Twinky

Cool post, Jeff. Though the language you use is probably the sort of language that would have been heard coming from that man's mouth. In keeping with your original post, I'm not sure if the splinter group leaders find it necessary to use such vile language in teaching their people.

Interesting, many versions put the "ever learning" bit along with the "silly women" bit - it's the women who are ever learning. But hey it's all about how you punctuate the sentence, huh? Nonetheless the context is the "terrible times in the last days" (NIV) Paul, the author of 2 Timothy, continues: This is the example Paul and his fellow apostles/companions set - wasn't he a saddle-maker? Note, it does not say he/they labored in the gospel. They worked. Physically. At their trades. To earn their money to pay for their necessities. At a later stage, Paul welcomes gifts of money and other things, but does not demand them. But there's the example - to make ourselves a model for you to follow. Now, if any of these TWI splinter groups has the following that Paul had, and has undergone the hardships that Paul did, then they can talk about how much they have a "right" to be supported by the believers...which "right" even Paul doesn't claim, but just accepts the gifts that are sent to him. (wish I could get the editing/typeface right and it doesn't go all too small to read sometimes!)

(((((Leafy))))) sneaking out like that... You made the right decision. What a bizarre way to feel you needed to act on that decision.

Field Corps were expected to expect an assignment on staff every few years. To keep them fresh on the Word. We're not talking a one-year assignment, either. Not enough to listen to Corps Night over hookups, on tape, or however, nor to be involved with twigs, branches, limbs on a constant basis. Most "church" leaders will go away on retreat/to synod/to conference/to some other type of clergy meeting, for maybe a week max, Monday to Friday. But only for a week. They don't need to go back to their training institution for prolonged re-training.

"Grow a pair!" Said innocently: "Oh, our yard is too small for that. We already have two apple trees and some fruit bushes. No room for a pear tree."

And how long before TWI decides to sue them for stealing the name?

Didn't make it across the pond. Not quite Brit humor.

Who are these people? Anybody of note?? (shrug)

http://www.snh.org.uk/ukredsquirrelgroup/popInfo.asp

Nice thread! Those trips down Memory Lane aren't always quite as rosy as we remembered (wince). Shellon, good on you for having the guts to apologize. And good on all those people who took your phone calls, and accepted the apologies. You must have some great family and friends. Growth and healing to our hearts is always possible.

A Corps person could marry a non-Corps person and initially that was okay. Later it became that the non-Corps person was encouraged to participate in Corps training. The Corps partner might be on staff, and the non-Corps spouse participated in the program. Then, both had to go in residence together, with the older Corps spouse required to participate fully. No special privileges, no proper job (to the extent that staff jobs were proper jobs). It became a requirement. If both didn't participate, obviously neither was really cut out to be Corps. It was all about re-training, beating down further, to fit into the Martindale model. Can't have older Corps out there who might still be able to think!!

Ah. Visionary spiders. Or spiders in visions, at least. Now that's a different thing.

I gave a lot of my overgrown courgettes away - just too many to cope with. Someone who took away three gave me this recipe. It is, apparently, a very nice summer soup. Not tried it yet. Courgette soup. You can leave the potatoes out if you like as they're not essential. Ingredients: 2 lb courgettes 4 medium potatoes 2 medium onions 4 pints veg stock salt and pepper to taste Method: Slice courgettes, peel and cube potatoes, peel and chop onions. Add all ingredients into a very large pan and simmer for about 20-25 mins or until the veg are tender. Put into a liquidiser and puree.

I guess there might be, Thomas, but when you're in rez and it is an exciting expedition to go to New Knoxville (a place I only went once) or St Mary's (might have made it there twice), mountains elsewhere don't feature highly in one's memory. That's why trips like Lightbearers were so enjoyable (if that's the right word).

Hey folks, just ease up on Waylaid. He's said sorry, he's backing off. Now, you lot, stop scaring him off. Pack up ganging up on him. He's here because he's interested. Wherever his head is at, he can move on (if he wants) with help from the crowd here. If people jump on him at an early stage, he's not likely to want to find out more, is he? You will see Waylaid joined in 2007. Has it taken nearly two years to pluck up courage to post here? Or is he just an irregular looker-in? Have a bunfight with him when he's got to know y'all a bit better.

