• Home » Children of God Publications » SPECIAL SUMMIT '90 ISSUE

The Family / Children of God

Internal Publications and Secret Directives

DISCLAIMER: The sole purpose of this page is to document the existence of a publication produced by The Family International a.k.a. The Family, Family of Love, Children of God and various pseudonyms (hereon referred to as TFI). It is provided for the record, for educational and research purposes, with the principal aim of promoting accountability by the TFI for its teachings and statements, which have proven detrimental to the lives of many. By replicating this material, exFamily.org neither endorses the views expressed in this publication nor justifies the existence of this publication and its statements. Reader discretion is advised. The material on this page may be unsuitable for minors and may contain disturbing words of racism, hate mongering, directives to unhealthy lifestyles and/or criminal activity, and/or contain plagiarized works.
THIS PUBLICATION MAY HAVE BEEN "SANITIZED." This digital format of this publication was extracted from TFI's HomeARC 99, which was subjected to encryption and editing by TFI, who, in order to hide its controversial writings and thus escape moral and/or legal accountability for past/present core beliefs and directives, sanitized (edited) and purged (deleted, destroyed, burned) its texts—both printed and electronic. Where possible, exFamily.org has compared this digital material with the cult's original paper-printed versions to ensure that this publication accurately reflects the original, uncensored version. Locations where the text has obviously or potentially been sanitized is hilighted with bright-red [DELETED] or [EDITED] markers.

FSM
SPECIAL SUMMIT '90 ISSUE
FSM 171 (FN 280) DO
Copyright: June 1990
By Family Services, Zurich, Switzerland

IN THIS ISSUE:
Pg. 1--Introduction to Summit '90
Pg. 2--Reactions to Mama's Messages
Pg. 4--Reactions to the Schedule
Pg. 4--The Keynote Address for the Summit '90 Leadership Meetings!
Pg. 8--Reactions to NWO Meetings
Pg.10--Recent History of Family Leadership Training!
---------------------------------------

INTRODUCTION TO SUMMIT '90

       In the beginning of 1990, at the turn of a new decade, a major Family leadership conference was held. This conference was held in two sessions of one month each. The first session was conducted by Peter A. & Paul Papers, who had spent a few months visiting the Folks & was receiving further training while temporarily working in teamwork with Mama & Peter. It was attended by Juan & Abi from Latin America & Josiah from Japan. Peter then hosted a second session of leadership meetings, which was attended by CROs & NOs from Europe, Southeast Asia & the Pacific & those leaders who were moving on to new shepherding assignments in Latin America. We were later to call the combination of both sessions of these leadership meetings, "Summit '90".

THE VISION & GOAL FOR SUMMIT '90!

       2. The purpose & goal of these meetings was to teach our top leaders lessons that would help them draw closer to the Lord & become better Shepherds. Of course, it was also our hope & prayer that the valuable lessons & training that were shared at these meetings could in turn be PASSED ON to our precious Family throughout the World, via the example of those leaders who attended & the subsequent leadership meetings that they would be hosting.
       3. However, while the meetings were in session, Mama sent the following message to Peter which impressed upon our hearts even more the urgent need to share these lessons with our whole Family. Mama said: "There's a real excitement in the Spirit about these Summit Meetings, & a real expectation that they will have far-reaching repercussions! I'm praying about how we can somehow put all these lessons into paper power so they will have an even GREATER effect.
       4. "I just so much wish that we could give the WHOLE FAMILY the opportunity of receiving this training or even of having these same kind of meetings on their fields--so they can see how tenderly, gently & lovingly they can be helped with their weaknesses, & that the answers are there if they wish to avail themselves of them; that they don't have to be worried & fearful of changes in their lives, but instead can look forward to them with eagerness, anticipation & challenge!"
       5. Thus was born the idea of producing a special series of "Summit '90" FSMs which would cover the contents of these leadership meetings. To make this idea a reality, the leaders who attended the second session of meetings were commissioned to write a series of FSM articles so that the valuable principles, lessons & other treasures that were mined at these meetings could be shared with all. Through these "Summit '90" FSMs we hope to share with you all that was taught during the Summit '90 meetings, including a wide range of leadership lessons, classes on overcoming NWOs, miscellaneous jewels, reactions from the leaders who attended the meetings & words of instruction & encouragement from Mama & MORE!--So you can partake of the SAME TRAINING that our top leaders received!
       6. Dad has often stated that training leaders is one of our MAIN JOBS, & therefore we want to take this opportunity to give EVERY FAMILY MEMBER this leadership training, which we hope you will learn & grow from.
       7. Since the Summit '90 meetings were attended by some of the top leadership of the Family & were geared to teaching them leadership lessons, much of the material in the "Summit '90" FSMs is aimed especially at leaders & teamworkers. However, EVERY PERSON in every Home is a MEMBER of a TEAM, every person in every Home leads someone else in something--from leading the Home, to leading children, or leading people to the Lord.--We're all leaders in one way or another & we're all in training to be future leaders of some kind. Therefore, the lessons in the "Summit '90" FSMs are for YOU! Although perhaps some of the lessons may not totally pertain to you, you should still read & prayerfully study them in order to avail yourself of the many lessons that DO pertain to you. To help make these FSMs more applicable to you, perhaps you could substitute the word "disciple" or "Family Member", whenever the word "leader", "Shepherd" or "Teamworker" is used & see if it applies. Whatever you do, please pray & ask the Lord to help you absorb the lessons in these FSMs in order to make you a more useful, happy & fulfilled Family Member, no matter WHAT your position may be. Please read & study these lessons prayerfully, perhaps even together as a Home so that you & your Home can learn from them & be strengthened by them. PTL!

