...twi was recruiting a sales force...and conned them into working for free!
the "abundant life" never existed...every step "upward" you took in twi demanded more of your time and energy...they kept the money and you got a nametag. You gotta hand it to Wierwille...he was a great con man...
After I'd been in the word for about a year, I started to ponder these very same discrepancies. Now, of course, you couldn't just discuss these things with any old believer, lest they size you up as spiritually weak. So, I went to my branch leader who told me that the more abundant life is a spiritual concept. I told him this conflicted with what VPP taught in the opening sessions of PLAF (The Wonder Class). His answer to this was that I needed to SIT more, renew my mind, study more and avail myself more freely for service to the ministry. Then, and only then, would I be able to comprehend the depth of the spiritual significance of the more abundant life. And I actually bought that explanation. Shame on me.
It's hard to say what was the most damaging teaching of TWI. Certainly a very very damaging teaching was this concept that life should go well all of the time in every category. If that is not the case, according to TWI something is wrong with YOU, that is, your believing.
That was just an awful way to teach how to live life in the real world. Speaking for myself, this type of teaching made me mentally live in a make-believe world. The truth of the matter was, things didn't go well all of the time in every category, it rarely does. I often thought at the time, though there was something wrong with me and quite frankly I was miserable. So why did I stay for 15 years? 2 reasons. One was I held out hope that one day it would all come together and make sense and I would reach this "more abundant life" status. You know...like "Dr." Wierwille. The other reason was that I was afraid to leave the protection of the Household.
If life wasn't perfect, then you had somehow let the adversary in with your unbelief. Or your spouse did it--TWI was great at dividing spouses up over imperfections in income or whatever.
Today is a holiday. I'm relaxing in my small house with old furniture, we stayed up late last night watching movies and didn't run a vacuum today. The newspaper is piled next to hubby's chair and there is a cooler holding a watermelon that wouldn't fit into our fridge tucked under the dining table. We're eating a tasty but inexpensive dinner of corn on the cob, bbq chicken and cherry blueberry cobbler. If the weather cooperates we'll go to the fireworks later tonight.
None of this woud be Good Enough in TWI, where we would have had to rush around for some fellowship holiday meal, dress up(I'm wearing sweats, it is cold here) be all about how things looked...
And I'm content. I don't have to impress anyone or live up to anyone else's standards. I'm not trying to sell the minisrty to anyone by showing how perfect it makes your life.
I'm sitting on the couch with my cat, relaxing. I can live with the old furniture for a while longer and noone I now befreind will think I'm off in my believing. I can vacuum tomorrow and probably watch more old movies with the family tonight since it looks like rain. Those people who in the past would ride and judge and reprove, would set goals for ME and make life miserable, are no longer in my life. I can be comfortable in my life the way it actually is, not the way it is 'supposed' to be.
I think they use "spiritual" so much to explain away what people obviously do not have and the way international promises. Missing the more abundant life? Ah, that's spiritual - even though it's promised in all of the way international's categories - mental, physical, spiritual. Just a quick shuffle of the cards.
I think they use "spiritual" so much to explain away what people obviously do not have and the way international promises. Missing the more abundant life? Ah, that's spiritual - even though it's promised in all of the way international's categories - mental, physical, spiritual. Just a quick shuffle of the cards.
If Wierwille was the man behind the curtain, then the word "spiritual" was pretty much THE curtain!
I think they use "spiritual" so much to explain away what people obviously do not have and the way international promises. Missing the more abundant life? Ah, that's spiritual - even though it's promised in all of the way international's categories - mental, physical, spiritual. Just a quick shuffle of the cards.
Yes, absolutely. You don't need money to purchase a permanent residence, send your children to college, buy a car, live above poverty level. You just need "spiritual money".
You don't need health obtained by exercise, good nutrition and proper sleep. You just need "spiritual health" so you can keep turning away at that TWI hamster wheel. I'm sure there's a TWI member right now that needs someone to provide a free truck and labor to move from one apartment complex or rental to the next.
You don't need friends, you need "spiritual friends". You know, ones that will shun you if you ever fail to do TWI director's biddings.
You don't need family, you need "spiritual family". See above.
You don't need a job, you need a "spiritual job". One that pays lots of money and has little demands so your time is free to be consumed by your "spiritual friends and family".
You don't need hobbies. You need "spiritual priorities". See above re: hamster wheel. Hobbies are a waste of time. It's so much better accosting people in the mall or at their door.
And to circle back around - you don't need money. You just need "spiritual money". Send all the regular stuff to TWI.
