Former WCCC member

Welcome to De-Commissioned, a place for former members of the Great Commission movement (aka GCM, GCC, GCAC, GCI, the Blitz) to discuss problems they've experienced in the association's practices and theology.

You may read and post, but some features are restricted to registered members. Please consider registering to gain full access! Registration is free and only takes a few moments to complete.

[Wcccleaver]

Hello! I thought I'd take a moment to greet everybody after lurking here for a while.

I was a part of WCCC for a few years as a college student from Drake and also as a young adult after graduating. I finally left the church after years of feeling that something was not right and disagreeing with things that were taught at church and at various conferences.

I've worked through a lot if the hurt and anger that I personally felt but I am still seeing people experiencing a lot of things that are not right and wish that I could do something about it.

[Linda]

Welcome. Thanks for posting. My heart breaks for all the pain this group has caused so many. God bless you and God protect all who are trying to break free.

[EverAStudent]

Welcome, and thanks for speaking up.  Feel free to jump into or start any conversation you like...the back and forth can be quite lively at times, but generally is very thought provoking.

[Janet Easson Martin]

WccCleaver,

Warm Welcome!  You are doing SOMETHING by posting!  It really seems to help those reading to be personally familiar with the church you were at.  It also helps that you testified to your  real experience of something WRONG.  When I left I was glad I put something in writing to pass out to people I knew that were on fringes or still there.  Many of those people did leave soon after.  Of course, the TRUTH was not told about why I left.   This may be somethg you may want to consider for those who know nothing of this forum, or who have been nearly THREATENED not to read it.  You could mail it to those who would know you by first name (& not includeour last name for "privacy" sake).  It is usually not a good idea to
reveal such info on a PUBLIC internet forum.

Very glad you posted.

Your Friend in Christ,

Janet

[Outtathere]

I think it is good that you left where you were at. As somebody who left this movement, I remember how hard it was. If your church was as difficult to leave as mine, you will probably experience some of the following:

1. People coming out of the woodwork to tell you how much you mean to them. This is intended to try to get you to come to your senses (from their perspective). Some of it may be the performance guilt of them feeling they didn't "do enough" to keep you in. Have compassion on them. There is usually a knee-jerk reaction when somebody leaves within these circles. When someone leaves, somebody else may step up to leadership and reaffirm their commitment to the organization. Leadership, in turn, sees this as evidence that they are doing the right thing and the person staying sometimes subconsciously uses it to move up the "works ladder" by getting in good with leadership. My best advice is to leave and go as quietly and purposefully as possible.

2. Many of the people who remain see what you see but stay because they honestly think they are agents of grace. What I mean by that is that they see that it is about works and are committed to the organization more than the word of God. They see the problems, but don't see themselves as part of the problem. You may have people come up to you and say that the church isn't perfect, but that things are changing and they will encourage you to give it one more try. They may indeed change for a month or two. For instance, when people bring a complaint against leadership, leadership responds by doing PR from the pulpit and indicate that they are changing. It would be an interesting study to see the correlation between people leaving and sermons given the following week and how they related to the reasons people were giving for leaving. Be resolute in leaving.

3. Depending on how involved you were, you may go through withdrawal and continual second guessing of yourself and find it hart to fit in or trust other churches. I had a very lonely experience when I left. I suffered because the good things, such as fellowship and activities, became an idol. I wasn't okay just being with God. Over time, I have learned to cherish being alone with only God in my life. I will pray for you as this must be very difficult.

In looking back, I wish I would have been more peaceable when I left. I was very angry. When I tried to speak the truth to people in there, I was met with great denial which made me angrier. They used that against me, and in retrospect it may have kept many people from coming to me and having discussions as to why I left. My advice would be to just walk away, and depending on how traumatic your experience was, take time to heal. Reconnect with people who have left. Even if they no longer share the same view of God, most of them have been more than gracious when I have reached out. If possible, stay on good terms with the people you leave behind. God may use it at some point to help others leave. Don't take their initial rejection as their final rejection.

Lastly, you are not going alone. For every person you find on this forum who relates to your experience, there are hundreds of others out there who have also gone through something similar. Find people you trust who have left and talk to them.

God's peace to you!

[kennedyronna]

I have been squatting for 7 months, couple of months back I was having pain on the left side of my right knee with a groin and adductor strain.I stopped squatting for a while and pain was gone but after i starting squatting again I am have same problem also my calves , hip and lower back of right leg and back feels more tight and sore after squatting also there is pooping of my knees n much more in the right leg. But then I came across a Beating Patellar Tendonitis and according to that book these kind of pain can get away if you knead by ice. !!!