Just How Real Are Church of God Friendships?

For decades we have heard the stories of thousands who have left Armstrongism and how that action impacted their lives.  One of the most shocking things many experienced was how fraudulent the friendships that they had with fellow church members actually were.  The minute any one starts questioning the church, beliefs, the minister, or its doctrines those once "loyal" friends would instantly turn their backs on you.

Armstrongism has always been belief system that was based upon superficial appearances.  It was vitally important to the church to be seen as special.  Beautiful campuses, exquisite homes for leaders filled with gold, silver and the finest art.  Impeccably dressed leaders pounding lecterns while living repugnant lifestyles.  Beautiful videos, visually striking booklets and magazines, produced by some of the most morally and spiritually bankrupt men/churches imaginable. All utterly fake and insincere.  Just like relationships.

Real friends stick by one another, regardless of the situation.  Real friends would refuse to follow the admonition of lying fools who tell them to turn their backs on spouses, family and friends.  Friendships in the Church of God have always been superficial.  They never have been truly sincere and usually never deep.  Deep abiding love is hard to find in the Church of God.

The following letter was posted on the following thread:

Rod Meredith's Super Special Not So Special Christmas Sermon

My family left LCG about two years ago.

The first three months or so were somewhat lonely, but we looked around for community organizations we could join to meet people with shared interests.

By six months out, we had a social routine that was as busy as our old LCG routine, except that we never had to drive more than a half-hour to go to a meeting with any of our new friends.

After about a year, we had started to develop some close friendships with our new friends.

Around that time, my wife became seriously ill. We let our old LCG acquaintances know about her illness, and one of our children who still has some close LCG ties even got his mother's name on a prayer list.

So, who was it who came to visit my wife in the hospital? Was it the LCG friends she had known for nearly 20 years? NOT ONE of the LCG friends visited or even phoned to express their concern or support. It was our new friends, people we had known for no more than a year, who rallied to my wife's side and gave her the encouragement that she so needed.

When she was discharged from the hospital, my wife reminded me of my own time in the hospital about a decade ago. Even while we were LCG members in good standing, nobody from LCG had bothered to visit me in the hospital. At the time I didn't think anything of it, as I just assumed everyone was busy with their work and with their many church activities. But seeing how non-LCG-members rallied for my wife, the contrast was too great to ignore.

If you are still in LCG, do not fear. Life is much better on the outside. You will have friends. Real friends. Better friends than you ever had in LCG.

Where In The World Is My True Church?

Rod Meredith's Super Special Not So Special Christmas Sermon

From an LCG source:

Rod Meredith's Super Special Not So Special Christmas Sermon  

Jerry Weston informed readers of the following in last week's LCG Weekly Update (formerly authored by Doug Winnail), "This week, Dr. Meredith spent a good amount of time preparing his message for the live Sabbath Service transmission, where we expect somewhere around 750 to 800 to be in attendance, along with several thousand tuned in over the Internet. We encourage people to “share” the posts about the Charlotte Family Weekend live special Sabbath Service on Facebook".

Members of LCG were given the impression in the weeks leading up to this year's Winter Weekend that Mr. Meredith's sermon was going to be a show stopper

As I prepared to listen to this "special message" I hoped and prayed and prayed and hoped that it would be inspired but alas, it was the exact same sermon he has been giving for years. Nothing inspired. Nothing uplifting. Nothing that gave evidence of putting in extra preparation for this "special" event for which hundreds of LCG members flocked to Charlotte.

Rod Meredith's sermons are so tediously redundant that many no longer even attempt to pretend to be taking notes because he uses the same scriptures over and over again. It is painful at this point.

It's become increasingly difficult to keep from rolling my eyes after church when people are gushing about how "great the sermon was" or how "inspired" it was. I feel like shouting, "it was the same exact sermon we have heard a thousand times!" but I just nod in agreement because I know better than act anything other than enthusiastic.

