Maxwell 21: Deliberately Hiding the Truth Again

[nelliebelle1197]

6 hours ago, Black Aliss said:

So now the post itself and Sarah's comments on the post have all been edited to change the kitten's name to "Tiger". I hope Tina wasn't forced to change the name.

Are you joking?? My computer is in the shop and I am having a hard time navigating the phone with all the websites. I believe you but I am mortified.

[Granwych]

7 hours ago, johnhugh said:

I’ve been defrauded, Jess is wearing a polo shirt with the buttons undone without a white t shirt underneath and I can see glimpses of his upper pecs. I”m having ungodly thoughts and it’s like Poor Sarah has turned Tits2 blog into a porn site.

 

No defrauding possible here, ladies. 

John Hugh, is that sarcasm I detect??  Love you bunches, man!

[mango_fandango]

Yup, apparently Sarah “got the name wrong”. 

To me, it makes it sound like Tina named it Tigger, Sarah then realised after posting that it sounded like her nieces read WORLDLY books about animals that can TALK (which is bad and ungodly, TALKING animals), and they persuaded her to change the name. Sarah doesn’t respond to the Winnie the Pooh question, which makes it sound all the more like she’s trying to deny the idea that her nieces read such a book. 

[VodouDoll]

Is it common for mission trips to be of open-ended duration? 

[Palimpsest]

11 hours ago, nelliebelle1197 said:

Are you joking??

No she isn't.  But they got caught.

So either:

• Sarah genuinely made a mistake and is familiar with Pooh herself, or
• Sarah can't spell Tiger, or
• the kitten was called Tigger but Steve didn't know it was a Pooh reference until he read here or the person asked in the comments.

But the kitten is now called Tiger.  Because he's striped!

1 hour ago, VodouDoll said:

Is it common for mission trips to be of open-ended duration? 

No.  In this crowd short-term international mission trips are usually around 2 weeks, as far as I can see.  However the Maxwells are calling this a "ministry" trip not a mission trip.  

Quote

we said goodbye to Anna and Mary as they embarked on a long ministry trip. They’ll be gone at least 4 weeks and perhaps closer to 6. We choose to leave the location undisclosed for the privacy of the ministry they are serving with.

So no indication that they are going overseas or are affiliated with any known "missionary" organisation.  We've speculated that it has to do with Samaritans Purse but have no real evidence.  They left on May 20th so they have only been gone 3 weeks.

We have no idea what they are doing.  They could be visiting friends who need temporary nannies or, heaven forfend, singing back-up for the Bontragers*.  They could be taking their balloon and face-painting ministry on the road (under supervision and umbrella of protection of one of Steve's friends, of course) and ministering at state fairs.  Keep an eye out at state fairs in your neck of the woods.

*For literalists here that was just snark; they don't seem to be travelling with the Bonts.

[singsingsing]

I find this open-ended "mission trip" super sketchy. I've never heard of an actual mission trip with no set end date. And who are they with? Surely Steve wouldn't let his daughters jet off on a trip alone, without adequate supervision? So who's he trusting to chaperone them?

[IReallyAmHopewell]

I've been away from Maxhell for a few days. The crazy never stops. Take this gem

"Giving a blessing to Joseph on his spiritual birthday."

WTF?? So they DO believe God only speaks to Daddy. Gothard again.

And they celebrated father's day on Memorial Day but the girls weren't there? Did I misunderstand this? [Easy to do when they can barely write coherent English].

[Jana814]

I think it was meant that they celebrated Father's Day twice because Anna & Mary were going to be away for Father's Day. 

Steve has such a big ego of course he felt that he needed to be celebrated twice. 

[nelliebelle1197]

10 hours ago, Granwych said:

No defrauding possible here, ladies. 

John Hugh, is that sarcasm I detect??  Love you bunches, man!

Hands off my Internet GBFF @johnhugh

[Black Aliss]

5 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

 

No.  In this crowd short-term international mission trips are usually around 2 weeks, as far as I can see.  However the Maxwells are calling this a "ministry" trip not a mission trip.  

