AvailableLight

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Posts by AvailableLight

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  14

  Being Single...

  by wonderwoman77 in

  1. social
  2. relationships

  i was just thinking about being single today.

  i feel like it is the yin-yang experience.

  there is good and bad with the whole experience.

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  AvailableLight

  I agree with what COMF said up to a point - a relationship can be a real distraction when you are trying to focus on reaching a goal.

  On the other hand, a healthy friendship can also be a motivator whether the nature of the friendship is romantic or not. Ever work out? Do you think it's easier and more enjoyable with a partner? This is partly because you have someone with whom you're sharing a common goal, and you are encouraged by each other's progress and success.

  But then again, romantic relationships tend to consume every ounce of your attention in their early stages, regardless of whether you think you will "allow them" to or not, and that could slow you down. While you may be able to avoid that to some degree by finding someone who is working towards a similar life objective, that's not always easy or ideal.

  Certainly a lot to think about.

  Another factor is priority - to a lot of people relationships are more important than education and the extra prosperity it can bring. There's nothing wrong with that viewpoint either.

  Ultimately, you need to figure out what you think will make you happiest. There is no guarantee that finishing school will make your life immediately better - even if your definition of happiness is material wealth. It does, however, increase your odds.
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  161

  I've been studying for about a year now...

  by Meow921 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i've been studying with the jw's for about a year now.

  i know that by nature (or nurture!

  ) i have an addictive personality so i have tried to be real careful that i'm doing the right thing by getting involved with them.

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  AvailableLight

  Meow,

  You Know's posts are perhaps the best reasons you'll find *not* to become one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Is he the kind of person you'd like to spend your life associating with? Does he display the love that Christ taught?

  Interestingly, he spends his time pathetically defending the righteousness of an organization he clearly does not agree with and that would most certainly disfellowship him if they knew of his beliefs. He is far more hypocritical than any he's ever accused of apostasy. He is himself an apostate in hiding as defined by the JW religion through his words and actions.

  He is also most likely counting field service time every time he posts here.

  I was going to leave you with one question to get you thinking, You Know beat me to it.

  He said:
  

  Many are drug users, drunkards, and fornicators, homosexuals and perverts. And if they are not they at least support and encourage those who are and congratulate anyone who flauts decency and morality. From Jehovah's standpoint they are mere unreasoning animalistic beasts. That's why verse 22 likens them to dogs that have returned to lapping up their own vomit.

  If this is true, then why are JWs taught so strongly to avoid what apostates have to say? If JWs really have the truth, then what are the JW leaders so afraid of the R&F finding out?

  Wouldn't you agree that truth is unconditional? JW literature often accuses "apostate" literature of being "sly as a serpent" and "deceptive." But so what? No matter how clever wording may be, if something is the truth it is indisputable. Don't you think this would be especially the case where God's word the Bible is concerned? Therefore if the JWs really have the true religion, it wouldn't matter what any drug using, drunkard, fornicating, homosexual, perverted "apostate" had to say.

  As has been recommended, read Ray Franz's "Crisis of Conscience." You'll find that the wording is quite straightforward and simple and the events he recounts are quite well documented.
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  20

  When Will District Conventions Be Abolished?

  by AvailableLight in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the thread on cutting back the number of weekly meetings to two got me thinking:.

  do you think the jw organization will continue to hold district conventions for very long?.

  i wonder, how many people *really* feel upbuilt after attending a dc?

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  AvailableLight

  I've read that story, yes. I'm still not sure whether or not whatever money they are able to collect through donations (scandalous or not) puts them in the black. The costs of renting those venues must be massive.
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  12

  # of weekly meetings-down to 2?

  by Quandary in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  we recently had the visit of the co, during the elders meeting he addressed his concern over the decline in meeting attendance, especially for the tms & sm.

  our particular congregation saw a decline of 30% from his last visit 6 months ago.

  in a private conversation with him i asked if our congregation was unique in this regard and he said no, some congregations have seen a much higher percentage of decline, 50-60%.

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  AvailableLight

  During the winter months, I used to pray for snowstorms every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday.

  I know the feeling of waiting all day in anticipation for those wonderful cancellation phone calls.
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  20

  When Will District Conventions Be Abolished?

  by AvailableLight in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the thread on cutting back the number of weekly meetings to two got me thinking:.

  do you think the jw organization will continue to hold district conventions for very long?.

  i wonder, how many people *really* feel upbuilt after attending a dc?

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  AvailableLight

  Actually when I wrote "upbuilt" I meant it in the way JWs would use it - full of spiritual joy; spiritually refreshed.

  Personally I always felt very upbuilt while saying the final "Amen" on the last day of the DC weekend and knowing it was done and over with.
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  20

  When Will District Conventions Be Abolished?

  by AvailableLight in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the thread on cutting back the number of weekly meetings to two got me thinking:.

  do you think the jw organization will continue to hold district conventions for very long?.

  i wonder, how many people *really* feel upbuilt after attending a dc?

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  AvailableLight

  The thread on cutting back the number of weekly meetings to two got me thinking:

  Do you think the JW organization will continue to hold District Conventions for very long?

  I wonder, how many people *really* feel upbuilt after attending a DC? How many people would rather take a *real* vacation as opposed to sitting in dingy building for 7 or 8 hours a day? Is there anything a DC accomplishes that could not be accomplished at a local KH meeting? Couldn't financial resources be put to far better use by putting an end to all the costs associated with holding DCs and printing "new light" solely in the WT, or communicating any necessary information via letters to the congregations?

