Do We Have to Keep Our Commitments?

[Eulaha L. Long]

Hello folks, it me again.  I'm here to express my frustrations, and I believe you all can in some way or another see my point.  I am in contact with a woman who is no longer involved with GG's Assemblies, because this particular Assembly has dissolved.  She is going to church and all, but she is quite miserable.  She doesn't want to continue on in this location, however, she feels she "has to", because she made a commitment to God to stay there for at least 3 years.  I've been trying to convince her that she made that commitment while a member of a cult-like group, and that God isn't holding her to that commitment-she is free to move to the location of her choice.  But, she won't listen to sound reasoning.  It's as if she is willfully remaining in her misery.  I believe she is very stuck in the Assembly ways of thinking, and I've suggested to her to visit the BB's, to talk to people who have left the Assembly, to talk to her pastor, etc, but she refuses.  I know that I can't force her to anything, but it makes me upset that she allows herself to remain in the darkness of the Assembly teachings.  I know that frustration won't amount to a hill of beans, but still I am frustrated.  I'm wondering what other feel about keeping commitments that were made while being members of the Assembly...and about commitments that we impose upon ourselves that make us miserable.

[editor]

Hello folks, it me again.  I'm here to express my frustrations, and I believe you all can in some way or another see my point.  I am in contact with a woman who is no longer involved with GG's Assemblies, because this particular Assembly has dissolved.  She is going to church and all, but she is quite miserable.  She doesn't want to continue on in this location, however, she feels she "has to", because she made a commitment to God to stay there for at least 3 years.  I've been trying to convince her that she made that commitment while a member of a cult-like group, and that God isn't holding her to that commitment-she is free to move to the location of her choice.  But, she won't listen to sound reasoning.  It's as if she is willfully remaining in her misery.  I believe she is very stuck in the Assembly ways of thinking, and I've suggested to her to visit the BB's, to talk to people who have left the Assembly, to talk to her pastor, etc, but she refuses.  I know that I can't force her to anything, but it makes me upset that she allows herself to remain in the darkness of the Assembly teachings.  I know that frustration won't amount to a hill of beans, but still I am frustrated.  I'm wondering what other feel about keeping commitments that were made while being members of the Assembly...and about commitments that we impose upon ourselves that make us miserable.

Ah, yes.  The false holiness of the Geftakys brand of legalism. (GBL)  If I utter the words, "I am making a committment to do_____," according to GBL, my standing with God depends on my success at keeping my committment.

This is nothing more than works-based righteousness.  If your committment is successfully kept, then you have a good conscience as a result of your good performance.

However, if you fail at keeping your committment----like missing a morning time, etc.---then you have a bad conscience, and have sinned.

In either case, there isn't anyplace for God's righteousness through faith.  This is one aspect of the danger of this type of thinking.

Another point where this type of thinking leads to trouble is when we make a committment to ____, and due to GBL thinking our idea becomes "The Will of God."  In this case, we obstinately set ourselves in our ways, and make sure we don't listen to reason, should it contradict our "committment."

In essence, we put ourselves in the position of saying,  "No Lord.  I can't do that.  I have made a committment."  This is nothing more than saying, "Sure I'll follow you Lord, as soon as I bury my father, or I can't go now Lord, I just bought some new oxen," etc.

Keeping committments, as a means to "obeying God," is not a good thing to do.

Some will say, "Wait a minute Brent!  Are you saying it doesn't matter if I say I'll do something and don't do it?"

No, I'm saying no such thing.  Let your yes be yes, and your no be no.  However,  If your "Yes" conflicts with God's "NO,"  you must be humble enough to change your yes to no.

GBL, which arrogantly assumes that performance of committments leads to righteousness, has no place for the humility that allows us to say,  "Lord, I was wrong."  No, if we say, "I am going to stay here for 3 years,"  we must do so, in spite of what God may or may not want for us.

I hope your friend reads this, and considers it.

Brent

[Arthur]

Do We Have to Keep Our Commitments?

Nope.

The only purpose for the committments we made in the assembly was to keep us pegged and beaten down.  They did not originate from God.  They were a mind control technique.   The leaders, who were themselves bound, made the suggestion in the ministry and sometimes directly commanded it.  Our minds were overthrown and we were ensnared.

Committment lay at the core of the group.  It was the glue that bound us together, sometimes four to a room.  Time and again the idea was reinforced that a committed Christian was a superior Christian, a true believer.  Everyone else was inferior.  It was because other Christians were compromised, lazy, fearful, unbelieving or unwilling to make the committment that they were not in our group.  They would not obtain the kingdom.