 

Ah. A "Ministry Trip" could very easily not have a definite end date. As in, ministering to a family where the wife is pregnant, possibly on bed rest, and they are helping out with the rest of the passel-o-kids until after the baby is born.

[Anonymousguest]

11 minutes ago, Black Aliss said:

Ah. A "Ministry Trip" could very easily not have a definite end date. As in, ministering to a family where the wife is pregnant, possibly on bed rest, and they are helping out with the rest of the passel-o-kids until after the baby is born.

None of those things would require secrecy to "protect the privacy of the ministry they are serving with" though. The wording sounds like they are serving with a specific ministry, but then with the Maxwell's wording might not mean what we think. 

[Palimpsest]

2 minutes ago, Anonymousguest said:

then with the Maxwell's wording might not mean what we think. 

It never does.  I just checked and they used "ministry trip" for the last time the girls went on the not a vacation with John as chaperone.  Perhaps they went to the same now trusted but super-secret location.

Quote

Thursday, we said good-bye to Anna, Mary, and John as they left for a several week ministry trip to a location we choose to leave undisclosed for the privacy of the ministry they are serving with. Please lift them up in prayer, for many opportunities to share Christ and for health and protection.

 https://blog.titus2.com/2017/06/24/three-maxwells-go-on-a-ministry-trip/

I don't think they are overseas.  I think this must be a domestic ministry.  I say that because when John took his solo magical mystery tour they made a big deal out of John "Goes International." That was not a ministry just "John is leaving the country to visit friends who teach English as a second language."

https://blog.titus2.com/2015/04/08/john-goes-international/

"The country will remain anonymous" in the comments still makes me snicker.  I'm positive that was Steve and not Sarah.  It is too terse for Sarah.

[Hane]

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah—and Steve, Steve, Steve.  I’m pretty sure telling fibs will mess up your “Good Person Test” score.  I think it’s damn near impossible that Sarah (who went to at least one OMG sleepover!!! as a child and who goes shopping in actual stores) has never encountered a Winnie-the-Pooh character.  I agree with everyone else:  Steve realized that the kitten’s name came from a Worldly Book and Worldly Pop Culture and had to jump in to protect his brand.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Ministry trip vs mission trip. How is a mission not a ministry? Maxwellian semantics.

I hope these two are on their own and not with some hovering chaperone, but I'm doubting. Let's hope they get to have actual FUN and remember not to blog that so that maybe it can happen again.

[browngrl]

2 hours ago, Black Aliss said:

Ah. A "Ministry Trip" could very easily not have a definite end date. As in, ministering to a family where the wife is pregnant, possibly on bed rest, and they are helping out with the rest of the passel-o-kids until after the baby is born.

Actually this makes the Maxwell's seem even odder to me. If the girls are going to help someone like a new mom why not just say something simple like " the girls are going to help a friend who is a new mother". There would be no privacy breach with a simple statement like this. I suspect that the real reason for all this subterfuge is that Steve got some bee in his bonnet. He seems to find the most innocuous things dangerous e.g. buttons so who knows what he is on to now.

[Palimpsest]

2 hours ago, IReallyAmHopewell said:

Ministry trip vs mission trip. How is a mission not a ministry? Maxwellian semantics.

Maxwellian semantics can be both interesting and informative for those who follow them more closely than is perhaps good for our mental health.  

You could argue that how is a ministry not a mission after all? 

But in Maxhell it does seem to make a subtle difference.   Time will tell.

1 hour ago, browngrl said:

I suspect that the real reason for all this subterfuge is that Steve got some bee in his bonnet.

He is as paranoid as fuck.

[sparkles]

I can’t imagine why any legitimate mission organization wouldn’t want publicity so I’m of the opinion that Mary and Anna are “ministering” to some family in need of their assistance. My bet, because of the open ended return date, is that it’s to help some young couple where the wife is is pregnant but confined to bed because of complications. So they’re watching the other kids (and possibly overseeing homeschooling—perish the thought!) , catering to the mom, taking care of the house and serving as surrogate wives to the husband, except for the, you know, S*X part. <blushes> It could very well be the reason for the privacy and explain the nebulous return, because they’d stay as long as they’re needed.

