by steve2 35 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Faking of hours in field service or dragging service time out by making coffee stops or driving for hours "between" household contacts are never frowned upon, let alone mentioned, in the publications.
Yet, in each congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, to one degree or another, faking hours, padding time out with coffee stops and long journeys between opportunities to "witness" are endemic practices.
A search of count* time under paragraph or sentence search on the CD comes up with articles on it. I don't have my CD at work.
*** km 10/74 p. 2 Your Service Meetings ***
Reporting Field Service. A talk. Questions have been raised about reporting time in the field service. Some ask if it is proper to count time spent taking “coffee breaks” or eating lunch. Is it all right to start counting time at a call near home and then travel a long distance to your territory? Can we start counting time by writing letters at home and then continue to count time thereafter while going to meet with a group for service? Other similar inquiries have been made.
An attempt to lay down rules is not practical, since circumstances vary in every case. All can be guided by the instruction to report “time spent in the activity of Kingdom-preaching and disciple-making, proclaiming God’s truths to those who are not dedicated, baptized Witnesses.” (Organization book, p. 126) After we get started, we may include time in getting from one house to another as we make our calls, and we may count the time whether householders are at home and willing to listen or not; our reason for calling is to preach. When some question arises, ask yourself: Has this time been spent in the preaching activity? Or has it been spent doing something else that is not actually part of that work? Report all the time you conscientiously feel was used in the preaching work. The amount you report in comparison with others is not important. (Gal. 6:4) The important thing is that the love in your heart has moved you to share your faith with others. (Luke 6:45) What we report should give us joy and not pangs of conscience. Our concern should be about results accomplished and not reports made about it. Our giving should come from a cheerful heart and not just a sense of obligation. (2 Cor. 9:7) With each one being guided by his own conscience and a balanced viewpoint of the Scriptures, reports made to the congregation will reflect, not “acts of eyeservice,” but good works motivated by a sincere heart.—Col. 3:22.
"The amount you report in comparison with others is not important."
Then why praise pioneers over ordinary publishers?
"Our concern should be about results accomplished and not reports made about it."
Then why all the efforts to get JWs to increase their hours and get their reports in? Why publish all the "hours spent" statistics?
Why no emphasis on visiting of widows and orphans? (James 1:27)
Thanks Blondie. Oh, I see that the taking of coffee breaks and travels between visits has been (briefly) mentioned in the publications - and conveniently left in publishers'hands. Little wonder that, over the years, these breaks have become very elastic in their softening applications.
I personally think it is perfectly lovely to see the rank and file easing up on the "literal" counting of time spent witnessing.
The irritation is the organization trumpeting the marvellous increases in time spent witnessing when the "elephant in the room" is the looseningand reducing requirements.
Often thought about this. The whole concept of reporting field service is of course supposedly predicated on the notion that it helps the organization to focus on areas that need more work etc. if there is a need in a certain area. Unfortunately it leads to a 'what can I get away with' idea or a comparing of self with others, or if you are feeling low, how little I can report without raising concerns about my spirituality. If the report was taken out of the equation then we could all do what we want without, as Galatians says, 'in comparison with the other person.'
"Making your time" is the most important thing to pioneers. All of them have creative ways to 'count time'. The 'pioneer shuffle' was one of my favorites. At the end of the service year the big buzz among pioneers is; "Did you make your time?".
eyeuse2badub
It's all just part of a massively orchestrated distraction production. And it is quite effective at producing the intended diversion, which allows a more fully successful subversion, very gradual, now systemic in all it's parts and terminal. Counting minutes, hours, days, months and years, along with the various congregational and personal "gnats" to strain and "straws" to remove to please the remote rafter-eyed Lords of the Faith and their inquisitional local stars of the show caring that sin burden, has JWs focused on everything but God and Christ and actually studying the Bible. (Eph5:17).
JWs have been successfully derailed, stalled, diverted, distracted and hypnotized. It is soon time for coup-de-grace. As long as Satan and the demons appear in nice suits making grandiose hyperpious claims, JWs accept those Bethel superfine apostles as Catholics do the Pope. (2Cor11:13-15)
For this phase of JW development and history, now retrograde in everything but literal cessation of the ministry, JWs are pretty much done in spirit, and no better than the ones we point to as classic examples of unfaithfulness. The overall JW delusion complex aids the overall distraction from the overall JW spiritual reality; (Zech3:1-3).
JWs have no faith in God, plain and simple. No faith in Christ. No faith in the Word. JWs have faith diffused towards men and manmade organizational idols of gold, stone and wood - and that faith will be tested and desolated. (Dan8:13; 1Pet4:17)
A remnant is all that will come out of JWs after they are handed to their UN lovers. There was plenty of sowing at Bethel, now it is time soon for the reaper to reap some weeds.
(Jeremiah 17:5) This is what Jehovah has said: “Cursed is the able-bodied man who puts his trust in earthling man ...
That was 40 yrs. ago. I would not be surprised if one of the big apostates wrote that ( Ray, Ed ). lol
Who is going to remember something written in the KM that long ago ?
Any thing they WANT you to remember will be repeated 100,000,000 X lol lol lol
In one congregation I know, the young pioneers do a 24 hour Field Service. They all jump in a van and head down the interstate highway and stop at truck stops and gas stations. They take turns driving and don't return until they have 24 hours. This of course is a very social time and probably for flirting and for dating without really dating purposes.
