Things may be finally looking up for Living Church of God! It seems that there is a disproportionate number of LCG members who have no interest in watching Richard Ames and others on LCG's telecast, nor do many in LCG care to read its literature! Seriously, who can blame them! All of their telecasts, magazine articles and literature are nothing more than a rehash of decades-old articles and programs. Do any of these men in any of the Churches of God have an original thought in their heads? It is 2018 and most of the COG's still live in the 1950-1960's mode of church literature and beliefs. Just how many articles do LCG members need to read about sex? How many do they need to read about the law? Maybe, just maybe, they would like to read about Jesus, or grace, or mercy - all topics sorely ignored in LCG.
Even more interesting in Weston's comments is that LCG members know more about literature in other COG's than they do their own! So delightful!
Gerald Weston writes in the latest letter to the members:
Why You Need to Read This
Gerald E. Weston
July/August 2018
Mr. Richard Ames is famous for asking congregations for a show of hands of how many watched the latest telecast or read the latest magazine. After scanning the audience, he then announces the percentage of the crowd who raised their hands, using an impressive degree of precision, such as 38.4 percent. This usually brings a chuckle from those present, as a guess like this can never be so exact, but, sadly, the figure is often less than what we might hope it would be.
While I rarely ask for a show of hands at services, it is evident to me from conversations before and after services that this is indeed the situation. Many members do not watch the telecast and many do not read our literature. This is a curious phenomenon, as we find that some of these same members are well-versed in the literature of others. And it is evident that the problem is not lack of time, as people today spend loads of time on Facebook, snapchat, twitter, e-mail and/or television.Gerald Weston, who says he himself is boring, admits that LCG literature may also be boring!
One must wonder why this is the case. Perhaps our writings are not compelling enough for members to read them or our Tomorrow’s World telecasts fail to compete favorably with other options. If that is the case, we sincerely apologize. And please do not think this is a veiled request for compliments, encouraging faithful members to write supportive and encouraging letters. It is not. We know that there is great support and many prayers offered up to God for the telecast, our literature, and for us personally. Instead, this is an attempt to encourage all members to prioritize their lives so that they know the direction God is leading us. After all, either God is working through His servants or He is not!Well Gerald, perhaps this is a clue that He is not! Ever thought of that? How can members be expected to prioritize their lives to know where God is leading when the LCG itself does not know? The 1950's and 1960's, the glory days of the Worldwide Church of God are over! They are long gone and will NEVER be recaptured by any COG in this day and age. Rudderless Churches of God who ignore Jesus and prostrate themselves at the feet of the law will never have any future.
Weston goes on in his missive to discuss how Paul and others wrote letters that ended up being so important that they were included in the canon of the Bible. Apparently, Weston thinks LCG literature may soon fit that standard! Imagine 1,000 years from now people sitting down to read letters from LCG writers that have been canonized into scripture! What an absolutely APPALLING thought! There is no need to worry though, that will never happen. If these men truly believe in the Jesus they claim to know and in the kingdom, they hope for, they would know that the literature and maybe even the Bible itself might be of little importance. Why would it be if the living and breathing Jesus is present? Who needs the book or booklets or letters?
Regardless, the point is that churches, and individual Christians, had letters written to them, and only later did the Church realize their enduring importance. We know the apostles and others wrote books and letters not preserved as part of the Holy Scripture (cf. 1 Corinthians 5:9; 3 John 9; Jude 14). How could an early Christian discern what would become part of a lasting record, and what would not? Does this mean that other letters, written by these men, were somehow in error? Were they not important at the time? Should we take communications from the Church lightly? Or neglect them?Did you know that if you don't read LCG literature, watch a telecast, or miss a church service occasionally that you are drifting away and your salvation is at stake? So the next time you have to sit through a mind-numbing video sermon from HQ remember that your salvation bonus point card will start filling up and you won't drift away or start reading dissident blogs and willfully start sinning with wild abandon!
