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"TO THE NORTHWEST BRETHREN--AND SISTERS!"--MO       September, 1971       NO.109--LTA

Copyrighted September, 1971 by The Children of God
P.O. Box 31, London WC2E 7LX, England or GPO Box 31, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00936

ADVICE AND COMMENTS TO NORTHWEST LEADERS--CHASTISEMENT; TAPING, ETC.

       1. My Dearly Beloved Children in the Lord: Greetings in Jesus' Precious name!--And a SPECIAL WELCOME TO ALL OF OUR NEW CHILDREN OF GOD IN YOUR NEW COLONIES, made new and one with us by His Spirit and His Truth in that great Northwest Territory!
       2. WE ARE ALL THRILLED WITH YOUR PROGRESS THERE, AND HUNGRILY READ EVERY WORD of your reports for the latest news of the exciting battles going on there for the Lord! We even read them for our devotions--for, after all, are they not a continuation of the Acts of the Apostles?--Only these are excitingly fresh and thrillingly up to date--His Children in Action NOW, not yesterday, but today!
       3. Jeth and Deb, David and David, Uriah and Tab, Paul and Demaris, Meggido and Mara, Caleb and all the rest of you have all been doing a fantastic job, from what we hear! So many of you and your leaders we do not even know yet, but we're so happy to be joined together with you in Spirit and in His Work, Praise God, and we hope to get to know you better as we work together for His Kingdom! God bless you! We love you all!
       4. JETH AND DEB, YOU SEEM TO BE HANDLING THE SITUATION AS WISELY AS YOU KNOW HOW, and the Lord is certainly leading you, with as few mistakes as possible in this new and rather unusual situation. We've enjoyed your letters and tapes immensely, and want to thank you for your thoughtfulness in them all, and in your now-resumed faithfulness in communicating. I'm sorry I had to scold you for neglecting to communicate, but you were to be blamed there for awhile no matter how busy you were. But, now all is forgiven, and you have more than redeemed yourselves by this new flood of communications we've been receiving lately. Thank you. We love you, and hope that you still love us in spite of the spanking we had to give you!--"Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth"!
       5. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR DAUGHTER DEB, OUR FIRST-BORN OF THE ORIGINAL LITTLE FAMILY OF THE CHILDREN OF GOD! Hallelujah! You have surely been one of our most faithful and diligent leaders! The Lord must love you, He gives you so many spankings through me, so you know that I love you all, seeing how that I have spared not my own daughter, but have delivered her up for you all, that ye might all profit thereby, and know that I am willing to also freely give you all things, having sacrificed unto you my own flesh and blood--but not only for you, but also the whole world, as you are now scattered around the world in many different nations! So please forgive me for neglecting your birthday, and I'm glad that you, too, have the spirit of His Revolution--birthday or no birthday! GBY!
       6. WE MANAGED TO FINALLY DECIPHER AT LEAST PART OF THAT LOUSY RECORDING of your San Diego TV interview, Deb, and from what we were able to gather from that terrible tape, you did a good job of defending the Faith and attacking the Enemy!--And even that cursed cassette can be credited with inspiring my latest outburst on tape recording!--Which I hope will profit us all in getting better recordings. We just got one from dear Watchman, which was almost as bad, and nearly unintelligible, sad to say, despite the fact that we were very interested in what he had to say. If you read this Watchman, as you probably will, since our letters are usually shared with most of you brethren, even though they be to others--please accept our thanks for your thoughtfulness, but you were right about the tape!--It was so fuzzy we could hardly understand it, except for your personal introduction, which you had apparently dubbed in at the beginning of the tape on a good recorder, with a good mike held close to your mouth. Please let's all do away with these across-the-room recordings! Please see that these recording mikes are even closer to the mouths of the speakers and singers than the PA mikes! And please don't depend on the PA to do the job of recording clear across the room! Thanks.--You secretaries please don't depend on mere tapes to get these good classes down! If you can't take them down verbatim, at least get their main points for the record--the written record--that all can have and peruse for later benefit!--Please?--Thanks! If there aren't enough secretaries to monitor every class and meeting, get 'em or pray 'em in!
       7. JETH, YOU SEEM TO BE BECOMING QUITE A PREACHER, AS WELL AS A GOOD BUSINESS MANAGER, since our last little session together, from which you evidently truly profited, and is now bearing good fruit. From what I can hear, you're really making progress, and more Power to you! God bless you! You know I love you, and we're praying you'll become one of God's best, and one of David's mightiest men, with true love and loyalty! PTL!
       8. YOU WERE WISE IN PUSHING DAVID H. FORWARD IN THAT SITUATION THERE, which is why we sent him. However, you might have been wiser to push him forward even more in some of those situations, as he knows that kind of people better than we do, having been one of them, and might have been a little more diplomatic, patient, and understanding, and perhaps would have had the wisdom to have stayed off of so many controversial issues into which the rest of you plunged!--At least in the early stages! However, maybe you just saved us all time by giving them the shock treatment right off the bat, even with "That Damn Old Sound" (which we were horrified to hear that you were using up there). So maybe you just blew away the chaff in a hurry, and they couldn't have been spared anyhow!

