Gwen Shamblin 4: Lick the Fork

[Briefly]

4 hours ago, formergothardite said:

Gwen has dived off the deep end and is rambling about God not being on the news in her daily devotional. 

Given how she seems to comment on things, such as not talking about the growl after we've discussed it, is she maybe afraid that the eye of the press might be turned on her?  I think it's been mentioned here that it would be good if there was some attention from the press on them.

[RFfree]

7 hours ago, formergothardite said:

Gwen has dived off the deep end and is rambling about God not being on the news in her daily devotional. 

Well then wouldn't it also be "The hand of God let five people die in a terrible car accident today." or "The hand of God did not protect the small child from being beaten to death by a relative."  or "God is letting a serial killer run rampant."

Again it would also mean that we would get "Wow, God really surprised us with that tornado that killed 15 people and destroyed the homes of countless others."

or

"God decided to keep denying the drought ridden places rain and is also sending heavy rain to locations that are currently already under flood waters."

That is how it works Gwen. If we gave God the credit for everything on the news it wouldn't sound so great. 

Because belief in God is a matter of faith and not science? 

Why don't you go channel some of that anger in your soul into helping those less fortunate than you, Gwen? Go tackle the  hate crimes that are on the rise in America? Why isn't that making your "soul flare up"?

 

Amen...ALL OF THIS!! ?

My oldest son was killed on a motorcycle this year, aloof comments like these infuriate me. How can you effectively minister to people while wearing those rosy colored glasses and blinders?

[Jellybean]

I’m so, so sorry to hear about your son @RFfree. That’s such a devastating, life-shattering thing to happen. @formergotharditeand @SJWaterfordhave asked some of those questions - I found them difficult and uncomfortable as I started to move away from faith and a  (very controlling) church.

I still don’t think there are any good answers but I don’t believe that any loving god could be cruel or uncaring enough to allow (or even cause) such devastation - the wildfires in California, tornados and flooding in the south and east of the US and Puerto Rico, flooding in Sydney, devastating storms in flooding in Italy recently. And, of course, those intimate tragedies that hit so close to home, like my life-limiting condition and the death of your son. When I was still attending church I asked these questions of various elders and the strongest response I received was that my physical condition was the result of unconfessed sin. I’m sure you can imagine what that did to my self esteem.

Anyway, that’s a rather long-winded way of saying that I can’t answer any of those questions, but I care about so many FJ members who are struggling and have been through (are going through) impossibly hard times and experienced great loss. @RFfree, once again, I’m so sorry for your loss.

 

[formergothardite]

14 hours ago, Briefly said:

is she maybe afraid that the eye of the press might be turned on her? 

IMO, she switched to her rambling post about the media because, even when she discussed the growl, she was essentially repeating herself over and over. Looking back it appears she would use almost the exact same phrases. If she can't write about the growl or dispense dangerous weight loss advice, I wouldn't be surprised if she is struggling to create daily devotionals she hopes won't attract bad attention. 

Gwen seems to be extremely shallow and not one who thinks things through to the logical end, so I bet she never thought that the only logical conclusion to her post is that the news would have to also say that God's hand helped a murderer kill people. RF folks, feel free to chime in on this if Gwen has actually had deep thoughts on the subject of making all news about God and can explain this. People who find this thread when trying to learn more about the church pay attention to the lack of answers to difficult questions from church members. Shallow, superficial and secretive(I feel like John Shrader writing that!) appear to be traits Remnant Fellowship encourages when it comes to their beliefs and Gwen. 

I doubt she wants media attention, but I don't think the devotional was the result of that fear, instead it is the result of Gwen struggling to write daily devotionals. 

Today's devotional. 

Quote

Because it is so much easier to let God guide all our decisions and get all the glory, and it works so much better than trying to “GET” things for ourselves! Doing things God’s way, we go further and we get there faster. We get more done and do it better. 

This is very prosperity gospelish. It is also a way to blame people who aren't doing well by saying they must not be doing things God's way. 

Quote

Now, if you believe in this, then show the truth about what you believe – be consistent and go all the way with giving up the excess food. 

If Gwen truly believes this, why doesn't she be consistent and give up her excess stuff? She is wallowing in things she doesn't need. Gwen is a hypocrite who at this moment doesn't struggle with giving up food so it is easy for her to lecture people on how they should, but she does appear to struggle with giving up excess material possessions, but has built a wall of hypocrisy around herself to make sure no one calls her out to her face. There is a Bible verse about pointing out the speck in someone's eye when you have a log in your own and that is exactly what Gwen is doing here. 

