Isami

Isami Daehn (CSA and Human Trafficking survivor) shares this below:

This is so heartbreaking. There are so many wolves in “ministry” and unfortunately Vision Baptist Missions is a breeding ground for this type of behavior.

If you didn’t know, I attended Vision Baptist Church for almost two months while my husband was deployed in 2016. I attended after hearing raving reviews from my brother who was/is a VBM missionary.

There were many instances that I felt uncomfortable at this church. Here were a few of my MANY red flags that eventually made me realize this was a den of wolves.

1- A few weeks after I started attending VBC, Austin G. called his wife, Becky, on stage and used her as an example of a disobedient person. She looked so uncomfortable as everyone laughed at her. He belittled her in front of everyone and went on to make jokes about her.

2- Harassment for “non believers” was encouraged at this church. And unfortunately, it wasn’t uncommon for VBM missionaries to brag about who they harassed that week. One of the conversations included making fun of a gay coworker (they worked at a restaurant while in VBM training). This church member had been harassing their co worker for being gay and had been doing this alongside their boss. They bragged about their behavior as if they were doing something for “the cause of Christ”. The church staff never confronted this behavior and acted as if this was normal for VB members to do this.

3- Grooming children for marriage. I often heard young students talk about “God’s calling” but rarely did it involve seeing who they were in Christ as individuals. After sticking around bit, I realized this mentality was being taught. Girls as young as 14 and 15 were already thinking marriage was some sort of goal rather than being taught how to approach healthy dating. They were taught that as long as sex and Godliness was involved, their marriage would be blessed. There was zero emphasis on personal goals or how to weed out creeps, and I quickly learned why.

4- Unhealthy view of single women. I met a few while I was there. Some in their late 20s and 30s one was a single mom. They were treated differently. In the conversations I had with them, they felt something was wrong with them. I also noticed this the first time I introduced myself to Austin and Becky. Rather than having a conversation, I was brushed off. I later asked my brother why he acted so strangely. I was told, “Well you are here by yourself, and you don’t have kids. It would be different if Seth was here.”

5- Lack of care for the immediate community. Sure there is a separate entity of OGT. But VBC itself is supposed to be a local church. I asked my brother about this once, and was told that my thinking was so “American evangelical” and the church didn’t exist for the people anyway.

6-There were about 3 women in the married class at the time who were “besties”. While there is nothing wrong with that, it was apparent this was a “mean girls” situation. You had to be “in” with them to get invited to anything. I had seen this before at other churches but it was usually a good indicator of deeper issues. I stayed a fly on the wall for everything but the three consistently spoke ill of each other behind their backs. All three were supposed to be leaders in the church.

7- Lack of accountability/transparency (finances, leadership, etc.). It was strange that there was what felt like a “fight club” running the church. No clear communication about who held who accountable within leadership.

8- It seemed that the mid week service was dedicated to talking about how much money the “Lord provided” to the missionaries (if you didn’t know, ALL VBM missionaries are required to raise starting at over 100k a year for personal salaries regardless of which country they go to. I didn’t know this until after I cut ties with my brother). While testimonies are great, it was like watching middle school boys brag about Pokémon cards. As a church attendee, this was strange.

8- Elitist mindset(Putting others down). Thankfully I wasn’t part of the IN people. I rarely introduced myself as James’ sister so some people didn’t know my affiliation or why I was there. So in the beginning I heard ALOT.

9- It seemed most of it not all of AG’s yes men at church had similar stories. Either daddy or mommy issues, or came from not a lot of money. Many had similar personalities. I noticed he would make certain people feel they were his “favorite”. I personally think this was calculated. It’s easy to manipulate someone who has this background but thinks they have it all figured out. The victim won’t look for a predator who feeds them everything they’ve ever wanted. But if a leader mocked someone for abandoning ship (which was common), the subordinate will stay devoted to earn/keep favor of the person in control. It’s a deep void the predator is aware they are filling to maintain control. This is the same tactics traffickers use to get their “bottom bi#ch” and “madams”. Keep people in line by fear, feeding egos, and targeting a void. It creates loyalty beyond reason. The leader can then do no wrong. And if the leader is called out, everyone else is bad. (This happened after multiple abuse stories came out about AG.)

10- Jesus was missing. While some scripture was taught, the actions of the staff and various members did not reflect the character of Jesus.

All in all VBM is 100% a cult.

https://survivorsofaustingardner.com/survivor-story-elise-wung/?mibextid=Zxz2cZ