TOPICS COVERED

       8. During the Summit Meetings, the following major topics were discussed. DV, these subjects will be covered in detail in the "Summit '90" FSMs.
       [EDITED: " "] 9. VITAL LESSONS ON PRAYERFULNESS:
At the beginning of the meetings, Peter emphasised that if we were to go on to be the leaders & Shepherds that the Lord wants us to be, it was extremely important that we grasped the lessons that would be shared on BEING PRAYERFUL. Without understanding & taking to heart this very important principle & quality of leadership, we would surely fail.
       [EDITED: " "] 10. CORRECTION:
Lessons on giving & taking correction, reasons why leaders don't correct people, the fruit of good correction.
       [EDITED: " "] 11. MORE ON TEAMWORK:
Helpful lessons on how to have a happy, united, fruitful Teamwork.
       [EDITED: " "] 12. TRAINING:
Tips & lessons about how to personally train INDIVIDUALS & the good fruits of training.
       [EDITED: " "] 13. LEADERSHIP'S SAMPLE:
Another integral part of the Summit Meetings agenda was discussing our own shortcomings & weaknesses, bringing them out into the open & drawing out the lessons for the benefit of all. These discussions were conducted in an open, relaxed, Pow-Wow style & soon became known as "NWO* Talks". We addressed many leadership NWOs such as favouritism, materialism, drawing people to yourself, failing to give credit to others, interrupting, talking too much, & ordering people around. (*NWO means Needs Work On.)
       14. Other topics that were covered:
       [EDITED: " "] TRF Supporters
       [EDITED: " "] Childcare
       [EDITED: " "] Teens
       [EDITED: " "] Marriage
       [EDITED: " "] MOM (Ministry of Mothers)
       [EDITED: " "] Policy Questions & Answers
       --Covering a wide range of topics from A to Z, ranging from "Mobility" to "Sex".

THE BLESSING OF RECEIVING COMMUNICATIONS FROM MAMA!

       15. Since Dad had commissioned Mama to oversee the meetings, we had the very special blessing of receiving communications from her, which Peter read to us. It was very inspiring & helpful to have Mama's input & guidance while we were discussing the topics at hand. She also provided us with many new ideas & directions to consider & pray about. These communications from Mama were an integral part of the training which was passed on, as through them we got a glance at the Spirit-led manner in which she thinks & prays about difficult situations, & how she comes to decisions about them. And last, but certainly not least, hearing from her directly drew us all much closer to her & taught us many precious lessons of love, forgiveness, mercy & leadership.
---------------------------------------
REACTIONS TO MAMA'S MESSAGES

       16. (ENDURETH:) Mama, I wanted to thank you for all of the beautiful counsel that you personally have been pouring out to us. Thank you for taking so much of your time to think & pray, hear from the Lord & get so many beautiful jewels for all of us here, as well as, of course, for the Family worldwide. It has been so touching to hear this counsel read to us.
       17. It's just so beautiful to see the anointing & the wisdom that the Lord has given you! Just sitting in these meetings & partaking of them & listening to the things that you had to share with us has made me feel so close to you & made me love you even more. I've always really loved your Letters & counsel, Mama, as it always feels so relatable to me. I know it's true what you shared, that all you have shared is something that you have learned from Dad or something that Dad has already said in the Letters. The Lord has given you such a special way in sharing with us.--I don't know if the word is "down-to-Earth" or "simple", but it just really rings so true in my heart, & I feel so loved & understood in my battles or trials as I read through the things that the Lord has given you.
       18. I think the Lord has given you a very special gift for understanding people & their battles & trials, & consequently what you share is always such a comfort. I pray that this doesn't sound like I don't feel this way about the things that DAD has shared, as I CERTAINLY couldn't ask for more than Dad has poured out to us in the way of God's Truth & Message. He certainly taught us everything that we know & anything that we may need to know about our walk with the Lord. But somehow the way you present things & the sweet, simple way that you share things is so comforting.
       19. The impression I get is that the way you & Dad care for the Family is similar to the way a father & a mother care for their children.--BOTH the father & the mother are needed & have a special role & a special place in the hearts of their children. It has been thrilling to me to see how you & Dad work hand-in-hand, & as I get to know you more personally, Mama, it is so obvious how Dad's & your gifts & personalities complement each other!--Together you have it all! The Lord anoints you & Dad each to bring out different aspects in the things we need to learn, which together makes up the full counsel of God! We are so blessed!
       20. Anyway, I especially want you to know that hearing from you in such a personal way makes me really love you & feel so close to you.
---------------------------------------
       21. (CHRIS:) Dear Mama: I'm very thankful for the chance to hear directly from you via your messages to Peter. It's life-changing to see you in your everyday business mode. It's precious to see how you interact & communicate & relate. For example, in one message you mentioned that you had a number of report & reaction tapes to listen to, as well as quite a stack of work to attend to, but that you PRAYED about it & the Lord showed you that the most IMPORTANT thing for you to do was to sit down & dictate a phone message to Peter, that he in turn could pass on to us during this golden opportunity of us being gathered together at these meetings.
       22. The way you explained this & how you described your decision-making process imparts such a spirit of calmness & simplicity. We usually apply simplicity to our dress or our way of life or living, but I guess the ROOT of simplicity must be found in our approach to life, & even our business & work for the Lord. That simplicity comes across so clearly in your messages.
---------------------------------------
       23. (DUST:) It was great to hear Peter read from your various messages to him throughout the meetings. It helped me to see the Spirit-led process by which you think & pray about things, & how you come to a decision about them. It was very feeding, Mama, & very good training. I'm so thankful you took the time & made the effort to get those communications to us. Not only did I LEARN a lot from hearing from you, but in the process I also got to KNOW YOU much better, & I feel that I've drawn much closer to you than ever before. I don't quite know how to express to you my feelings on this. For one thing, I feel more comforted & assured & so much closer to you & Dad & the Lord.
---------------------------------------
       24. (OSHEA:) It's just really beautiful to see how the Lord's preparing you, Mama, for what's ahead. It's certainly evident to us how the Lord is giving you more of the mantle & how He's leading & guiding you. The other night Peter was saying that the reason the Lord was allowing us to partake of the counsel & communication from you was to give us a reassurance that no matter what happens in the future, that the Lord will still lead, His Work will grow & the Family will continue to be strong.
---------------------------------------
POWER & VARIETY IN PRAYER
--ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR MEETINGS!