[thoughtful]

1 hour ago, formergothardite said:

Gwen seems to be extremely shallow and not one who thinks things through to the logical end

I agree. I also wonder how well her mind functions at this point.

She doesn't recommend healthful, nutritious eating - she advises eating tiny amounts of whatever is craved, even if it is crap. If she has been practicing what she preaches, she may have been living on tiny nibbles of junk food for years and years.

Wouldn't the malnutrition that probably results from a life like that cause some brain fog?

 

[LovelyLuna]

Brain fog is all the better for controlling the victims of your cult.  Its genius really, in a sick sick way. 

[SJWaterford]

9 hours ago, Jellybean said:

I still don’t think there are any good answers but I don’t believe that any loving god could be cruel or uncaring enough to allow (or even cause) such devastation - the wildfires in California, tornados and flooding in the south and east of the US and Puerto Rico, flooding in Sydney, devastating storms in flooding in Italy recently. And, of course, those intimate tragedies that hit so close to home, like my life-limiting condition and the death of your son. When I was still attending church I asked these questions of various elders and the strongest response I received was that my physical condition was the result of unconfessed sin. I’m sure you can imagine what that did to my self esteem.

 

I think one of the things me and my hubby had to finally realize is that we did not do this. We would of course question, what we screwed up as parents for this to have happened, ect. We had to finally quit questioning ourselves. We didn't do this, they did. I don't think that I'm being punished for some unconfessed sin (I think its an outrageous answer from some of the elders of your church to explain a health condition). Nor do I blame God. I don't understand it, no one can answer my questions, because I don't think anyone has the answers (even Gwen the prophetess). Life isn't fair. Free will is a tricky thing. We can't control what other people do with their free will and sometimes peoples decisions hurt other people. It sucks. Especially when you've tried to do the right thing everyday, be the best parent you could, best wife, take care of your health, ect and you still end up being on the losing end. It hurts seeing terrible people win. And no matter what Gwen tells people on the way out of the church, she can't will bad things to happen to people for leaving her flock. Anyone that thinks they have that kind of connection or influence with God is just wicked. 

@RFfree, nothing I say will bring you comfort for the loss of your son. Nothing I have gone through could ever compare to what your heart feels right now. I'm sorry. I hope you have many happy memories with your son to look back on. 

[SilverBeach]

On 11/27/2018 at 5:19 PM, SJWaterford said:

This is exactly what I have been struggling with lately. Suffering and why God allows suffering. Really everything I have read or every  podcast I have listened to hasn't been able to explain this to me. I don't understand why if he could raise his hand and end so much suffering caused by Gwen, or so many other instances of suffering around the world to so many people, then why doesn't he? Not a question I expect anyone to answer. 

I recommend "When Bad Things Happen to Good People" by Harold Kushner. He is a rabbi whose young son died and he wrote this little but powerful book as he struggled with grief in his role as a spiritual guide. This book was transformative for me during the year that really tried my faith. No platitudes. Suffering happens to all. Life is random, even for believers. I hate it when people publicly, especially in church, thank God for things that other's don't have, making it seem like God has something against those people and you are some kind of special snowflake.

[tankgirl]

On 11/24/2018 at 4:48 AM, LovelyLuna said:

Tarzan's face cracks me up.   Gwen looks like some strange humanized robot android.  Like they tried to make it look human but failed miserably and ending up with something frightening instead.  The post says the wedding will be steamed live, dose that mean anyone can watch? 

I just realized I am being hypocritical because I don’t like talking about people's bodies/looks, but I don’t give a damn. 

It looks like some one with no Photoshop skills edited in Gwen. I swrar if I didn't know she looled like that, I would think half the hair and all of her face, were edited in from a whole other shot. The colour and hair just stand out so far as to look fake.

 

Sorry, I posted before reading last page and things got much deeper.

 

Philosophers and Religions have pondered the question of suffering as long as humans have thought, we all find our own answers. When shit goes bad, sometimes those answers are not enough. I do not follow or personally believe in the Abrahamic God, so my answers are far different, but I dont insist they are right for all. Rffree I am sorry about your loss of your son.

[thoughtful]

3 hours ago, LovelyLuna said:

Brain fog is all the better for controlling the victims of your cult.

I know that hunger or malnutrition is something many cult leaders use to break down followers. But I was wondering about Gwen herself. If she is eating as she advises others to do, she's been malnourished for years, and that may have affected her thinking ability.

[SJWaterford]

Question......do most other "evangelists" have full time security? Does anyone know what Gwen's security detail would do exactly all day long?  Is it because she thinks she's so important she needs one or because she legit needs one? Like fans swarm her at  Target or Hobby Lobby or what?