[Palimpsest]

33 minutes ago, sparkles said:

I can’t imagine why any legitimate mission organization wouldn’t want publicity so I’m of the opinion that Mary and Anna are “ministering” to some family in need of their assistance. My bet, because of the open ended return date, is that it’s to help some young couple where the wife is is pregnant but confined to bed because of complications. So they’re watching the other kids (and possibly overseeing homeschooling—perish the thought!) , catering to the mom, taking care of the house and serving as surrogate wives to the husband, except for the, you know, S*X part. <blushes> It could very well be the reason for the privacy and explain the nebulous return, because they’d stay as long as they’re needed.

@sparkles you are back!  And yes.  Agree.

I hate when you disappear because I really think of you as our best institutional memory on Maxhell.  

I hope all is going well in your world,  I seriously miss you when you are on hiatus.

[FloraDoraDolly]

11 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

No she isn't.  But they got caught.

So either:

• Sarah genuinely made a mistake and is familiar with Pooh herself, or
• Sarah can't spell Tiger, or
• the kitten was called Tigger but Steve didn't know it was a Pooh reference until he read here or the person asked in the comments.

But the kitten is now called Tiger.  Because he's striped!

If Tina was a little older, there would be another possibility: The kitten is indeed named Tigger, but Tina remembered she's dealing with the weird side of the family here and there are "just some things we don't tell Grandpa Steve, Grandma Teri, and the aunts." So she said the cat's name is Tiger to get them off her back.

[mango_fandango]

I don’t even attempt to understand Maxwell semantics. The Maxwells are weird and often shady as fuck so I don’t even go there.

[kpmom]

5 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

"The country will remain anonymous" in the comments still makes me snicker.  I'm positive that was Steve and not Sarah.  It is too terse for Sarah.

Yes, I remember that.  We never could figure out why  the Maxwells felt they had to keep an entire country anonymous.  I mean what exactly did they think blog readers would do with that information?

Now, this summer I'm going to visit the west coast of a state in the U.S. but that's all I'm going to say for privacy's sake.  The state will remain anonymous.

  O.K., o.k., this state is below Georgia and above Cuba and it rhymes with "Morida", but that's all I'm going to say for privacy's sake.

O.k., o.k., it's really hot in this state and they have hurricanes, palm trees, an ocean that begins with the letter A, and the state is a peninsula, but that's all I'm going to say for privacy's sake.

O.k., o.k., this state is also home to a famous theme park that has a mouse as it's central character, he has a girlfriend who is also a mouse and they have a duck and a goofy dog as best friends, but that's all I'm going to say for privacy's sake.

Now, even though I'm refusing to tell you where I'm going, how long I'll be gone, and what I'll be doing there, I expect all of you to lift me up in prayer every moment.

 

 

 

 

 

[nastyhobbitses]

8 hours ago, Black Aliss said:

Ah. A "Ministry Trip" could very easily not have a definite end date. As in, ministering to a family where the wife is pregnant, possibly on bed rest, and they are helping out with the rest of the passel-o-kids until after the baby is born.

OK, can someone with more background in Christian-ese/Christian practice explain to me what the fuck "ministry" is supposed to be? Because I think a lot of fundies seem to label everything they do down to taking a dump a "ministry". 

[Black Aliss]

10 minutes ago, nastyhobbitses said:

OK, can someone with more background in Christian-ese/Christian practice explain to me what the fuck "ministry" is supposed to be? Because I think a lot of fundies seem to label everything they do down to taking a dump a "ministry". 

It's basically anything you do where other people will say of you, "She has a servant's heart."

[albanuadh_1]

Today's post is about grocery shopping at Aldi's.  I have nothing more to say...

[Hane]

@albanuadh_1, I was expecting to see a store with pictograph signs (instead of worded ones) a là The Handmaid’s Tale.