Why Did David Hasz Lie About His Rental Income?

Last summer, Teen Mania hosted a conference call between David Hasz and former interns. During the call, he was asked if it was ethical to make almost $80,000 in rental income from Teen Mania in addition to his $80,000 salary. After all, David Hasz has been known to tell interns that if God has not called them away from Teen Mania, they should stay a 2nd or 3rd year. And guess where those graduate interns live? They live in his rental properties.

In reply to this question, Dave said this:

@00:32 - I wish I was collecting $80,000 in rental income. I am not. I am not collecting anywhere close to that.

First, let's remember what Teen Mania teaches regarding lying. Lying is "the intent to deceive." Dave's answer here makes it sound as if $80,000 is an astronomically high number that is not remotely close to what he is actually making. He says,

"I am not making anywhere close to that."

Would you consider $78,980 close to $80,000?


Later in the call, when I had a chance to speak with him, I point out that the latest available tax return (at the time) said he was paid $78,980 in rental income. He hesitates in his answer:

@ 00:16 Uh, which year was that for?

Me: 2008

In 2008, I may well have been paid $78,00 in 2008. But I'm not renting near the level of property to Teen Mania that I was then.

He goes on to explain that he actually rented 6 more apartments that year than he is currently renting to Teen Mania now. So his current rental income is not $80,000.

Since this exchange, I have obtained Teen Mania's latest tax return for the fiscal year September 2008 - August 31, 2009. According to Dave's statements, would you expect his rental property income to be lower or higher than the previously mentioned $78,930?

According to Schedule J, his rental income that year was $84,370. Keep in mind that this tax return is from only 10 months prior to the statements he made in the conference call, especially:

"I don't make anywhere near that."

Toward the end of the call I ask him if he would tell us what he is currently making in rental income. He says:

@ 1:30 - "I don't actually know what that number is...My wife does my finances.

I find this an odd statement for a man who continually harps on "paying attention to detail." In the first video above, he even states the 3 part process he has to go through to rent to Teen Mania:

1) He has to compile a list of all comparable rental properties in the Lindale area.

2) He has to provide phone numbers, addresses and rates for those properties.

3) He has to propose his rate based on the comparable properties.

In addition, he mentions in the second conversation that:

I also have to turn in a tax return to the IRS and I have to state the value of the property and what I'm making in rental income.

He compiles a thorough report in order to propose his rental rates which are then approved by an "independent auditor" and the Board of Directors. Then, he also has to file the income on his tax return...Given all the paperwork he has to file and hoops he has to (supposedly) jump through how would it be possible to "forget" how much he is making and has made in the two most recent fiscal years?

If these rental income payments were truly ethical and above board, why would he go to such great lengths to hide the truth?

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ESOAL: Do Facilitators Enjoy Harassing Interns?

In the past few days, we've seen some heinous treatment of interns including facilitators and staff members that terrorized a girl with a cockroach, watched idly as a guy has a panic attack, and Heath Stoner taunts interns as he literally endangers their lives.

In the first few seconds of this short clip, you'll see yet another example of how the interns are rountinely screamed at. Personally, this gives me the creeps.



Teen Mania's defense for the continued verbal assault and harassment is that they are doing this for the intern's good. They do NOT enjoy it. In fact, they will often tell you that its harder to be a facilitator than to be a participant. Supposedly, their heart is breaking inside as they have to yell at these interns and push them harder.

To find out whether or not that is true, we would need to see how the facilitators act when they are NOT around interns. When they gather together to plan their next move, do their words indicate love and respect for the interns?

In this clip, David Hasz is instructing a group of facilitators about the next activity. Prior to giving his instructions to the facilitators, he yells across the field to the interns, belittling their intelligence. At this, nearly all the facilitators giggle with glee - even though they are not directly facilitating the interns. While huddled together away from the interns, one facilitator even uses the word "retard." As Dave describes the next sadistic activity, he calls it "fun."

As you watch their reactions, ask yourself if this looks like a group of people who find it painful to harass and terrorize the interns? Or is this a group of people that ENJOYS bringing pain and heartbreak to the interns?