There was nothing godly about our committments.  
It was not the will of God.  
It was just pride.

I kick myself for making the committments that I did.  I was so sure it was right, but I was wrong.  I am very angry at those who caught me in their trap and took from me those years of my life.  Every time I made the committment, I marked the days off on the calendar until it was over.  It should not be so!  There is more to life than just waiting for it to be over!

They said it was for God.  How dare they!  
I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:  Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. Gal 1:6-8  
For us, it is a shame to have listened to them.  For them it is to -"be cursed to the lowest hell."  So be it.

But God can heal and restore.  I no longer am a prisoner of committments.  Thank the Lord.

Your friend needs help to be free from the control that yet lingers in her life.

Arthur

[al Hartman]

     i know that i may be the last person you want to post on this thread, Eulaha, but i too am concerned for your friend, and i hope to share an insight that may help you to understand and help her her:

quote by Arthur:Committment lay at the core of the group.  It was the glue that bound us together...  Time and again the idea was reinforced that a committed Christian was a superior Christian, a true believer.  Everyone else was inferior.  It was because other Christians were compromised, lazy, fearful, unbelieving or unwilling to make the committment...

    Where commitment was at our core, in many cases occupying the place that should have been held by the Lord Jesus Christ, it also became our fortress of security.  There was no uncertainty for those who knew exactly what their commitment was.  So surrounded by its walls were they, as to be buried under its weight until they could see nothing else.

quote by Eulaha:she won't listen to sound reasoning.  It's as if she is willfully remaining in her misery.

    Why would someone willfully remain miserable?  Because it is a familiar state.  As Arthur points out, we were already miserable in our commitments.  We know our way around in that territory.
     When the assemblies began to topple, and saints were crying out for guidance, Brent counseled taking six weeks away from the familiar, out of the darkness to seek the Light.  The call was to those who would hear, and was the pathway of deliverance for many.  The seekers sought and, as promised, found.
     But then there are those who didn't seek; who, like your friend, had been pummeled into submission repeatedly;  lambs who, everytime they sought to venture out of the cote & into the green pastures were kicked in the teeth by the bad shepherds.  They had become fearful.  They no longer looked up for their redemption, but only at the ground because whenever they looked up they received another harsh blow.
     For such a one, and there are many, six weeks were not enough-- six lifetimes may not be enough.  She seeks not deliverance, but security in the familiar, for mortal fear of the unknown.  To her, a broad and bottomless gap exists between self and deliverance.
     Of course you will always try to explain to her that the bridge across that awful expanse has been built, from one end by our Father in heaven and from the other by the Son of Man; that the whole structure is God's construction:  its name is Grace, and all that remains is to cross it.  But to her it is invisible; she has been blinded to it by the prince of darkness.
     What you want her to see is that the key to this life is not in our commitments to God, but in His commitments to us:
   that He will never leave her nor forsake her;
   that He has begun a good work in her and will continue it;
   that He is with her always, unto the end of the age;
   that she is seated with him in heavenly places in Christ;
   that His Holy Spirit will lead her into all truth...
   
     Her hope and that of all such lies across the battleground of prayer.  As you want her to believe the promises of God on her behalf,  even so God wants you to believe  
   that righteous fervent prayer availeth much;
   that whatever you ask in His Name shall be given you;
   that His strenght is perfected in your weakness;
   that you can do all things through Christ Who strengthens you;
   that greater is He that is in you than he that is in the  
      world...

quote by Eulaha:I know that frustration won't amount to a hill of beans, but still I am frustrated.

    Every time you feel that frustration, channel its energy into intercession on behalf of your friend.  Use your frustration as the call to prayer.  Ask God, as the early disciples did, to teach you to pray (for we know nothing yet as we ought to know).  Refuse to give up on her behalf.

     And all who read this, make it our call to prayer as well: please pray for the deliverance of Eulaha's friend, our sister.

al Hartman

[M2]

I am in contact with a woman who is no longer involved with GG's Assemblies, because this particular Assembly has dissolved.  She is going to church and all, but she is quite miserable.  She doesn't want to continue on in this location, however, she feels she "has to", because she made a commitment to God to stay there for at least 3 years.  I've been trying to convince her that she made that commitment while a member of a cult-like group, and that God isn't holding her to that commitment-she is free to move to the location of her choice.  But, she won't listen to sound reasoning.  It's as if she is willfully remaining in her misery.  I believe she is very stuck in the Assembly ways of thinking, and I've suggested to her to visit the BB's, to talk to people who have left the Assembly, to talk to her pastor, etc, but she refuses.  I know that I can't force her to anything, but it makes me upset that she allows herself to remain in the darkness of the Assembly teachings.  I know that frustration won't amount to a hill of beans, but still I am frustrated.  I'm wondering what other feel about keeping commitments that were made while being members of the Assembly...and about commitments that we impose upon ourselves that make us miserable.

