There's Something Screwed Up in the Thinking of Some COG Leaders - and it's not Just Them.

How is it that someone with a mediocre, negligible presence in the world can possibly think they are the most important person on the face of the Earth?

Sadly, this is the case of a few of the few who believe they are kings without portfolio. They talk, they act, and they think in such a way that you might believe they really are carrying out a mission not unlike the characters of Biblical fame. They truly believe that they are some sort of Superman - carrying out a message of warning as the only human who has that message of divine commission.

The problem of this is, that they are not alone. Not by any means. There are those who have this exact thinking from every little nob and corner in the wide world of religion, regardless if it is Christian, Judaism, Islam, Hindu, Buddhist, or any other iteration of religion that you can possibly bring up. Just to bring this point to life, simply go to YouTube and you will find hundreds to maybe even thousands of "prophets", "ministers", or "enlightened" people, each of then claiming they have divine inspiration in their words and their message - often with a warning of some sort of punishment if you don't believe it, or something like that.

I recall once, about 12 or so years ago, I was at a mainstream Christian event which had over 100,000 people in attendance. There was a lady there who claimed to be a prophet - and this was just after Hurricane Katrina. She was walking around on the stage in a fanatical frenzy, making proclamations about how Hurricane Katrina was the beginning of the end and within seven years or so it would all have worked inland and bring this nation to it's knees - and that hurricanes from that point on would get worse and worse. Of course, the crowd gobbled it up and soaked it all in, with the assortment of "Praise God's" and "Hallelujah's" interspersed within the crowd. This scenario never turned out. In fact, the following years really quieted down from the insane hurricane season of 2005.

There was another person I remember who claimed that they got a message from God that something would happen on an international level. It did not. This was fully presumptuous.

I know of an individual who was wrapped up in the "Name it, Claim it" doctrine of Word of Faith who would take God's authority and command people to be healed, command cancer to leave, speak it out - and then, nothing would happen, and one person that this person declared this too died. Another person told me once that sickness was a lie and they weren't really sick. That all they had to do was realize it was a lie and believe they were not sick, and they wouldn't be. I challenged that person and told them I have seen people believe that and die (because they didn't take care of themselves, thinking they were miraculously OK). This individual was forced to admit that people did end up dying who believed this, but that that does not invalidate God's Word. Where's the disconnect? Why can't people see it? Do they care to see it? Are they afraid to admit something might not be correct with their belief?

Which brings us back around to the COG Scene. Take Ronald Weinland, who has probably been the most pronounced, and the most epic prophetic failure of the entire Armstrong Church of God movement. Ronald got extremely specific, made extremely specific predictions, and even made promises as to what he would do if his prophecies failed. Of course, the prophecies failed spectacularly, and he never kept his promises as to what he'd do if they failed (I.E., quit prophesying). Then, he modified the dates (the first one was 2008, ten years ago!) to many other dates, and the next failure is about six or seven months from now.

We have another one - Dave Pack - who made specific predictions and point after point about things happening in 2013 that would bring everyone into HIS church - which ended up being nothing but fantasy, delusion, disappointment, and falsehoods. When proven wrong, deletions after deletions happened - because nothing ever happened like what was said to happen.

And these are not the only ones. The Armstrong movement has a long and detailed track record of "prophets" who think they know what's going to happen - and not one of them does. Not one. And out of the hundreds of people who have jumped out of the scattered and chaotic fold of Armstrongism trying to be King ("Everybody Wants to be the Pastor General"), not one of them has had one message that has made even the slightest impact on anyone in the world. It is not an exaggeration that out of the billions of people on the Earth - nearly no one - less than 0.00001% - knows a THING about Armstrongism, Dave Pack, Ron Weinland, Bob Thiel, James Malm, United, Living, Philadelphia, or any other offshoot of Herbert Armstrong's once slightly more obvious ministry. And yet, like all of the others - regardless of religion or denomination - they think that they are reaching everybody, just based on internet hits, or views, or whatever. I would challenge them to find ten converts out of every 500,000 internet views over a ten year period that are long-term disciples of one particular leader, excluding long-time COG members, who have not wised up or left., or fallen into doubt and moved on.