ADVICE ON WINNING AND REHABILITATING CHURCH SYSTEMITES

       9. NEVERTHELESS, I WANT TO WARN ALL OF YOU THAT ALTHOUGH THERE ARE CERTAINLY NO NEUTRALS WHEN THE HOUR OF DECISION COMES, until that hour comes, there may be some who are still hanging in the balance who might be swayed easily one way or the other, depending on how much love and wisdom you use, or how many offenses you commit! "But offenses needs must come," and "blessed is he that is not offended in Me." (Mt.18:7; 11:6) Just remember that some people learn slowly, don't always adjust readily, and need a little time to grow. You can't push some people too fast. SYSTEM WITHDRAWAL is the hardest, worst, and most long-lasting of all! It is diabolical! I ought to know! I went through it for years--and it took me a long time to get this far, as many others of you with strong churchy backgrounds can probably also testify. Those with strong, churchy, Christian backgrounds are the hardest of all to rehabilitate! Some may have even already partially left the System, but it's still hard to get the System out of them. It's easier to reach and teach a hippie off the street, because he's already dropped out, already hates the System, and Churchianity, and knows that's not where it's at! He only needs to be told where to find the Answer in the love of Jesus and the Brethren, and to see it with his own eyes to believe it!
       10. BUT THE GOOD CHRISTIAN CHURCH FOLKS HAVE BEEN TOO DEEP IN IT, ARE TOO INDOCTRINATED WITH IT, too brain-washed by it, and too molded through it, to get out that easy. They have real withdrawal pains--real birth pangs, and it's not easy for them, and they still think the Church wasn't all that bad, and don't see why we have to so completely and totally break with it and rebel against the whole Churchianity System! They're like the people in Mountain Valley: they're so far above the rest of the world, they think they are really pretty good, and don't see too much wrong with where they're at! Isn't it better than most people? That's why Churchianity is such a damnable deception, and such an accursed counterfeit! It's that sickening lukewarmness that puts 'em to sleep and doesn't wake them up, like dousing them with either hot or cold water would! Even a completely cold unsaved person, like the Publicans and Sinners and the Drunks and the Harlots that Jesus dealt with, knew they needed something--but the lukewarm Scribes and Pharisees thought they were rich and increased in goods and had need of nothing--and the real red-hot Christians really offend them, because they show them up for the hypocrites that they are--that they're nothing but Mountain Valleyites who've never actually climbed the Mountain of His Power, Sacrifice, Witnessing, and One Hundred Percent total Discipleship and utter Commitment! So they don't really know even what they're talking about, they are such phonies, and don't even know it!
       11. HOWEVER, BECAUSE SOME OF THEM ARE IGNORANTLY SO, because they've never had the Truth or had a chance to make a decision, you might yet be able to win them, if you use an extra lot of love and patience, wisdom and nursing. They're like handicapped, half-dead-born, deformed, retarded children! Horrible, isn't it, what System Churchianity does to its children--the kind of children borne by the Whore! But we have to try to salvage them if we can, even though some of them seem like hopeless cases!--Especially when God throws them right in our laps, or leaves the poor little orphans on our doorstep! Otherwise, it's too hard to try to get them out of their orphanages and hospitals!
