Twinky

I would like to see if any of you have any advice about the happy couple and their present "relationship." Tuxedo you may recall is the bigger cat. Crypto is about 2/3 her size. They both like to play but Tuxy can be rougher and can push Crypto over quite easily. Crypto acts scared of Tuxy. They generally tolerate each other but aren't particular friends, and never curl up together. Tuxy is generally the ring leader, and Crypto will follow once she sees nothing awful has happened to Tuxy. But last night and today it has been complete turn-around. Crypto has had several goes at Tuxy and Tuxy is cringing away in fright, even to the point where she will not approach the food bowls (and she loves her food!) because Crypto is there. Tuxy has skulked on a chair under the table and Crypto is on the floor near the table glaring at Tuxy with the meanest look in her eye. She has chased her round the house several times. This is most unCrypto like behavior. After an aggressive day today, there is a lull in hostilities this evening. C has approached T and allowed T to lick her head and ears (C seems to like this, on a regular basis) but T has done it warily. Tuxy will not now allow me to fondle her much - just the briefest stroke of the head. I stroked down her flanks and she permitted this down one side but will not down the other - I managed it once and think I may have felt something, a lump perhaps, but she will not let me near that side any more. (Oops, a hitting session both ways just taking place.) They are --- I must go - war is happening. ...T is now back on the chair under the table and C is in the middle of the kitchen floor looking cross. At a guess, T "played" with C last night but a little too aggressively and hurt C and C is still upset and determined to get her own back today. But it may well be something completely different. I am pleased that C is "standing up for herself" but she is doing more than just defending herself - she is actively seeking occasion to chase, hit and generally intimidate Tuxy. It is so very out of character that it is alarming. I haven't done anything different to or for them. They haven't been outside for the last couple of days but going out is new for them. I was dosing C with Mimulus which is supposed to reduce timidity, but she hasn't had any of that for several days either. Suggestions? Comments? Should I be pleased or worried? If worried - for which one of them?

Dooj, there are some clips from The Apostle, including the opening 11 mins, on Youtube. Very scary, very emotion-whipping-up, no substance. I found myself cringing. But I do know where VPW got the idea for that white suit!! (Ah no, Duvall plagiarized VPW's idea, no?)

Hi all, just looking in after a long absence. I have been the usual idle slob and not got onto the garden as much as I should have done but nonetheless am making up for lost time. I have things sown in starter boxes and pots and they are sprouting nicely. My cabbage from last year is still in the ground, but it's all bolted and is about 3ft high, very funny. I have broken off the flowers but have left it in the ground for the time being because I pull off a few leaves to cook every now and again. I need to get some mangetout peas, they're so nice. Peas are nice anyway but a lot of space is needed for little result (cheaper to go to the shop!!) but something different like mangetout (expensive to buy) would be worthwhile. I read what you all posted about garlic and probably I'm too late now but my garlic planted ... nearly this time last year (gulp) is still in the ground and growing well. Just before autumn (fall) I cleared out four leylandii trees. They were pretty big and they are now out, roots and all. I dug compost and horse manure into the soil before leaving it for the winter. If nothing else, it supports chickweed (prolifically). At present am uncertain if this part of the garden will remain a shrub border with some new shrubs, or if I will set it to veges. I also want to re-shape the border on my lawn because there is no room for plants that I do want to have in the garden, flowers and shrubs and some such. I was given some raspberry bushes last autumn and they all failed. I got some more a few weeks ago and they are now all showing signs of growth, which is pleasing. Time my beans went in, too. Perhaps this weekend. Need to move the compost heap, will put the mature compost into the bean trench with some hoss muck and the beans should go beautifully. I like beans. Runner beans, that is. I planted chard last year and that has cropped and cropped and cropped and cropped.... not sure whether just to leave it where it is or to sow some more seed elsewhere. Some of it must go to flower/seed, presumably. gc, I might be down your way sometime soon. We shall have to see if we can swap some "babies".

Thanks, Mark. I feel God really wanted me to be a part of this church. I felt like I had "come home" at the first service there. It was very soothing. I would attend and listen to the sermon, and tears of joy and blessing would leak from my eyes, couldn't stop it. The church has been very healing. The housegroup is a bit strange, after TWI, with everyone saying, "I think this means..." but they are all deeply thoughtful and have been Christians for a long time. Each is on his or her own walk with God. The comment, "I think this means..." speaks as much to where they are on their on walk with God, as to underlying meanings. Nobody knew my background when I was assigned/offered this housegroup (as opposed to any of the others running within the church set-up). But I do think it was the best place for me to be. One woman there says she can see how much calmer and more peaceful I am. I asked her what she meant, and she said, when I first started going, they (she) wondered what was going to come out of my mouth. Gosh, and I thought I was keeping my mouth shut and trying to keep a lid on TWI dogma!

