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Author Topic: What Former GCx Members Say About The GCM Warning Forum  (Read 4460 times)
Janet Easson Martin
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« on: June 22, 2019, 06:44:09 pm »

What Former GCx Members Say About This GCM Warning Forum



Below are just a few of responses from former members who have discovered this site.  Finally being able to hear others who are free here to speak up about the unhealthy, controlling and spiritually abusive environment in their GCx churches has often helped them gain a healthier perspective about their own experience with this group.  Some have found hope in their own personal relationship with God as they realize the erroneous image of their Heavenly Father that was painted there.  These are just some of their responses.



I just thought that you guys would like to know that GCMwarning.com became a central topic of discussion in one of my classes last night. I had told my story to several of my classmates and referred them to the site. Turns out, several of them used resources listed on the site in a paper on the church as a healing place or battle ground. The professor, a Ph.D therapist gave you guys props on having such a well researched, written, and thoughtful website. So with as much as I fought you guys at GCMwarning's birthing, I wanted to say thank you so much and that your work is changing lives not only among us ex-GC but also with many who have suffered spiritual abuse in other places. Many of my classmates were able to put words to their bad church experiences that they could not have without the site. It was a night of healing and God showing up!
-sistanchrist



This forum has helped me to heal! I found this forum after I began to search the internet for information on Abusive Churches and one day stumbled upon this forum with testimony from those who went to the same “Church” I had belonged to. That is when my healing moved full throttle ahead. I will say that I can relate to almost every single testimony describing problems with GCM that have been posted here and that has helped me to move beyond wondering what is wrong with me and to recognize that I was part of a culture that treats people with contempt. The only thing wrong with me is that for some reason I could participate in such a culture and not recognize that people were treating others in a manner that harms the mind and the soul.
-OneOfMany



I think this site has helped open my eyes a bit and it has given me some understanding as to why I struggle with a few things.
-Lynn



This website has been therapeutic for me as I needed to know I wasn't the only one seeing the pain GCx has been passing out in "their" churches. ...What is happening in GCx is just wrong and there are people that need this resource to help them get out. ...Generally, I don't think anyone here hates anyone else in GCx. However, I think we all have a healthy disgust for the false teaching, the unfounded "leadership" structure, and the disasters that it has caused.
-boboso



I also left the Manhattan church. I'm glad some other people are getting out. Leaving was the best and hardest thing I've ever done. I'm glad I found this forum.
-escapee



Finding this forum was like a breath of fresh air. All of us felt so crazy, thinking we were ignoring God, that we weren't doing enough, that ...the elders were right. And being able to come here and read about the issues people have seen has been so comforting (and sad). Finding experiences from years before that were practically identical to mine. And seeing how people were using their experience to help others. This place has truly been a comfort to me over these last few years. And I want to say thank you.
-Alexa



I greatly have appreciated this forum. For years I was in depression, beating myself up and feeling as if I was never good enough or doing enough. When I found this forum, I realized that all of the things I had been experiencing were not just in my head. I remember reading and reading with tears in my eyes thanking God that I was not crazy or insane. Through the forum, I was able to find others who could walk me through my experience and point me towards resources that have helped me heal. ... Thank you for all of the thoughtful posts. It is so comforting for me to know that I wasn't crazy with all of the things that I have experienced.  
-MarthaH



I went online and looked up information, found out about how deep the history of abuse goes, and found this site.  I am so encouraged and relieved that there are others calling out what is wrong here [in GCx churches].
-512



When coming across GCMWarning and reading various testimonies, I sat dumbfounded and sad -- mostly because I couldn't believe that pretty much all the allegations written against GCM I had personally witnessed -- the irrational behavior of leadership, the double standards, the manipulative nature of certain people and the ensuing cover-ups -- the unconscionable way certain members were treated.
-einmal    [left ~ 2006]