       12. AND THEY'RE TOO DIFFICULT TO CURE OF THEIR MANY RELIGIOUS DISEASES AND DEFORMITIES, and they're so far behind in their extremely backward state of retardation, they just aren't hip--and I'd rather deal with those who are, any day! Even the worst of the hippies and the most radical of the revolutionaries knows more about what the score is today and what's happening and what's wrong with it, than the average churchy Christian! The hippies have at least got their eyes open--but there are none so blind as the will-not-see church people! I don't know if it's even worth the trouble of trying to pry their lids open, and operate on their spiritual eyesight, when they don't really want to see, and are satisfied just like they are. I've nearly given up on church people: they are almost a hopeless case! But when they actually come to us begging for help, like the Nicodemuses, Rich Young Rulers, Almost Disciples, Houses of Cornelius, Blind Bartimaeuses, Ten Lepers, and others really seeking help, we've got to try to do something for them, even if only a few of them make it. We will have at least delivered our souls! These churchy people are really the babes of all babes! They can't even begin to stand as strong meat as the kids on the street! You really have to baby them along, hold 'em by the hand, keep a bottle in their mouth, and constantly be comforting their wailings, and answering their complaints! They are horrible, really sick, and the slightest little morsel of meat or solid food sticks in their craw, or terribly upsets their extremely weak spiritual stomachs! They just can't take anything--and sometimes I wonder if they are worth the trouble!
       13. BUT LET'S FACE IT, I WAS ONE OF THE WORST OF THEM--A PHARISEE OF THE PHARISEES--a Jew of the Jews--a Hater of Hippies--a Curser of Commies--and so damn sanctimonious and self-righteous in my narrow little doctrines and exclusive little religiosity, that you couldn't have touched me with a ten-foot pole! I thought I really had it made, like the Apostle Paul! I would have held the coats for those who stoned any different Stephens and would probably have tossed a few bricks myself!--Until the Lord had to strike me down with direct light and voices from Heaven, before He could wake me up! And even then, it took me years to learn all the facts, the whole truth, the awful truth--So that now sometimes I even shock myself, and am shocked with what the Lord is doing--absolutely awed by the radicalism of His Spirit, and the Revolution of His Truth!
       14. IT'S BEEN A REAL MIND-BLOWER FOR ME, AND HAS TOTALLY FREAKED ME OUT, AND NEARLY BLEW ME AWAY--if it hadn't been for the persistent patience of His Spirit, the faithfulness of His Word, and the Love of others. Thank God, I believe I'm makin' it! I might even make it yet! I certainly haven't yet attained, but we're all still learning, and with us former Pharisaical churchy Christians, it's a long, hard, painful, drawn-out process sometimes, instead of an immediate crisis and an instant transformation! The Hippies of today are His instant Disciples--but most of your former Christians have to learn the hard way. We've certainly had less success with them and I think when we finish analysing all of our backsliders of the past, we'll find that most of them were former Christians, so-called. And I think you'll find that most of our strongest, most faithful and loyal Children and Leaders were not very churchy to begin with! I certainly didn't rear my kids that way! They were born Revolutionists--born and reared after I had already begun to revolt! We took 'em out of school and out of church, and taught and trained them ourselves, and never let the God-damned System have them, Thank God! That's why they're all so strong today, and why you're just like them! We reared you all the same--only I think some of you later children are even an improvement on the stock! Hallelujah! Amen?