       25. One of the highlights of the meetings was the EMPHASIS put on prayer & the VARIETY of ways in which prayer was conducted. We were encouraged by Mama to experiment with new & different ways to pray. Some of the methods of prayer that we tried at these meetings included: Limiting people's prayers to no longer than one minute, one-word prayers, one-sentence prayers, reading prayers from the Letters, passing the "Prayer Promise Bowl" so each person could pull out a promise to claim in prayer, & more! Pioneering prayer in this manner was really fun & helped us break away from long, boring, routine prayers! For more details, see GN #'s 435 & 436, & the article, "Pioneering Prayer," in FSM 173.

THE SCHEDULE--EFFICIENT, YET RESTFUL!

       26. The general schedule was set up so that two meetings were held daily--the first meeting was from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., & the second meeting was from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m. The morning meeting covered topics having to do with business & Family policy, & from these meetings will come further "Questions & Answers on Family Policy" FSMs, Lord willing. The evening meetings primarily covered leadership lessons & NWOs.
       27. This schedule proved to be very effective & efficient as well as very restful, & it made good use of our time together. Having the second meeting in the evenings rather than the afternoons proved very fruitful. It allowed Peter plenty of time after the morning meeting to prepare for the second meeting, & also gave everyone the whole afternoon & early evening to read, react, nap, have Get-Out & eat lunch & dinner. If we had had the second meeting in the afternoon, things would have been more rushed & crammed, but as it was, everything was calm & peaceful.
       28. Handling the business & policy type of issues & questions in the morning meetings, & the more spiritual lessons & NWO Talks in the evening meetings, seemed to work quite well. It seemed that in the morning meetings we were fresher to be able to handle the intricacies of the policy-making discussions.
       29. Those who attended the meetings were asked to fill in brief & simple OHR forms daily, & once a week everyone dictated a reaction tape of not more than one hour in length.

REACTIONS TO THE SCHEDULE

       30. (MARY:) I am really impressed with the way the whole schedule is geared. We are encouraged to rest, pray, read & react. It's really inspiring for me because things are going slowly enough that I can absorb things. It gives me time to meditate, reflect & absorb the things that are being said.
---------------------------------------
       31. (CHRIS:) I'm thrilled with the schedule that we're keeping. I can see that a schedule similar to what we have here could make Delegates' Meetings & other meetings of this nature quite refreshing & also quite restful. We usually filled up our evenings at Delegates' Meetings with MORE meetings or get-togethers anyway, so to schedule the afternoon FREE & then schedule a SUBSTANTIAL MEETING in the evening really makes sense.
---------------------------------------

GET-OUTS--FELLOWSHIP, FRESH AIR & GOOD EXERCISE!

       32. The very vigorous Get-Out walks were another highlight of the meetings, & were thoroughly enjoyed by all. Since we were a rather large number of people, we would divide into two groups & travel by van to our Get-Out location, a beautiful wooded area located nearby the meeting site. When the first group would return from their one-hour Get-Out, the second group would leave. We took advantage of this wonderful opportunity to hike in the woods & get lots of fellowship, fresh air & sunshine. We tried to pace the walks at a fast enough clip so that it got our hearts pumping & even made us work up a sweat. TTL!
---------------------------------------

THE KEYNOTE ADDRESS FOR THE SUMMIT '90 LEADERSHIP MEETINGS!
By Peter A.

       33. (We started the Summit '90 meetings with a round of desperate prayer. Each person pulled a promise from a bowl of "Precious Promises"--verses written on little slips of paper--and then they claimed that verse as they prayed desperately for the Lord to use these meetings to speak to them, change them & help them to become better Shepherds. We each told the Lord what we personally hoped to get out of the meetings, while at the same time asking Him to have full sway in our lives & to change us in any way He saw fit. After prayer, Peter gave the following Keynote Address:)
       34. Before we jump full swing into our meetings, it's very important that we talk about a few things first, & one of these is the GOAL of this meeting. Our main goals during this time should be: (1) To draw closer to the Lord, & (2) to become better Shepherds. The PURPOSE of these meetings is to discover ways to get closer to Jesus, to learn to work better in Teamworks, & to learn how to handle people better--to discipline them, love them & do all the things that we need to do to lovingly shepherd them. One step to help you reach these goals is to be CONSTANTLY PRAYING & asking the Lord to help you learn whatever you NEED to learn & what HE wants you to learn while here, because it's very possible that you aren't aware of all that you personally need to learn.
       35. At our first set of meetings, Josiah learned the very MOST important fundamental lesson that he needed to learn about TWO DAYS before the meetings ended. Paul & I had many discussions with him & we thoroughly covered his most obvious NWOs, but just a couple of days before our meetings were to break up, we were praying, "Is there anything ELSE that You have for him, Lord?"--And He showed us an area that Josiah needed help in that hadn't been so obvious to us or to him.
       36. Talking to Josiah about this particular NWO brought about a MAJOR CHANGE in his spiritual life.--It changed his whole way of looking at things, his whole mode of operation. This NWO was actually the ROOT of what was lacking in his leadership & his sample. When Josiah originally came to the meeting he had no idea that this was an area that he needed to work on & neither did we, but thank the Lord, HE showed us. So it's important that you personally are praying that the Lord will bring up any lessons or points that He knows you need to learn while you're here.

"NWO TALKS" ARE FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL!

       37. A number of you have expressed some apprehension about the "NWO Talks", especially since you heard that these talks will be open discussions, which means that each person's NWOs will be talked about openly in the presence of the other leaders. Please understand that the reason we will be bringing up NWOs in this manner is to use them as the CATALYST or SPRINGBOARD to discuss leadership & shepherding lessons. We're not doing it to expose you or humiliate you, it's simply so we can generate subjects to discuss that will be useful to you personally & to ALL of us as Shepherds.
       38. If we're going to learn how to be BETTER Shepherds, then we have to discuss subjects that will accomplish that goal. If we can OPENLY discuss the shepherding weaknesses of all the leaders present, then we'll ALL learn what to watch out for & the pitfalls to avoid, which is all part of becoming a better Shepherd. So although it might hurt a bit to hear about areas that we didn't do so well in, I believe you will see that the BENEFIT far outweighs the hurt.