If you are a parent, are these the type of people you want to entrust your child to?

UPDATE: It is important to note that not every single facilitator is reflected by the above comments. Some are more or less forced to facilitate. This post refers primarily to the staff members and graduate interns that enjoy the power trip that ESOAL brings. No doubt that some graduate interns do not enjoy facilitating and are just as much a victim of the situation as the undergraduates.

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Ron Luce and I Agree on Something!

In last night's service at Teen Mania, Ron mentioned that there are a lot of "squirrelly" things happening in the name of Christianity.

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@45:20 - There is a lot that is unfortunately going on out there that is unfortunately under the name of Christianity that really doesn’t look much like what the Bible talks about at all.

Couldn't agree more, Ron.

COULDN'T. AGREE. MORE.

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Would You Commit a Sin if David Hasz Told You To?

The Honor Academy teaches an extreme version of submission that leads to an oppressive authoritarian environment. Interns are so conditioned to submit without question, that they will even commit a sin if commanded to do so by David Hasz or other Teen Mania leadership.

Of course, Teen Mania would deny this accusation, but as always, I have proof.

In one of his primary teachings on authority, Dave Hasz reads the following statement from a book:

@28:07 – Rebellion against authority means the person is not subjecting themselves to God, though it may appear that the person is rejecting some impure manifestation of God’s authority through a human channel.



Did you catch that? Failing to do something that your authority asks you to do is equal to rebelling against God, even if that authority is impure and incorrect! Dave goes on to give an example that if he told the internship to meet on the anvil and do 3 hours of jumping jacks, then they must suit up and start sweating. Apparently, no realm of your life is off-limits and you are not allowed to have personal boundaries if they conflict with your leader's will. This is a setup for an incredibly unhealthy relationship and it actually stunts the growth of the follower because they do not learn critical thinking and decision making skills.

He then goes on to state that this submission does not apply if your authority commands you to do something immoral.

Hmmm...interesting.

Isn't it immoral to verbally assault your brothers and sisters in Christ?

Isn't it immoral to taunt and terrorize them with coffins and cockroaches?

Isn't it immoral to call someone made in the image of Christ and loved by God a loser?

And yet, during ESOAL when Dave Hasz asks interns to viciously yell and tear down their classmates, most interns don't hesitate.

The reality of the Honor Academy is that the interns are ruled with an iron fist by all levels of leadership. It should come as no surprise that interns willingly violate their own conscience to please their authority figures.

Unfortunately, demanding absolute obedience to a man means they are discipling people in their own image, not in the image of Jesus.

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ESOAL: Heath Stoner Endangers Interns

Today's video features the incredibly dangerous "vacation" hosted by none other than Heath Stoner. Of course, before he coerces them into this very dangerous activity, he first states that ESOAL is optional and you can quit at any time. He even goes so far as to say you should never get mad at the facilitators who are there to "facilitate your pain." You should get mad at yourself because you are the one choosing to be there.

This is complete and utter bullshit, as we discussed on Monday.

Now that Heath has attempted to relieve himself of any personal responsibility of hurting these young, impressionable youth, he gets on with the task at hand which appears to be taunting interns, even those who begin hyperventilating and crying.

Make sure you watch to the end to see what the interns are climbing out of. It will stop your heart.

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ESOAL: Girl Terrorized with Cockroach

You may remember Lauren's story from ESOAL 2003. She was put in a coffin that contained mice and cockroaches. Apparently, Teen Mania was very fond of using cockroaches that year.

In this video, at least 4-5 facilitators crowd around a girl, put a large cockroach on her head and then demand she get in a hole. You can't see the cockroach until about the halfway point, but the facilitators are taunting her.

"Oh, that's sick! Its all in her hair and everything."

"The antenna is digging through her head."

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Honor Academy's ESOAL: Disturbing Footage

The only way I can describe the footage you are going to see over the next 3 days is that these interns are literally being terrorized.

