If you spent a lot of time at youth group, chances are good that a few different Christian organizations gave a presentation about their program. Some of them were focused on the local community, some sent kids overseas for missionary work, and others were more of a Bible training program centered around the individual. They almost always had a great pitch, with pictures of exciting places and stories about incredible experiences, but as I got older, I met more and more people who had strange experiences in these programs. 

 

Our guest, Bianca, joined Master's Commission fresh out of high school. It's a program affiliated with the Assembly of God church which describes itself as "an intense discipleship training center that challenges you to grow an intimate relationship with God and pursue the dreams God has placed before you." As far as Bianca knew, that meant two years of community service and missions work which resulted in a Biblical studies certificate offered through the church. What it actually meant was surrendering every waking moment of her life to a strict group of fundamentalists with no qualms about working teenagers to the bone, while simultaneously bombarding them with intense, and sometimes dangerous, spiritual programming. Despite the negative aspects of her experience, Bianca is able to look back on her time at Master's Commission with a degree of appreciation for the lessons she learned, and the friends she grew close to. You're going to enjoy her infectious positivity, and her take on what faith means to her, these days!