We often refer to Hebrews 10:25, where Paul admonishes us not to forsake assembling together, as some were doing even back then, especially as we see the return of Christ approaching. Do we know why? Part of the reason is found in the preceding verse: “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” (v. 24). This is one reason we attend services, even if the sermon is not “live.” Verses 23 and 26 give further context. There is a danger of drifting away from our baptismal confession. We must remain faithful over the long haul, for it is possible to drift away and sin willfully, thus losing everything!Weston knows that most LCG members won't read his letter, so he decided to pull a little stunt with the few who will read his admonition. He says at the beginning of the article:
Dear Brethren, Some of you are familiar with Country magazine, where they hide an image of a needle somewhere in the pages of each issue for readers to find. Sometimes it is easy to spot, other times not. So let me get this off my chest up front: Like that hidden needle, there is a hidden flaw in this letter to you. I will reveal the flaw at the end, but my guess is that discerning readers will figure it out.and ends with this:
I mentioned at the start of this letter that there is a flaw in it. Do you see it? It is, very simply, the fact that those who need this advice the most may never actually read it!
How many times can you watch a rerun of "Gilligans Island" and still be interested in the plot???
ReplyDeleteCan't! But I can always watch reruns of the Honeymooners!
DeleteAnd can still have a good laugh!
DeletePerhaps if finding the flaw came with the prize of a one year tithe refund everyone would read up?
ReplyDeleteActually the flaw is the whole letter.
You are right about LCG literature being boring. I stopped reading it years ago, even though I still attend.
ReplyDeleteIt isn't just the "members." I discovered many years ago that there were some ministers who I could embarrass publicly if I asked them about the most recent telecast or magazine while other brethren were present. Weston should count himself fortunate, as if more members watched the telecast and read the literature, they would be telling him just how crappy it really is. Not only is most of the content a rehash of 1960s vintage Armstrongism; the quality control is no better than a typical high school newspaper or A/V project.
ReplyDeleteIf Gerald Weston wants me to watch his program and read the literature then PLEASE make it interesting! How many boring articles are we expected to read or watch a poorly researched and presented telecast, can there be?
ReplyDeleteHere's the flaw.
ReplyDeleteIf you have a child that keeps saying the same thing over and over and over again, what are you going to say to the child?
"Be Quiet!"
If you are in a conversation with a dull and lifeless person who keeps going on and on and on about the same old thing, over and over again, what are you going to do?
You're going to politely excuse yourself, get up, and walk away.
If you are getting the same old tired letters in the mail all the time with nothing new, everything boring, nothing exciting, what are you going to do?
You're going to pitch it as junk mail.
Here's what they should write:
"Dear Brethren,
If you're reading this, thank you. I really appreciate that you've opened this letter. Most do not. I know our letters are boring, and quite frankly, the same thing over and over again. I wish we had something new to tell you, but we really do not. You know we need you to send us your tithes and your offerings, because that's how we support our families here at Headquarters. You know that world conditions are always going more downhill, this thing and that thing, we say it every time. You know we always ask you to keep us in your prayers and thoughts. The honest truth is, we have absolutely nothing to tell you that's new. Except the same old thing.
So we will put it to you this way. We need your money. We need to keep prodding you that time is really short and you should give more. We really have nothing else to say. And as a thank you for opening this letter, each member will get a new balloon with MY FACE on it. Only those who come into church this Sabbath with this letter opened will receive the balloon. What a new, exciting and refreshing concept! See, this letter wasn't so boring after all!"
Jerry seems not to have read Matthew 6:21.
ReplyDeleteWhere is he putting his treasure? He has more employees working in his Finance and Accounting department than in his literature department. He fills many of his television [sic] department positions with half-time student workers instead of competent professionals. His quality control is terrible, yet he doesn't seem to care. Weston expects LCG members to read and listen to content that was obsolete 40 years ago, and that today is presented in such an unprofessional manner that many LCG members are embarrassed by it.
In fact, I do not believe that Weston is reading his own literature or watching his own telecast. If he is reading and watching, he must not be very bright if he is not aware of its very serious shortcomings. More likely, he simply believes whatever Ciesielka and Smith are telling him about the telecast and literature in order to promote themselves.
This just shows you the cold facts.
ReplyDelete1. Armstrongism is BORING.