This grandiose way of thinking happens to people of all religions, all denominations, all groups, all ideologies. It happens to people who visit Jerusalem (the Jerusalem Syndrome). It happens to local pastors of local churches (who claim a world-reaching ministry, when they hardly reach their own community). They have this dream, this vision, this idea of being important in the religious world - reaching the pinnacle of evangelism and being anything from a witness to a Two Witness, to an Elijah or any other biblical character you can think of. Some even don white garb, or prayer towels, or other religious paraphernalia to increase their stature or appearance of knowledge. They are quick to condemn, and even to curse their opponents, using fear and prophesy as tools of power and deceit everywhere they go and with everything they do. They are smooth, cunning talkers who are quick to make people fear a date, or a time, only for it to pass and the victim to shake their head with a "What was I Thinking!" incredulous look. And then the cycle repeats. and again. And again.

Each one of them misses the point. Each one of them beats around the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And most of them seek to take your money to support their "ministry" of falsehoods, deceit, and false prophecy. Most of them refuse to stop doing the evil they do, even though they promise to do so, and sadly, a good amount of them genuinely believe they are right, and that they are who they say they are. It's a sad example of religion gone rotten, and I do mean, rotten to the core. Every one of them ends up in disappointment and spectacular failure.

Because they have a messed up theology because of the messed up theology of the founder of the whole mess of Armstrongism, there is little truth in them (All of them a smidgen of truth - enough to make you believe their words!). They - unintentionally or not - deceive, lie, distort, and pervert the Gospel of Jesus Christ, pulling people - unintentionally or not - away from the faith and the personal relationship with Jesus Christ, seeing only disillusionment and dishonesty. It's a trap from the pits of the depths of hell. It's a travesty against the Gospel. It's heresy, and it's abominable. And tasty for those who fall for it for a minute - until it's bitter center is exposed.

The only thing that will stop the cycle of spiritual abuse from those who take advantage of the 2% of all listeners that might unfortunately fall upon the smooth words of these deceivers are people who stand up and speak out about these scams. The only way to stop the lies is to share the truth.

Happy Thanksgiving

Spending time with family.

A Turkey in the oven.  

Happy children enjoying the day off, having fun.

Gathering around the table, taking turns, giving thanks for another year's blessings.

Green Bean Casserole.

An afternoon of television,

A nap with the television remote still in hand.

Whether the day celebrated 

Is Christmas, Is Thanksgiving, or simply an afternoon lunch,

It's not the day, or history, or the future that matters.

It's what's in your heart and your mind. 

It's how you impact other people. 

 

Take every opportunity and make it a time to shine your light

So everyone who sees it will see, and see clearly. 

It's Not About Them.

Recently, Banned by HWA posted an article on the Philadelphia Church of God's ridiculous statements about the causes of the wildfires that have plagued California in recent days. In the article written by PCG, the group has said:

In his 2003 article “Is California Under a Curse?”, Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry pointed out that California’s problems go much deeper than wildfires. Multiyear droughts, crippling debt and eruption of racial tensions in the early 1990s are just a few of the problems that California has struggled with. Out of all the states in the union, why is this state especially suffering so intensely?

In his article, Mr. Flurry pointed to the unfounded lawsuit that the state launched against the Worldwide Church of God and Pastor General Herbert W. Armstrong in 1979

 It's been a COG constant for everything in their view - worldwide, regional, or local - to revolve around either them, or their history. In this case, they believe that California is under a curse because of something that happened in 1979.

Do I need to point out the Berkeley Fire of 1923, which destroyed 640 structures? This was before the Armstrong movement even got going. What about the Griffith Park fire of 1933, which killed 29 to 59 firefighters? Then there was the Laguna fire in 1970 which killed eight. There was the Rattlesnake fire in 1953.

But, "They're getting worse", they might cry! Why? "Wildfires in California are growing more dangerous as people build in rural burn areas." (Wikipedia.) Population sprawl building into areas which previously were uninhabited is causing the increase in wildfires. But what is the real reason?

Diablo winds, and Santa Ana winds. Which have been occurring in California for as long as it's geography has been what it is today. Click the links for information on to how these hot and dry winds happen, and how they fuel dry timber wildfires.