  Or, have I wrongly evaluated the situation? Does the WTS actually profit from the DCs through contributions and other potential deals with convention site associates?
• 
  12

  # of weekly meetings-down to 2?

  by Quandary in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  we recently had the visit of the co, during the elders meeting he addressed his concern over the decline in meeting attendance, especially for the tms & sm.

  our particular congregation saw a decline of 30% from his last visit 6 months ago.

  in a private conversation with him i asked if our congregation was unique in this regard and he said no, some congregations have seen a much higher percentage of decline, 50-60%.

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  AvailableLight

  I've often thought about this. If they were to reduce the number of meetings, what would the cut out?

  They just completely revised the way the ministry school will run. R&F are getting the revised guidebook, the changes go into effect in '03. Not likely they'll get rid of that.

  Service Meeting - Not at all likely. This is where members are guilted into doing more in the ministry, exploring alternative forms of ministry, instructed in how to do the house-to-house ministry and harassed or bored to tears with local needs talks. I wonder if the ministry would even go on without the pressure of the service meeting...

  Bookstudy - A possibility, maybe, but still, hard to imagine. R&F are often told that when the time of tribulation arrives, they will be forced to meet in small groups - and so they should get to know those in their bookstudy groups. In reality, this meeting allows the elders to more closely observe the members of a congregation.

  Public Talk - Usually the most boring meeting of the week; occasionally an interesting speaker comes along. Though I'm not sure if others would agree, I've often found the public talks to be quite repetitious and very generalized. The congregation members daydream while looking up scriptures on autopilot. Those "worldly" individuals attending for the first time are given a mild introduction to JWs.

  Watchtower Study - The primary modern source of spiritual nourishment. This is the meat and potatoes meeting; Christianity according to the Govering Body of Jehovah's Witnesses 101. It's hard to imagine JW life without a question and answer WT study.

  Logically, I believe that the public talk would be the best candidate for a pink slip. However, since it is so traditional for a church to have some sort of a Sunday sermon, and since the public talk fits this religous tradition so well, I can't imagine them doing away with it.

  But then again, you never know...

  I started a related thread:
  http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=24869&site=3
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  8

  A *MUST WATCH* Short Film

  by AvailableLight in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  for everyone w/ high-speed connections:.

  check this out:.

  http://64.152.216.82:80/7/1275/6955/3c8cf24a/rshort.download.akamai.com/1589/windows/t/the_parlor_l_dsl.wmv.

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  AvailableLight

  For everyone w/ high-speed connections:

  Check this out:
  http://64.152.216.82:80/7/1275/6955/3c8cf24a/rshort.download.akamai.com/1589/windows/t/the_parlor_L_dsl.wmv

  There is little here that could be visually offensive, however, the language could definitely get you in trouble in the workplace, so use headphones.

  I don't want to give too much away, but let's just say it deals with the realities of anonymous communication in a very original way. Well written, acted, and directed.
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  7

  The Real Meaning of Bethel/1971

  by metatron in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  new boy posted information about an event at bethel that occured.

  many years ago - that you won't read about in any publication -.

  an internal reform movement led by three ex-circuit overseers.

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  AvailableLight

  I love this stuff. Very believable and fascinating at the same time.

  What becomes painfully apparent is that those running the organization have absolutely zero business sense whatsoever. That's why things are so inefficient there and why people can be treated so poorly.

  Imagine if the leaders of IBM were chosen for their "spiritual qualifications?"

  It's true, any witness will tell you that profitability is not a concern for "God's Organization" and that it is not at all a business.

  That may be a valid point. Regardless, Bethel could stand to learn a thing or two by taking a serious look at how successful coroporations keep employees happy *for the long-term* and getting those in positions of oversight some real managerial training.
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  15

  Do you believe in fate?

  by butalbee in

  1. social
  2. relationships

  do you believe that two people are just meant to be, no matter the circumstances involved, or the differences that keep them apart?

  this has been a question that i have been living with for some time.

  actually, i guess it's been what i have been living for--the dogma, i guess, i'll call it, that i have hoping for: "if two people are meant to be together, they will find their way back to one another.".

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  AvailableLight

  Fate. Absolutely not. I can't deal with the idea that some unseen or unknown force is in control of my life. I'll make my own decisions, and live with them, even if they turn out sour - at least *I* made them. I don't need fate as a scapegoat for my fuck-ups. JMHOs.

  The lyrics to this song sum up my feelings on the topic perfectly:

  http://www.r-u-s-h.com/nmsmirror.com/RUSH/17.rtb.html#ghost

  Ghost Of A Chance

  Like a million little doorways
  All the choices we made
  All the stages we passed through
  All the roles we played

  For so many different directions
  Our separate paths might have turned
  With every door that we opened
  Every bridge that we burned

  Somehow we find each other
  Through all that masquerade
  Somehow we found each other
  Somehow we have stayed
  In a state of grace

  I DON'T BELIEVE IN DESTINY
  OR THE GUIDING HAND OF FATE
  I DON'T BELIEVE IN FOREVER
  OR LOVE AS A MYSTICAL STATE

  I DON'T BELIEVE IN THE STARS OR THE PLANETS
  OR ANGELS WATCHING FROM ABOVE
  BUT I BELIEVE THERE'S A GHOST OF A CHANCE
  WE CAN FIND SOMEONE TO LOVE
  AND MAKE IT LAST

  Like a million little crossroads
  Through the backstreets of youth
  Each time we turn a new corner
  A tiny moment of truth

  [For] so many different connections
  Our separate paths might have made
  With every door that we opened
  Every game we played