2. Armstrongism is MIND-NUMBING.
3. There is NO EXCITEMENT in the LCG.
4. LCG members are just going through the motions.
5. Ministers are STILL expecting loyalty despite all of the above.
6. Ministers can't seem to figure out what's wrong.
7. Members KNOW what's wrong. But the ministers WILL NOT LISTEN to them.
8. LCG MINISTERS have no clue how to adapt.
9. LCG MINISTERS are stuck in the past and cannot move forward.
10. LCG MINISTERS can not engage their listeners.
11. SpongeBob SquarePants gets more viewers than LCG does.
12. Members can only take so much, no matter how ministers plead.
13. It's inconceivable how members still pay the ministers ANYTHING, since they are receiving next to NOTHING in return in regards to spiritual food or nourishment.
14. Bart Simpson gets more viewers than LCG does.
15. When a person is finished watching the telecast, not a WOW can be heard.
16. Gerald Weston is NO Herbert Armstrong.
17. Larry King Infomercials get more viewers than LCG Does.
18. Gerald should be embarrassed for allowing this to happen.
19. This proves the old way does not work in this info-digital-world.
20. Cat Videos get more viewers than LCG does.
21. Cat Videos are more interesting than LCG material.
22. Cat videos are more insightful than LCG material.
23. Cats have more of a heart than LCG.
24. Who's LCG?
This reminds me of a minister who made the same complaint in a 1970s sermon. To him, the problem wasn't the boring repetition. Rather members should be thrilled to hear the same material - because he says so. This is the typical minister attitude of absolutely no respect for the human condition or the reality that God created.
ReplyDeleteThe ministers do not believe in reality. And in their view, it's the members who have the problem. It's a Looney bin, the funny farm, the crazy people place.
This is wonderful news. Perhaps, if they read The Bible they will leave LCG and most other COG organizations.
ReplyDeleteIt's boring. It always was boring. I remember dreading to sit for two or more hours on hard chairs at feasts with bored, figiting children to hear what I could almost repeat by rote while the sun was shining outside and I had precious little opportunity to enjoy Lake Tahoe, the Dells, or anywhere else. Some "vacation" those times were! The Plain Truth became just as boring with repeat articles we'd almost memorized.
ReplyDeleteLCG is dying. It's old, warn-out, tired and completely irrelevant.
ReplyDeleteIt seems HQ will be the last to know.
Everything about LCG is boring. The sermons, the fellowship, the telecast, the TWSPs and the magazine. It's the same thing over and over and over again. Like Ferris Beuler's teacher. People pretend to be inspired... "that was THE BEST Feast ever!!!" but it's almost as though they are trying to convince themselves as much as others. The monotony is soul sucking. Gloom and doom. Agony and despair. The same scriptures ad nausea while half the Bible is completely ignored.
ReplyDeletePet projects, favoritism, back-stabbing, spying, jealousy, envy, pride, arrogance, fiscal irresponsibility, ignorance and boredom - these are what comes to mind when I think of LCG
Sincerely,
Someone who wasted 15 years of my life in LCG
If the already brain-washed, ass-kissing LCG sheeple find their articles and telecasts boring, imagine how those "in the world" must be receiving them!
ReplyDeleteBack in WCG one of our ministers cited 1 Peter 3:15 (be prepared to give an answer) as a warning that we must have a working knowledge of all the church literature. One member showed me how he began to mark his Bible linking all the passages as they appeared in different booklets.
ReplyDeleteAfter Pentecost was held on Sunday, at least one time we had very early services so we could watch GTA on television. As a reward for our early rising, there was no sermonette, just some ministerial commentary on the program.
9:53 AM,
ReplyDeleteOn point #7...
If the ministry doesn't listen to the members maybe they should sometimes. Why not have a members survey once in awhile to get opinions on a different level. Maybe get some common street sense on how the other level sees things and would handle things. Will it happen?
What I want to know is why anyone would expect members to consume these products.
ReplyDeleteIf you're a member and you can read, sorry to say, unless you're a newborn, you've probably been in Armstrongism for a few years.
The telecast, and the literature, are advertising materials intended to reach the uninitiated outsider, and hopefully, hope beyond all hope, lure him into LCG's spider web of doom. It should be the most basic, most generic stuff. You know, milk vs. meat?
The stuff shouldn't be geared toward the members.
There is, of course, one proviso: perhaps this is an admission that LCG has no meat, and the sum total of their teachings is 100% dairy?
Apparently, this is what he feels that he needs to do in order to create some excitement? LOL!
ReplyDeleteBB
Not a good sign, and not only limited to LCG. Repetition and apathy set in decades ago sadly. There needs to be a return to scripture, a love and knowledge of scripture.