My favourite thing...pottering in the garden. I lifted my onions last week so there is a big bare patch. I turned my compost bin (no small task, digging it out and moving it elsewhere - a compost turner sounds a very good idea!), tossed some of the compost on the bare patch. Forked it in this evening., and the place where the bin had been. There was this floppy looking potato top so I pulled at it and found to my surprise that there were a load of decent sized white potatoes under it. I lifted that and another potato. Both of these are self-setters from chits, well just peelings, in what was obviously poorly composted stuff from last year. I sowed some salad vegs where the compost bin had been; if they do anything so much the better - my salad crops this year are practically non-existent. I have given away lots of my courgettes, which had turned into small marrows. People have taken them away to make chutney and - soup! So tonight I ate all home-grown: some delicious potatoes, tasting sweetly of the earth they were in half an hour before some mangetout peas, tasting sweet one onion, with a crisp super-oniony flavour, sauteed in a little olive oil together with: one courgette, quite large but not quite a marrow, crisp and pleasant, lightly sauteed followed by a little plum nectar from when I boiled up those tiny plums last week (I froze the main plum mix to make a crumble later; but there was a little juice left). Mmmmmmmm........

Well, I liked the Way Woods. Only small, of course, but I love being in the outdoors, wandering through mountains and forests. No mountains in Ohio, and WW was about the best immediately available as "forest" when in rez, but peaceful for all that (not that, in rez, there is much time to enjoy wandering anywhere). In the Spring mornings, for our pre-breakfast run, we often went through the Woods, both sides of the road. That was specially peaceful. I really don't like running, but running through the woods was a nice start to the day. There's a scrappy bit on the other side of the main road, not where the HHP or the Cabin was, but the other road; that had a pond (gravel pit??) and a place where we did some shooting one time. There were also the stacks of wood that the in rez Corps chopped up. Not such pretty woods, but rarely was anybody there. An abiding memory of the woods was after a huge ice storm had gone through. Everything, everywhere, was thickly crusted with about an inch of ice. Roads and paths were really slippery. We were supposed to be going out Lightbearers but in view of the weather and danger on the roads, the Lightbearers trip was cancelled. The in rez Corps in effect got a free few hours while it was decided what to do with us. It was a brilliantly sunny morning, and I wandered round the Woods and enjoyed the spectacular sight of the glittering ice and the vivid brightness of the branches and the prisms caused by the ice. It was magnificent. Several trees and boughs were lost through the weight of the ice, though.

Yeah, George, I'm always the only user too. Looks like we're all, all alone. Sad.

And why does this thing always say that I am on Shoutbox, a feature that I never have used and don't intend to? (If I could delete Shoutbox completely (not just click the + ) I would do!)

Does TWI still require attendance at lots of meetings in a week? If they would just suggest people got involved in their communities, spent three hours a week inputting into the areas where they live, instead of three hours attending the third fellowship meeting that week or whatever, the people would have the opportunity to make an impact and thereby live their lives as a witness. Then there wouldn't be the need for the hard sell knocking on doors, waylaying people in the shopping mall, or whatever. Imagine that! Three hours a week helping people! Time spent with young lads as Scouts or Cadets or whatever. Time volunteering at a local after-school group teaching football or some useful skill. Time volunteering at a local hospital. That could be a real witness: not the do-you-want-more-head-knowledge kind of witness.

When a PM is received (now, a Conversation) it's possible to add a reply, or do a Fast reply. But where is the text that you are replying to? Very hard to answer a point if you can't see it !

Jeff, the reference to spidery type things comes from one of the offshoots and some visions of spiders crawling out of someone's nose. How edifying. Anyway, don't go smashing spider webs, squishing bugs, etc. Some of them are actually useful. Spider webs may catch flies that spread disease. Bugs may be, or turn into, something that is useful in the garden. It's well to be selective in what you smash down. False idols, for example. Personally I'd see TWI as a sort of fungus. Invisible for a long time, just setting down its roots. Then long time later, up pops its fruiting body (mushroom or toadstool). hat's just what you see. The real body of the plant (/) is well hidden and extremely difficult to eradicate, as you may find if you get (say) black mold in your bathroom. But even fungus, even, is useful, breaks down old trees etc and turns them into useful humus and nutrients for other plantlife. That's where the analogy breaks down. I do not know the use or value of black mold in the bathroom; nor do I know the use of much of TWI doctrine (ie, exclusively their stuff.)

One thing's for sure - you ain't never gonna run out of clients!

JT, my life too. Fearless when I went in, full of fear when I came out. Ultimately because of the spying, talebearing, confrontation over just about anything and everything ... fear really set in. You truly do your best, and you get stamped on. When you've given up everything for TWI (career, friends, family, you name it), to be told you are not good enough, you will be kicked out...does rather instil fear. Well, that's a WC perspective, from one who still had a brain when entering. (I could say more, but I'm just getting overheated ) I guess really, Copenhagen, your post belongs on a parallel thread. Anyway, if this bringing of the New Light of f.e.a.r. is what the W&U class is going to be about - can't see it being that successful.

Frankly, I am surprised (knowing how they like to spin things out) that it is only three hours. BUT - it does include an hour of witnessing!!! (oh joy!) If you don't bring anybody back to fellowship afterwards, have you "failed" the class and have to re-sit until you do bring someone new?