FIGHT THE ENEMY'S CONDEMNATION!

       39. As we discuss NWOs, you'll need to fight against letting the Enemy condemn you! You may feel that every time we talk about an NWO, that you're GUILTY! Well, maybe you ARE, but just remember, MOST of us are guilty of a LOT of these things. So GET convicted, GET pricked in your heart & be DETERMINED that you're NOT going to do it again!--But DON'T get CONDEMNED! DON'T feel like, "I'm Mr. Failure!" Remember, we'll be discussing your NWOs to help us all grow, not just to point out your failures. There's nobody here in this meeting that the Folks are mad at, there's no one here that's doing so terribly that we have to drag out your problems before the Body, so don't worry! We're only discussing these NWOs so that we can ALL learn.
       40. This meeting is to try to help us to become better Shepherds, & one way to find out how to do something BETTER is to become aware of the fact that many of the ways you have been doing it in the past haven't necessarily been the BEST. If we're going to GROW as Shepherds, we're going to have to shed some of our old ways of doing things. You have to come to the realisation that SOME of what you've done was probably done the WRONG way.
       41. There will undoubtedly be some things that we talk about in these meetings that will make you feel like, "Boy, I should have done that better, & because I didn't do it better, my field didn't get the training they needed or the area didn't grow like it should have." Well, that's probably so, but don't feel so bad about it. You did your best, you tried to help your areas the best you could, but no one is perfect. Instead of being CONDEMNED about it, be encouraged that now you're going to LEARN, by God's grace, how NOT to do that next time, & that's PROGRESS.
       42. You might even feel, "I really am a FAILURE because I made mistakes or had weaknesses or I didn't do everything I should have done."--But you're NOT! Although you may see there's a lot you could have done better, you must remember there are a lot of things that you did RIGHT, & there's a lot of GOOD that every one of you have accomplished, & there's PROGRESS that every one of you have made! Remember, you can't progress in EVERYTHING at the same time, it just doesn't work that way. You can't get the victory over EVERY NWO right away! It takes time, training, testing, growing etc. Just because you have a few lacks or weaknesses DOESN'T mean you're a failure!--You're NOT!

WE'RE ATTACKING THE PROBLEM, NOT THE PERSON!

       43. The fact is that everyone here has done a great job! You're here because you HAVE done a good job & because the Lord wants you to progress even more to be able to do an even better job. But in order to progress we do have to be honest, & put our NWOs out on the table & talk about them, discuss them from every angle & learn from them. We're not pointing them out because we're picking on anyone in particular!--We're picking on the PROBLEM, not the PERSON! We want to openly talk about these problems & weaknesses, & in the course of our discussion you will learn how to recognise & overcome them.
       44. I know that when we discuss a particular NWO, it's going to be hitting a lot of you because I have a list of all your NWOs that each of you wrote up about yourself, as well as your co-workers, before you came to these meetings.--And a lot your NWOs are the SAME. So just TUNE IN & SUCK & try to APPLY what is brought out to yourself. See what hits you, & then work on those areas. But please don't be afraid of it. You'll see as we go on, it's not really anything to be afraid of. "There's NO FEAR in love." (1Jn.4:18a)
       45. (Isaac: Jesus said, "Every branch in Me that beareth fruit, He purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit."--Jn.15:2b. The purging comes AFTER you've borne fruit, but BEFORE you bear MORE fruit.)
       46. That's right. It's like when the preacher asked the farmer, "Do the vines fight you & try to squirm away when you're pruning them? Do they try to get you to stop pruning?" And the farmer replied, "No, of course not!" Then the preacher asked, "Are you pruning them to hurt them or because you don't like them or because you hate them?" "No, of course not," was the reply. "Then WHY are you doing it?" the preacher asked. And the farmer replied, "So they'll bring forth MORE fruit!" THAT'S why the Lord prunes & purges us, so we can be MORE fruitful. "Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit!" (Jn. 15:8a)
       47. So can't you trust the Lord to prune off your weak or dead branches in order to help you grow better, straighter & be more fruitful? If you know that's the purpose, then should you FIGHT AGAINST it or YIELD to it?

WE LEARN LESSONS NOT JUST FOR OURSELVES, BUT FOR OTHERS!

       48. Each of you leaders have had a lot of training, you've proven yourselves to be fruitful, so we want to help you become MORE fruitful! We want to invest MORE training in you so that you can take what you've learned & teach those who will work with you, & they will teach those who work with them!--So that the entire Family will learn & receive the training! It's the principle of 2nd Timothy 2:2!
       49. If those of you in this room get strengthened & learn to be better Shepherds & learn lessons that you can then teach others, you will be helping to strengthen the entire Family. The Family desperately NEEDS STRENGTHENING, especially for the days ahead, & one of the main ways to strengthen them is for you to learn all you can so you can go back to the field & go to work & help train people face-to-face, hand-to-hand, teaching them all you've learned & experienced. That's the goal! That's what we're aiming at! We all need to be desperately praying that the Lord will teach us whatever it is that we personally need to know, & that He will show each of us how we need to personally change so that He can accomplish that goal through us.
       50. Remember, we as leaders don't live unto ourselves. It's like Mama once told Sara & me, "Your problems, trials & victories aren't just for you, as leaders you've got to SHARE them with others. Besides learning lessons for yourself, you learn them for OTHERS." We, as leaders, may have to suffer a bit & we may have to get convicted & corrected, but remember it's not ONLY for ourselves, it's so we can SHARE our lessons to help others.
       51. This is not the time to try to wiggle out of the conviction & correction. This is the time to dive in all the way & say, "Let me have it, Lord, I really want it!", to DESIRE the change, DESIRE the exposure, DESIRE the correction! Your prayer should be, "Whatever it is, Lord, anything that I've done wrong or any NWOs that I have or any areas that I'm weak in, let me have it, so I can LEARN & become a BETTER SHEPHERD!"
       52. We will get from these meetings as much as we desire. "They that HUNGER & THIRST after righteousness shall be filled, but the full He hath sent empty away."--Mat.5:6; Luk.1:53. That's how it works. If we're hungry & WANT it, we'll get it; if not, we won't! We need to be hungering & thirsting not only for what we PERSONALLY need, but also for what we need as a BODY, so that the Lord will teach us not only for OURSELVES, but for OTHERS as well.

