Prepare the way for the Lord
[ADMIN NOTE: It appears this article was sent into us as a hoax. As such, I have changed the picture. Still, this article does capture the real ideas that make up UBFism. Please read with caution.]
I want to share my testimony from this week’s message because I feel that sometimes the positive things about UBF are not heard on this site. I hope that you will appreciate my humble offering before the Lord. God bless.
In this week’s message, Pastor Ron Ward gives us great insight into how we can prepare the way for the Lord. These are dangerous times and we need an equally dangerous message. I mean dangerous in two senses here: the first is real danger, like living in an immoral and spiritually corrupted time where Christians can become infected by the culture. The second danger is a good one, at least for spiritual people, meaning that God’s word is dangerous to the forces of Satan because it has the power to set people free from his captivity. So in that sense, the words of God from his servant can match the dangerousness of the time that we live in. Also, there is another danger to Christians when they hold onto God’s words. Recently, a Kentucky clerk who was to issue marriage licenses refused to give them to homosexuals on the basis of God’s holy law. She was put in jail, thus signaling the unjust persecution of Christians. She had her own marriage problems being divorced many times, however God forgave all of her sins through Jesus’ precious blood and then called her to serve at the dangerous front lines to pull this country out of depravity. May God be with her and keep her strong.
Identity Snatchers
Over a year ago, I wrote a provocative article here on ubfriends, entitled Shepherd Brian is Dead. It is an unfortunate reality that in order to have any kind of conversation with UBF members, I need to use such rhetoric. Dropping the C-bomb (as Joe likes to call it) is the only way I have found that leads to some honest, real answers about the UBF ministry. In my article last year, I wrote this:
“Why do I claim University Bible Fellowship is a cult? The answer is because ubf shepherds and missionaries are identity snatchers. They spiritually abused me and thousands others by stealing our identity and persuading us to adopt their identity. That identity was called “Shepherd Brian”. But that is not who I am. That was never who I was. That is not my authentic self.”
That comment about identity snatching stuck with me. It has now lead to my new book.
When Christians Make Christianity Ugly
We Christians are firmly convinced that we should choose between:
- God and sin,
- God and money,
- right and wrong,
- good and bad,
- heaven and hell,
- monogamy and polygamy…and rightly so.
Two categories. This can be regarded as dualistic thinking. It is to see everything in two categories and two categories only. It promotes elitism, exclusivity and exclusionary thinking, which invariably denigrates, disparages and denounces those who are not on “your side.”
The Ubferator!
Hey everyone, we just topped 19,000 comments! The conversations have been rather heavy lately, so I thought we could all use a good laugh. I am in tears from laughing so hard at this! Check it out.
Back to School
Yesterday we sent off our second daughter to college. Wow, time flies so fast! My wife and I are so thankful there is no ubf chapter there :) To celebrate this back to school season, I have three gifts for you!
Are you in a Christian ministry?
Before we publish MJ’s excellent new article, I want to share a few mid-week thoughts. Ben’s recent comment about being HOT (honest, open and transparent) prompted me to come up with a top 10 list, Letterman style, to find out if your ubf chapter is a Christian ministry or not. Can you be HOT at your ubf chapter? These 10 statements are normal and healthy. Even a really messed up Christian church would have little concern over these statements. What does your ubf shepherd say about these things? Can you share some of these things every Friday in your testimony (or reflection, sogam, whatever they call it now)?
Have the Conversation on LGBTQIA – Part 3
Thousands of former members have noticed the oppression at UBF stemming from spiritual abuse. Hundreds have documented their stories publicly on the internet. A few have spoken up about the threats received when you disobey your Korean shepherd. I share with you now yet another layer of oppression at UBF. If you are not cisgender and heterosexual, you have another layer of burden to deal with. The clear UBF teaching on homosexuality is that such people are not merely immoral, but are like swine flu, spreading throughout the world. Gender and sexual minorities are spoken against at UBF as the harbingers of the end of the world and destroyers of society. I seek to have the conversation however. Here is part 3, which I have completely changed after learning about Alan Turing.
A Culture of Burden
[Admin note: We received the following article here at ubfriends and were asked to share it. This speaks to the culture of burden that UBF shepherds and missionaries cultivate. The burden typically goes up on pregnant mothers. Please read, reflect and react.]
“Answer to Brian’s post June 3, 2015”
Hello, Everybody, My name is Sigrid Goff. I used to belong to Cologne UBF in Germany, then to Washington UBF until 1996 or 1997. I don’t quite remember when exactly I left. I would like to add another item to Brian’s list of UBF’s unlawful behavior posted on June 3, 2015 and that is, child abuse and neglect.
Continue reading →
The Blessed Life
Because I have found myself in the unofficial, unsanctioned exit counselor role for ubf, people from ubf have contacted me for help at the rate of once per month. From January 2014 until now, exactly 17 people have reached out to me for some sort of assistance in processing their ubf lifestyle. One of the most comon themes is that ubf shepherds tell them that leaving ubf will bring about God’s curse, or at least will mean not having God’s blessing. The teaching is that if you stay you will be blessed, if you leave you lose that blessing. This is such a traumatic issue to deal with that many have been distraught. One young woman who contacted me last year was so depressed over this issue that she had thoughts of suicide and was seeking professional psychology help. She is much better now thanks to the mercy of many people. So today I want to share how blessed my life is after leaving ubf. I share these things not to brag, but to demonstrate my life as living proof that leaving ubf does not equate to losing God’s blessing. If anything, the norm I have seen from those who reach out to me is that after an initial period of turmoil, their lives become notably more blessed.
Memorial Day 2015
Memorial Day in the United States is a day of remembering the men and women who gave their lives defending freedom. It is a day of somber remembrance and gratitude. For me, Memorial Day has come to have new meaning. After leaving ubf, I remembered former members discussing the suicides of ubf members. I decided to do my own research, especially about the suicide at Chicago ubf in 2005. I found L-Train reports and discovered that indeed, the former members were correct. There was a suicide in 2005. So I decided to dedicate Memorial Day with an additional meaning–a day of remembering those who chose suicide in the midst of their problems and the burdens placed on them by the ubf lifestyle.
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