Looking Back, Was Being A Witness A Worthless Experience To You? (page 3)

undercover

I wouldn't call it worthless.

It did instill certain good traits... would I have received those traits without the influence of the JW religion? Maybe, maybe not, but I can only assume at this point in life that it did help.

The Ministry School did help me in being a better public speaker, not that I'm a good speaker now but I'm better than if I had never received any training in it.

I did make some friends, friends that I have to this day despite my fading away from being an active member. Yea, I'm sure I could have made other friends outside of the religion, but I'm trying hard to look at the positive of my upbringing instead of bitching about it all the time.

I can't change my past, I can't change who I was, how I was brought up. I'm not overly glad that I was raised a JW but since I can't go back and change it, I might as well accept the good, lament the bad and move on in being an ex-JW without too much bitterness or anger.

What one makes of ones past experiences can shape what one becomes in the future. If one only grumbles about how bad it was to be a JW and not having a "normal" upbringing, then one is probably doomed to being a miserable person from here on out, willing to blame the past than to willingly accept the challenges of our life now. If you can't come to terms with your past, how can you expect to overcome issues that may arise now and in the future if it's too easy to blame someone else?

thepackage

Totally Worthless!!!! There is not one quality or skill i learned while a JW!!!! I'm just greatful I didn"t listen to the Elders and finished college.

minimus

I was always considered a very good speaker too. But, in reality, what good does it do me??

wha happened?

It did help my sales skills. I was much more introverted before. Dealing with customers would get to me to quickly. Learned how to deal with failure better. I never started a study and rarely, if ever, placed any literature.

White Dove

This is an upsetting thread for me because I oooooze with bitterness.

There was absolutely NOTHING GOOD that I took out of it.

I took out of it that I could not make friends easily.

I did not learn to be a good public speaker. I mean, really, having a casual conversation with another sister in the second or third schools for five minutes once every three to five months doesn't really prepare one for much of anything at all. I'm amazed that others actually learned how to be good public speakers. Oh, wait! They were males and were used several times a week. My chance of it was like fifteen minutes a year. Ha!

I learned the art of co-dependency on the WTS and JW family.

THANKS FOR NOTHING, WTS!

freydi

I think there was a lot that was beneficial which is why the separation is so painful.

As Pastor Russell wrote in Volume 3 p186

"Hence it is that we sometimes see an honest, truth-hungry child of God gradually progressing from one denomination to another, as a child passes from class to class in a school. If he be in the Church of Rome, when his eyes are opened, he gets out of it, probably falling into some branch of the Methodist or Presbyterian systems. If here his desire for truth be not entirely quenched and his spiritual senses stupefied with the spirit of the world, you may a few years after find him in some of the branches of the Baptist system; and, if he still continues to grow in grace and knowledge and love of truth, and into an appreciation of the liberty wherewith Christ makes free, you may by and by find him outside of all human organizations, joined merely to the Lord and to his saints, bound only by the tender but strong ties of love and truth, like the early Church."
1 Cor 6:15,17; Eph. 4:15,16

Thechickennest

What am I going to say?....I can speak to total strangers about most anything, I can speak in front of a large group, I can sell absolutey anything, I have a great wife that I snatched away from the cult, I made a lot of decent friends, I have learned humility to a point, I can use the bible...I don't know what for but I can operate the pages and find things, Oh the list is endless!

Having said all that, I am glad its over.

Beep,Beep

My wife, my children, the fact that my parents raised us to see others in a positve light so that I consider myself to be "coloer blind" as far as people go. I managed to avoid drug use, smoking and becoming a teen age parent.

I consider all the above to be positives.

Robert7

For me, being a Witness wasn't too bad. Since I was a slacker, I didn't invest too much time in preparing and service. It kept me out of trouble during my late teens and 20's, and I met my wife (who is also leaving the faith!).

I say overall, it brought me to where I am today, and I am very happy where I am. Actually, I would likely be worse off overall right now if I had not come into the faith... However, I no longer believe the faith, and I no longer want to be a part of it and I need to move on.

Life's a journey, and I am starting a new chapter...

New light for you

I appreciate this thread as a friendly change of pace, so i'll play....

It kept me away from smoking, drugs etc. Gave me a wonderful world of friends, all the frontline people i love dearly and have no problems with. Made me familiar with every single aspect of multi-level marketing so that i excelled at that (all your "at home parties") (does anyone realize our religion is set up exactly , and i mean EXACTLY as these companies???!!!??) Gave me free help when moving, self-confidence in speaking. It honestly gave me everything, which is what someone else said, makes it harder to leave.

If it only WAS the truth.... it would be paradise.

Looking Back, Was Being A Witness A Worthless Experience To You?

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