Posts by Dawn

38

Is the Devil making you happy, too?

by littletree in

jw
friends

this is my first post, and i'm so excited (i've been reading posts on this site for over a year now; i tried to register back in october 2003, but had some problems.

i decided to just go ahead and use my "real" work e-mail address, which seemed to have worked.

just for a short introduction- i got baptized at 14, on september 1, 2001. and on september 1, 2003, the last day of our district convention, i decided i was never going back.

Dawn

Funny you should post this question - my Mom has used this on me also. However, I pointed out a number of scriptural truths to her on that subject. The Devil will keep you busy, distracted, and a number of other things - but he will never make you truly happy. Jesus himself said that the devil comes to steal and destroy - only Jesus came so that we may have life "and in abundance".

So it seems clear to me that if you are truly happy and content, that it is not coming from the devil. Things from the devil are fun on the outset but leave a kind of emptiness and sadness in the end. Things from God leave a good complete feeling in the end.

It's a concept the JW's find hard to grasp.

And I also agree with your assessment that on God's love for everyone. I do not believe that only one denomination has the "truth" and will be saved.

45

2004 District Convention Badge here

by ezekiel3 in

.

this badge is for english speaking delegates.

the original size is 8.2 mm (3.25 inches) wide, 5.2mm (2 inches) height.. enjoy the programming.

Dawn

There are a number of conventions held in this area - pretty much every weekend through the summer. I'm tempted to go to one - but not with a badge. I think I'd like to show up in shorts and a tank top with my good old NIV bible. Explain to the people around me that I seen the announcement in the paper/news/radio/whatever and was interested in hearing the special talk.

That way they will be oh so glad to welcome me in with open arms and will be much more patient in attempting to answer my honest questions such as.....:

1) How come you don't sing regular songs? What's WRONG with Amazing Grace?

2) That's not in MY bible - tell me who translated yours and what their educational background in ancient languages is.

3) How come you can't leave for lunch? Isn't that a bit controlling for an organization to dictate to you how and where you eat?

4) Why don't women wear pants? How come they all have to wear skirts? Isn't that kind of like the mennonites and their clothing rules?

5) How come there are no women attendants or speakers?

6) Oh - you guys are a lot like Mormons!

.....yep - me's think me's gonna visit one day this summer (he he he)

58

Finish this sentence "The longer I'm away from JW's......"

by doodle-v in

jw
friends

.

here's mine: .

the wackier they seem to me!!!

Dawn

.....I feel less like an X-JW and more like an average person.

67

What did you actually enjoy about JW meetings?

by Pinned Blouse in

jw
friends

.

as much as i dreaded going to all the meetings there were things that i did enjoy.. 1. no special parking spaces for the elders, etc.. 2. no collections plate going around the room.

3. no one person giving the talk every single week (can you imagine the same speaker 3 to 4 times a week, every day?

Dawn

Reading through these posts it seems that most everyone enjoyed the social aspect - but noone really enjoyed the meeting itself. I am also among that crowd - I found the meetings uterly boring and mind numbing.

I really enjoy the church I go to now - I get the social aspect but in addition I learn something every week and it's always new. Plus the music is awesome! (think black souther baptist music mixed in with a little rock&roll) In the three + years I've been attending I have been bored only a handfull of times (we have one preacher that tries really hard but just isn't a good speaker - thank God he only gets to talk about once a year!).

And best of all - I don't feel guilty if I decide to sleep in Sunday morning or stay home and watch the football game. I probably attend church more regularly now than I attended meetings even though there is no "pressure" to go simply because I enjoy it now.

Oh yea - and I wear t-shirts and jeans to church....yea baby! ditch that dress and nylons!

38

Did you ever get a W (Work needed) on a talk?

by desib77 in

jw
friends

someone mentioned this in one of their posts and i had a flashback.

i remember getting a w on one of my theocratic school talks when i was working on gesturing.

the funny thing about it is that it was given to me by my dad!

Dawn

umm....I can't even remember the subjects we were supposed to work on - let alone if I got a W..or a ...what else was there? I must be getting amnesia - or perhaps I'm just blocking out those past times...I dunno.

I do know that I am now paid a pretty penny to do public speaking - so hey - perhaps I did learn something after all? I musta got G's on my gestures - and I KNOW I'm good at telling dirty jokes so what category would that be in? (he he)

80

Black Veil Lowers again?

by H. in

hello i am new and this will probably be the last time i post.

nice forum by the way but honestly and with all due respect it is not something i would like to be associated with.

i joined saying "oh cool a jw forum" but after reading just 2 posts i realized it is the black veil all over again.

Dawn

Best regards with love may you all find your way again brothers so we can finally and truely be free, from this World of Satan.

