning that I can't trust anybody anymore to tell me what it is.

Free, Man that sucks! I can see how the decision your dad forced you into must be very difficult to handle; I'm not sure I could handle it with the grace you seem to be doing it with. Nonetheless, I'm glad that you're finding some healing. I actually mailed a check to Karl earlier this week so that I could get a copy of his book. Hopefully it'll arrive soon. Thanks for the recommendation though.

First of all, thank you to everyone who is responding! Your information is very helpful! Word Wolf: I’m really interested in any information. I was specifically involved in the late 70’s and early 80’s, but I’m interested in the general trend that was prevalent in TWI. I’ve been surprised to see how many of the same issues I’ve had to work through that other adults have had to work through as well as a result of being involved with TWI. So I’m trying tolearn from others about their experiences and what they witnessed so that I could get an idea of what went on. At times I’ve wondered if I was brainwashed b/c I have very few memories of ANYTHING until I reach high school age. My dad was supposedly pretty high up in TWI, so I think that he probably embraced quite a few of the prevailing themes of this group, despite being forced to leave. Bramble, that story of the guy who approached you while you are nursing—very creepy! ICK! Also, you’re idea of Stepford children…sometimes I’ve felt that way. My dad always accused me of being disrespectful anytime I disagreed with him. I was taught to be quiet and a loner. Even though it was not directly stated there was always a pressure for perfection and should it not be achieved then disappointment, spankings, and long talkings to about the Bible would always ensue. Tonto, I’m sorry that you were torn the way you were with your son and the meetings. I’m sure that was very difficult for you. I’m also sorry that it has left you with the guilt that it has. Thank you for sharing your story. Doojable: Spankings were definitely commonplace to my experience too. “Spare the rod, spoil the child”. I could never get away from that scripture even when I tried to talk myself out of getting spanked for something I believed to be undeserved. I think you were right on the money with your thoughts about spanking other people’s children. By the way, what is HF & HFC? I haven’t quite learned the acronyms yet. Also, were there ever reports of sexual abuse of the children? The group seems so insulated that it seems like it would not be impossible and with all the reports of it with the adults I’m wondering if it happened with the kids too.

Hello all, I was a child when involved with TWI and don't remember a lot of what it was like. Yet somehow I've ended up with a lot of the wrong belief systems (I'm guessing because I was indoctrinated with them growing up). My parents didn't want out of TWI and look upon the time with great esteem. Anyhow, I'm wondering if any of you could recount your stories of what TWI was like for children. What were the roles and expectations? Did children just run around doing whatever they liked or were they expected to act like little adults? Any memories you have as a child in TWI or memories you have of your children or what you witnessed of other children would be greatly appreciated. I'm looking to understand the trend of the late 70s and early 80s, but I'm interested in anything you've got! Thank you!

I was a kid when my parents were in the way in the early 80s, and therefore have few memories of it. However, the name tags are the one thing that sticks out in my mind more than anything and I remember being so proud of them! What was I thinking?! Maybe that's why I need tangible things now to feel like I've accomplished something?