thom

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Posts by thom

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  5

  Driving Down Old Roads

  by wanderlustguy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  strange how the hardest thing to do is nothing, and you could swear the devil is trying to get you.

  i got a phone call the other night i knew would come, on old road beckoning.

  it was a great one, too, beautiful in so many ways, but at the same time riddled with potholes and dangers to me.

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  thom

  You're traveling a road many of us have. It's rough, as you say, but I believe it leads somewhere worthwhile.
  Just last night I lay in bed daydreaming about my marriage. About all the good times, all the fun, the companionship. Today I wake up and the reality of why I'm better off hits me. It's so easy to think of only the good in our memory. Only what we miss. But there was a reason why we wanted out in the first place, and it was real. I find that over time I dwell on the good memories and forget the bad. That can make it harder to believe I'm on the right road, but I am. I know why I am, but it's so easy to forget.
  It's easy to want just the good back, but it's not real. With the good comes everything else. We push those memories away, but we know. We can't forget, for our own protection.
  There's no need to hate, to punish, just learn and grow. Cherish the good memories in life, but be able to recall the bad when necesary to guide us forward.
  The longer I travel down this road, the more I enjoy it. Pursuing new goals, building new dreams, finding new joys. Sometimes I look back, but less often than before. The road is nowhere near as rough as it was at the start.
  I hope your road leads you where you need to go. Before you make any turns, take time and think deeply.
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  15

  Service Meeting week of August 28, 2005

  by TheListener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  song 45.

  10 min: local announcements.

  remind publishers to turn in field service reports for august.

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  thom

  ---"*Limit introductory comments to less than a minute,
  did this ever happen in your hall?"---
  
  We had a PO that would ALWAYS tell me that he needed extra time for his service meeting part and I should make mine as short as possible. Happened everytime we both had parts on the same meeting. He would just drone on and on about his time at Bethel and preaching in Bulgaria.
  I finally just started using all my time and he usually got mad. Too bad.
  He'd also require that whoever had announcements call him before the meeting to ask if he had anything to add. Sometimes I couldn't catch him home and he had no voice mail, then when he'd get to the meeting he'd very sarcastically let me know that I didn't call him.
  I don't miss that one bit.
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  28

  If you were paid to be an active JW, would you accept?

  by JH in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  even if you don't believe in what you'd preach, would you accept being a jw in return for a salary?.

  why not?

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  thom

  I couldn't do a job if I knew that it was causing others to live a miserable life. I couldn't knowingly sentence someone to life as a JW. That's too harsh a punishment for most crimes.
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  41

  Does Disfellowshipping "Incite Hatred", Which Is Against The Law?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  your opinion, please......the publications emphatically state that not only are we supposed to hate the wickedness of a sin---but actually hate the person!!!

  does this not violate the law??

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  thom

  Thanks GB for pointing out some articles. As a JW, I never realized we were taught to hate people! Just sins.
  Thanks again.
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  142

  Family tragedy.........HappyDad

  by HappyDad in

  1. social
  2. family

  got a phone call from my daughter who lives in florida a couple of hours ago.

  her significant other who i chose to call my son-in-law (because he is the best thing to ever happen to her) got a phone call that his 6 year old daughter was killed in an auto accident near lake placid, florida and his 5 year old son is in very critical condition.

  the ex wife is also critical.

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  thom

  I'm so sorry this happened!
  I hope all of you are able to find the comfort you need. You're all in my thoughts.
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  41

  Does Disfellowshipping "Incite Hatred", Which Is Against The Law?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  your opinion, please......the publications emphatically state that not only are we supposed to hate the wickedness of a sin---but actually hate the person!!!

  does this not violate the law??

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  thom

  ---"Your opinion, please......The publications emphatically state that not only are we supposed to hate the wickedness of a sin---BUT ACTUALLY HATE THE PERSON!!!
  I dont recall any publication actually saying this."---
  Neither do I. I just did a search in the WTLIB and found many instances of hating the sin, but couldn't find anywhere it said to hate the sinner.
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  14

  Worldly Relatives

  by sammielee24 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  while you were a jw how badly did you feel obliged to treat your non jw relatives?

  did you not visit with them?

  did you keep your kids away from them?

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  thom

  My brother quit being a JW as a teen, but I didn't. He got himself into alot of trouble with drugs and stuff and the family basically ignored him. My grandfather and I were really the only ones who helped him out. Eventually getting him into rehab where he cleaned up.
  He married and has kids and all those years he had nothing to do with family or with me. I always wanted to but he treated me like sh** for 20 years, so I just gave up. I figured that was it.
  His wife though would keep in contact with me and when I told her I left the JW's she told him and he completely changed toward me. Apparrently, he assumed that since I was a JW I hated him (which I didn't). His explanation for all the abuse he laid on me was that I was a JW just like the rest of the family and I hated him. Well, my family did treat him badly, but I didn't. He just assumed I thought the way they did and would not give me the opportunity to prove otherwise. He was hurt WAY more than I ever was by the religion.
  Only in the past 6 months have we talked, he's expressed why he acted the way he did and now realizes that he was doing it to protect himself and feels bad that he never gave me a chance. We have a great relationship now as both of us have decided to just put the past behind us and move on. His family is now my closest family, I flew up there (Alaska) this summer and helped him build a foundation under his house and we had a great time. I wish we could have done this alot sooner, but the past is the past so forget it. At this point, we're close family, but when I was a JW there was no relationship whatsoever. But the "different" part is that it was he who would not allow the relationship.
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  63

  Americans, would you buy a car this small to save on gas?

  by Elsewhere in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/a30439-2004dec27.html.

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  thom

  My Corolla is enough of a risk of getting killed. Tiny cars are great if most everyone is driving them, but I don't think I'd be too safe, at least in this part of the U.S. Too many big vehicles, and people drive very fast and foolish.
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  25

  Evacuating

  by Bryan in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  okay, we're off to houston.

  this thing is just too close to call.. .

  bryan.

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  thom

  Glad you're out of there. Good idea.
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  22

  JURY SERVICE

  by tijkmo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  whos done it...did you want to..did you try to get out of it..did you enjoy it.... i've always wanted to...got called once but used religious stance as a way out..wish i hadnt now

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  thom

  When I was a JW, I always figured that I couldn't judge someone if the sentence might be death. But other than that, I could do it. I never really looked into (or cared) what the society said, that was my personal view at the time. But I never got called.
  I was called once since then, but just sat in a room for 6 hours and never got a case. I think I'd like to serve on a jury, if I ever get a chance.
  
  (my glasses are dirty and I'm not wearing them, hope I spelled everything properly :)