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

Personal testimonies of finding true freedom through God's matchless grace.

Living and thriving through the grace of God.

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

Tag Archives: grace

I Kissed Courtship Goodbye!

13 February 2012, 06:00

admin

64

When I was in my early 20’s I spent about 13 months working at an ACE school in Mexico. It so happened that one of my brother’s friends, a guy I had met previously at the IBLP (Institute in Basic Life Principles) Dallas Training Center, lived there as well. His family would frequently have me […]

Uniquely Me!

6 February 2012, 06:00

Moderator

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Journal Entry, September 2009– “I want more!! I really thought I could be happy with this life…but I was wrong. I feel like I’m going to explode. This isn’t me– *sigh* I don’t think it is, anyway. The sad part is, I don’t really know who “me” is…but it’s not this person, I’m sure of that. I […]

Finding the Key

18 January 2012, 06:00

Ileata

16

When my husband and I were courting, we carefully set our “line” of physical touch. There would be no kissing until our wedding day; handholding was ok after we were engaged. Yes, we were following the “courtship model,” albeit loosely. We had been friends and had a lot contact before we were officially courting. We […]

Thoughts on “Tangled”

17 January 2012, 06:00

admin

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My wife and I watched the movie Tangled last night. For months now, we’d heard from other former ATI students that the movie was a great analogy for spiritual abuse and the journey out of a legalistic system of thought. It’s even been referenced a number of times here on Recovering Grace. After watching it, […]

Clear as Mud

11 January 2012, 06:00

RyanR

8

Several years after I ended my formal association with IBLP (the Institute in Basic Life Principles), I did something wrong. What it was isn’t the point of this article. At first I didn’t think much about it, but later that evening, I began to feel guilty. Very guilty. As I had been trained to think […]

The Gift of Peace

19 December 2011, 04:00

Ileata

13

I was lying in a hospital bed recovering from an emergency D&C. I had given birth to a beautiful baby that morning in a free-standing birth center with a midwife. After he was born, things had gotten complicated. His placenta had grown into the muscle wall of my uterus and wouldn’t detach. So, after some […]

The Disease Catalogue

7 December 2011, 05:00

BrianD

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Have a migraine? You may be struggling with guilt. Did you just develop a sinus infection? There is a good chance fear and anxiety are plaguing you. Does your grandfather have Osteoporosis? You may want to tell him that he is struggling with envy and jealousy. It’s hard to believe, perhaps, but these kinds of […]

Keeping Up Appearances.

21 November 2011, 06:00

Moderator

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I am a survivor of Gothardism. I fully believe ATI is a twisted system of unrealistic rules and regulations. Even more, it gives abusive parents the tools and justification they need to rationalize their behavior. Let me start at the beginning. I went to public school from preschool through first grade. After that, my family […]

Dear Dad and Mom

7 November 2011, 06:00

Moderator

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  As many of you are aware,  Recovering Grace was born from the hearts of children, now adults, raised using Bill Gothard’s home-school program, The Advanced Training Institute (ATI). We reached adulthood and realized that life was not what we were told…that there are not seven steps to health, wealth and general prosperity. That no […]

Promises, Promises…

4 November 2011, 06:00

RickH

14

How Do I Stop? Which one of us does not want to stop mistreating our families? Which one of us does not want to stop “raising our voices” at our children or spouse? To stop allowing our eyes to wander and our hearts to lust? The list could go on.Who wants to say, “No, actually, […]