I have felt guilt over leaving and have wondered if I could have been stronger until I found this site and found stories similar to mine over and over again.  As has been stated, through common experience, I don't have to feel like it was my fault, I know that I don't have to feel guilty for leaving, and I don't have to wonder if I should go back.  I am one reason that we need this website and how healing can take place.  ... I have spent way too much time reading posts on this forum in the past few days since finding it, reliving the past, shedding tears, and finding healing.  Thanks to all of you for your time in posting your stories, continue to do so, they need to be heard.
-imnotbroken



If I understand the 1-10-100 rule correctly, this means that 1000 people who have been hurt by GC have found this site and that it's possible that at least 10,000 present and former GC members could be considered victims of spiritual abuse.
-jehu



I think this forum is very important in healing and moving forward for those of us who have felt the heavy-handedness of GC [GCx alias] authority or GC doctrine. ... It is unlearning one gospel to relearn a new one.  It is also very important for me to know others just like me that left GC but Are STILL Christians.  WE DIDNT ABANDON OUR FAITH.  God isn’t found ONLY in a GC Church, god is with Christians wherever they go.  God can have a deep relationship with a woman without speaking through her authority-He will speak directly to her! ... They liken hearing your own inner voice as the devil trying to tempt you to usurp your authority figures.  My inner voice, which could be the Holy Spirit in me, is dangerous to them.  Freethinking people question authority, which would dismantle their power structure.  GC is such an ungodly org set up to maintain complete control and give power to men who are feeding their pride and arrogance.
-Shamednomore



i heard about GCMwarning.com back when i was still involved in the church. however, with the help of the leaders, it was disregarded as "some bitter guy's outlet". and then recently i came across the site again. i went straight to the forum and read hundreds of threads. then something finally clicked, something that was so burdensome to me the whole time i was trying to fit into the GCM culture. ... i joined one of the Colorado churches about three years ago. happy faces, cheerie conversations and an unheard-of interest in my life were what seemed to have bought me. ... And GCM has definitely perfected the art of "the gimmick". ... the movement has learned how to feign the signs of a utopic community. ... i honestly started feeling "not good enough". ... i decided to leave. i wanted to [go] somewhere where the authority wasn't based around some randomly appointed religious zealots. i was looking for somewhere where the bible was interpreted based on the tradition and NOT one man's revelation. ...
-skewed_grace    [left ~ 2007]


I just want to start off by saying that I'm grateful to the Lord for this place, and for the honesty of so many of you. As painful and wince-worthy as it has been to read your stories (because of the similarities, and because of the things God has revealed to me through them), I am grateful to know that I am not alone. I am not carrying the weight of all this truth by myself. That, all by itself, is helpful.
-Wingless_Butterfly    [left ~2018]



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« Reply #1 on: May 25, 2022, 10:30:32 am »


In November of 2016 I left Candlewood after discovering it was a cult with the help of this site. In particular, I recognized a fellow defector when I saw her testimony on this site and discovered her details. I knew her and her mother and father - but not a personal level which I will touch upon in this post, and that’s what made me sever ties from Candlewood forever.

In 2017, I left a negative review on Candlewood’s Facebook page. To this day, I’m only one of two, which worries me a lot!

- Child_of_Arkham


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« Reply #2 on: July 18, 2022, 07:27:11 pm »


I also wanted to say thank you to those who have helped make information and experiences available. I put off working through my experience for a decade, and it has been so helpful to put words to it. It has not made me more bitter or angry, but it has helped me understand what I went through and why it impacted me the way it did, which is important. I don't have another safe place I could have done this (still close ties), so thank you.

-Free in Christ


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« Reply #3 on: December 02, 2022, 09:52:12 pm »


I come back to this forum to check on new posts and be there when others leave. It matters. This is a healing forum. It helps you to know you aren't alone. God must come first in the healing process, but it helps to know that others have been where I was.