Hello Eulaha,

Oh yeah! I know about commitments. "He swears to his own hurt, and does not change;" (Ps 15:4b) is the verse that was used to keep us in bondage once we had audibly said that we would do such-and-such. There was always the possiblity of saying, "Something else came up, so I have changed my mind", but then one felt that one had dis-honored the Lord. This was so ingrained, it was not funny.

I wonder if Philip missed pre-prayer the day he 'ran like the wind' so that he could preach the gospel to the eunuch in the chariot.

Your friend has been boxed in and therefore is not free to serve the Lord. It is OK to drop off some chicken soup to a sick sister even if it means being a few minutes late for the meeting. It is OK to minister to that sister who is about to be 'shelved' because she is struggling with some issue and cannot meet the rigorous demands of the assembly. It is OK to miss a Sunday afternoon meeting so that you can be at that annual family re-union. It is OK to change one's mind about something that they never should have committed to in the first place. Only one commitment is necessary, ie one's commitment to be free to serve the Lord.

That's all for now,
Lord bless,
Marcia

[editor]

Only one commitment is necessary, ie one's commitment to be free to serve the Lord.

Marcia

That is excellent!  Ponder that statement.  If the Son shall set you free, you shall be free indeed.  Very nice Marcia!

Brent

[Oscar]

Al,

Regarding your reply to Eulaha.

Well said!

Thomas Maddux

[vernecarty]

Hello folks, it me again.  I'm here to express my frustrations, and I believe you all can in some way or another see my point.  I am in contact with a woman who is no longer involved with GG's Assemblies, because this particular Assembly has dissolved.  She is going to church and all, but she is quite miserable.  She doesn't want to continue on in this location, however, she feels she "has to", because she made a commitment to God to stay there for at least 3 years.  I've been trying to convince her that she made that commitment while a member of a cult-like group, and that God isn't holding her to that commitment-she is free to move to the location of her choice.  But, she won't listen to sound reasoning.  It's as if she is willfully remaining in her misery.  I believe she is very stuck in the Assembly ways of thinking, and I've suggested to her to visit the BB's, to talk to people who have left the Assembly, to talk to her pastor, etc, but she refuses.  I know that I can't force her to anything, but it makes me upset that she allows herself to remain in the darkness of the Assembly teachings.  I know that frustration won't amount to a hill of beans, but still I am frustrated.  I'm wondering what other feel about keeping commitments that were made while being members of the Assembly...and about commitments that we impose upon ourselves that make us miserable.

What was true for all of those of us that spent time in the asemblies under the influence of George Geftakys is still true today - We are responsible for the choices we make.

One substantial difference bwtween those of us who were deceived by this man and those making choices today is that they can make informed choices. The choices we make nevertheless are always  ultimately ours alone.
Verne

[jackhutchinson]

Ahhhhhh......"Do you have your application, brother?"

Even in the Chapter Summary Bible studies we were roped into legalistic commitments.  One night I convinced myself that since God had 'spoken' to me when I did ALL those chapter summaries, then I needed to continue keeping those commitments (applications) in order to be right with God (and not get sick or die after the Lord's Supper).  All I was doing was taking the reasoning behind applications to the logical conclusion.  So, my application that night was to make a list of ALL my applications from ALL my chapter summaries that I still had in my journals (7 years worth).  I dreaded every moment of reading over my chapter summaries to make the list.  Every time I added an application my burden grew heavier and my self condemnation grew stronger.  Here's the real ironic part.  I finished the list a year later.  There was no way I could be involved in the assembly and keep ALL those commitments (let alone remember all of them).  I then asked David G what to do about my predicament.  David told me that I didn't have to keep all those commitments, and that I only needed to TRUST the Lord by faith (yeah, even a broken clock is right twice a day).  I immediately threw out all my old journals and my list.  I felt so relieved.  I suspect that the reason David said that was that he could see that my commitments were getting in the way of my commitment to the assembly.

In the same vein I once kept a list of all the NOP requests and added new items as they came up at the NOP's.  I committed myself to praying over every item for every country, state and city on my list every week.  I would also add the burdens from the prayer letter to my list.  As the weeks and months went on, and the list grew longer, I had to spend more time in prayer.  I'd go into a closet and close the door and pray for hours (often I would procrastinate til Saturday).  Of course, I loathed prayer more and more every week.  I think it was my talk with David ended that insanity as well.