Over and over, David Hasz claims that the most extreme elements of ESOAL happened because of rogue facilitators stepping out of bounds and that they have put measures in place to prevent this. As you will see in the rest of the videos this week, each intern that is being terrorized is surrounded by multiple facilitators at once, including Teen Mania's golden child Blaise Foret, current Honor Academy director Heath Stoner as well as Dave Hasz himself.

I find today's video hard to watch. A group of male interns is sent into a long narrow trough filled with water and dry ice. One of the interns appears to be having a panic attack, while facilitators look on and taunt him. Towards the end, you can hear Dave Hasz giving instructions, which freaks the intern out even more.



If you are the intern in this video, I am so sorry you had to go through this. It wasn't right. It wasn't godly. There are no words for how my heart goes out to you. I hope you have found peace.

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Gender Confusion at ESOAL

Every day this week, we are going to look at some disturbing footage from ESOAL (the event based on Navy Seals hell week).

In an attempt to instill humility and rid interns of the "fear of man," some male interns are required to wear very feminine dresses and headbands throughout ESOAL. But that alone is not enough, they also have to act like a women: walking like a model on a catwalk or cheering like a cheerleader.



In this video, the faciliator makes the intern scream, "I am not a man!" Listen to see why the intern feels this way. It is hearbreaking.



In this last clip, fast forward to the end to to see that while David Hasz opens the lid of a large box to let two girls climb out, he remarks, "Thanks for wearing your earrings. We appreciate a little lady like behavior at ESOAL."



UPDATE: I forgot to add this video which shows a girl getting her braids chopped off.




So, men are supposed to be shamed into dressing and acting like women. Women are treated like dirt, screamed at, have their hair chopped off and not given the dignity of wearing a tampon if they are on their period...but wearing earrings is good so that they can be ladylike.

Huh?

(For the purposes of this discussion, let's assume that the men being forced to wear women's clothes are heterosexual, since Teen Mania certainly assumes that.)

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Honor Academy: ESOAL is NOT Optional

Teen Mania says that ESOAL is an optional, voluntary event. They claim that interns are not required to participate nor are they forced to endure the event longer than they want to. They can ring out at anytime.

In my cult recovery group, we have a saying for that, "Its voluntary, if you volunteer."

In this post, I will demonstrate that ESOAL is NOT optional for the majority of interns.

First, we need to define "voluntary." For the purposes of this discussion, I am going to define voluntary as being free from psychological, emotional, and spiritual coercion. If something is coerced, it is not voluntary. It does not matter if that coercion is physical or psychological. You can't be controlled and act out of free will at the same time.

So how does Teen Mania psychologically and spiritually coerce interns into participating in ESOAL? I'm glad you asked.

Teen Mania starts by setting up a very black and white reality. If you do "A" you are godly, if you do "B" you are disobedient/unbroken/rebellious, etc. There is no middle ground. They do this by "loading the language" which is a standard tactic of cults and abusive groups.

Loading the language consists of redefining Biblical terms to meet their own agenda in a way that stops critical thinking.

An example: Dying to your flesh

- I must deny myself and die to my flesh.
- Dying to my flesh means doing whatever my leaders tell me to do, with joy.
- Dying to my flesh means enduring great physical pain.
- Therefore, if I quit ESOAL before my body physically gives out, then I am not dying to my flesh. (and therefore, I am a bad Christian, a failure, etc.)

Once you internalize this teaching, you are being controlled by Teen Mania. Instead of giving you many options about what dying to the flesh really means, you believe that pushing your body past its breaking point is the only way you can fulfill God's will. And so you will.

In Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships, the author states:

In other words, neither the charismatic leader nor others in the group need to be present to tell a follower what to do; rather, having internalized the lessons and adapted her outlook, the loyal and true believer knows precisely what she needs to do to stay in the good graces of the all-knowing and all powerful leader.

In reality, dying to your flesh has nothing to do with inflicting physical pain on yourself for the sake of proving how spiritual you are. Dying to yourself means dying to your sinful ways. In fact, Teen Mania's teachings on this subject make less and less sense the more you examine it. How can twisting your ankle and continuing to run on it be what Jesus intended when he spoke these words? Its really quite laughable.