ReplyDeleteThe format of articles, programmes and sermons by clones of Herbert Armstrong produces more problems than solutions. The is a terrible drought for scripture knowledge. Speakers are all over the landscape, talking and talking but not with the gravity of scriptural knowledge.
You asked, "Do any of these men in any of the Churches of God have an original thought in their heads?" My response is, NO!. If they are not growing in "grace and KNOWLEDGE" how can they have anything new to write about? To believe that HWA had restored truths to the church is not the same as saying that he had given the church ALL truth.
ReplyDeleteLook out! Though ostensibly free, Tomorrow's World might end up costing you MORE THAN A SET OF ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA!
ReplyDeleteAnd what do you get for paying thousands of dollars?
Magazine articles that are nothing more than STALE RECYCLED POP-SCIENCE
You can find out more about Christianity - and its problems - free on Wikipedia!
And get free world news on YAHOO
"If the ministry doesn't listen to the members maybe they should sometimes. Why not have a members survey once in awhile to get opinions on a different level."
ReplyDeleteI think they tried that - or one of the COG's did.
But if you don't say what they WANT you to say, then YOU have the attitude problem.
You're supposed to be all "thinking the same thing". I.E. completely in agreement with the ministers. And you do NOT want to be the one with the "attitude problem".
The COG's have always been about Government. They order, you agree, you obey, you thank them, you await the next order.
Your "right" to "disagree" was checked at the door the second you became a part of the COG sphere, so they want you to believe. See, if you disagree with the ministry, and others agree with your opinion, the ministry have lost their power and control, and you have "caused division". There is no democracy in the COG's and there never has been. Your job is to tithe, nod your head, warm a seat, agree, and smile and be happy. If they're wrong, they're not wrong. They're right, even if they're wrong. Just don't tell them they're wrong. Or you have an ATTITUDE PROBLEM.
This is what they want you to think and how they want you to act - regardless of how insane it is, how it affects your life, how mundane, boring, and awful their thinking is. You have been assimilated, and resistance is futile. The only way out of it is to walk away, and never, ever look back.
@ Anon 12:35 PM, it's worse than that. Maybe LCG should rename itself the Vegan Church of God. No meat, and no dairy!
ReplyDeleteSeems to me that the same complaint was used repeatedly in WCG, presumably to shame the members from daring to do anything fun or at least nonWCG whatsoever.
ReplyDeleteNot that I would be surprised if LCG is that stale.
Every year or two, the Tomorrow's World presenters do literally THE SAME show. 90-100% word for word exactly the same. Watch it for a year, and you've just about seen it all. Read the magazine for a year, and you've read it all. Oh, except when they resurrect something Rod Meredith wrote in the 50s and pretend it's new.
ReplyDeleteTo LCG's credit, their telecast and magazine have improved dramatically since the departures of Tom Baca and Bill Bowmer, who were constantly creating obstacles as to what could be done. Unfortunately for LCG, it may take years to undo the damage they did. Even as things improve, it will take some time for people turned off by the old material to come back and see the improvements.
ReplyDeleteALMOST EVERY COG PROGRAM SUMMARIZED IN TEN SECONDS.
ReplyDelete"Greetings, friends. World conditions are deteriorating. It's because of everything you're doing wrong. Wars. Famine. Pestilence. This world is so horrible and rotten. It's going to get worse. But there's hope. Because We've got the answers. Call now. We'll send you our free booklet. No charge. So long, my friends."
And don't forget to send in uou thithes!
Deleteto me its more than just a matter of being boring: the cogs are cowardly, afraid to engage the issues of our time; even lukewarm, if you will...
ReplyDeletehere we have a man in the office of the potus what clearly resembles the man of sin in Daniel 11:21-45 yet the cogs say nothing...
we have a huge problem in this nation with racism, opioid addiction, poverty and homelessness, suicide and other mental health issues, sexual harrassment and assualt, child abuse, and godlessness, bullying, just to name a few issues; yet the cogs message seems timid in addressing these issues at best, and irrellevant to the solving of these problems at worst...
i understand the need to sculpt the message for a tv audience, but there are many other media options nowadays where they can go and keep it real...
not only that: they should be out in the field practicing what they preach: e.g., strengthening the hand of the poor, both within the church and without; doing more charity work, etc., instead of preaching the tired, hypocritical message of providence...
c f ben yochanan
I can’t make out why these groups aren’t diligently striving to become relevant to the conditions which face us today. There’s a lot going on that they could be infusing into their message in very constructive ways. Create both urgency and excitement, especially in the young people who are fated to inherit a hand me down world. They could be speaking out on how the Trump tariffs are a form of extra taxation, and as they reverberate through the world’s economic systems, with currency devaluations and such, likely to tip conditions back towards deflation, a condition which we just barely averted between 2008-2016.
