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Articles about how Bill Gothard mishandles the Bible to support his legalistic viewpoint.

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Living and thriving through the grace of God.

Stories and accounts of the destruction caused by the teachings of Bill Gothard.

Tag Archives: standards

When I was on Fire

7 November 2013, 06:00

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“What do I know of You, Who spoke the world in motion? Where have I even stood, but soil along Your ocean? Are You fire, are You fury? Are You sacred, are You beautiful? What do I know – what do I know of holy?” ~ Addison Road Once upon a time I thought that […]

Separating the Wheat from the Chaff

31 October 2013, 06:00

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I grew up on the West Coast and have noticed a pattern where families from California who were enrolled in the Advanced Training Institute (ATI) tended to be a bit more lax in their way of going about the program, compared with the experiences of families in the Midwest and elsewhere. Perhaps that had a […]

“Rocky” Arguments and a Double Standard

3 October 2013, 06:00

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  Many people over the years have expressed concern with the way Bill Gothard misuses Scripture—not to mention basic logic—in his attempts to validate his dogmatic pseudo-spiritual requirements for “successful” living. A friend of mine recently shared a document (pictured) obtained while attending an IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles) conference on effective communication. In […]

From Rules to Grace

23 September 2013, 06:00

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In the past few years, since I have expressed many disagreements with the theology of Bill Gothard, ATI (Advanced Training Institute), and his parent ministry, IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles), I have invariably been asked how ATI had negatively impacted my life. Here is my story. My family joined ATI in the ‘90s. It […]

Life Isn’t a Role-Playing Game: Part Two

19 August 2013, 06:00

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This is Part Two of a three-part story. Click here to read Part One. During my early high school years, I was very blessed to find an incredible youth group with leaders who valued relationships over rules and encouraged guys and girls to know each other more intimately as friends instead of remaining isolated from […]

Reprobation or Christian Liberty?

29 July 2013, 06:00

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I am taking a class at Oak Brook College of Law called Life Principles for Lawyers. In this class, we are studying Bill Gothard’s Basic Seminar material. You can look it up if you’re interested; here I only want to talk about the Reprobation chart. (Please forgive my handwriting. I am a better typist than […]

Gothard’s Biblical Inoculation

18 July 2013, 06:00

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a set of syringes

Question: How do you ensure that your children don’t catch a deadly disease? Simple…inoculate them. In the 1700s, it was discovered that dipping a needle into the pus of a smallpox blister and then inserting that same needle into a healthy person prevented them from getting the disease. The infected dose was large enough for […]

A True Shepherd’s Heart

11 July 2013, 06:00

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My family joined the Advanced Training Institute (ATI) when I was 13 years old. My dad was a pastor and my parents had been familiar with the Institute of Basic Life Principles (IBLP), the Basic Seminar, and the Advanced Seminar for many years, so when their homeschooling friends told them about ATI and its “new […]

The Pressure of Perfection

4 July 2013, 06:00

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“If you would just do it right!” This was the oft-repeated mantra in my family. It usually happened when something went wrong and my dad was angered by it: simple things like a broken dish, a dirty room, or sibling squabble, or more complex things like a broken window or childhood injury. If we had […]

Why Not Confront Him Personally?

24 June 2013, 06:57

WendyA

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So many people keep asking why those who have issues with Bill Gothard don’t talk to him about the problems. Those of us who tried have pretty much given up trying to explain. How do you explain, to a rational person, the dangers and frustrations of discussion with an irrational person? And I am sorry […]