This testimony was given to us by a former Adventures in Missions World Racer. This former Racer has been struggling to process the things experienced during their time with Adventures in Missions, which causes us to wonder how many others are struggling in the same way.
If you are struggling, please share your story with us. You can help each other by exposing the errors of this organization. Be assured that there is much comfort to be found in the TRUTH of God’s word.
This racer’s story begins at Training Camp…
“Recalling specific teachings from AIM leaders is one of the most difficult things for me, likely because there wasn’t much emphasis on biblical theology and sound doctrine. I vaguely remember a couple of teaching sessions from our training camp but I couldn’t tell you what was taught. I do remember one leader sharing a testimony about her WR experience, which had a tremendous emotional effect on everyone listening. Also, we were introduced to the basics of listening prayer at training camp and we were taught how to “prophecy” over other people.
At training camp, most of the indoctrination occurred in more subtle ways during our times of corporate worship, which would take place every evening for several hours. Worship was led by the now-popular Christian artist, Jonathan David Helser. (At the time, Helser had close ties with Rick Joyner and MorningStar Ministries and he is now affiliated with Bethel Church in Redding, CA.) During these meetings I saw a number of “manifestations of the Spirit” including, speaking in tongues, bodily spasms, uncontrollable laughter, and people being slain in the spirit. This was all new to me, and quite overwhelming, but I didn’t want to simply dismiss it on the grounds that I had never experienced it before.”
We must note that this is manifestation of a different spirit. These are not evidences of the Holy Spirit found in the Bible. It is also necessary to mention that Scripture NEVER speaks of anyone being TAUGHT any gift of the Holy Spirit. Spiritual gifts are a gracious gift from our Heavenly Father at the time of our salvation. “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” 1 Cor 12:7
How easily WE ALL can be led astray. This is why Paul wrote these verses as a warning to all believers. “But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.” 2 Cor 11:3-4
We have written about Bethel here, and this is another good source of information about them (and even organizations such as AIM). “If a church proclaims a message not substantiated by Scripture, then what is the source of that message? Right. Bethel is not of God, but, as Christ admonished the Pharisees, “you are of your father, the devil.” (John 8:44) This is the seriousness of false teaching. If it is not Scriptural, it is not of God. If it is not of God, it can only be one thing … evil . Thus a false message, enamoring and embraceable though it may be, is yet damning to adherents. The job of the believer in spiritual warfare is to expose the error and contend for the truth.” (Ephesians 5:11, Jude 3)
The testimony continues with evidence proving this organization is not of God, but rather what we would call demonic manipulation…
“One of the most vivid memories I have from training camp was a simple visualization exercise that we did. This also happened during one of our extended worship times, so there was continuous music going on in the background and most of us were already in an emotionally heightened state.
For this exercise, we were told to imagine that we were holding a box. Inside this box were all of our ideas and beliefs about God; everything that we had been taught growing up or had learned on our own. We were then commanded to throw this imaginary box on the ground and stomp on it, showing that we were not going to be constrained by our theological upbringings and that we were no longer going to put God in a box.
At this point the music picked up and everyone began jumping up and down, stomping and smashing these “boxes” to pieces. I remember this being one of the first moments where I decided to overlook the unusual, and unbiblical, nature of what was being taught and practiced, and I simply joined in without question.
To be completely honest, it was a liberating experience in a sense. I fully believed that I was overcoming my skeptical and critical nature, and that I was experiencing true freedom.
In reality, I was simply opening up my mind to the lies of the enemy, lies that I began entertaining and eventually believing.”
Praise God, this story doesn’t end here. This Racer has been graciously freed from the deception promoted at AIM. The story will continue when it is the right time…
Isn’t it ironic that they want the kids to “stomp” on any doctrine they ever learned, and then taught them none??
After reading this, we were reminded of the many similarities here with the New Apostolic Reformation.
Regarding the use of music, there are many studies, easily found with a quick Google search, related to emotional manipulation using music, here is one,
“Skilled composers manipulate the emotion within a song by knowing what their audience’s expectations are, and controlling when those expectations will (and will not) be met. This successful manipulation is what elicits the chills that are part of any moving song.”
This is why the Bible exhorts us to use our MIND. There are many Scriptures that say this, here are a few.
Rom 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Mark 12:30 “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’”
Emotions can deceive.
Col 2:8, 18 “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ…Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind.”
(This is a similar testimony to the one we shared here taken from the forum discussion)
Missions and Mysticism 