Why did I buy it? Because I wanted to know more about God, the creator of the universe. Had had a conventional upbringing, sent to church (C of E), to chapel (Methodist), rebelled iin early teens because I couldn't see what it was all about. It didn't seem alive or interesting, just a load of oldies standing up and sitting down and singing a few songs. It was all very formulaic and didn't touch my heart one bit. I did do some confirmation classes with the vicar, which were quite interesting, but the whole churchy thing was too boring. Years later and still searching. I would wander into churches from time to time. Nice people, sometimes nice songs, but nothing that really grabbed my heart. Many years later and I had decided to read the Bible from start to finish. I read Acts and was amazed and astonished, and really wanted to know what had happened to the power of God that those people knew and lived by. Where had it gone? Why wasn't it around now? And I wanted to learn Greek to get more out of it than just the English words. I knew I was missing a lot in the translation. Some time later, I was in an intensely stressful job with a horrible manipulative boss. He was clever, but mean. I met a WoW, who was clever and lovely. He had answers and showed me in the Bible all sorts of things, and he always had an answer. I was interested in what he said, and in him. I believe God spoke to me and said that life could be either this way, or that. I could use my own intellect and abilities and become mean like my boss; or I could go the other way and be kind and helpful to others. It was my choice. (There is, of course, a little more to it than that, but that's the essence.) I wasn't interested in the class that the believers kept pushing and trying to sell to me. Eventually I did take the class because this great bloke that had witnessed to me, was getting a lot of pressure put upon him by some interim Corps. I still didn't like the class but took up the "read the epistles for the next three months" challenge and that really decided me. Of course, I'd be reading it faultily, through PFAL-colored glasses, but then, I'd never read the epistles before. There was a knowledge, intensity and passion about the believers (WoWs) that was not to be found in any church I'd been in. They were great and lived a life in acknowledgment of God. Some of them went into the Corps and I loved being around them. (Later, other mere "twiggies," ended up hurting me horribly.) The class, though I didn't enjoy it, had taught me more about the Bible than anything else I have ever heard. It just made sense. And I wanted to carry on getting to know God better, know more about him. Of course, if the church actually taught something, really taught, went through scriptures like PFAL did, then I wouldn't have fallen prey to the abusive organisation of TWI. The vicar at my current church once said, "If the churches did their job, people wouldn't get sucked into cults." He's right. And of all my current church's housegroup, about a third have come from some closed or cultic background, and about half of the house group have suffered abuse within their churches. Even the rest said they didn't learn much in their original church - hence we comprise Methodists, Baptists, C of E, RC, independent churches, and some from cults, in this thriving and very laid back church. Which really strives to know God and to educate those of the congregation who want to know. You wouldn't recognise the church as belonging to any particular denomination. No formal liturgy, no robes, no standard procedures though all fall within a range. People like to leave time to listen to God and not push him out by doing things by rote.

Welcome, Stayaway, you finally made the break. Think you may have been a lurker here for a while and you know that there is nothing out here that can hurt you. You will not be a grease spot by midnight unless you eat too many of the Cafe's donuts, LOL. Last one out, close the door, please. Rosie, if that's you, suggest you empty the swimming pool as well.

Oak...when was TWI ever about keeping anyone informed? (LOL)

Well, I have had them out a little today, as well. It was such a hot sunny day. I left the door open and encouraged them out. They were hesitant. Crypto explored more than Tuxy. They both enjoyed a good roll on the warm concrete of the patio. They flopped down together to lie on the doormat in the sun - never seen them lie down together before. After a while Tuxy got up and went inside into the shade! It is good they are getting a little more familiar with the outdoors environment and that they aren'[t in a hurry to bolt off, which was my main concern.