But then again, why should they need it either? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Jesus' proclamation as recorded in John 10;10 is the foundational Scripture for this book.
...I am come that they [believers] might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
This verse literally changed my life. My wife and I began in the Christian ministry, plodding ahead with the things of God; but somehow we lacked an abundant life. Then one time I was especially alerted when I read from the Word of God that Jesus said He had come to give us a more abundant life. I was startled into awareness. As I looked about me at communities where I had served and among ministers with whom I had worked, the abundant life was frequently not evident. In contrast to these Christian people, I could see that the secular world of non-Christians were manifesting a more abundant life than were members of the church-------
If the abundant life, which, by the way, is NOT the focal point of this section of scripture, is so darn spiritual, what exactly was it that Wierwille saw "the secular world of non-Christians manifesting"???
I'm sure there's a TWI member right now that needs someone to provide a free truck and labor to move from one apartment complex or rental to the next.
You don't need friends, you need "spiritual friends". You know, ones that will shun you if you ever fail to do TWI director's biddings.
.
All that moving was so dumb. I spent a lot of time moving people, the same people over and over again. Claening their houses and packing up ther stuff. Just because another lease ran out or they found a chaeper place to rent. All in the guise of being debt free.
I was so lonely for friendship at times even though I was surrounded by "believers." Some of these believers were strange and sucked the life out of me. Others were just so mean and legalistic (mostly leadership). I started hanging out with friends from work and it was such a relief. I wasn't "winning" them to the word, but they were fun and intweresting.
I realized this weekend how nice it is to be comfortable... To be able to sit at a table in an in-laws' kitchen and talk about religion without thinking how idolatrous they are. Heck, to be able to SPEND TIME with the family on a holiday without getting reproved for not attending the Household BBQ or some nonsense! And to not feel like I have to witness to all of them was even better!
If a Way Disciple gets too comfortable in life then they might stick with their full-time job and actually receive a decent retirement package; be able to find the time to sort out their thoughts and feelings; goodness, they might even decide to leave TWI.
No, no, let's keep them uprooted and on the move for gawd!!!
All that moving was so dumb. I spent a lot of time moving people, the same people over and over again. Claening their houses and packing up ther stuff. Just because another lease ran out or they found a chaeper place to rent. All in the guise of being debt free.
I was so lonely for friendship at times even though I was surrounded by "believers." Some of these believers were strange and sucked the life out of me. Others were just so mean and legalistic (mostly leadership). I started hanging out with friends from work and it was such a relief. I wasn't "winning" them to the word, but they were fun and intweresting.
Thanks for being a true friend to your co-workers...you did not mislead them with false doctrines. Just had to tell ya!
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GrouchoMarxJr
Right you are...
...twi was recruiting a sales force...and conned them into working for free!
the "abundant life" never existed...every step "upward" you took in twi demanded more of your time and energy...they kept the money and you got a nametag. You gotta hand it to Wierwille...he was a great con man...
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waysider
After I'd been in the word for about a year, I started to ponder these very same discrepancies. Now, of course, you couldn't just discuss these things with any old believer, lest they size you up as spiritually weak. So, I went to my branch leader who told me that the more abundant life is a spiritual concept. I told him this conflicted with what VPP taught in the opening sessions of PLAF (The Wonder Class). His answer to this was that I needed to SIT more, renew my mind, study more and avail myself more freely for service to the ministry. Then, and only then, would I be able to comprehend the depth of the spiritual significance of the more abundant life. And I actually bought that explanation. Shame on me.
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Broken Arrow
It's hard to say what was the most damaging teaching of TWI. Certainly a very very damaging teaching was this concept that life should go well all of the time in every category. If that is not the case, according to TWI something is wrong with YOU, that is, your believing.
That was just an awful way to teach how to live life in the real world. Speaking for myself, this type of teaching made me mentally live in a make-believe world. The truth of the matter was, things didn't go well all of the time in every category, it rarely does. I often thought at the time, though there was something wrong with me and quite frankly I was miserable. So why did I stay for 15 years? 2 reasons. One was I held out hope that one day it would all come together and make sense and I would reach this "more abundant life" status. You know...like "Dr." Wierwille. The other reason was that I was afraid to leave the protection of the Household.
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frank123lol
They will suck you dry,then spit you out.
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Bramble
If life wasn't perfect, then you had somehow let the adversary in with your unbelief. Or your spouse did it--TWI was great at dividing spouses up over imperfections in income or whatever.