EXHORTATION TO A FORMER RELIGIOUS SYSTEMITE

       15. WELL, THERE I'VE QUIT MEDDLIN' AND GONE TO PREACHING! Forgive me! Now I'll try get back to meddlin' again! David, I loved your letter and literature--yours and David Z's! God bless you both, Sons! You seem to be doing a great job in both leading that Colony, as well as producing new Revolutionary material! I'm enclosing copies of each of them, returning them to you with my comments and suggestions! Keep up the good work! In fact, as I was reading one of your tracts, I had quite a thrilling experience! I got something right fresh off the griddle directly from the Lord, for you personally David H.--Something which always excites me and thrills me through and through, no matter how often it happens! As I was reading one of your tracts, I got to thinking about how hard the Devil fought you, what battles you went through, and how terribly the Enemy tried to oppress you in those early days. There was a terrific spiritual war going on between Satan and the Lord, even over your body and your mind, as well as your spirit, because the Devil knew what a Power you're going to be for the Lord in these Last Days! I've prayed for you a lot lately through all these trying times and these testings I knew you were being tried by--but as I was reading your tract, and began praying for you again, as well as praising God for these bits of your literature,--real tangible signs of genuine victory--I can sense it by their spirit--suddenly the Spirit Himself bare witness, as He unexpectedly exploded with a message in tongues! I was just saying to someone here: "David is really oppressed sometimes. The Devil attacks him terribly because he knows how mightily God is going to use him. He reminds me of one of the martyrs of old! He's like Aaron: I think he really wants to be a martyr for the Lord!"--(and the Spirit exploded with this to confirm it:) "Even as My mighty men of old lay down their lives, and took up their cross and followed Me, and loved not their lives to the death, but overcame by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.--So have I chosen this one, that he may perform My Will, that with his pen he may pick up the Sword and fight the battles of the Lord, like David of Old!"--HALLELUJAH!!!!!
       16. ISN'T THAT TERRIFIC, SON? YOU'VE REALLY GOT A TREMENDOUS MINISTRY AHEAD OF YOU! Of course, it's gonna cost you your life, but I believe you're gonna fulfill it, if you faint not! (Someone here says I sound and look like a proud father!--Well, I am!--of you!) Praise God! All Glory be to Jesus! He's the One that does it all! We're merely His yielded instruments, vessels of clay in the Hand of the Potter!--Merely doing His Will and serving His Purpose, for which we were called and foreordained before the foundation of the earth! Thank God you were also chosen, because you answered His Call, and chose to obey! Praise the Lord! Thank you Jesus for David!
       17. SO, SON DAVID, CONSIDER EARNESTLY THE CALLING WHEREIN HE HAS CALLED YOU, and be not afraid of their faces, for I feel He has a mighty work for you to do--by both word and testimony, and a pen that is mightier than the sword! I believe you could be the Apostle Paul of the Jesus People--a brand snatched from their burning, once one of their own number, and familiar with their faults, sympathetic with their needs, and bold enough to try to show them the true Answer from the Word of God--a real Witness to the Pharisees and a testimony against them!--Because you've been there! You know what they're in, and what they're going through!--So don't be surprised if He should on occasion, by the leading and power of His Spirit, make you a Jesus-People Synagogue-Splitter, like Paul was, especially of those Houses which are still bound by the legalism of the churchianity System! He may use you to set them free, as Paul did--even some of those which you yourself founded! But I am sure you will suffer for it, and perhaps even give your life for your brethren, even as Paul also did, when his work was done! Praise God!
       18. HOWEVER, I THINK THE APOSTLE HIMSELF WOULD HAVE LASTED A LITTLE LONGER IF HE HAD USED A LITTLE GREATER WISDOM, AND HAD NOT COMPROMISED by going back to Jerusalem, at the behest of the Concision, to try to please the Jews, who were hopelessly incorrigible, and totally bound by their Templism, self-righteousness, and rigid resistance against the Truth! He might have lasted a little longer if he had stayed on the mission field with the Gentiles, who were receiving him and his message gladly! So please don't go back to them too soon,--and, whatever you do, if you ever go back, don't pull your punches or try to please them by compromising with them, as Paul did! I believe God let him make that mistake to warn us not to try the same stunt, and to show us that it's impossible to please some people, no matter how much you compromise with them!
       19. BUT YOU MIGHT AT LEAST PRAY ABOUT IT--AND IF THE LORD SO LEADS, when your work is done there in the Northwest, and that beachhead is firmly established, perhaps the Lord would lead you and your leaders there, to take a very strong team of very strong brethren in an attempt to deliver your soul to those houses you helped start, by sweetly, humbly, meekly, and quietly, invading them, with a visit with the Truth! Who knows but what you might subvert whole houses for the Lord, or at least rescue a few truly hungry disciples as the apostle Paul did! If you'll study the record, you'll discover that he was faithful in going to the Jews first--the religious establishment of his day--delivered his soul of the truth, and split nearly every synagogue he went into--but almost always got some disciples, even though he suffered terrible persecution for it! Please pray about it.