Wanted to tell you about some progress. Recently I have taken Tuxy up the garden in her harness and staked her out while I am gardening nearby. The first time she hid her head under a box near the compost heap - clearly, if she can't see anything she isn't there. Later I was digging elsewhere and staked her near a bush, which she immediately hid under and refused to budge. I have been giving Crypto the Bach remedy Mimulus for her timidity - whether it is that or not, she seems less timid. She comes up for a brief fondle quite frequently but still cannot be picked up. Tuxy likewise had the Bach remedy Rock Rose but I have discontinued this because she got horribly sloppy motions (okay, near diarrhoea) which started as soon as I started to dose her. It may be coincidence but it has stopped soon after I discontinued dosing her. Yesterday was a lovely sunny day and I sat out on my patio (deck) and decided to leave the back door open to let some air into the kitchen and perhaps give the girlies a look out. I strongly want them to be able to go out, even though handling them is difficult. I was a bit scared in case they made a dash for it but thought they would not. Anyway, veeeerrrry hesitantly, after some minutes Tuxy approached the door. She peered out. She looked guiltily at me. She retreated. She came back and peered out. Crypto thought she would have a look too and even more hesitantly came to the door. Tuxy slunk/oiled herself out of the door and behind a plant pot. Crypto waited and nothing bad happened so she stepped onto the door mat. All this accompanied by much sniffing and careful assessment from both. New noises startled them both back inside several times. Next door's dog barked: back inside. A plane overhead: back inside. A movement from me: back inside. Tuxy decided to chew the leaves of a plant I have removed from the kitchen (where she has eaten the leaf tips) to outside; when I said, "No, Tuxy!" she backed off and went back in immediately. I let them explore the wall and door and patio near the kitchen quite thoroughly and then at their own volition they went back inside for the severalth time. At this I shut them in and gave them some food. They were out for maybe 15-20 mins and reluctant to stray far, and made sure they knew where safety was. I may let them have another explore tonight. Before feeding them. They are desperately hungry. They will now only eat Go-Cat (of which I have run out) and have turned up their noses at the nice-looking tinned food and the biscuits of a different type. Stay hungry, then, see if I care (well I do). If they go out tonight, they will of a certainty respond to the rattle of the Go-Cat box.

"Help" - oh yeah, another word with a specific Way meaning. Could've been "fun", Socks. You'd think Don with an academic degree would understand what your request was about. For later Corps (like mine) I cannot imagine what they would put on any academic listings. Nothing worth having, anyway. Not sure chopping wood and watching a few very old videos about the Reformation would count for too much.

Who is this guy? Some escaped Wayfer? Or did he just see that clip ("This is God...please... stop!") (Pardon my ignorance if he's someone famous, I spent too long in a cult and don't know who's who.)

Wow, what a nice voice. Did you listen to her "Cry me a River"? A lot lot better than some singers who're out there.

Anyway, Copes, shouldn't you be subtly dissuading her from going too far? At the least, help her to retain what critical thinking skills she may have!!!

A strange article, Dot... So they have devised this prayer. Do they tell us what the words of this prayer are? No. But if you follow the links, you will find it takes you to a page where they will sell you a book of prayers. What happened to "freely receive, freely give"? They are teaching works, not heart; not the power of God, but the supposed power of words. Did you see the way he starts getting into the Hebrew and Greek meanings of words, just like the word-battles mentioned earlier in this thread, the things false prophets get into? Did I miss the bit where he talks about the healing power of the Lord Jesus and the accomplishments of his death and resurrection?

Hey, I remember that jacket now you describe it. Did Uncle Howard used to wear one? Often? (When did he go WoW?) (LOL)

Actually it didn't happen this way at all for me. I'd met a WoW and was fascinated by the knowledge he had of the Bible, and also that "coincidences" happened to him regularly - just what he'd prayed for. Despite this, no way did I want this class he was so keen to sell. He was under a lot of pressure from interim Corps (though I ddn't realise it at the time) to stop hanging out with me. Eventually I did take the class but wasn't convinced by it. I continued to hang out with the WoWs, and this one in particular, but nobody else was interested in me and I don't recall any post-class follow-up. I lived in another city some 30 miles away and not a one of them ever contacted me. He left to go into the Corps and I remained where I was. Still none of them contacted me. I was keen to do the intermediate class but despite contacting the remaining believers/twig, still nobody ever got in touch with me. I think they saw me as a time-waster (!) because I didn't attend regularly (hard, when you're in another city, and to use public transport would mean a journey on the slow train and getting back to my city at about 1.30 am and then still having to go a couple of miles to my home ... but they never thought about that). I was transferred to work in the city where the WoWs were and eventually took the Intermediate class. I started to attend twig regularly (staying overnight with a colleague) and sought their advice. Of course, they were all in no-skill jobs and only kids to boot, so they were completely incapable of giving me any helpful advice about how to deal with my work situation, which was very difficult with a manipulative boss and me tied into a two-year professional training contract. In fact, they ended up hurting me badly. I could not understand their facile attitude. I think I was standing very capably on my own two feet way before I took the class. It scared them. It was only after the class that my life started to go downhill. Too many accusations of being "sense knowledge" oriented and not "walking by revelation." But absolutely nothing of practical help from the "revelation" that they had. Eventually I met some quite wise Corps grads, lovely people, themselves deeply hurting but they really did their best for me. (I caught up with them recently.) I suppose I should add that all this was going on in the mid to late 80s. I think VPW had just died and the fog years were swirling. It says a lot for the dearth of knowledge or sound teaching in the established churches that I persisted in wanting to know more..boy did I get to know more...