 

[RFSurvivor_2]

9 hours ago, SJWaterford said:

Question......do most other "evangelists" have full time security? Does anyone know what Gwen's security detail would do exactly all day long?  Is it because she thinks she's so important she needs one or because she legit needs one? Like fans swarm her at  Target or Hobby Lobby or what?

 

I am confident other evangelists (Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, etc) have full security detail. One of the many reasons why Gwen and RF have security detail is because a string of thefts and vandalism occurred in the past on church grounds, within the actual church sanctuary and at the former Weigh Down facility as well. She also has in the past recieved death threats from ex-WD participants and random individuals on the Internet, in person and via mail. I am not sure if any ex-RF member has done this however I wouldn’t be surprised (unfortunately).

IMO / playing devils advocate here; If I were in her position and had the money, I would do the same. I am not concerned about the idea of security detail being utilized by Gwen. It would be highly illogical if she didn’t utilize that at this point in her life. I am more or so concerned with the individuals who she has designated as said security detail.

Last time I checked (not too long ago), all of her security detail was comprised of RF members. These individuals were hired either directly by her or (for the most part) through an RF member owned security company. Because of their unhealthy devotion to Gwen and the cult as a whole, the individuals hired by Gwen (some of which I once knew personally) I have no doubt that these individuals would potentially go through extreme lengths to protect Gwen and the cult. This concerns me greatly. Some of the people in her security detail are members that I still care for, even till this day despite what has transpired between us.

They protect her person and her family. They also provide security for events and church, weigh down and her private property (public and unknown to the public). From what I know, her security detail has also been provided to members when it was deemed necessary. There are other different security jobs / tasks that she issues out however I do no longer know the intricate nature of their operations.

This is actually more common that most people think. Most would be surprised at how many large/mega and controversial churches/cults have dedicated security detail.

[formergothardite]

Daily devotional today is still weird and rambling. She writes the worst devotionals. 

Quote

 The volume of food you are allowed to eat is generous. Willingly cut back where needed. Do not crave anything but a relationship with God through Christ. Otherwise, you are putting God to the test; in other words, it is stipulating that God is to have mercy on you while you willingly rebel against what He wants. This is insisting on getting God to die to His will so that you can have yours! This is dictating to God that He let you have your appetite and then giving God an ultimatum that He not exercise his wrath. It is expecting forgiveness.

Again, switch food with worldly possessions and this shows how hypocritical Gwen is. You never see Gwen wear an outfit twice, she clearly spends a fortune on herself and the things she wants. She gets a high lecturing people on food while she sits around being greedy when it comes to material wealth. Wouldn't it make more sense to think God provided her with money to help others instead of spending so much on herself? Isn't by surrounding herself with opulence and worldly possessions she is just testing God, stipulating that God has mercy on her while she rebels against him? Making God die to his will so she can have the things she wants? She is saying God must give into her appetite for possessions and she isn't even asking for forgiveness! So how is she any better than the people who overeat but at least ask for forgiveness?(RF members who read here, feel free to answer this, doubt you will.) She is just being greedy! I could do a whole devotional series and Greed and Gwen and I bet it would be better than her's!  

Quote

Forgiving someone for wrongs is emotional and draining and time consuming. How much forgiveness have you demanded from God? 

Is she trying to claim forgiving people is too emotionally draining and time consuming for God? I'm pretty sure God is supposed to be outside of the concept of time and doesn't get emotionally drained and tired having to do things. What version of god is Gwen creating? 

[RFSurvivor_2]

3 hours ago, formergothardite said:

What version of god is Gwen creating? 

One made from her image.

[Alisamer]

5 hours ago, RFSurvivor_2 said:

I am confident other evangelists (Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, etc) have full security detail. ...

This is actually more common that most people think. Most would be surprised at how many large/mega and controversial churches/cults have dedicated security detail.

I know Joyce Meyer has security, because one of her bodyguards was convicted of murdering his family.

I would expect at least some security, I don't find that to be a really big deal. Our church doesn't really, except someone assigned to keep an eye on the parking lot during church and someone else who comes in and checks the building and locks up at the end of each day. But I'd expect most bigger churches to have some security around, these days. (And that's unfortunately especially true for congregations that aren't majority white and/or conservative Christian). Personal bodyguards and using that security for personal property, however, is a different thing. Joyce Meyer was touring and traveling often, so that makes some sense. Gwen, however? That makes it look more and more like a cult of personality. I think she should do what she needs to in order to feel safe, but with her own money. (Which is, of course, church money, but at least transfer it over first!)