As far as PCG claims go? Let's be real, as I always tend to say.

This is fear religion. These are fear tactics, by a fear-based cult. This is an attempt to provoke fear and paranoia against "attacking" the "Church of God", or, the "PCG", as they view themselves as the modern day Church of God. It is an attempt to substantiate bad things with going against their religion. It is an attempt to say "This is happening because this has happened". It is an illogical, desperate, lie-filled line of reasoning that has absolutely no bearing on reality, historically, or otherwise.

The 1979 Receivership crisis in the Worldwide Church of God has no more to do with the current wildfire situations in California then the Philadelphia Church of God has anything to do with... well, pretty much anything! Bluntly, it has NOTHING to do with it. Because as it turns out, the State of California was not needed for the implosion of the Worldwide Church of God. They took care of their own implosion all on their own, no intervention required.

To even insinuate that the problem of wildfires in California is a result of the 1979 Receivership is an insult to history, to science, to those families who are affected by the wildfires, to the victims, to property owners, and to all who have been impacted for the thousands of years before 1979's receivership on a small California church ever happened.

Let's look at the facts. This is a church (Worldwide Church of God)  that was abusing the funds and monies of it's congregations. This was a church that had been threatening their members with the Lake of Fire for not giving enough (when they were already giving 20 to 50% of their pachecks to the Church!!). This was a church caught up in immorality, vanity, conceit, infighting, scandal, intrigue, gossip, greed, power struggles, ministerial abuse, member abuse, lust, and covetousness. This was a church that had been for near 40 years been lying about world events for the love of money. This is a church that had been knowingly and intentionally lying to it's members about the return of Christ, about fleeing to Petra, about what would happen to them, in their lifetimes, to their friends, their families - about what would happen if they left the Church, about what would happen to them in the third ressurection. This was a church that used fear and negativity to beat down and shame their members in ministerial madness time after time after time. This was a church that was so worldly there was little difference between one of their top leaders and the likes of Hugh Hefner. This was a church where it's top leader had such an explosive and violent temper staffers trembled in fear when HWA got on the line, and students cowered in fear when approached by HWA. This was a church where HWA's aides constantly had to step in and intervene to save students and members from the wrath of Herbert Armstrong on a constant basis.

And yet, the PCG is saying that the current wildfires is because the State of California attacked such a holy, righteous, God-fearing, obedient, law-abiding church? What kind of world are they living in? What kind of delusions do they behold? How is it they can be so ignorant of the facts and the reality around them?

As a victim of the cult of the Worldwide Church of God, this is outrageous, and this is untrue. This is fear religion. And this is untrue. The Worldwide Church of God was not a shining light in Pasadena, being attacked for it's ever radiant righteousness in Sodom and Gomorrah. The Worldwide Church of God was part of the problem. The wildfires in California are not the result of a curse on California because of the State's pursuit of illegalities in the Church. They are a result of geography, of nature, and of timeless ecological conditions that have been happening for thousands of years - even before Christianity, and probably even during the times of Abraham, Moses, and Job.

This is not about them. This is about the victims, the people, the pain, and the suffering of those who have been severely impacted by these fires. The elderly, the handicapped, the sick, and the hapless who had nowhere to go when the fires came. The properties that were taken by the vicious infernos.

But it's about more than this.

This is about the firefighters, The public servants, the utility workers, the government workers. This is about those who have housed the homeless. Who have helped the hurting. Who have fed the hungry. Who are rebuilding for those who can't rebuild. Who are spending days and weeks helping to clean up. This is about the nurses, the doctors, the care-givers. This is about those who travel thousands of miles on their dime to help the hurting and the victims. This is about the compassionate angels of mercy who give of their time and their effort and their money to assist when needed. This is about Christianity in action. This is about basic human goodness in action. This is about compassion, and kindness, and empathy. This is about mercy. This is about caring. This is about LOVE.

It's not about a little small group in Oklahoma with a history of shunning family members of all ages who wake up to the harmful doctrines of it's leader, and it never has been. No, it's not about them, and it never will be. This is far bigger than any insignificant little church roaring like a lion with the effectiveness of a gnat.

