Have you Shiny Happy People? Looking for more info? Start here.

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: manipulation

The Dreaded “B” Word

12 August 2013, 06:00

Moderator

42

During the healing process of leaving ATI (or any other legalistic group) and discovering Jesus Christ and His gospel, there is often a very painful transition for individuals as they must face all the lies they believed, lies which are often coupled with a long history of injustices and abuse. I like to compare this […]

Reprobation or Christian Liberty?

29 July 2013, 06:00

Moderator

17

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 […]

The Tree of Knowledge

27 June 2013, 06:00

JoannaV

11

The principles of IBLP [the Institute in Basic Life Principles] teach parents that they are responsible to make sure their children make good choices. This places a lot of pressure on the parents to control their children. But I have begun to ask, “Does God control us? Does he force us to make good choices?” […]

Why Not Confront Him Personally?

24 June 2013, 06:57

WendyA

46

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 […]

The Gospel of Pragmatism

9 May 2013, 06:00

Moderator

38

Pragmatism is basically the idea that positive results are sufficient criteria for determining value, even truth. In other words: if it works, use it. One of the most famous pragmatists was a man known as Nicollo Machiavelli. For Machiavelli, the goal of a strong and controlled kingdom was worth whatever it would take to get […]

When the Courtship Crashes

2 May 2013, 06:00

LB

47

“Lindsey? Do you miss them?”  The swing creaked as I pushed a blonde boy who attended our church.We came from different families, backgrounds, and were far apart in age, but today I’d been drawn to play with him by one thing in common. Our friends were gone. “Yeah.”  “Did you tell them not to come […]

Set Free by Grace

26 April 2013, 06:00

Moderator

22

It was around 6 a.m. on a Sunday morning in June 2011. I was home for the weekend from the eating disorder hospital where I was in treatment. Asleep in bed, I woke up when my phone beeped for a text message. The name on the screen put fear in my heart. Terrified, I opened […]

How “Counseling Sexual Abuse” Blames and Shames Survivors

18 April 2013, 06:00

Moderator

120

Versions of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) document “Counseling Sexual Abuse” were distributed at Advanced Training Institute (ATI) Counseling Seminars for over a decade. The document speaks for itself, but Recovering Grace would like to point out how victim-blaming and/or callous dismissal of abuse survivors’ pain is built into almost every one of […]

Outcome-Based Storytelling

14 March 2013, 06:00

admin

40

As a youngster, I participated in a Bible drill competition. I’m not sure about other churches, but in Southern Baptist circles, “Bible drills” are a big thing. Students in grades 4, 5 and 6 memorize a score of verses, some short passages, and references for general topics like “The Lord’s Prayer,” “The Ten Commandments,” and […]

Toxic People: Narcissists in Ministry

7 March 2013, 06:00

Moderator

26

The most read Hope Blog posts in the last four years have been the the series addressing toxic people and how to deal with those in your life who are unrepentant human destruction machines. These posts have received tens of thousands of hits over the last few years as those searching have come across the […]