[WorseThan1Thinks]

9 hours ago, RFSurvivor_2 said:

I am more or so concerned with the individuals who she has designated as said security detail.

Last time I checked (not too long ago), all of her security detail was comprised of RF members. These individuals were hired either directly by her or (for the most part) through an RF member owned security company. Because of their unhealthy devotion to Gwen and the cult as a whole, the individuals hired by Gwen (some of which I once knew personally) I have no doubt that these individuals would potentially go through extreme lengths to protect Gwen and the cult. This concerns me greatly. Some of the people in her security detail are members that I still care for, even till this day despite what has transpired between us.

They protect her person and her family. They also provide security for events and church, weigh down and her private property (public and unknown to the public). From what I know, her security detail has also been provided to members when it was deemed necessary. There are other different security jobs / tasks that she issues out however I do no longer know the intricate nature of their operations.

Yea, it’s not just the fact Gwen has personal security detail, it’s who she has filling that role (sold out RF members).  RFSurvivor_2 made a great point regarding the extreme lengths these people will go through to protect Gwen and Remnant.  Remember the mindset of most of these members.  Gwen is a prophet from God, the only person leading the one, true church.  No one in the entire world is more important than her.  You put that in the mind of a retired cop/hired personal security detail who has too much time on his hands, you get an over-zealousness that goes well beyond protecting Gwen from physical threats.  The law doesn’t matter, the methods don’t matter.  And don’t just protect Gwen, but protect Remnant by spying, secretly recording, lying, whatever it takes.

While there is so much more, here’s just one small example that has a paper trail.  An example of Gwen’s security detail going beyond just protecting her, but rather secretly recording Joe’s daughter talking to her own mom.  Gwen’s ‘hired gun’ isn’t protecting Gwen at the time of this event (Gwen was gone at the time), instead he is working for Gwen to help Gwen in any other possible way she needs.

(This is all public record).  The black parts were redacted on the original document.  I redacted more in red just to hide addresses to avoid any appearance of doxing, etc.  Again, it’s a public document.

 

A quick who's who to help make this more understandable:
Suspect is Chris Clark, a retired cop who is Gwen's main security guy.
Parent of Victim is William Joe Lara who is Tarzan.
Victim is Joe's daughter, the innocent little girl.
Complainant is Natasha Pavlovich, the little girl's mother.

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

[Queen Of Hearts]

1 hour ago, WorseThan1Thinks said:

 

While there is so much more, here’s just one small example that has a paper trail.  An example of Gwen’s security detail going beyond just protecting her, but rather secretly recording Joe’s daughter talking to her own mom. 

That poor, poor child.   

[SJWaterford]

2 hours ago, WorseThan1Thinks said:

Yea, it’s not just the fact Gwen has personal security detail, it’s who she has filling that role (sold out RF members).  RFSurvivor_2 made a great point regarding the extreme lengths these people will go through to protect Gwen and Remnant.  Remember the mindset of most of these members.  Gwen is a prophet from God, the only person leading the one, true church.  No one in the entire world is more important than her.  You put that in the mind of a retired cop/hired personal security detail who has too much time on his hands, you get an over-zealousness that goes well beyond protecting Gwen from physical threats.  The law doesn’t matter, the methods don’t matter.  And don’t just protect Gwen, but protect Remnant by spying, secretly recording, lying, whatever it takes.

While there is so much more, here’s just one small example that has a paper trail.  An example of Gwen’s security detail going beyond just protecting her, but rather secretly recording Joe’s daughter talking to her own mom.  Gwen’s ‘hired gun’ isn’t protecting Gwen at the time of this event (Gwen was gone at the time), instead he is working for Gwen to help Gwen in any other possible way she needs.

(This is all public record).  The black parts were redacted on the original document.  I redacted more in red just to hide addresses to avoid any appearance of doxing, etc.  Again, it’s a public document.

 

A quick who's who to help make this more understandable:
Suspect is Chris Clark, a retired cop who is Gwen's main security guy.
Parent of Victim is William Joe Lara who is Tarzan.
Victim is Joe's daughter, the innocent little girl.
Complainant is Natasha Pavlovich, the little girl's mother.

 

 

  Hide contents

 

 

Seriously. Does an ex-police officer not realize how creepy this is? One of her truly devoted servants perhaps. And looks like this happened very recently. 