Fear religion has no place in the hearts and minds of good hearted people. I applaud those who, with common sense, are out there, as they are able, helping, guiding, assisting, loving, caring, and comforting - in mercy, and in grace. As for those who write putrid vomit of self-absorbed cockiness and conceit and lies about disasters with no concern about the suffering of the victims?

Nothing I can write or say can express my revulsion. So, I simply pray it up to God,  and say no more about it except one thing. Wake up, sheeple who accept such Godlessness as Godly!!

State of The Church #8

When All of the Churches of God Gathered for the First Feast of Tabernacles...

No One could decide on the First Sermonette.

Disaster in California: This is Not the time to Judge. This is the Time to Help.

In Southern California, especially in Butte County, as well as in the suburban areas of Los Angeles, a storm of hellish proportions is engulfing properties and threatening lives clear down to Malibu. Many celebrities - such as Alyssa Milano, Caitlyn Jenner, and Kim Kardashian have been effected.

I can just see the scowl on the faces of fundamentalist Church of God members to the news. I can just read their thoughts. I can almost predict the posts that are due to come out, if they have not come out already. The hatred, the judgements, the "warnings" - they come out like roaring lions every time a disaster hits. They always roar out with snarls and hisses about what they believe the reason for the fire really was, and what they believe caused it. They do not hesitate to call it a judgement of God against those who blaspheme against His ways and His will. They show no empathy, no care, no concern, no heart, and most of all, no love toward anybody who thinks or acts differently than they do. To them, they've brought it all on themselves because of their rebellion and obstinate behavior towards God's Law. "Burn, Burn, you haters of God and his ways", they'll say, nearly drooling over the prospect of the wicked being subject to punishment - wishing for fire and brimstone, like with Sodom and Gomorrah. You can almost hear them say "Get 'em" to the fire. "That'll teach 'em", you can nearly see them say as they hunch forward in glee, as in watching their favorite runner with the football heading towards the End Zone. (Well, most of them. We know one who doesn't meet that comparison!)

What is wrong with this picture?

Everything is wrong with this picture.

First of all, and importantly - EVERYONE - you, me, your neighbor, your son, your daughter, your parents - have issues. EVERYONE deals with their own personal situations. EVERYONE goes through their own struggles and their own pain. It is not our place to judge someone else's pain and suffering when we all have our own issues to deal with. Speck vs. Beam!!

Church of God Members are vicious and quick to cast judgement on what they see as immorality and perversion among "the world" and are quick to condemn and cast judgement, using events as wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, and other natural events as proof of the judgement of God. Yet they refuse to see the blatant idolatry, the immorality within their own ranks, the hypocrisy, the abuse, the oppression, the extortion, and the financial theft happening within their own ranks. Who are them to cast judgement when they don't look in the mirror? The hypocrisy is beyond wretched and reason.

Who are they to sit there and cast judgement on those who are not meeting their standards when they are blind to their own nest of sin and evil - as they define it? Who made them holier than thou? Who gave them the gift of spiritual discernment when their own nest has been scorched by the fires of wickedness? Who are they to laugh and scorn at the loss and pain of others, when they oppress the poor, abuse the weak, and take gain for themselves for their own comfort and security? What gave them the right to be such arrogant and hurtful pricks? They cast judgement in the name of God while their own hair burns and they don't even know it.

Just as bad, they feel they don't have to do a thing to help them, or to "show them Jesus", to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Which COG Leader do you know of who will drop everything to go to California to help them? Anyone?

Which COG Leader will invite Caitlyn Jenner into their home? Which COG Leader will invite Allysa Milano into their home - or ANY person of different opinion into their property? Anyone? Hello!

Will a COG Leader open his property to the victims of the wildfires? Will he allow them to sleep on his rug in his palace? Will he allow them to worship God with un-laced shoes? Or non-white shirts? Will he bring in the unwashed into his closed gates? Will he permit the smell of scorched and burned clothes into his palaces? Will he comfort the hurting? Would he? Could he?