The title of the sermon was "The Future of God's Work" but RCM says nothing about the future of anything.

Instead, like EVERY Rod Meredith sermon The Future of God's Work included the following:

• Idolatry of HWA
• Telling us how he's the best, most awesome evangelist on earth because he spent the "more time than anyone else alive" around the worshipped HWA (they had many, many meals together, etc)
• Then RCM proceed to go through his resume for the 1,000,000 time starting with his calling, AC and his ordination, teaching freshman Bible and the Epistles of Paul, baptizing tours, beginning Global and Living (he leaves out the part about forging checks and stealing money from Global with the help of Don Davis to start LCG), how he's the only evangelist in the world ordained by the greatest man to ever live HWA...  yada yada yada
• Then we get into how the gays and transgenders are ruining the world (not a sermon goes by without mention of the gays)
• THE LADY WITH THE WITHERED ARM  - can we please have a sermon without this story? Please!
• "Horny teen-aged boys" and homosexuals (again, forevermore)
• Time is short
• British Israelism  (even though most ACOGers no longer believe this completely disproved, outdated theory)
• Church government (I'm not sure if I'm more sick of hearing about church government or the lady with the withered arm)
• Back to how he knew HWA the best so therefore he's the best because of osmosis

Mirror, mirror, on the Wall. Who has the best COG of all?

We have listened for many years now to the bloviating cries of Dave Pack boasting about his superfantabulous church.  Never in human history has there been Church of God that is as miraculous as the Restored Church of God.  That is until now.

Almost Arrested Elisha Elijah Joshua Amos, First Witness, Prophet, Apostle, Mayan authority, Dreamer, Doubly Blessed, Chief Overseer, Bitter Bob of the improperly named "continuing" Church of God claims his group is the best ever in this end times era.

Bob still believes that he was doubly blessed and that the nightmares he and a woman had legitimize his  decision to start his own personality cult "church."

CCOG after 4 years: Unique start and growth

Today marks the fourth anniversary (on the Roman calendar) of the official formation of the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) as a separate entity.

I still find it funny that the more aberrant personality cults have to always clarify that the dates they use in their material are the dates set up by those dirty nasty pagan Romans!  Only the COG knows the what the "true" calendar is and it is one setup by Jewish Rabbi filled with his own interpretation as to "correctness.".

Despite comments from various detractors in and out of the various Church of God (COG) groups, the Continuing Church of God has flourished beyond what many said/posted.

Hyper-sensitive Bitter Bob is constantly shocked that no one believes his claims to legitimacy as a true leader.  Why is it that no one believes that he is doubly blessed, that he has dreamed dreams, and is a prophet?  

Compared to the formation of other groups whose leaders were once part of the old Worldwide Church of God, there have been several things that were unique about our formation. But actually, more similar to the start of the old Radio Church of God.

For example, a dream preceded the start of the old Radio Church of God, whereas two people (myself and someone who I did not know at the time) had dreams that preceded the start of the Continuing Church of God.

So Loma Armstrong had a nightmare that lead to the formation of the RCG.  We have seen the destructive trail of ruined lives that resulted in.  Bitter Bob has to use Loma to legitimize his nightmare.  His nightmare is true!  Believe it or die in the tribulation! 

Furthermore, unlike other groups we are aware of, no other group also declared that it was fulfilling the second part of the dream that Loma Armstrong had which preceded the start of the Radio Church of God.

Maybe there is a reason no one makes such a declaration.  tHey know it is not true! 

Non-believers and Laodiceans often will not accept how God works.

After lashing out the he takes no salary from the forced tithing he expects from his followers,, even though the New Covenant does not command it, the Bitter prophet has this to say:

Interestingly, someone not in CCOG mentioned to me in Illinois this past October that CCOG was one of the only, if not the only, COG group he knew of that formed mainly because of doctrinal/integrity issues, as opposed to personality issues. Details on why CCOG had to form are in the article.