GOING OVER NWOS PUBLICLY: GOOD LEADERSHIP LESSONS FOR ALL!

       53. We COULD discuss your NWOs in personalised meetings. I could have you come into my room where we could discuss whatever your weaknesses are, & it would probably be very beneficial for YOU. However, nobody ELSE would learn anything from it. That would be a rather selfish way to go about it. Of course, it might be a little bit less humbling to do it that way because you'd only be humbled before me & whoever else I had there to help me, but only YOU would benefit from it.
       54. But like Mama said, "If you can endure discussing your NWOs in the presence of others, it will be a great benefit & help for EVERYBODY. It's good to go over these subjects TOGETHER because they're good leadership lessons for ALL. It doesn't really matter who's being talked to, because it's not just THEIR problems, it's problems that we all, as top leaders, have to be conscious of & work on."
       55. There may be points brought out in our "NWO Talks" that will cause you to think, "I never realised that my sample in that area affected people that way, I didn't even know that was one of my NWOs!" You will also benefit when we talk about somebody else's NWOs, therefore it's only fair for everyone to benefit from yours, right? Mama said, "Discussing these lessons TOGETHER is edifying for EVERYBODY, we can all be learning & talking about all the different aspects of a subject at the same time & we'll all learn from it together!"

NWO TALKS: HAVING AN EXCHANGE & BRINGING OUT EXAMPLES!

       56. It's very important that as we discuss these NWOs you all feel very free to add any points to the discussion that you feel led to share. These are FORUM-type meetings & we want to discuss the problem from all angles. Mama said, "This is an important part of training, to talk with people, to have an exchange, & an exchange means that the conversation is NOT just a monologue. The goal of such an exchange should be an improvement in behaviour & standard. We should be honest with each other as we talk about these problems. We need to bring out examples & see what the problem is in DETAIL, so we can learn together."
       57. That's why we need everybody to pipe up if you have something to say, because you might see some aspect of the problem from a whole different angle. For example, if we're talking about a specific NWO that you feel you have a weakness in, then you should share about it from your point of view. If all of us will discuss these things openly & honestly, then together we can milk it for all it's worth!--And in the end, we will have exposed all sides of the problem & learned as much as we can, which will benefit everyone.
       58. Also, in a case where we are talking to someone in particular about an area they need to work on, & you happen to be one of their close teamworkers or you worked with them before & there's something that you feel would be beneficial to mention to them, then please bring it up! As leaders we've all had to talk to people about their weaknesses, so if we've dished it out we should be able to take it too. You should bring it up nicely & sweetly & prayerfully, but DO bring it up. "Do unto others as you'd have others do unto you." THAT'S how to discuss NWOs.
       59. For example, if we are talking to Chris about his NWO, Isaac, who has worked with Chris for a long time, might want to bring up a specific incident that happened, to help make it more clear to Chris. Isaac could say, "There was a time when you did this & that & the result was that So-&-so was discouraged by it." Sometimes people don't fully understand the scope of their problem until they are given some SPECIFIC examples of how the problem manifests itself, & THEN it becomes much more clear to them. There's a difference between telling someone they have the general problem of being self-righteous & getting specific & saying, "This morning you did such-&-such & it hurt me." When you can give a specific example of how the self-righteousness was manifested, this brings it to a clearer & more understandable level. So if you have something of this nature to share during these "NWO Talks", you should. But please do it "as you'd have others do it unto YOU"--in LOVE!

YOU CAN CHANGE!

       60. Undoubtedly you might be tempted to get discouraged when you discover that many of the things that we discuss turn out to be NWOs that you didn't even know you had. You might think, "Wow, I originally turned in a list of 10 NWOs, but now I've got a list of 50! How in the World am I ever going to get the victory over them? How am I ever going to change? Dad had better come out with a Letter that says Jesus isn't coming back for 150 years, otherwise I won't have time to change in so many areas!" What you must remember is, "With GOD ALL things are possible!"--Mat.19:26b.
       61. You can change like THAT! (Snaps fingers) You can change in many areas instantly. It doesn't mean you're going to become perfect, but you CAN have an about-face in your life in these areas, if you want to, & if you let the Lord do it. Actually, over the last year or two, every one of you in this room has changed dramatically!
       62. "You can do ALL things through Christ which strengtheneth you!"--Phil.4:13. So don't get discouraged, the LORD can do it. You just have to LET Him, & show Him that you WANT it. It may look like a mountain of NWOs to some of you, but just know that the LORD can do it & the Lord WILL do it!--If you will YIELD.
       63. You WANT to change & grow, right? You're not here for any other reason than serving the Lord & serving God's Family & trying to be good Shepherds, right? So if those are your motives, then don't you think the Lord will help you change? Don't you think He will intervene & HELP you to if you're crying out & praying for such change? So please, don't get discouraged! Be ENCOURAGED that He has you here & that He's trying to teach you these things, & be excited as you anticipate by faith the changes that He will bring about in your life! And remember, HE will do it! "The LORD will perfect that which concerneth us."--Ps.138:8a.

HOW TO RECEIVE CORRECTION!