Let's look at some other ways that Teen Mania redefines terms to manipulate you into submitting to the abuse of ESOAL:

- Self-pity: Self pity is generally understood as an undesirable condition of feeling sorry for oneself in an unhealthy manner. In contrast, Teen Mania extends the definition of self-pity to include being upset when your personal boundaries are violated, either physically or psychologically. Being upset when people are screaming in your face or you've blown out your knee are normal, God-given reactions that let us know something is wrong. By teaching interns to ignore this God-given warning system, they can more easily get interns to carry out their orders without question. (This also applies to the common phrase "manage your emotions."

- Brokenness: This means being in a state of openness and repentance before God, wanting to hear His voice and follow His will. Teen Mania redefines this to mean being open and repentant to them, listening to their voice and following their will - all without question.

- Adversity Quotient: David Hasz's teaching that unless you persevere through adversity (meaning everything that happens to you at Teen Mania) you will fail as a Christian leader.

- Burial and Resurrection: The bastardization of this teaching is so outside any Christian orthodoxy I've ever heard of, that it merits its own post here. Killing and/or ignoring your emotions has NOTHING to do with this spiritual truth.

So, if you accept Teen Mania's teachings, failure to participate with your 100% in ESOAL means that you will fail as a Christian leader, you are wallowing in self-pity, you are not dying to your flesh and you are not sufficiently broken before God.

Again, when presented with the options in this way, is there really a choice?

The book, Twisted Scriptures, explains the process this way:

Molding minds is a step by step process. Some prospective members will bite off the information and swallow it rapidly. More critical minds will usually have difficulty accepting everything they are told. After those disciples have wrestled with their doubt and rationalized away other negative ideas, they are led to the next bit of misinformation. Exposed to a group using these training dynamics, even the strongest individual can be broken. Yes, even you.

This is why I repeat so often that people don't think they are being unduly influenced because they "came on their own" and received teachings "at their own pace." Nothing appears to have been forced upon them. In the end though, it doesn't matter if you learned all the redefining of the words and all the twisted Scripture in a single sitting, or if it took you a year. The process is insidious. While it is happening, your view of reality is slowly narrowing. Whether in one giant step, or slowly over a longer period of time, they are still molding your thinking to fit their own agenda.

Even Scripture recognizes that bad teaching can mentally enslave us.

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces[a] of this world rather than on Christ. Colossians 2:8

Now, let's watch as a facilitator practices this form of coercion on a participant.



Notice that if the intern wants it to "be God" and do something "fantastic" he MUST continue ESOAL.

Quit and ring out = not fantastic, not God

Endure ESOAL = God will do awesome things

Does this intern really have a choice?

In this video, David Hasz explains how to ring out of ESOAL. He suggests that the proper time to ring out of ESOAL is, "When, you reach the place where you feel you can go no longer and you have experienced burial and resurrection..."



Notice that you are only given two options here. There is no option that says, "I am physically able to continue but I simply do not want to."

There are some people that do not participate in ESOAL and others quit before their bodies have given out. This would seem to be a strong rebuttal against my arguments here. However, the majority of these people have suffered intense guilt and condemnation as a result of their decision. (Though there are occasional exceptions) They were not able to make a free choice to quit without suffering the arbitrary consequences decided by Teen Mania. If Teen Mania truly gave them a free choice to participate or not, there would be no negative repurcussions.

I'll summarize by quoting from this paper on bounded choice:

The "Big Finesse" is to induce people into thinking they are exercising pure free will and personal choice while at the same time constraining their options with regard to anything important to the exercise of real power. It's easier to control people if they are not aware that they are being controlled, because they will not even think to resist the control.

(This is a complex topic and I've only just scratched the surface. For more information on the techniques of mind control, please click the links embedded in this post and check out The Heresy of Mind Control.)