ReplyDeleteThey could be speaking out on food insecurity issues, in which up to 20% of the children in the USA don’t always know where their next meal is coming from, especially during weekends and vacations when they don’t get to eat at school.
They could be pointing ahead to the kingdom or millennium as a time when we will all live together and be enriched by one another’s cultures without some being in constant fear of being shot while involved in totally normal activities, or in a traffic stop situations.
They could really be latching on to the Holocene Extinction, and be writing about how God will be healing the global climate, and teaching us new methods of living harmoniously with nature soas not to cause other species’ extinction. Oh, and providing information as to what Christians can and should be doing about this right now in the present as good stewards.
Oops. Forgot. They consider all of those issues to be the province of Satan’s party.
Sorry, my bad!
BB
You know they play the telecast during the sermonette time in the outlying areas that don’t have regular sermonette men. What doesn’t make sense is the hq congregation has strict guidelines on sermonette times. But the telecast goes way over that time limit. Plus it’s so boring! A sermonette man can get severely punished for speaking too long at HQ, during the sermonette time. But it’s ok to hear a long-winded TW program in a field congregation during the sermonette time? Hypocrisy!
ReplyDelete2.03 PM
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me of YouTube videos where some motorists try to beat traffic jams by driving on the wrong (opposite) side of the road. When confronted by the other motorists, they, like the ministers act accusatory, indignant, and still demand right of way. Above the law motorists and above the law ministers. And it's OK for the ministers to behave this way cause Daddy Herb said so.
The normal guideline is to replace your shoes every six months,
ReplyDeletebut that timeline could also be accelerated if you run lengthy
distances nearly every day.
This video about dave pack was inspired by all the greedy frauds that I have seen here recently. Please share lets make people aware.
ReplyDeleteThank you
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX_U6GiPKhA
Anon 6:48 says, To LCG's credit, their telecast and magazine have improved dramatically since the departures of Tom Baca and Bill Bowmer, who were constantly creating obstacles as to what could be done. Unfortunately for LCG, it may take years to undo the damage they did. Even as things improve, it will take some time for people turned off by the old material to come back and see the improvements.
ReplyDeleteHa! Blaming Bowmer and Baca (who hasn't been there for like 5 years)is evidence of a vast delusion you have constructed for yourself.
It was bad then and it is still bad now.
Production ISN'T the problem. Content and attitude are.
In my opinion watching Weston, self-righteous Ciesielka, Wally-World and The Evil Rod McNair engaged in contrived conversation while they sit around a table with ear muffs on is 1000% times WORSE than the coma inducing RCM telecasts.
It's all just different shades of bad.
You can put a turd on a china plate and it's still just a turd.
Remember the LCG telecast with Lil' Jimmy wherein he told viewers they were all stupid frogs being boiled to death?
ReplyDeleteSuch a great way to win friends and influence people lol!
He's the toad king and he doesn't even know it.
When I watched that telecast I died of laughter. I'm pretty sure that was not the desire response but it was sooooooooo bad.
I'm sure he thought he was "powerfully preaching" but it was quite the opposite. I don't know who their target audience is but I'm not sure that their methods appeal to anyone.
Just another proof that LCG is not the COG and that they are doomed to fade into non-existence.
Anon 9:24, they play the telecast in Charlotte, too, but they save time by cutting out the opening and closing credits and the literature offers. The HQ congregation has plenty of men who can give a sermonette that is more meaningful than a TW telecast, but someone in authority thinks that it's good for us to see the telecast at services three or four times a year.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteALMOST EVERY COG PROGRAM SUMMARIZED IN TEN SECONDS.