Will a COG Leader open up his headquarters to the wounded? Or would he make the excuse it's too far? Would he pay airfare for the displaced in California who lost everything, who aren't financially fortunate? Or would he only care about his own members - who were somehow supernaturally protected - or give those who were hurt "thoughts and prayers"?

Will local ministers in California do anything?

Will our self-appointed non-ordained minister open up his house or his vitamin house for any of the wounded or displaced? Will he use any of his money or proceeds to feed the firefighters of the police who are working day and night to protect and to serve? Will our crooked bookcase man give a sermon of hope and peace in Jesus to the victims - or will he do another horrible message on 50 topics while ignoring the state burning all around him? Or will he do a web post on how everything happening is God's punishment on a world that won't keep the Sabbath at Bob's butt-numbing church services - or go to his Feast of Tabernacles?

What COG minister will be moved to be there in this disaster? Anyone? What COG minister will tell people to keep their hands off of this tragedy because you can't interfere with God's judgement? Shall we name names?

What if we reversed the thinking?

What if this wasn't a judgement on the world - but a test of action of faith to people who profess Jesus?

What if these things were a test of love? Of how much those who profess Jesus would take action? Would help and serve? Who take in and show the love of God to those who think differently? Who act differently? Did not Jesus say to feed the sick? Or the homeless? Or the jailed? Or the widowed? Did he not say to do these things? Of course, the COG will just say "Well, that didn't mean THEM. He was talking about the Church."

God have mercy on those who spew such bull and vomit on the grace of Jesus Christ. God have mercy on them. Because these are the ones that Jesus would have ran to to help and to serve. Because God's love and God's grace and mercy know no boundaries. God's sacrifice knows no bounds. God is a God who is looking for those who give of themselves for the sake of others - ALL others - regardless of race, religion, disability, or mindset. God is a God of love. And his expectation is that his people put their faith into action, show Jesus, and love others. ALL others. Without prejudice, and with great compassion and healing hands.

California is burning tonight. But so are the hearts and compassionate care of hundreds of thousands who do not cast self-righteous judgement and Pharisaical condemnation against those who are not as righteous as their holier than thou saintly vessels of perfection and righteousness - whitewashed with soap and gleaming with sparkles in their oh, so magnificent splendor - are. There are thousands who are going without sleep, without eating, driving thousands of miles, taking care of displaced people, pets, horses, who have lost everything - to do the work of the Lord Jesus to all peoples - regardless of what they believe or who they are. These are the people who are showing the love of God. These are the angels showing mercy and love and compassion.

As far as the COG leaders - whoever may do what I'm describing here - you know,  the ones who sit on their asses in their white shirts and pressed pants mocking those who have lost everything? Who sit there in self-righteous sneers as to how great they are and how wicked the world is? Who relish at the thought of the embers of fire and whipping destruction against those who despise and mock God's Law with drooling fervor, wishing the fire on - or worse, turning a blind eye?

Don't look at the specks in their eyes when a beam shoots out of yours. You make a mockery of Jesus, and spit, stomp, and reduce to ashes the word of God and the ministry of Jesus Christ. May God have as much mercy on YOU, as he shows on the world through the sacrifice and love of His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ - so that you, too, may see how great and how deep and how wide is the love of God, who so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son for everyone. And once you open your eyes to THAT. May God's spirit convict you and WAKE YOU UP to the pathetic attitudes that have come from the false Gospel you've embraced through the false apostle Herbert Armstrong.

But God is not going to force you to change your stubborn and hard headed minds. That's going to be up to you.

Ma! Pa! Git Out Here! Them Weston Boys Comin to Git Us!

LCG Secures "The Cowboy Channel" for it's Telecast

You Have a Voice, and You Have a Right and a Freedom to Exercise Your Responsibility in Your Community.

Herbert Armstrong continually railed against the member's right - their constitutional right - to vote.

I know I said that I would not talk politics in this blog - and I won't. No politicians will be mentioned in this post. It cannot be ignored, however, that one of the long-standing dogmas of the Church in Armstrongism was that the right to vote. It was forbidden. It was said to be "involvement with the World" - because, we were supposed to be in the world, but not of the world. It was a method of control and the assertion of the strong belief that the Government of God was not democratic - it was autocratic - from the top, down. Any involvement with the world such as the right to vote was squelched by Herbert and Company.