Oeno, if you'd read my posts properly, you'd've seen I'm very thankful for them and for what they do. Not everyone wants to give up their Friday or Saturday evening to go and look after drunk kids and pick up glass bottles so they can't be used as weapons. BTW mine is a VERY quiet city, trouble-wise. The kids are usually big noisy groups having a good time. Rascal, this church sounds wonderful. They sound like they're being the 1st century church in the 21st century!

I enjoyed my WoW year and my family. I was truly sad when it ended. We did some good work and helped a lot of people. We just loved and trusted God. I know where my pin is, and wouldn't throw that one away. Yesterday I found a gold-colored SIT pin in the pot where I keep bits of broken crockery to go at the bottom of flower pots. Why was the SIT pin there? (scratches head) Now that one, I am not sure if I wish to keep. Maybe George can sell it on e-bay for me?

I wonder, too, why we really need a shift leader, but I think it is more that someone carries the radio and liaises with the city camera team. And brings the milk for the coffee. Her's the scheme: http://www.streetpastors.co.uk/Home/tabid/255/Default.aspx There isn't much on our city page so it doesn't link there yet. We have to get some stuff put on that, and a person who will update our Web pages from time to time. Our team of volunteers ranges from students at the university, to somebody in her 80s. The oldest one stays at base and prays (we always have two people praying) and the oldest who goes out on patrol is somewhere in her mid-70s. We are about 2/3 females and 1/3 males, interestingly. Generally the males are more accepting of the SL responsibility and the females more shy of it, but there are nonetheless bold and strong female leaders. I don't get the feeling it's "church teaching" but rather in the nature of the women themselves, that they don't want to be SL. Hey, I'm thankful for them all. God bless 'em. Some of them would be out every week, if they could. We have a training day coming up soon and I am going to speak with the person leading that, to see what we can do to exhort others to rise up. Interestingly, some only wanted to patrol with X, Y and Z whom they already knew. This is not always possible. For myself I consider it important to mix with my bros and sis in Christ whom I have not met before (especially having been so isolated by TWI). The Management Team backs me on mixing people up and none of them has any issue about who they serve with. It's all a part of learning to appreciate each other's abilities, and to learn from them.

Bramble, there is NO extra work to share out! Everyone on patrol does the same, prays before going out, walks the streets for a few hours, comes back to base, the people at base make everyone a cuppa, then the patrol goes out for a second stint of beat the feet. Then the patrol comes back, somebody finishes the report (which is REALLY brief) and there are closing prayers and everyone goes home. SL is a different person every time. It is healthy to disagree but I am not so sure it is healthy not to accept that you are capable of doing something very simple, nor to decline a smidgeon of extra responsibility. That looks like cowardice to me. Oakspear: yes, it might be about declining responsibility, especially if one is a supervisor-type at work: but in fact, those people are the ones who are most willing to help, knowing how very little work is involved! The real work is done by the Management Team, and there is quite a lot of that, all voluntary, and much is time-consuming. I think it's kinda sad that people don't want to get involved. Perhaps I should say, not involved, which they certainly are, but ... almost passengers on a journey they have paid to participate in.

What motivates me? My bladder! Closely followed by two hungry cats who come and rub round my ankles while I am relieving myself. After dealing with them, I may as well stay up and make a brew. And quite some time after that, my eyes open and the brain starts to engage.