       64. There are two ways to take correction on your NWOs. One is enthusiastically, & the other is unenthusiastically. You'll find that ENTHUSIASTICALLY is the easier way. It'll be easier on you, the receiver, & on me, the giver. Your countenance, the nodding of your head & your "amens" should all be saying, "Please continue with what you're sharing. Give it to me, I really want it!"--Rather than, "Oh, this is too much, I can't take it! It hurts too much!" It's very important that you enter into this enthusiastically, because if you do you'll have a VACUUM & you'll communicate that vacuum to those who are pointing out your NWOs, who are probably having a hard enough time trying to tell you these things.
       65. You've had to correct people before, haven't you? I don't know about you, but for me it's difficult. But if someone is saying, "Yes, give it to me! Amen! That's right! That's really good!", it encourages me that the person receiving the correction WANTS it!
       66. By smiling & agreeing & entering in & accepting the correction, you put yourself into a RECEPTIVE mode; & you'll find that instead of FIGHTING against it, you'll be FLOWING with it. Instead of justifying yourself or getting defensive or sensitive or hurt, you'll be receiving & drinking it in.--In fact, you'll enjoy it, & you'll grow & change. You'll benefit from it & so will the Lord's Work.

CLOSING PRAYER

       67. (Prays:) Lord, we pray that You will help each of us in these meetings. Please work in our lives to make us better Shepherds.--More loving, more understanding with more wisdom. Help us to learn through these meetings to be more like THEE in every way, & more like Dad & Mama, so we can better shepherd Thy flock, Lord. They're THY children, they're THY sheep, & it's our desire & prayer that You will teach us how to better care for them. We know it means we'll have to change, and we WANT to, so please change us according to Thy Word. "Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in us will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."--Phil.1:6.
       68. Jesus, we pray especially for the NWO meetings. Please help us to present these points lovingly & gently, like You would. Help us not to have any fear. You said, "There is no fear in LOVE; but perfect love casteth out all fear," Jesus. (1Jn.4:18a) So we rebuke any fear that the Devil may be tempting us with, in Jesus' name! Rebuke it, Lord!
       69. Help us to DESIRE to hear about our NWOs, Lord, & to suck so we can learn, because we WANT to be better Shepherds. Please do work in our lives so we can change & grow, with the end result being that we become what You want us to be.--In Jesus' name, amen!
---------------------------------------

REACTIONS TO NWO MEETINGS

       70. (OSHEA:) One of the most important points that I saw in these meetings was how gently NWOs can be handled. Just seeing the sample of this was really beautiful & so helpful. It makes me want to do the same in handling situations, correction & pointing out weaknesses to others, to be able to handle it in a gentle sweet way that will really help people to get the point & want the change & even want & seek counsel & correction in weak areas. Because our NWOs have been handled in such a tender way, it's been quite easy to stay open about it & not have problems with sensitivity & not being able to take it!
       71. During our NWO talks, I was really impressed with how everyone here was so open to it all. I've always wanted to be so open, but for some reason I've always been hesitant inside. I would SAY I wanted correction, but I just wasn't convinced in my heart that it was a good thing for me. I believe it's probably because of a fear I had of having to go through the HURT of being corrected. But now it just seems like something clicked inside! I know I WANT it, & I'm not only saying it from my mouth, but I am saying it from my heart. It's real comforting to be able to be over that hump!
       72. What a blessing it is to be open & honest & free & liberated, just to be able to come clean before the Lord & forsake all.--Forsake all the mistakes & the hidden things & false fronts. It's like it's all been removed, it's a clean new day with a clean new slate & start. I feel re-inspired, lifted, happy, challenged, re-envisioned & ready to go again!
---------------------------------------
       73. (ISAAC:) I can't comment enough on how lovingly, sweetly, patiently & gently Peter handled us in the NWO meetings. It reminds me of the verse, "We were gentle among you even as a nurse cherisheth her children."--1Th.2:7. He was very gentle among us, but the points were still very clear, because it was done prayerfully & I'm sure with a lot of prayer in advance as well. The Holy Spirit was in control & there was a real atmosphere of faith, patience & quietness, so it DREW things out of us & we would VOLUNTEER to share our confessions or talk about our NWOs. Whereas if somebody had been talking fast or very forcefully, it might not have created that same vacuum for people to share so readily, without being prompted to do so.
---------------------------------------
       74. (LISA:) The NWO meetings have hit home every time. In fact, my NWOs have been some of those that have been discussed a lot lately & I certainly need every bit of it, & I'm so thankful. Everything applied to me in one way or another, so I'm thoroughly convinced that only the LORD can make these changes that I need. I've been so encouraged by all the Lord's said in our last meetings, both through the written Word & the living Word in prophecy, confirming that WE can't do it, but that HE will! PTL!
       75. I look around at everyone here & think of how precious it has been to learn from each one & see the Lord crystalise so many of the lessons & experiences learned on their various battlefronts.
---------------------------------------
       76. (SILAS:) It has been a real revelation for me in these meetings to see areas in my life that I didn't know were weaknesses. What would happen is some point would be brought out in a general way, & as the spotlight was turned on, I would begin to see how much I am like the certain things that were being discussed. One example is being over-cautious. It was a real liberation for me to go over this NWO & to see it as a weak area of my life. Now that I've recognised this weakness, it can become an area that I can make progress in with the Lord's help.
---------------------------------------
       77. (PHILLIP:) I really love you & am so thankful for this precious life-changing opportunity to be here & attend all these meetings & have my different NWOs exposed. When I first came here I felt pretty uneasy. I was a little nervous & expecting to get chewed out or corrected for my many mistakes, but I've been so encouraged by the completely different way in which these meetings have been handled. The amount of love, concern & patience that you've shown for me & all of us has been absolutely astounding. It's been so beautiful to see how each of these meetings have been not just pointing out our faults & NWOs, but a real time of training & teaching.
       78. In these meetings, even when talking about some of my own problems & mistakes, I haven't felt on the "hot seat" with everyone pointing the finger at me. Instead, everyone has been so loving & understanding, & each one of us has taken the points to heart & examined our own walk with the Lord to see where we have failed & how these different points apply to us. PTL! Peter's easy-going nature & his readiness to admit his own failures have also helped so much in allaying any of my fears, worries & concerns, & made it so much easier for me to want to bring out my mistakes & discuss them & try to find real answers to my problems, instead of trying to justify myself or hide behind some "misunderstanding or misrepresentation of the `facts'". PTL!
       79. I am beginning to see my weaknesses in a different light than ever before. It's been a very SOBERING & yet LIBERATING experience to be able to go over these different areas & have the counsel & help from so many others, with each one chipping in with their lessons, suggestions & counsel, as well as having your precious advice, Mama, on so many of them. Truly these have been days of Heaven & a time which I greatly treasure & appreciate! TYJ!
---------------------------------------

RECENT HISTORY OF FAMILY LEADERSHIP TRAINING!
By Peter A.