-Godisgrace,  2018


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« Reply #4 on: February 08, 2023, 08:39:27 pm »



My head is spinning and my heart is so thankful for this forum.  Does anyone feel guilty for buying into the GCx ick and falling for it hook, line and sinker?  I was involved with a GCM church for 3 and 1/2 years. The first year or so I didn’t see the dark side. …

I was at one of the national head GCM leaders house more than once... and even just reading that name kills my heart.  I went on a missions trip with another leader who I have now read documents from...  I read them and feel sick.  What was I thinking?  How did I not see back then how sick they were?  The rhetoric hasn't changed that much from when I was there -how did I not see how messed up this is? ugh...  why, why did I stay as long as I did?

…thank  you sooo much for reading and the feedback...  I have just been reading other posts and processing, praying, thinking...  so glad for this site and that there is a place like this and other people who are calling out this sick stuff.
-512


Well, I must say, after a few days of perusing the site, and sharing brief posts, I am empowered by the stories.  I am validated, and my distaste for the authoritarian leadership is affirmed. ... Thank you. ... I'm learning freedom, and this site has been helping me tremendously.
-margaret


I have left and now go to a better church. I am in recovery. I am happier now. For those who read this forum, life was not so easy being a pastor there. It was harder on my wife. We've been reading this blog/forum for quite sometime now. It's very refreshing to read that others had the same feelings, even from long ago.
-An ex-GCM Pastor



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« Reply #5 on: April 01, 2023, 06:41:03 pm »



... just discovered today that Walnut Creek was part of an association that was once called a cult. We couldn't figure out why until today, when I discovered this forum. Not only is their church service one of the least inspiring I have ever attended (really bad rock music by young people, a super weak message--it was all more like a bad school pep assembly) ...

Thanks for understanding my newness to this GC topic--you have all helped open my eyes to answer a lot of confusing questions about [GCx] Walnut Creek I've had over the past few years!
-meman54


...reading the older articles on the new GCx page has really helped. Obviously, the error of GCx that most of us have experienced, has been going on for decades. Some of those newspaper articles written in the '70's and '80's could be written today.
-Linda,   2008


This is my first post.  I was involved with a GCX church a number of years ago.  This site has been helpful in many ways.  For one, it has helped me laugh where I didn't think it was possible.
-sunshine,   2011


I did not find this forum site until years after our family was told to find a different church simply because we expressed some concerns. The forum has helped me process the whole experience, see the aberrant teaching, see the twisting of Scriptures, see and feel for people who were damaged far worse than what I experienced.
-GodisFaithful,   2018


This forum and gcmwarning.com have really helped. Before and after we left, we'd talk to a few other people about the problems, but it wasn't until gcmwarning.com started that I could be, like, "Ok, I'm not crazy. This stuff that I saw was really happening."
-Rebekah,   2010



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« Reply #6 on: April 04, 2023, 08:29:50 pm »



Born and raised in GCM.  Fully indoctrinated, but never felt like I belonged.  There was literally no escape, due to circumstances.  And there is still none in sight.  Sexual abuse was kept under wraps... In recent years, I have endeavored to pull away.  But my ties are too strong to be broken completely.  For years, I gave up on anything spiritual and meaningful and closed my heart off.  It felt like stone for a very long time. ...

I've been a long-time lurker, and had created an account many years ago... After the Mark Darling incident, I couldn't go it alone anymore.  I'm not looking for advice, just wanted to share a bit of my past and frustrations and to let you all know that your posts have been a source of encouragement for me when I've been feeling brave enough to read them.
-sohai,   2018


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« Reply #7 on: May 11, 2023, 08:23:43 pm »



I think it is wonderful a site like this exists.  I think it's great people have a forum to discuss their experiences and be validated. ... I was hurt by GC.  I know other people who were hurt by GC.  I've heard of people who had to be counseled out of that place. ...

