My name is Deborah Forsberg, I’m 28 & am currently living the United States. I’m married & have 3 wonderful kids ages seven, five & one. I’m a teacher for the most part & what you could call a jack of all trades, I do a little bit of everything!

To make a long story short, I was born & raised in the Family & have had a wonderful life! I’ve traveled the world & have had more experiences than most people my age. Sure there have been troubles & problems. But look around you; so many people have had so much worse! Look at the young people who have gone to war & given their lives for their country, to preserve the way of life for their fellow man. Some have come back severely injured & traumatized by the experiences they have been through, others have died! What about the poor kids in Asia & Africa & any other 3rd world nation who are dying of starvation & life threatening sicknesses. What about those in our own country who have grown up in low class neighborhoods with drugs all around them & where violence & alcohol abuse is an everyday occurrence & where no one cares about them or for them? Those of us who have grown up in the Family have grown up in loving, nurturing homes where we have been very well cared for & have had more time, attention, & training given us than most anyone. Best of all we’ve been given a heritage of faith & a goal to live & strive for which is Jesus & others.

I can understand how someone could find another way of life more appealing & I don’t condemn anyone for that, not everyone is meant to live such a high commitment life, at times I have myself questioned whether I have had it in me. What I don’t understand is why people make it their business to make our life difficult by lying, exaggerating & letting whatever bad or difficult experiences they may have had make them bitter & hateful toward us. Everyone experiences difficulty! Obviously some handle it better than others & it just seems to me that those who whine & complain are those who are over indulged & expect life to be a bed of roses, they are self motivated & all they care about is what they think will make them happy. The truth is they will never be happy!!—It’s a simple & commonly known lesson of life.

With the way the world is developing today, things are only getting darker & darker. As the pace around us speeds up people are becoming more & more self concerned & have less time to give to another. People are becoming alienated & are losing touch with true joy & happiness, it has become a game of who can get more no matter who they have to step on or what they have to sacrifice & what’s the purpose & reason behind it? What are they living for? Do they realize that their life could be over tomorrow & what would they have to say for themselves when they come before our Lord?

As for myself, I value my place in this Family. Though there are some who see us as irrational, radical, & crazy, –so be it! It’s a high commitment place of service with not many visible rewards at times, but that really depends on your perspective! “Lay not for yourselves treasures upon Earth, where moth & rust doth corrupt, & where thieves do break in & steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor dust doth corrupt, & where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is there will your heart be also.”—is what the Bible says in Matthew 6:19-21. A lot of people don’t understand us, but that doesn’t make us wrong! That’s where some people are so wrong, they say that those who don’t fit into their little box of conformity or what they consider right or wrong are fanatical, outrageous & irrational!

I’m thankful to be raising my kids in this warm & loving, faith building environment; it’s the best thing I could give them!

Deborah Forsberg is a second generation member of the Family International.