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The Process is Slow

I was recently corresponding with a reader who shared about their journey of coming to terms with their Honor Academy experience and I thought it was a great summation of the path many of us take towards recovery:

It has only recently occured to me that my time with TM was really messed up. It's been ten years since I left the HA and I've slowly transitioned from the HA is the greatest and everyone should go...I don't agree with everything they teach, but no organization is perfect. It's not for everybody....What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger...to current day, WTF, How did I ever think most of that was OK on any level?

Especially for those of us without dramatic stories, it can take longer to realize the damage that was done. The constant daily dose of condemnation, conformity and legalism takes a while to make us reach our breaking point and therefore takes longer to recognize.

How long did it take you to realize you needed recovery?

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Ignoring Context = Sloppy (and Wrong!) Preaching

During his Week of the Ring sermon this week, Heath Stoner preached about honesty and telling the truth no matter the cost. (Kind of like a lecture from Bernie Madoff about fiscal responsibility.) Anywho, Heath used a clip from the movie "Les Miserables" to emphasize his point that you should "swear to your own hurt" which means you should tell the truth in every situation no matter the personal cost.

Now, being a HUGE fan of Les Miserables, this peaked my attention. In my opinion, Les Mis is the most incredible Christian story ever written outside the Bible. It is literally soaking through with the Gospel truth of love and grace and it is widely regarded as an artistic and spiritual masterpiece. While using Les Mis to make his own point, he actually missed the ENTIRE CONTEXT of the story and the motivation of the main character, Jean Valjean. After hearing this mis-handling of Les Mis, it struck me that this is a perfect microcosm of exactly how Teen Mania interprets and teaches Scripture to the interns. They miss the entire concept of the book and the main character, Jesus, and cherry pick isolated incidents to support their position while totally ignoring the context. If you don't care about Les Mis, you can skip to the last two paragraphs, otherwise read on.

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So let's take a look at how Heath setup this clip:

32:00 - For those of you guys that don't know the story of Les Mis, Jean Valjean did some bad stuff, some really bad stuff. Its a great book. I had to read the book in highschool. Anybody else have to read it? Did some bad stuff, its a great book if you've never read it. Did some bad stuff, but then he gets promoted gets some prosperity in his life, gets some influence and in this clip there's a guy thats being put on trial for the bad stuff that Jean Valjean had done. And this guy, if he gets convicted, he's going to go to prison.

So Jean Valjean is in the coutroom and hearing this guy getting accused of doing all these horrible things and Jean Valjean is there listening to it.Would you guys tell the truth? Let's see what happened?

Ok, first of all, Jean Valjean did not do "some really bad stuff" as Heath mentions here 4 times. He was sentenced to prison and hard labor for stealing a loaf of bread for his starving nephew. Does Heath think that is "really bad stuff" or he is just ignorant? A large part of the story of Les Mis is the injustice that Valjean suffers at the hands of the law. I'm pretty sure that flew right over Heath's head.

Second, he doesn't get "promoted." He deceitfully procures a new identity and lives under an assumed name to escape detection by the authorities who are looking to prosecute him for breaking his probation. In fact, his entire salvation and transformation take place because a Bishop lied to the authorities on his behalf. So I guess neither of them were really "swearing to their own hurt."

After the interns watch the clip, Heath sums it up before moving on with this statement:

Great, great scene. Somebody that stands up and tells the truth even though there's consequences.

Heath totally misses the entire point of Jean Valjean coming forward. He does it to spare the innocent man's life not because he is "swearing to his own hurt" for the sake of "doing the right thing." Right after, he goes on the run again, deceiving authorities again and for the next 10 years. How does this possibly bolster Heath's point?

It doesn't.

The theme of Les Mis is law vs. grace, mercy vs. punishment. If Heath can turn a character who spends his entire life lying to the authorities (and is justified in doing so) into a model of honesty and telling the truth, something is either very wrong with his reading comprehension or his agenda (or both.) You've gotta wonder about the teaching ability of someone who gets something that backwards.