PUBLICATIONS--ALWAYS INCLUDE YOUR ADDRESS

       20. Thank you for sending me copies of your latest products, David, for double-checking! I hope you like the suggestions--but do as you feel led! I WANT TO HEREWITH REMIND ALL OF YOU WHO ARE PRODUCING AND PRINTING LITERATURE THAT I THINK YOU SHOULD PUT SOME ADDRESS ON EVERY SINGLE PIECE--either your local Colony address, preferably--or if produced for worldwide use, at least the address of our Information Centre--Box 119, Dallas, Texas 75221, so you can put a hook in your bait, in order that you might catch some of the fish you're feeding it to! If they don't decide at the moment, they might come around to see you later--or they might find one of your tracts somewhere, and wonder where you are when they need you, which would be tragic, not to be able to find you! So PLEASE GET those addresses on our literature, Colonies! Anything produced at our Publication Centres should always bear something like this: "Why not visit our local Colony nearest you, or write Information Centre, Box 119, Dallas, Texas 75221, for its address or further information." And, Publication Centres, on your literature for worldwide distribution, not only have this on the back or tail end, but also leave at least a small space somewhere, even in the margin or centrefold where each of the local Colonies can stamp their own local Colony address! Amen? Praise the Lord! After all, if they like what we have to say, we want them to be able to know where to find us--as they probably need us! And if they don't like it, it wouldn't make that much difference anyhow! So please remember those addresses, Boys, including by all means "The Children of God Information Centre, Box 119," etc. Always try to give your telephone numbers, also, Colonies, and avoid the use of street addresses on your literature--because we move frequently, being Pilgrims and Strangers here--and you can often take a phone number with you, but certainly not a street address--and they can always phone and find out where you are--and you can also hereby try to filter out visitors that you don't want! This word to you wise should be sufficient! In fact, if you have room on some of your literature, you might even try to list the major Colonies, or even all the colonies on the back, with their cities and phone numbers, which would save some of the local Colonies from having to stamp each individual piece with their own name and phone number, which is quite a hassle, and almost a full-time job for somebody, as fast as we use literature! Well, praise the Lord! How's that for a paragraph?

ADVICE TO NORTHWEST LEADERS--JESUS PEOPLE MERGERS; CHILDREN, ETC.

       21. DAVID H. AND DAVID Z., I would also like to request a personal report from you, especially you, David H, on how you think we're handling the Jesus People situation up there, what you think we're doing right, and even what you think we're doing wrong, or what you think we may have done wrong, so that we might try to correct it and do better next time! If you think we've made some mistakes, I wish you would tell us about them, so we can try to correct them! Thanks!
       22. David, you might even get together with those who have participated in that and similar Jesus People mergers with us, such as your own in Atlanta, etc., and compare notes on what to do and what not to do in such cases, and compile a good leadership Training Class on the subject--because if God does what He says He's going to do, as you heard in a recent Bible Study, there're going to be a lot more of these mergers! PTL! Hope to be hearing from you soon, Son, on both of these matters! Thanks! God bless you! God's Will be done, Son!--And I'm glad you have put His Kingdom first! You'll never lose by seeking first the Kingdom! I had to leave my own family for months at a time to do God's Work, and some said I was neglecting them--and they'd all go astray or turn out bad. But I put them in the Lord's hands! I knew He was better able to care for them than I was, and He never failed!--They are now all strong leaders of the Revolution--every one! Praise God!
       23. So sorry to hear we lost Russ! Where did we fail?--Or did we?--Maybe later! But we're bound to have a few casualties in this warfare! It's a deadly business for some!
       24. Deb, I heartily agree with you in your concern about our little children, the schools etc., nursery, toddlers' house, and all! They're our most important crop aside from souls! The need is great, and the labourers few. I pray God will burden some of you for it! Your concern for the office is understandable, and we're doing all we can to take care of it. Glad you're getting that camp ready, Uriah!--We're gonna need it! Please keep warm--all of you!

Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family