       80. (Before proceeding with more lessons & reactions from the Summit '90, we would like to include here some excerpts of a letter written by Peter to the South American NRO Shepherds. We felt this would be helpful & interesting, as it briefly covers the history of the training of many of the leaders who attended the Summit '90. We hope that this explanation will help clarify not only the time & attention that has been invested in our top leaders' training, but also the reasons WHY the training push began in the EAST & has just RECENTLY been able to progress on to the fields in the WEST. As this letter notes, there is a training push now underway in Latin America as special training centers are being set up to receive incoming leaders, but that is certainly not to say that Latin America is the ONLY area in the West where training is now being emphasised. Thank the Lord, training began in Europe in the beginning of 1989 & has just begun in North America. PTL!)
       81. Our Family worldwide, & in Latin America in particular, is on the brink of making some major steps forward, & we believe that by emphasising more personal training, spiritual oversight & discipline, our brethren in Latin American & worldwide will become even STRONGER fighters & BETTER witnesses with less personal & spiritual problems to contend with. Perhaps some of the Latin American Family might be thinking, "It's about time!"--Because for the last six or seven years the major emphasis has been directed to the East, with the real push of the last two years being focused on Japan. Undoubtedly, many in Latin America wished that more emphasis could have been put on their area & that they could have received more training & oversight. Well, NOW is the time! This is God's hour to emphasise further training in Latin America & throughout the World!
       82. Practically speaking, we just didn't have the trained personnel before to launch a major campaign for leadership training worldwide. It's taken YEARS to train our top leaders to be able to properly train others, & now, thank the Lord, some of them are available to move on to new fields where they can teach others. It's only been since the last half of 1989 that we have been able to start moving our trained leadership into new areas where they could begin passing on all they have learned.

RECENT LEADERSHIP TRAINING PUSH BEGAN WITH THE ELC!

       83. Perhaps it would help to explain a little of the recent history of the training of our top leaders in order to explain why it's only now that we are able to make such a training push in Latin America, as well as in Europe & the U.S. It seems that our present leadership training push had its roots back in 1985 around the time of the ELC (Eastern Leadership Conference). At that time the Philippine field was pretty much in shambles, so we took some of our WS personnel who had been operating in Units--Abi, Dawn, Josiah & Lisa--& moved them in to help the area. John & Mary, the NOs at the time, stepped down from their position & worked under Josiah & Lisa, the new NOs, & were able to begin getting retrained.
       84. About that time, we held the ELC Meetings with all the top leadership of the East during which we tried to share a variety of leadership tips & lessons. At the conclusion of the ELC, we held some further leadership meetings & pow-wows with Paul P., Faithy, Mark, Abi & Dawn who then went off to hold the European Leadership Meeting, the Searcher Trip, the LALC (Latin American Leadership Conference) & the Mexico Teen Camp. It was through these meetings that we tried to pass on to our worldwide leadership as many tips & lessons as possible. After these worldwide meetings, we re-assembled the Searchers & Ambassadors, along with Juan & Leah, for yet another series of leadership meetings & pow-wows.

COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE FOLKS TO EXPERIMENTAL HOMES RESULTED IN TRAINING!

       85. It was during this period that the Folks were helping Marianne to pioneer the Philippines Military Ministry & the DF Ministry. This meant that they were in frequent communication with Marianne & her Home, giving them counsel & instruction on virtually every aspect of their Home & outreach, which meant writing them detailed letters two or three times a week. The Folks were also greatly involved with how they ministered to the military. This close involvement of the Folks meant that Marianne & those in her Home, including Silas & Endureth, received a great deal of personalised counsel & training, most of which was also passed on to the Family through the DF Ministry "Word Witnessing Revolution" FSMs, as well as the GNs.
       86. Also during this time, Josiah & Lisa, the NOs of the Philippines, were receiving a fair bit of direct counsel & guidance via letters from the Folks, as they were experimenting with various new suggestions & ideas. Dad & Mama invested considerable time & effort trying to turn the Philippine field around, as it was in quite a poor state. The strides made in discipline, training, correction & instruction helped to pull the Philippines out of the doldrums & caused it to become not only quite a fruitful field, but also one which trained quite a few "pillars", people who were able to follow closely & obey, & who became good Home Shepherds, LASs, DASs, etc.
       87. After the last series of leadership meetings & pow-wows that were mentioned above, Juan returned to Latin America with Leah. Paul, Abi, Faithy & Josiah held the Philippine Y.E.S. in a location that they later turned into the Philippine Jumbo under Abi & Josiah's guidance. The Jumbo leadership & those who lived & worked there also received a great deal of counsel & help via letters from the Folks, as it was somewhat of an experimental situation. Mama was especially involved, as she had been with Marianne's DF Ministry Home. She frequently read their reports, commenting & correcting & giving answers to their questions on how to properly run the Jumbo, & how to handle some of the problems & situations that arose. So via this communication with Mama, Abi & Josiah, as well as all the others that helped to run the Jumbo, received specialised training.

PERSECUTION IN THE P.I., LEADERSHIP SPREADS OUT!