"Greetings, friends. World conditions are deteriorating. It's because of everything you're doing wrong. Wars. Famine. Pestilence. This world is so horrible and rotten. It's going to get worse. But there's hope. Because We've got the answers. Call now. We'll send you our free booklet. No charge. So long, my friends."
LOL Last night I wrote this near IDENTICLE summary of Tomorrow's World and then didn't bother. I ended mine with "We will send you The Seven Last Plagues free of charge...good bye friends!" :)
good bye friends!
ReplyDeleteReminds me of an old trailer for Rocky and Bullwinkle, with Boris Badenov advertising Rocky and his Fiends.
In reply to anon July 23rd 2:03pm, You are WRONG big time for you forget about God. Gods people fear not your pathetic power games. God gives and God takes away. God knows Those who are His.
ReplyDeleteThose comments sound like the disgruntled mentality of unchastisable ministry or their wives. The days of true believers walking away are over. The is a new day dawning, its been dawning for awhile and you'd better believe it anon 203. It is not 1983 anymore. The truth will out.
4:53 AM,
ReplyDeleteI will have to look for that telecast on the internet
10:03 -
ReplyDelete2:03 here. I'm not sure who you are, or what you are trying to say. But I can tell you this - everything I said was accurate. I have no idea what "power games" you think I am trying to play, but you certainly seem to be on the defensive! You're typing so fast you can't even say "there". And what exactly will the truth do? The truth will "out"? No idea what you're trying to say, didn't get any of that.
Yes, God knows who are His. Those who live a life of love, action in faith, guided and lead by His Spirit - simply, those who have CHRIST IN THEM. Jesus is the vine, His People are the branches. These are the true believers, and you know what? You're right. They aren't walking away. But it is NOT determined by who is in a physical church, tied to abusive, arrogant men claiming to be servants of God who keep people in bondage, using them for their own self-centered, selfish gain, while keeping them in oppression. You can get as angry and defensive as you want, missing keys while typing all the way - but it does not change the fact that what I said was exactly the way it has been, and is - 1936, 1983, or 2018.
The accounts, testimonies, historical facts, and stories related by HUNDREDS of people from all areas of COG-Dom, from those who attended and sat in chairs to those on the Executive Fourth Floor, to those who currently sit in high places, verify with no doubt the accuracy of the statements I have said. You may believe whatever you want to believe - my words will not change your mind. There are many in COG land who are very comfortable in their delusions. I suspect you will take a seat on the grand Sofa of Armstrongism in their grand living room with the rest of them. Many, however, will wake up to the realities, and have already woken up - regardless of how defensive you are. Here, take the remote, and enjoy on the TV the latest reruns of "Tomorrow's World". It's on repeat over and over and over again. If this is what you enjoy, more power to you!!
10:48 AM, here are two of Lil' Jimmy's finest...
ReplyDeleteNCIS and Homosexuality
Hawaii Five-0 Joins the Party
Another interesting point is that, when the above program was taped, Hawaii-Five-0 aired only on the Sabbath. How did Lil' Jimmy form his opinion of it unless he watched the program he so despises on the Sabbath?
Thanks 12:35 for pulling those up. I'll have to watch them
ReplyDeleteMr. Weston,
ReplyDeleteHere's an idea for LCG's Tomorrow's World Now webcasts that I'm sure will increase the number of viewers that watch this show. Why not have Mainstream Christian Theologians/Apologists come on your show so you and your LCG Ministers can debate them on doctrines like the nature of the Godhead ("Is God a family or a Trinity?"), the deity of Jesus Christ ("Did Jesus give up His deity when He became a Man?), the Personhood of the Holy Spirit ("Is the Holy Spirit a Person or a force?"), and human deification ("Can humans become God?"). I know of several Mainstream Christian Apologist there in Charlotte, NC that would definately come on your show. Unfortunately, I know you all won't do that because deep down inside, all LCG ministers know that you will be exposed on your own show as being false teachers that teach a false gospel and worship a false god, and not the One True God of the Holy Bible.
Perhaps our writings are not compelling enough for members to read them or our Tomorrow’s World telecasts fail to compete favorably with other options. If that is the case, we sincerely apologize.
ReplyDeleteIf Weston's apology were sincere, I would not have been taken off my congregation's sermonette rotation after daring to point out some of the weaknesses in LCG media, weaknesses that diligent sermonette men can help to balance.