You know - that one statement really is a kind one. We may not agree on a religious standpoint - but I appreciate that you want to part on friendly terms and that you are truly concerned for the wellbeing of others. I do not believe that the "body of Christ" exists in any denomination but within people themselves as they accept him as their lord and savior and allow him to mold their lives. He said that you would be known if you have "love among yourselves" - and H. your statement does show that you do have love for others. Right on!

Hope you stick around and join in on some of the discussions - it would be nice to hear a JW point of view from someone who is level-headed and just honestly wants to speak with an open-mind about things.

If not - I understand and wish you the best.

63

What first gave you doubts ?

by rick1199 in

we all know the big problems with the wts, but what was the first thing that made you realise there were problems with the organisation ?

with me it was realitivly small stuff like an 8 year old getting baptised and a comment my best mates made about another of our friends asking if we should be hanging round with her as she might be bad assciation (she had just been reproved, but they had been mates 20 years).. .

how ever the first time i ever thought something was really wrong was when i was about 11 and my grand farther died, and mu mum wouldn't go to the funeral, i remeber thinking that surely it was better to say good bye properly than worry about if the service was in a church.. .

Dawn

((((Insomniac)))) - boy would I like to bust that elder in the chops for you!!

I felt something was seriously wrong when I was "strongly cautioned" against asking questions - especially ones that were not in favor of what the society taught. I seen what I felt were discrepencies in the bible and science and I wanted to research it more.

I felt - and still do feel - that turning your back on evidence is crazy - it's the absolute wrong thing to do. I am a christian now and attend a new church regularly, even though I have some questions I feel free to continue to research them now and to accept that there may be another answer outside the relm of my understanding.

I guess it was just the level of control over one's own thoughts that I knew was wrong.

30

Is the Watchtower Predicting the End for 2034 AD?

by Dogpatch in

jw
friends

is the watchtower predicting the end for 2034 ad?

someone sent me scans of this dec 2003 wt and so i put together a little page on it.

http://www.freeminds.org/history/endin2034.htm

Dawn

I think they are laying the groundwork for such a claim in the future.

I don't believe at all in the 1914 date or their interpretation of the "last generation" - I believe that the "last generation" Jesus spoke of in Matthew was directed to the Jews living at that time. The end of their times (ie: destruction of Jerusalem and end of their world as they knew it) did happen just as he predicted then and within the generation that he was speaking to. It's a prophecy that was already fulfilled 2000 years ago.

It's interesting to re-read Matthew now without the WT twisting of the scriptures - the disciples asked three distinct questions:

1) When will this happen, 2) what will be the sign of your coming, and 3) and of the end of the age?

Jesus answered all three questions - much of chapter 24 covers the signs of the "end of the age" which occured when Jerusalem was destroyed. Reading some history on what happened during the destruction of Jerusalem it was very interesting to me to see how it paralelled what Jesus said - the famine, the wars, those fleeing to Judea - very interesting comparison.

Some of chapter 24 covers question #2 - to distinquish between which is which you need to compare those signs that Jesus spoke of with the signs of Revelation.

36

If things turn ugly for the Western world, will you run back to "Mother"?

by True North in

jw
friends

who knows what will come in the years ahead from terrorism, global warming, conflict over natural resources, proliferation of wmd, et al.?

it's not hard to imagine truly horrific things happening.

i don't think it's likely, but perhaps one day the major powers might even respond to religion-related terrorism by joining together to restrain or control religion under the banner of the u.n.. such events certainly could trigger a response from the fears/phobias that ex-jws may carry around with them due to years of wt indoctrination -- however much repressed these are at most times.

Dawn

If things turn ugly for the Western world, will you run back to "Mother"?

Um...why in the world would I want to make matters WORSE?!!!

36

how does everyone else cope with being shunned by family?

by nb-dfed in

i am a newbie to the site.

i was born an raised a jw.

shortly after marriage, my husband and i decided we no longer wanted to be part of the organization.

Dawn

I love reading everyone's posts - it's a good reminder to me that I'm not alone and there are others out there that understand completely.

To answer your question - at first it hurt a lot. I wanted so much to be a part of my family and for them to be proud of me. But in time I realized that was never going to happen no matter how nice I was to them or how much I tried to help them out - they would take my help but still not "accept" me because I was DF'd.

To be honest, it has only been in the past year that I really was able to let go of my old family - and I've been DF'd for about 14 years. It took a particular incident that happened last year for me to see just how unchristian and selfish my old family was - and I realized that God had already replaced them with this new wonderful nuclear family I have (hubby and my kids).

Now I just thank him for those people in my life that are so great to me and I look forward to my new family growing over the years.

Sometimes family is what you make it and not what you're born with. It takes time to mend the wounds and grow - but it's not all bad. Things like this can be seen as opportunities - an opportunity to build a support group that REALLY loves you and an opportunity to become a stronger and vibrant person free of those individuals that would weigh you down and keep the real you from shining through.