Seriously???  Thiel has "doctrinal integrity?"   Seriously?  Bastardizing the law, ignoring Jesus and the New Covenant does not show any integrity.   He is right though one thing.  He is lacking in personality.  All of the bible waving, lack of a real theological education, crooked bookcases and thin curtains certainly do not contribute improve his personality issues.

Bitter Elisha then takes a direct jab at i=his spiritual Daddy Rod Meredith and his advisory Dave Pack with this: 

Within hours of the formation, I posted that the Continuing Church of God would reach more people in the first 30 days after it formed than any COG group that was not directly related to the late Garner Ted Armstrong. 

Note that he cannot compare himself to HWA.  Bitter Amos Elijah knows he cannot compare to HWA in any aspect whatsoever.

How did the Bitter False Prophet accomplish this?  Notice his exaggerated excuse:

Well, similar to what happened with the late Herbert W. Armstrong, I unexpectedly ended up being on radio. I ended up being on two radio programs, one of which the host claimed to have over 2,000,000 listeners. Additionally, over 100,000 different computers were reached over the COGwriter.com website in those thirty days. I believe that this accomplishment helped demonstrate the application of various dreams to the CCOG.

The Bitter False Prophet was on a radio station that claims it reaches  large numbers.  The chance that any more than one or two people actually swallowed his lies is a fact. He has not garnered any members from these world encompassing radio stations.  those that listen to him consider him crackpot in the same vein as those that had Ron Weinland on their stations before his imprisonment.

As far as other proclamation fruits, both the COGwriter.com and Bible News Prophecy channel have reached people in over 215 nations and territories around the world.

So!  The Banned blog has reached  216 nations!  Have I witnessed to the entire world.  No.  Neither has Bob Thiel.  He is a liar to make such empty claims.  These claims are just was empty as claiming a radio station with a potential audience granted him 2,000,000 listeners.  The False Prophet has never witnessed to 2,000,000 people at any time ins life and never will.

The False Prophet then claims that since he has had some of his literature translated he is fulling Bible prophecy.  Once again is is just another lie.

Another project to mention is that some of the literature of the CCOG has been translated into 100 languages (watch Behind the Work 2016: All Nations, Tribes, People, and Tongues). Some people may not consider that important, but notice what Jesus taught:

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:14)

How can he preach the "gospel" when he denies everything that Jesus stood for and preached.  He prefers to lie about the law and endless useless topics that no one is interested in and that have no value to one's salvation.

The False Prophet then declares he has the fasted growing COG in the entire world. Even Dave Pack shudders at Thiel's magnificence.  2,000 members with 1,996 located in Africa.

Actually, since its formation, the Continuing Church of God has been the fastest growing of all COG groups.

We now have over 2,000 people around the world, with most of our congregations in Africa 

Thiel then claims he has restored more correct doctrine than any other COG.

Earlier doctrine was mentioned.

In this area, the CCOG has restored more than other groups we are aware of.

This includes church history.

Church of God church history...really?  The COG history that the church has claimed has been one of the biggest snow jobs ever fostered off on church members.  It is right up there with the myth of British Israelism.

The false teacher then claims he is the ONLY COG leader who has the guts to to proclaim truth to the world and is prepared to suffer the consequences.  Rod Meredith and Dave Pack have both failed in this department.  Only the almost arrested false prophet is ready to go to jail for saying what needs to be said.  He is already suffering intense persecution.  Youtube is persecuting him.  Oh, the horrors!

Having hundreds of booklets in different languages, claiming you are doubly blessed and that "god" spoke to you in a dream does not make one a true church leader.  There is noting about Thiel's "ministry" that is Christian, no matter how much he claims it is.  He is noting more than one mor lying false propeht claiming superior knowledge of things he knows more about than anyone ever has in church history.

Matthew 7:15-20The Message (MSG)

15-20 “Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.