[Briefly]

@WorseThan1Thinks, that is bad.  Like really bad.  And probably not surprising.  Wasn't there some discussion on an earlier thread regarding RF/WD/Gwen where it was mentioned Tarzan was going after full custody?  I think that's what I read, but I may be wrong.  But my thought would be that this is part of it, the attempt to prove (or make up) something that can be used against the girl's mother.

[SuperNova]

It's a little surprising that Joe would already be so sucked in to RF that he would allow such underhanded tactics. We're talking about his own child here. Any parent worth their salt would see major red flags if their new spouse would suggest such a thing. The level of paranoia in Gwen and her followers cannot be exaggerated and this new information ups the crazy factor. 

[formergothardite]

8 hours ago, SuperNova said:

see major red flags if their new spouse would suggest such a thing.

I bet from early on in the relationship Gwen has controlled every single aspect of his life. Can you imagine the hell fire that would rain down if he stood up to Gwen on anything? Gwen wouldn't have married him if she didn't think she could control him. Though I do think that one day he might just wake up, realize he has screwed up big time and bolt. 

Her devotional today is bland and but still seems off. It is like she really can't write a good devotional. 

Quote

Have you surrendered every bite of food to the lead of the Heavenly Father? Why not? 

I don't know Gwen, why haven't you surrendered all you vast quantities of earthly possessions? Seems like you might be storing up treasures in the world instead of heaven. 

Quote

 God is our life. That statement means more to me with each passing day. I love God more and more and depend on His directions more with each passing day. I have only one regret in life and that is that I wish that I could have had a deeper relationship with God at an earlier age. I wish that someone had told me how not to depend on myself anymore so I could have started this dependent relationship even sooner!

I bet she wishes she had come up with her worship of the growl earlier! It has made her a hell of a lot of money. 

[RemnantSurvivor]

9 hours ago, SuperNova said:

It's a little surprising that Joe would already be so sucked in to RF that he would allow such underhanded tactics. We're talking about his own child here. Any parent worth their salt would see major red flags if their new spouse would suggest such a thing. The level of paranoia in Gwen and her followers cannot be exaggerated and this new information ups the crazy factor. 

I can almost gauruantee that it was presented under some sort of “protecting the kingdom” or spin put on it that it was going to help in some way. 

49 minutes ago, formergothardite said:

I bet from early on in the relationship Gwen has controlled every single aspect of his life. Can you imagine the hell fire that would rain down if he stood up to Gwen on anything?

Yep. You *don't ever* disagree with Gwen. She is the prophetess of God. ? even if feel very strongly that God wants you to do something/go somewhere/etc. but Gwen says no, well then you must’ve not been hearing from God correctly. ?

[FilleMondaine]

I say this with love and respect for the ordeal that people go through: Domestic abuse turns people into dummies. Even super-smart people's intellect gets crushed under physical or emotional abuse. So, Joe's thoughts? I really don't know.

Is the daughter's mum an American Citizen? Why do I remember her name sounding Eastern European...Anyhow, the point is that if she is an immigrant, it must be so scary to have the daughter trapped by such a powerful US-citizen...

[Tatar-tot]

Lara married Gwen for money - no ifs, ands or buts.  Lara performs & he gets money.  Lara has sex with an old biddy & he gets money.  Lara shows up at church & Lara gets money.  Lara okays spying on his daughter & Lara gets money.  For Lara this is the best paid acting job he has ever gotten.

Lara will not get primary custody of his daughter ever.  It is a looser battle and Lara could care less.  It is just another wacky role he gets paid for.   

Gwen is really a fool.  She is being played by Lara and does not even know it.  It will be a hoot when Lara has an affair with a young pretty congregant of Remnant Church.  I will bet money that 10 years out Lara will be running the show at Remnant and the old biddy Gwen will be kicked to the curb.  Karma is a bitch...?

[SJWaterford]

joelara.com

Looks like he got a new website. This pic is my fav. 

39 minutes ago, Tatar-tot said:

Lara married Gwen for money - no ifs, ands or buts.  Lara performs & he gets money.  Lara has sex with an old biddy & he gets money.  Lara shows up at church & Lara gets money.  Lara okays spying on his daughter & Lara gets money.  For Lara this is the best paid acting job he has ever gotten.

Lara will not get primary custody of his daughter ever.  It is a looser battle and Lara could care less.  It is just another wacky role he gets paid for.   

Gwen is really a fool.  She is being played by Lara and does not even know it.  It will be a hoot when Lara has an affair with a young pretty congregant of Remnant Church.  I will bet money that 10 years out Lara will be running the show at Remnant and the old biddy Gwen will be kicked to the curb.  Karma is a bitch...?

I believe his lawyer is a member as well.