It is interesting to note that sometimes even the Geftakysservants would say we were free.  But then, 98% of the rest of the time they would coerce us to do this or do that.

2% grace + 98% legalism = 100% bondage.

Jack

[al Hartman]

Ahhhhhh......"Do you have your application, brother?"

    Thanks, Jack!  That question used to strike such fear into me that just the deja vu from reading it here made my stomach flip-flop!
     Any body besides me ever try to legalistically "pray without ceasing?"
     It's only the Lord's grace that we all aren't living in rubber rooms!

al

[M2]

I then asked David G what to do about my predicament.  David told me that I didn't have to keep all those commitments, and that I only needed to TRUST the Lord by faith (yeah, even a broken clock is right twice a day).  I immediately threw out all my old journals and my list.  I felt so relieved.  I suspect that the reason David said that was that he could see that my commitments were getting in the way of my commitment to the assembly.

In the same vein I once kept a list of all the NOP requests and added new items as they came up at the NOP's.  I committed myself to praying over every item for every country, state and city on my list every week.  I would also add the burdens from the prayer letter to my list.  As the weeks and months went on, and the list grew longer, I had to spend more time in prayer.  I'd go into a closet and close the door and pray for hours (often I would procrastinate til Saturday).  Of course, I loathed prayer more and more every week.  I think it was my talk with David ended that insanity as well.

It is interesting to note that sometimes even the Geftakysservants would say we were free.  But then, 98% of the rest of the time they would coerce us to do this or do that.

2% grace + 98% legalism = 100% bondage.

Jack

Jack did you burn them? A sister told me that when she burned her ouija board, after she got saved, it made quite a flame in the fireplace.

Marcia

[jackhutchinson]

Marcia,

I just threw them away.

Al,

Yes, in fact, I also tried to meditate on the Word of God day and night, just like it says in Ps1.  The problem is, you can't do both.  Here's what I did do, though.

After reading Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence (Betty gave me a copy, bless her heart) I concluded that it was sin for me to think about anything other than one of the following:

Prayer
Memorizing verses
Meditating on verses
Talking to God about what I was doing at any given moment

Any other thoughts were sin in my opinion.  I carried around with me a 3x5 card that I would mark any time I caught myself off track in my thoughts.  I gave myself a 1 minute consequence for every mark.  I did my consequences by working at other people's houses (I was not living in a training home).  When I had racked up 180hours of consequences I finally gave up.  I held myself accountable to a leader, who never told me that this was insane.  Last year at a singles' conference I asked Betty about this issue, and she told me that to entertain any thought other than the ones I mentioned above was 'a waste'.  Yep, that Betty is a work of art, isn't she?

Jack

[al Hartman]

...I concluded that it was sin for me to think about anything other than one of the following:

Prayer
Memorizing verses
Meditating on verses
Talking to God about what I was doing at any given moment

Any other thoughts were sin in my opinion...  
     Last year at a singles' conference I asked Betty about this issue, and she told me that to entertain any thought other than the ones I mentioned above was 'a waste'.  Yep, that Betty is a work of art, isn't she?

Jack

     Makes you wonder which one of those she was thinking about when she was ignoring or excusing George's and David's "indiscretions," doesn't it?

al
 
             

[editor]

 I suspect that the reason David said that was that he could see that my commitments were getting in the way of my commitment to the assembly.

Jack

I remember this Jack.  I was meeting with David every Sunday for lunch.  I liked this because it meant I did not have to go on outreach!  I heard things, from him, about every member in the Assembly, and all of the brothers in Fullerton and Tuscola, and several of the ones in St. Louis and Chicago.  I knew the dirt on everyone, including you.

It was funny, because when he told me what you did, I felt sorry for you, but at the same time I was pondering in my heart why it was wrong.  Afterall, we were taught, clearly and explicitly, to keep our committments.  In fact, David would hammer home to me frequently, that I had made a committment to only make a certain amount of money, and to give the rest away.  (I made no such committment, but he really wanted me too....I wonder why?)

So, I had to keep my committments, or at least that one, and the one where I said I would go to all the meetings; but you didn't need to keep yours.  I remember this clearly.

However, I must say that David gave you good advice in that situation, regardless of his motivation.  I guess if your committments to The Lord conflict with your committments to the Assembly, something has to give!

Brent

[jackhutchinson]

So David told you about other peoples' sins?  Hmmmmmmm.... David told me explicitly last December that he NEVER divulged any confidential information to ANYONE (not even to other leaders).  David is the Lord's servant.  Therefore you must be lying.

Jack