While you were associated with the Jehovah's Witnesses did you have the peace and joy that the Bible, especially the New Testament says Jesus' followers will have in abundance?
Did You have Peace and Joy?
by Honesty 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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joelbear
i was a nervous and unhappy guy
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serendipity
I have some peace and joy since I expanded my love and acceptance to all, instead of limiting it to JWs, and since I've started to quiet the inner critic who had the tendency to judge people, comparing them to WT standards. I wasn't exempt either.
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mariposa
I had occasional, fleeting moments of peace and oddly enough most of the joy I ever felt had came from sources OUTSIDE the org. Hmmmmmmm
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zen nudist
as a JW I had very little peace or joy.... I even felt that I was so unworthy that I could only hope to help someone else make it.
peace, I have since found, comes from accepting the perfection of each moment, while as a JW, I could only compare each moment to the fantasy ideals of paradise and heaven and could never find reality worth anything but damnation.
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poppers
serendipity said, "and since I've started to quiet the inner critic who had the tendency to judge people, comparing them to WT standards."
Good for you! Spotting that inner critic when it arises brings one to the awakened state, brings one to freedom. "You" are not the critic, but what sees the critic when it's there. "You" are freedom itself, "you" are peace, "you" are joy.
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Finally-Free
No, it was quite the opposite. My 20 years as a JW were filled with one calamity after another. There seemed to be no letup. Some of the problems were JW related, some not. Those problems that were not JW related were usually complicated by the fact I was a JW.
The JWs did teach me one truth though. They said that, as a JW I would be persecuted, and I was. But I was unprepared to find the source of the constant persecution would come from within the congregation.
W
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poppers
zen nudist said, "peace, I have since found, comes from accepting the perfection of each moment, while as a JW, I could only compare each moment to the fantasy ideals of paradise and heaven and could never find reality worth anything but damnation."
Yes yes yes! Even those who have never been JW get caught in fantasies about the future, or dwell on the past. To be free of all of that, "accept the perfection of each moment."
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tetrapod.sapien
While you were associated with the Jehovah's Witnesses did you have the peace and joy that the Bible, especially the New Testament says Jesus' followers will have in abundance?
nope. and i still don't.
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DannyHaszard
Yes age 27 1984 for a 12 month period,when my ulcerative colitis went into a mini remission the economy was good and i was making big bucks donating $1,000.00 to the K-hall building fund.I was also taking doxepin an anti depressant medication which actually worked well for me.
I was convinced in my heart of hearts that i was serving the one true faith and that i didn't need to save my money or invest it in my beloved baby sisters future education.Yes glorious delusionsknowing that i would NEVER see 30 years of age in this system,NEVER grow old,NEVER get a pot belly,NEVER a retirement savings.