There are many reasons why this was the case. One, Herbert didn't want people to get used to the idea that they could have a "say" in anything. Once one starts to get the mind set that he has a voice, then he might get the idea he could use it in the Church. This was not to be with Herbert. He despised people doing "their own thing", or not in agreement with his doctrines or principles, seemingly believing that they came from God and not himself.

Yet I think there was an even bigger reason. If a member began to get "involved" with the policies of the world - the government, the issues, the proposals - then they might actually begin to learn the methods that Herbert used on his church.

Herbert used a specific psychology in his methods of control on the members of the Church. This psychology was a combination of advertising finesse, sales tactics, and mind control. The last thing he ever wanted, or needed, was for a member to learn of those tactics or how they worked. This would make one intellectually smart as to his tactics and what he was doing. If someone was privy to sales tactics and influential - then the best thing to do was to absorb them into the collective - make them an ordained minister so they're on "his side". If someone was not, keep them away from any influence that could show them what was going on. Even those "absorbed into the collective" may not have been consciously aware of what was going on - but certainly some were. Garner Ted Armstrong was not shy about telling pastors about the "mind conditioning" and "psychology" used in publications about issues on religion, sex, and the like. This is one reason why he railed so hard against the world's "psychology" or psychologists. He wanted no one to learn the secrets of mind conditioning they used on the membership to assume mind control and full brainwashing.

Voting was just one small part of this piece of the puzzle. The main message of Armstrongism was obedience, submission, respect of authority and the government of God - and how well and how into serving the Church and supporting the "apostle" you were. Any involvement with the community - be it rotary clubs, community service, or anything of the "world" put you in danger of the "leaven of intellectualism", as he called it. It plugged up his control over the member, both of information, and of ministerial authority and his teachings. Which of course, directly affected the "bottom line".

This tactic of oppression - one of many - led to an isolationist, exclusive culture within the Church that caused one to completely lack any care or concern to their community, the issues of their community, or the people around them. They became, unintentionally, aloof, superior, and ignorant. They cast a blind eye to the concerns of the world around them because they were in it, but not "of it". They were commanded to be "separate". In other words, to not give a flying fig about anybody or anything around them. After all, to the average member, these were people under Satan's rule, and they weren't worthy of your attention to their issues because they were not called. We simply turned a blind eye and regarded them as uncalled, unsaved, blind and wretched inferiors to us, the royal kings and queens about to rule over them in the World Tomorrow. As such, we looked like arrogant and stuck-up, snotty rear ends of a donkey. If you get my drift.

One of the things that I have learned in my years in cult-recovery is the importance of being a part of the community. One of the individuals who I talk to told me something I would never forget. This person said:

"You are a part of the community. Everyone helps each other out, and watches over each other. Everyone takes part in the issues that concern them."

This concept struck me like a bolt out of thin air, because it was contrary to everything I ever was taught about community. I was taught to avoid the community. To avoid others. To avoid involvement with anything. To not care. To literally stick my nose up in disgust to the world, because the world was ruthless. It was an un-loving, un-caring attitude of total jerk-hood.

But what about this "be in it but not of it" that I was taught?

The answer is so simple. It means don't get involved in the sinful ways around you.

Galatians 5:19-21

¹⁹ The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

 This is being "of" the world, I believe. But when it comes to community involvement? Standing up for your beliefs and your principles? Exercising your right to vote? That's a personal right and a constitutional guarantee. No man has the right or the authority to tell you you cannot do what your principles tell you to do. This is the world you live in. And no matter what some spiritual arrogant know-it-all might try to make you believe, you do have a voice, and you do have a say. 

Today is a day when those in the United States of America have a chance to make their voice heard. Do not let anyone tell you you do not have the right to have a voice, and to have your say in the world that you live in every day. If you feel you want to express your freedom - get out there and express your freedom and make your opinion count. If not this opportunity, next time.

Because no matter what the ministers of Armstrongism say. You matter.  Your voice matters. Your mind matters. And you have the right to get out there and be heard. 

Don't ever let anyone tell you any differently. 

State of The Church #7

A COG-Themed Reminder!