You got an apology, !!!   That's one up on the folk at Boxhill, Your rci must have been far more spiritual, where I was the knife was just temporarily retracted.
Since the split of 95 after that fabricated lie of a morals policy,  (I knew something wasn't right when defaulters where told they could still fellowship at other churches, with other brothers and sisters). 
Folk became so cold hard and insular, not trusting, not wanting to let others in, everyone afraid of getting close to other people in case they left. Knowing that they would not be allowed to contact them again.
I don't miss the control, I don't miss the cold uncaring unloving attitude of the oversight. I don't miss the safe boring talks. Every now and then a revelation comes and an exrci friend says "its OK your allowed to do that or its OK to visit other churches" then bang the revelation hits and until moments like that you really don't know how much they have subtly controlled you in your thinking and mindset.  There are so many cult like controlling attributes in that place its unbelievable. I don't miss being told I don't have a vision for God just because I missed a few meetings. My vision for God 100% my vision for an organisation started by men, the two don't bare comparison.

Ps keep up the good work on the GD stuff. Many of the small country assemblies are being kept in the dark about this, any one with friends family needs to email this stuff out to there Pasters, so they can be aware of the hypocosity in the organisation

Wasting so much of my precious time there.

Not  having to keep up appearances of being so thrilled to be at a meeting listening to another dreary mind numbing  talk.
Putting up with the hypocrisy  i.e one must not murmur about the oversight.Ah... if the members only knew  all  the gossip and self righteous critical judgements  that went down in oversight meetings. 
Enduring the  many  idiots appointed to oversight.  They were always a few neurones short of rationality. As Dr Phil would say. Simon "What were you thinking"? 

The above idiots dispensing disastrous advice when they were totally untrained and inept in dealing with people.

The expectation that we should all aspire to  be a clone of the above idiots.   

Being told people were dead wood or had taken their eyes off the Lord  because they finally saw the light and left.

Never feeling spiritual enough  to  reach their unattainable standards.

Always being on guard and not trusting anyone

Hi Chips and all,

I am so pleased I don't have to sit through any more second Sunday meeting screen presentations, ESPECIALLY those evolution presentations by one, Pastor DW, on his once frequent visitations.  No fun staring for a long time at a picture of a cocoon dangling from a twig or the green mantis camouflaged in dewy green leaves, while Pastor DW went on and on and on in what was obviously his forte.  A quick exit was required afterwards to avoid having to respond with a sickly smile to the wide eyed and glowing "Wasn't Pastor D's presentation soooo good" or being tempted to say it was downright boring.

Epi

Glenn Duker starring in those skits on how to give a good testimony. Four or more people  would take it in turn to  present a different style of  testimony.
Firstly there was the rambling monologue with useless  detailed trivia.
There would be one about how they had lived a hard life of drugs, alcohol etc came to the Lord then  fell away for a while and then came back
Another was full of the Assembly jargon e.g.  seekers meeting , in the tank, the Lord helped me through school,etc
And of course the  perfect  RCI one.
Finally a house leader  would tell us what was right or wrong with each one.

 

Tommo

Yep - I can relate to your 'inside' jokes. We can turn a revival phrase around at any point in the day and get a laugh. "I have never heard whether there by any ......" in any conversation will get a laugh (even though this is at the expense of a real scripture). It's therapeutic to laugh at our old selves I believe. Better than getting angry and bitter.

Do you fellowship anywhere now? How long ago did you leave?

I keep putting off making  contact even with good friends from rf because I can hear the cliches before they're spoken, and I really don't want to hear the pity in their voices. To have to say I'm happier and more free and more content will be taken the wrong way, and so I never make the call.

Chips

I like that, this scripture really stood out after leaving, and put things into perspective.

1Co 13:1 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.