What I miss about going out in service. (page 2)

ttdtt

Coffee breaks and BSing with friends.

There is something nagging though about being part of some grand plan that is now missing.
That also made me feel better about having no other real focus in life.

Village Idiot

Unfortunately, I was able to convert two persons at my high school. It wasn't field service per se and I did not count my hours (as I could have) but it amounted to the same thing.

I was an introverted person who found it extremely difficult to engage others in a normal conversation. Like most others, introverted or not, I wanted to simply count my time placing magazines.

In actual field service I got to the point where I was beginning to have anxiety attacks. One night I was with a brother approaching people in a retail establishment's parking lot. We were scaring people who apparently feared that we might be robbers. I ended up telling that brother that there was "something wrong with this". He agreed with me thinking that I was referring to myself, not our being there.

DesirousOfChange

Come on, folks!

There were some good things about Field Circus -- the hour spent at Panera or Starbucks could be a lot of fun!

Londo111

There is nothing I miss about this, especially being forced to talk with strangers at their door and push my religion on them.

tepidpoultry

I loved meeting people

when not dead tired (most of the time)

over many many years

my best times were alone

my most memorable calls were a Moslem from Yemen,

Evangelical Trinitarians,

A disillusioned ex priest

a dying woman,

Recently (as an exjdub) a Sikh

People really open up if you're respectful and they sense that

you're not trying to jam something down their throat

I love people

And I learn a lot from them

another time I'll tell you about my last door 🙂

People are more informed now which can be fun but NOT if you're a jdub

apologist

Good luck to them because informed people won't talk to them!!

Thank you for the great post

tepid

:0)

redvip2000

you got to feel somewhat virtuous about yourself and got a sense of accomplishment buy doing little more than driving around and knocking on a few doors at empty houses. This sensation is what other JW's often mistook as "Joy".

I concur with this. I remember this feeling. It actually felt good once it was over. There was a "mission accomplished" feeling, almost like what you feel after a doctor's appointment. A feeling that the stressful part of the day is over and now we can have fun, even if the actual preaching was a colossal waste of time. Now that I think about it, i don't think i ever really had a meaningful and deep conversation with someone while preaching. At best it was: "Hey isn't the world bad? yadda yadda, jellohova promises, yadda yadda, take this magazine, yadda yadda, see you next week. Bye"

sparky1

What I miss the most? Being dropped off in the middle of the territory at 12 or 13 years old ALONE on a Tuesday night before the book study. Nothing like having a religious adolescent disturb your supper in the middle of the week to tell you that Armageddon will be here in a few years so you better repent! Yeah I really miss those days..................

steve2

Field service was a bit like hitting yourself over the head with a hammer - such relief when it was over for the day. The relief was very reinforcing.

compound complex

Thank you, my friends and cold-calling former door knockers, for telling us what you really felt -- mostly, a sense of relief when it was over!

I recall one perceptive adolescent saying the pioneers were getting in their time by doing, well, you know -- the usual time-wasting-but-aren't-we-fooling-Jehovah rigmarole.

Gratefully . . .

BluesBrother

These Winter months I miss nothing!

Truth is I found difficult, not being a natural talker or starter of conversations. My "spirituality " in general peaked and troughed .... in low times it was hardly bearable. When I was up, I tried hard, made a game out of pitting my wits against the householders. The game was to see how long I could keep the door open. Could I engage his mind ? That was the contest ....

Looking back, all I see is a monumental waste of time !

What I miss about going out in service.

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