I didn't appreciate guilt trips about wanted to be married.  I love the Lord.  But I wanted to have a woman in my life. ... My biggest problem with Great Commission was that they didn’t respect individual freedom and too often tried to tell grown adults what they should do with their lives.

I got out of GCx in 1994.  I thank God that I have been involved in a better understanding of Him, of myself and a great fellowship ever since that time.  ...

-Ned_Flanders



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« Reply #8 on: May 16, 2023, 08:05:02 am »

I'm so glad for this forum.
I thought the church changed after I left, after their admission of weaknesses. But I see the church hadn't changed. I feel bad for my former friends who are still in it.
Someone said those who are left are innocent or something like that.
I don't know how someone could be innocent.
If they sought truth, they'd find it. They wouldn't be in it for forty plus years, seeking Jesus earnestly and still say to us what they say -- that our relationship with God isn't right cause we left.
The Holy Spirit doesn't lead people to talk that way. They say/do other things that aren't Spirit led. I pray for them.
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« Reply #9 on: May 16, 2023, 08:32:42 pm »

Welcome, FreetoloveJesus!  Agree with you that those who are led by the Spirit wouldn’t condemn those who leave GCx Churches. Thoughtful point. They have unity of GCx “law,” but definitely not of God’s Spirit.

Respond more this week.
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« Reply #10 on: May 25, 2023, 06:59:08 pm »



I read through a lot of these posts and I feel angry that I have been tricked.  I am thankful for all of the information contained here and when I read some of it a lightbulb went off in my head because that was my experience exactly.  It is very subtle and it does make you wonder if you aren't just going crazy.

-coolerthanme


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« Reply #11 on: May 26, 2023, 08:32:11 pm »



Finding this forum was instrumental in my own healing. It showed me I was not alone, and that the things I was struggling with were real and valid. It also has helped me to see what the false teachings I had accepted were, and to start to change them in my mind.

If GCx won't change (and I know many people have been trying to get them to change for years) then they will continue to hurt people. Those people who have been and will be hurt need a place where they can safely process through some of the hurt and find some answers. This forum provides that, and I don't think it is wrong that the healing process is public in this case.

-araignee19


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« Reply #12 on: May 27, 2023, 02:57:45 pm »


This former member describes the spiritual abuses of GCx with an insightful vocabulary that helps us put words to damaging teachings and “discipling” that we experienced there. This is just one excerpt of a number of posts that tell of his journey out of GCx.





… I managed to separate myself from GCx only after finding this forum, and reading the accounts of people who had feelings and experiences that were not only similar to my own, but in other cases, pointed to a future for myself, and my family, that I did not want. This future is not made readily apparent when you join a GCx church, and instead, pressure is brought to bear to bring you into conformance ever so slowly, and none to delicately. You feel vaguely guilty about the issue until you finally submit, and do as you've been asked to do, whether the matter is time, or money, or resources.

the forums here helped me past all of that, and on the road to recovery. It saved me from completely walking away form the christian faith, and it saved my kids from a lifetime of servitude to a church that had no qualms about utilizing dubious doctrines, and questionable evangelism tactics.

I walked away from it, and recover, step by step, and the forums are important to the recovery process.

-arthur



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« Reply #13 on: June 12, 2023, 07:38:30 am »



I really think there are a number of great things that can come from this web site.

   First of all, many who were hurt or spiritually misled by GCx leaders can tell their story.  They no longer have to keep it all bottled up which we know is very unhealthy.  They can also find friends, they can find support, they can find affirmation.  They can tell their story so others walking into the same or similar situations may be more able to see.

  Secondly, current GCx'ers who may be reading this can get a better background of what may still be going on at many GCx churches.  They can find more sense of where their friends have gone and why.  They can consider how much their church has changed or how much things haven't changed.  Maybe some current attendee's are considering leaving and things here will help them come to that very large and life changing decision.  It can be very scary decision for many.