And here's the thing...you may not care about Les Mis, but I submit that this kind of sloppy, ignorant exegesis is EXACTLY the same no matter what text they use. They overlook the entire mission of God and the point of Scriptures in reconciliation, mercy, love and compassion and instead use isolated verses to beat people over the head with unattainable standards and guilt and condemnation. Then, the interns think thats what the Scripture really says, when in reality its the exact opposite.
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As a sidenote, I can't resist mentioning that even Teen Mania doesn't really abide by this rule. When I went on my first mission trip with them to Hong Kong and the authorities asked me what I had in my bag while crossing the border to China, was I supposed to say, "I'm bringing Bibles in!" There are plenty of stories in Scripture where God's people lied and some were even rewarded for it (the Egyptian midwives, Rahab). Instead of taking one Scripture out of context and making it an absolute, let's look at the entirety of story.

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If You Can't Beat 'Em, Lie About 'Em

Well, I've put off writing this post for weeks. Honestly, it seems silly to dignify the accusations by refuting them here, but I guess the rumors have spread far enough that I should address it, especially for people who might be new here.

As you may remember, in the fall, Teen Mania commissioned a lawyer, who then comissioned a private investigator to investigate me. This investigator called my friends and harassed them in a pathetic attempt to dig up dirt on me. Since they were unable to find something true to smear me with, they have resorted to lies instead.

For many months now, Heath Stoner has been telling people (including the entire intern class and people who call to ask about the truth in my blog) that I serve alcohol to underage minors. This is patently untrue and actually quite laughable.

This story first originated in Heath's first interrogation of Hannah (you may remember she was routinely interrogated after he discovered her friendship with me.) This was the same interrogation in which she was forced to call me and cancel her plane ticket go back home (read about it here). Exasperated at the continued questioning and pressure, and after a full day of isolation in an office supervised by HA personnel, Hannah felt the need to make something up in order to satisfy Heath and get him off her back. So she told him that I gave her alcohol.

Of course, this wasn't true, but at that point, I don't blame her for trying to do whatever she could to get out of the situation. There is a reason there are proper procedures for legally admissible interrogations - its easy to manipulate someone into saying things that aren't true when you know the right techniques.

So, just a few days later on September 16th, 2010, Hannah sent this email to Heath Stoner and Dave Hasz:

To Heath Stoner, David Hasz, et al,
I have at no time been offered any alcoholic drink from anybody related to the Recovering Alumni movement after it was discovered that I was slightly underage. I have not consumed alcohol since I began involvement with Teen Mania and at no time has any alcoholic beverage been given to me. Any statement or implication from you or the Teen Mania Ministry that I was/ I have is patently false. Any prior statements that I may have made otherwise were under coercion of the Teen Mania leadership. I am not being forced to send this AT ALL

Well, far be it from Teen Mania to let a little thing like the truth stand in their way. Even after receiving this note from Hannah, and even after confronting me to my face about it in which I told them their facts were incorrect, THEY CONTINUE to spread this untrue rumor about me in an attempt to undermine my credibility and steer the focus away from the wrongs they are committing.

And now, I'm not sure if its just the rumor mill at work or if Teen Mania purposely enlarged the lie, but the current rumor is that I lure interns off campus and give them drugs and alcohol so that they will be dismissed.

When I heard this, my first thought was, couldn't they come up with a more believable lie? I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to come up with some sin that I might actually commit - but drug use? Are you kidding me? I wouldn't even have the first clue where to get drugs, much less how to smoke them....This is just so stupid that its absurdly preposterous. And I've never even finished an entire alcholic beverage on my own - I don't like the taste! I have a few hard lemonades in the fridge for when we have company. Thats pretty much the extent of my alcholic "lifestyle."

But again, Teen Mania doesn't let the truth get in the way of their plans.

I don't know which is more absurd - thinking that I dole out illegal substances or that I want interns to get dismissed. I'm against nearly the entire "dismissal" system because I think it tells interns that they are rejected by God. This fallout from that abhorrent message is the chief reason I am motivated to tell interns that they are loved by God, not rejected!

So yeah, the whole thing is absurd, and of course its not backed up by facts - because there are none.

So what is the bottom line?