No, it is not quite that, Pond, the people are there already, and the only extra work is to bring some milk. Oh, there is a sort of report form to be completed, not difficult, recording any issues that might have arisen, like a street light being out, and counting the number of bottles we have picked up and the number of people we have spoken to (both of the latter two are something of a communal guess). This form is usually started at mid-evening break and completed end of shift. Could be done by a different person, just that it works out for the SL to do it. In any event, everyone is there all the time. We all arrive just before 10 and nobody leaves until everyone on that shift is ready. What have others perceived about the acceptance of responsibility within the church? What about parents, accepting responsibility to help with the Children's Ministry (kids' Sunday School) if your church is big enough? What about being a church warden or some other role within the church admin? What about Outreach evenings (if your church has them)? What about hospital visiting (ditto)? What about service to housebound/elderly/sick? What about dealing with a Soup Run/helping the homeless? Or is it the same ones helping, nearly all the time?

Not quite sure what forum this needs to be in, so Mods, if you think best elsewhere, please feel free to move it. I am one of a group of about 60 volunteers, all longstanding Christians, who patrol the streets of my city during the wee hours. We are on duty from 10 pm to about 3 pm on Friday and Saturday nights. We are all part of the original enthusiastic group of volunteers. Each one goes out about once a month. There is a team of not less than 5 and up to about 10 going out each weekend night. I act as a voluntary Rota Coordinator. A Shift leader is appointed for each night, and this person’s responsibilities are fairly slight: bring a bottle of milk (to make tea/coffee), to be responsible for a portable radio with ear piece, and to carry a bag with a few small supplies in it. The bag and radio can be delegated, ie, someone else on the patrol can carry. In addition, the shift leader decides exactly who will be out on patrol and who back at base; decides the precise patrol route (which is based on a standard one we have all been recommended to take), decides how long to spend with the people we speak with. In truth, the whole lot of decisions is more of a final decision, as the team members are all responsible adults and there has never been any arguing and each defers nicely to the others. It is not difficult and all it requires is basically being polite and considerate to each other. With the overall coordinator of the scheme, just a few have been identified who we think should not be leading (perhaps because fairly new Christians or because of some health issue) but the default position is, each volunteer should expect to be a shift leader, and this is emphasised at our training sessions (which all of us has completed). It astonishes me that some people refuse to be Shift Leaders and seem horrified at the prospect. They decline to accept the responsibility (such as it is) to lead a team, feeling that they don’t have the skills or ability. I really don’t know what they think they are lacking but they refuse to have a go. I never roster anyone as shift leader without they have been out several times before as an ordinary team member, and I try to see that the more timid ones have a good supportive crew along to help them for their first outing as team leader, so they won’t feel out on a limb or forget what to do. Yet the more timid volunteers are nonetheless happy enough to be out on patrol when the drunk kids are coming out at 2.30 pm, so they clearly aren’t lacking in confidence. No shift leader has ever come back to me and said, "Never again!" (but rather, that they enjoyed it); and nobody has said that any shift leader made a total mess of it (which would be extremely difficult) and shouldn't be SL again. After the readiness to act, to do, encountered in The Way, it never ceases to amaze me how reluctant some people are to get involved or to take responsibility. They don’t want to do much within the church; they don’t do much outside of the church; and when it comes to speaking about God to someone else – many simply freeze at the possibility Now we of The Way know that God empowers in all situations and works within us to will and to do of his good pleasure. He doesn’t put us into situations where we cannot cope. There is something to learn in any situation. So if in The Way you volunteered (or more often were volunteered) for a task, whether to be a team member or to lead/ coordinate the team, nobody ever declined: but even if they demurred a little, were simply told to get on and do it. What I’d like to discuss on this thread is whether or not this reluctance to get involved is widespread among churches (specifically I’m thinking about Christian involvement, not secular) and why you think that might be. Is it lack of personal confidence; lack of confidence in God; reluctance to get involved – in anything; something else? Do you think we were boosted to over-confidence in The Way? (I don’t; I know I learned by being asked to be responsible for things that I had had little experience of.) I don’t want this to become a Way-bashing thread (if anything, it might be the other way around!). Of course we are not all chiefs and many are content to be indians – but shouldn’t we all be ready to serve in whatever capacity?

Went wrong? Was it ever "right"?? Was built on pride, ego, greed, a scam. A counterfeit, with just enough truth to suck in the genuinely innocent and pure of heart. Some of the doctrines were correct. But, as with the Pharisees, we be best instructed to follow the words, but NOT the actions. Just think how surprised you would be if the following happened!

My brain has made a reappearance, that seems pretty good!