  Finally, for pastors and GCx leaders, they can continue to be dismissive of people, their hurts and experiences, as they have in the past or they can come to contrition.  They can stop and listen for a little while. They can confess to God what they have done to people at times, the pain they have caused.  Pastors and leaders can read these comments and do some soul searching.  They can seize the opportunity to correct their mistakes.  Maybe they can reach out to those who they've sinned against and apologize. …

   Yep, I see a lot of reasons for this web site that can be used for good.

-bourneforHim,   2018


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« Reply #14 on: June 15, 2023, 06:09:37 pm »



Hey. I just found this place, and it’s been really helpful so far, so I figured I should actually post.
I grew up in GCC. It wasn’t until I got to college that I started to realize/ unpack my issues. I’m kind of a psychological mess (anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, likely DID). Because of amnesia and such I’m not exactly sure what hurt me so much, but I’m realizing this might’ve been a big part of it.

-Mercy   2023


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« Reply #15 on: July 02, 2023, 12:18:22 pm »



Like so many others, I am relieved to have found so many other people who have had an unsettling experience at a GC church.  I had actually found this site while trying to look for more information on the church I left to see what kind of credentials GCM requires for their pastors and staff, etc.  and discovered that the problems I had in my church were actually in all of the ministry.  Please read my story, if you dare, it will reveal a church that sounds as if the 1991 Apology had never been made, and I only started to going to a GCM church in 2005.

-Left,   2007


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« Reply #16 on: July 15, 2023, 08:03:59 pm »



There is no reconcilation with this movement. … The issue is trust. GCM [GCx alias] broke my trust.  And to recover, is almost impossible, as they still keep doing what they do well, hurt, demand and require.

…as a pastor at GCM. I could never know which way was up. … I have left and now go to a better church. I am in recovery. I am happier now. For those who read this forum, life was not so easy being a pastor there. It was harder on my wife. We've been reading this blog/forum for quite sometime now. It's very refreshing to read that others had the same feelings, even from long ago. …

-An ex-GCM pastor,   2008


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« Reply #17 on: July 22, 2023, 07:23:20 pm »



Hi, I am so amazed and happy to find this sight. I am an ex-GCM from the 80s. I was "recruited" to the Church in 1986 during my first year away from home at college. It is a long story, but suffice for now to say that I stayed in the Church for 3 years. I kept having the feeling of "mental disconnect" as every so often I would "wake up" and say to myself "Wow! Why do I feel like my life is being controlled by the Church." I found my family relationships deteriorate and the pressure to be "all for God and the lost" was overwhelming me.

At one point I skipped a Sunday service and visited with an Episcopal minister... When the church found out--I was literally called in for questioning. ... I eventually left the church, for another church. When I left--all my GC friends dropped me. I haven't been to GCM since 1989, but I always wondered if I was alone in my feelings. I moved on, and now am so thankful to see that others went thru similar struggles.

-spiritman,   2010


 
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« Reply #18 on: August 21, 2023, 04:50:05 am »



I am very thankful for this forum. I was in GCx for a decade and much of my experience has been what people have already described here. I first learned of GCM Warning while I was still in GCx. One pastor had even said that the reason this forum existed was because any great movement for Christ will face persecution and that is why the website exists. I never thought I would ever be on this side of the website.

-jtk1983,   2015


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« Reply #19 on: August 21, 2023, 10:12:14 am »



wow, I’ve just found this website and blog. I’m a former GCM’er… and it all sounds too familiar. I can’t believe others have had similar widespread experiences. I just want to say thank you for having this forum… It has taken me a long time to figure things out with the GCM mess at my campus. It helps to know that I’m not crazy and that these things really were taught, with pressure. I am so glad to be out from all the pressure–to be “good” members– all the unspoken, yet powerful rules. For a long time I didn’t want to go to church anywhere just because I felt sick of it. Then I started going to a healthy church where I just went to worship– to just go to church, nothing else. I has been a slow process of recovery.

-soundstoofamiliar


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