Today is a holiday. I'm relaxing in my small house with old furniture, we stayed up late last night watching movies and didn't run a vacuum today. The newspaper is piled next to hubby's chair and there is a cooler holding a watermelon that wouldn't fit into our fridge tucked under the dining table. We're eating a tasty but inexpensive dinner of corn on the cob, bbq chicken and cherry blueberry cobbler. If the weather cooperates we'll go to the fireworks later tonight.
None of this woud be Good Enough in TWI, where we would have had to rush around for some fellowship holiday meal, dress up(I'm wearing sweats, it is cold here) be all about how things looked...
And I'm content. I don't have to impress anyone or live up to anyone else's standards. I'm not trying to sell the minisrty to anyone by showing how perfect it makes your life.
I'm sitting on the couch with my cat, relaxing. I can live with the old furniture for a while longer and noone I now befreind will think I'm off in my believing. I can vacuum tomorrow and probably watch more old movies with the family tonight since it looks like rain. Those people who in the past would ride and judge and reprove, would set goals for ME and make life miserable, are no longer in my life. I can be comfortable in my life the way it actually is, not the way it is 'supposed' to be.
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Thomas Loy Bumgarner
you mean, we are not living in the garden of Eden restored?
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OldSkool
I think they use "spiritual" so much to explain away what people obviously do not have and the way international promises. Missing the more abundant life? Ah, that's spiritual - even though it's promised in all of the way international's categories - mental, physical, spiritual. Just a quick shuffle of the cards.
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Steve Lortz
If Wierwille was the man behind the curtain, then the word "spiritual" was pretty much THE curtain!
Love,
Steve
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chockfull
Yes, absolutely. You don't need money to purchase a permanent residence, send your children to college, buy a car, live above poverty level. You just need "spiritual money".
You don't need health obtained by exercise, good nutrition and proper sleep. You just need "spiritual health" so you can keep turning away at that TWI hamster wheel. I'm sure there's a TWI member right now that needs someone to provide a free truck and labor to move from one apartment complex or rental to the next.
You don't need friends, you need "spiritual friends". You know, ones that will shun you if you ever fail to do TWI director's biddings.
You don't need family, you need "spiritual family". See above.
You don't need a job, you need a "spiritual job". One that pays lots of money and has little demands so your time is free to be consumed by your "spiritual friends and family".
You don't need hobbies. You need "spiritual priorities". See above re: hamster wheel. Hobbies are a waste of time. It's so much better accosting people in the mall or at their door.
And to circle back around - you don't need money. You just need "spiritual money". Send all the regular stuff to TWI.
But then again, why should they need it either? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
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waysider
Power For Abundant Living
Introduction
The Abundant Life
Jesus' proclamation as recorded in John 10;10 is the foundational Scripture for this book.
...I am come that they [believers] might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
This verse literally changed my life. My wife and I began in the Christian ministry, plodding ahead with the things of God; but somehow we lacked an abundant life. Then one time I was especially alerted when I read from the Word of God that Jesus said He had come to give us a more abundant life. I was startled into awareness. As I looked about me at communities where I had served and among ministers with whom I had worked, the abundant life was frequently not evident. In contrast to these Christian people, I could see that the secular world of non-Christians were manifesting a more abundant life than were members of the church-------
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This begs the question:
If the abundant life, which, by the way, is NOT the focal point of this section of scripture, is so darn spiritual, what exactly was it that Wierwille saw "the secular world of non-Christians manifesting"???
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100% Free
All that moving was so dumb. I spent a lot of time moving people, the same people over and over again. Claening their houses and packing up ther stuff. Just because another lease ran out or they found a chaeper place to rent. All in the guise of being debt free.
I was so lonely for friendship at times even though I was surrounded by "believers." Some of these believers were strange and sucked the life out of me. Others were just so mean and legalistic (mostly leadership). I started hanging out with friends from work and it was such a relief. I wasn't "winning" them to the word, but they were fun and intweresting.
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JavaJane
I realized this weekend how nice it is to be comfortable... To be able to sit at a table in an in-laws' kitchen and talk about religion without thinking how idolatrous they are. Heck, to be able to SPEND TIME with the family on a holiday without getting reproved for not attending the Household BBQ or some nonsense! And to not feel like I have to witness to all of them was even better!
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HappyGay
If a Way Disciple gets too comfortable in life then they might stick with their full-time job and actually receive a decent retirement package; be able to find the time to sort out their thoughts and feelings; goodness, they might even decide to leave TWI.
No, no, let's keep them uprooted and on the move for gawd!!!
Thanks for being a true friend to your co-workers...you did not mislead them with false doctrines. Just had to tell ya!
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