1) Teen Mania has zero facts to base their allegations on. Only one coerced testimony which was later retracted. (And if they really believe I give drugs to kids, why didn't they report me to the police?)

2) Why does Teen Mania lie and attempt to smear my reputation? BECAUSE THEY ARE AFRAID. They do not want people finding out the truth and avoiding the Honor Academy. They need the money and the free labor. If it dries up, Teen Mania will cease to exist.

3) EVEN IF everything they said was true - how does that change the fact that they have abused people?? It doesn't. No matter what sins I may commit - they are the ones that are still abusing people.

Even if my credibility were impaired by such an offense, you cannot deny the countless voices testifying here and elsewhere. Literally dozens of other interns have shared their stories both in blog posts and in the comments. Just read the "true stories" category on the right sidebar to see for yourself.

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Of course my first reaction to all of this was anger, but now that I've had time to reflect I believe this is actually a very good sign. If this community was not effective in sharing the truth about Teen Mania, they would not bother lying about me.

So, for those of you that are long time readers and fellow recovering alumni, don't let this get you down or angry. Let it encourage you to keep speaking out and sharing your story. The truth cannot be silenced.

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Friday Roundup

1) Alumnus and sometimes commenter Brad Kelly is coming out with his first album. To celebrate, he's giving away a free download of his song Kaby Lake, and its pretty good! It's got kind of a U2 vibe to it so go check it out.

Brad said, "Music for me has always been something I've enjoyed, but truthfully, it's also been a place where I've been finding a lot of release and restoration. Some of the songs have come out of some pretty bad heartache; others have come from trying to remind myself of what I ultimately believe to be true, which has been hard for me--especially, self-esteem wise--for many years."

I think we can all appreciate art that comes from that gut level place of honesty. Good luck with your new album, Brad!


2) I recently discovered the blog of Rachel Held Evans and its quickly become one of my favorites. In this post, she talks about shedding the burden of saving the whole world and just honing in on what God has put in our hearts. I found it refreshing as a contrast to Teen Mania's disdain for anyone who feels they aren't called to foreign missions.


3) Every alumnus, nay every Christian, should read this post by Don Miller: The Biggest Temptation of the Modern Christian is Self-Righteousness. Its bursting with truth and I love every sentence. An excerpt:

In fact, stop reading this for a second and count the characters in scripture that rejected Jesus because they wanted to go on sinning? Now count the characters that rejected Him because of their religious hangups and self-righteousness. I’d say the latter outnumbers the former ten to one, at least.

Go read it!!

Read something good this week? Share it in the comments.

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Mind Control

One of our forum members recently shared a link to some great information about mind control. I'm excerpting part of it here. Reflect on your experiences at the HA and answer these questions to see if you were under mind control tactics. How many questions can you answer "yes" to?

1. Is your doctrine legislated rather than guided? (You should be free to search things out for yourself.)

2. Are your moral choices legislated rather than guided?

3. Are you unsure of the background of your leader(s)?

4. Do you solely rely on information given to you by your group?

5. Is there pressure to avoid all other information about your group?

6. Is there pressure on you to agree with all that the group says?

7. Are your leaders generally inaccessable to ordinary members?

8. Are leaders or other members hostile to your questions?

9. Are you fearful of your leaders?

10. Is your group secretive about its doctrines or its actions? (For example, is there any doctrine you have been instructed not to share with outsiders?)

11. Are members ever “disciplined” by threats, bribes, or other unpleasant pressures to conform?

12. Were you required to cut all ties with the past (including friends and relatives) when you joined?

13. Do others within the group make decisions for you?

14. Are you dependent on your leader’s or on other’s approval for what you do?

15. Are you afraid of leaving?

16. Do people constantly leave amidst controversy, strife and bitterness?

17. Do you condemn those outside your group as being “ungodly” or “satanic”?

18. Do you use “God wants me here” as an excuse to avoid facing the issue of leaving?

19. If your group uses the Bible, does it only use it with reference to (or explanation from) another person’s teachings?

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Count up your number of “yes” answers. If 4-5 you may be under mind control. If over 10 your group likely has serious problems.

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