We've all heard variations on that theme. How much of that expectancy is down to the Society's publications? Here are some of the results of a search run on the WT CD (2004 edition) for the phrase "just around the corner".
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w56 10/15 pp. 613-614 When Will God’s Kingdom Come? ***So let us first of all fully settle it in our minds that Jesus’ prayer will be answered, that God’s kingdom will someday be realized. But when? some may impatiently ask. Will it be another 1,925 years, or perhaps even longer? No, it will not. Fulfillment of Bible prophecy shows that the realization of the kingdom of God is "just around the corner."
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w79 4/15 p. 7 "To Be, or Not to Be"—An Atomic Physicist ***Three months later, on August 22, 1943, we were baptized at a convention in Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A. At that time many of us believed that Armageddon was just around the corner.
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w92 11/1 p. 28 When Someone Calls, Do You Answer? ***With the second world war still raging, I surmised that the end of this system was just around the corner, and my wife and I felt the need to warn people of this.
Nic's comment; True to form, the Society places the blame for this 'Armageddon is just around the corner' attitude onto the already burdened shoulders of it's demoralised members.*** w95 3/1 p. 17 Living Up to Our Dedication "Day After Day" ***
14 Paul referred to another warning example: "Neither let us put Jehovah to the test, as some of them put him to the test, only to perish by the serpents." (1 Corinthians 10:9) Paul here was talking about the time when the Israelites complained against God to Moses when they "began tiring out because of the way." (Numbers 21:4) Do you ever make that mistake? When you dedicated yourself to Jehovah, did you think Armageddon was just around the corner? Has Jehovah’s patience been longer than you expected? Remember, we did not dedicate ourselves to Jehovah just for a certain period of time or merely until Armageddon. Our dedication continues forever.
*** w98 8/1 p. 21 ‘We Have Done What We Ought to Have Done’ ***
We conferred with the Watch Tower Society about where we should serve, and then we moved to Baltimore, Maryland. There a home for pioneers was maintained, and the cost for room and board was $10 a month. We had some savings that we thought would easily last us to Armageddon. (Revelation 16:14, 16) After all, we always thought that Armageddon was just around the corner. So when we started to pioneer, we gave up our home and dropped everything else.
*** w00 9/1 p. 28 Jehovah Always Rewards His Loyal Ones ***
As we arrived for the meeting one Sunday in 1938, two elderly sisters greeted us, and one said: "Young Brother, have you taken your stand for Jehovah yet? You know, Armageddon is just around the corner!" I knew that Jehovah is the only true God, and I was convinced that this is his organization. I wanted to be part of it, so on October 15, 1938, I was baptized.