       88. After another leadership meeting with all the NOs of the East, the persecution began in the Philippines & eventually we had to evacuate much of the field, except for Marianne's DF Home & the Jumbo training center. Due to this evacuation, trained personnel from the Philippines went to Japan, India & Thailand. Paul P. went to Thailand & began working with Shem & Zeal & Cephas who were the NOs at that time. As he worked closely with them, it became clear that they too were in need of a great deal more training, & that they needed to gain a number of spiritual victories.
       89. By that time, a number of strong pillars had gone to Thailand, among them were Silas & Endureth who had been trained at Marianne's. They had gone to shepherd the Thai DF Home & later attended the Thai YES. It became quite obvious to Paul that Silas & Endureth's training was what was needed at the NO level, & Silas & Endureth were eventually appointed NOs. Shem went to receive more training at Marianne's & then the Jumbo, & Zeal (Mary) worked for awhile as junior NO, & eventually helped strengthen other local field leadership teamworks.
       90. It was during this time that Isaac made a trip, at the Folks' request, to Japan. He discovered that the field there was doing rather poorly & the leadership, in spite of how hard they were trying, were not trained enough to properly do the job. Because of that, we felt it was important to put the Japan NO leadership in a position where they would be able to receive the training that they needed. We therefore asked them to step down from their NO positions, & we sent Chris to Marianne's & Maggie to the Jumbo, as these were the two main training centers at that time.

THE BEGINNING OF LEADERSHIP TRAINING IN JAPAN!

       91. Paul & Josiah then teamed up together with Isaac in Japan to hold the Japan Leadership Conference. Because of the poor condition of the Homes & the weak leadership of Japan at the time, Paul, Isaac & Josiah, with the Folks' agreement, decided to demote all the leadership of the entire country & then re-appoint only those Shepherds who were fully supporting & helping the new push to strengthen the field. They also appointed a number of the leaders who had come from the Philippines & who had already received a certain amount of good training. Soon thereafter, Chris, the former Japan NO, returned from Marianne's to Japan & became co-NO with Josiah. (Around this time, Gallio, Tiago & Ebed arrived in the East from Latin America for the purpose of retraining.)
       92. Some months after that, the main contingent of the Philippine Jumbo along with Abi, Dawn & Lisa moved to Japan & were housed at the Heavenly City School. This meant that Paul, Isaac, Josiah & Chris were involved in running Japan, with Abi, Dawn & Lisa running the School. Paul soon moved on to India to help with training there, working with the NO team of Samuel, Charity & Andrew. Some months later Isaac, Sara D. & I were able to spend a number of months running the HCS. We were able to further train Abi, Dawn & other leadership at the School, & at the same time bring in people from the field to partake of the training that was going on there. One such person who was brought in for training was Dust, who was GAS of Northern Japan at the time. After working with Dust for awhile at the HCS, it was obvious that he had a lot of leadership potential, so we later appointed him as a junior member of the Japan NO Teamwork, & he began working with Josiah & Chris.
       93. During this time, we also held a worldwide leadership conference at the HCS, which Juan & Leah & many others attended. Besides those who staffed the HCS & went through about a year & a half of training there, there were also many people who came in from the field for various seminars & Rotational Training Programs (RTP). So all in all, many people were able to partake of the training at the HCS. Also during this time, Marianne had moved to Japan & also took in a number of top Family Members & nationals to train in her Home.
       94. After another set of meetings with the top leadership in Japan, Dawn, Dust & Mark moved on to Europe to begin strengthening & training brethren there, followed by under-shepherds from the East who helped form the leadership structure of all the European countries.

USING THOSE WHO ARE TRAINED TO TRAIN OTHERS!

       95. So as you can see, the training that many of the people in the East have received has been a culmination of YEARS of training leaders, who in turn were able to share what they had learned with others. We had to basically start at the top by taking members of WS who had been working in Units & offices & who had at least received some degree of personalised training in how the Folks operate. We sent them out to the field to share the training that they had received with others, while at the same time we continued to pump more training into them through further meetings & close oversight.
       96. The Folks communicated & helped with some of the various experimental Homes (such as Marianne's, the Jumbo, the HCS etc.) in order to experiment with different ideas to see how things should operate in our Homes & outreach, which resulted in a number of new Letters for the World. The leaders involved in these experimental Homes received a tremendous amount of counsel & training, much of which was also passed on to the Family via the "Letters of Counsel" FSMs, ELC FSMs, & most recently in the Teen & Childcare FSMs.
       97. Once our top leadership had been better trained, they were in turn able to go & share that training with others, & those people who worked with these leaders were then also able to move on to other areas to share that training.--And this is basically the stage that Latin America is at right now, receiving some of this trained personnel.
       98. In short, we have learned that the most practical way to try to spread the training to other areas is to send in those leaders & pillars who have ALREADY received some training. This worked well in the Philippines, Thailand, India, Japan & Europe, & it's our hope that it will also work well in Latin America.

LEADERSHIP TRAINING IS A NEVER-ENDING PROCESS!

       99. As you can see from this history, it has taken YEARS to try to train our top leaders to operate prayerfully, with Godly wisdom, in harmony & unity, learning how to handle others. But even more important than the TRAINING that was passed on to them, through recent years these leaders have gone through tremendous crushings & remakings that have taught them greater dependence on the Lord. The Lord has turned up the fire in their lives & has burned off many of the impurities. Each of these leaders & pillars has had to make major commitments to the Lord & has had to win numerous major spiritual battles.
       100. The leadership TRAINING alone that they all received was NOT enough to make them into the kind of leaders the Family needs!--They had to also get ahold of the LORD in their personal lives & go through spiritual changes & breakings. They had to learn numerous lessons of humility, honesty, & submission. They had to give up THEIR way of doing things & learn to accept God's ways.
       101. And of UTMOST importance, they had to learn to look to the Word & all that Dad has taught us over the years & continues to teach us as he faithfully feeds us & leads us in the way we should go. Without exception, all our present top leaders have had to experience what could be termed a "Word revolution" in their lives, through which they learned to depend on the WORD above all else for their answers, inspiration & guidance. They learned that the WORD is the secret to success & fruitfulness, & they have since been trying to impart this very important principle to their undershepherds & flocks.
       102. Of course, as the years passed some people couldn't make these changes & fell by the wayside; others are still struggling to change, & even those who have so far passed the tests, & are being mightily used, are STILL learning & growing. It's a never-ending process! PTL!

Copyright 1996 The Family