Posts by Dawn

19

I have no choice..I must study with my kid

by Jez in

my ex is a devout jw and is very very sly in what he says to our 9 year old.

she went to the assembly with him this weekend and he made her stand over by the baptism and said, "that will be you someday won't it sweetheart.

" or if she says, "but dad, all religions worship the same god, jw's are no different.

Dawn

Jez:

I'm involved in children's ministry at my church and there are numerous books, videos, games, etc that you could purchase and use to study with your daughter. Check out your local christian book store - you'll be amazed at what great stuff they have.

The biggest advice I can give you is to make it a positive and fun time spent with your daughter. If your study time is boring to her (like the meetings and traditional JW family study) she'll just tune it out. However, if you can capture her attention she'll actually remember more of what YOU had to say than what she hears at meetings or through her dad. Kids LOVE to learn about Jesus but are rather bored with general doctrinal issues. So - if you can show her what's wrong with a JW doctrine through a Jesus story that might capture her attention.

Here's an example: I read a few short scriptures to my daughter where Jesus touched and healed a leper. Then I told her about the story where Jesus healed a young boy in another town - he didn't even see the boy, let alone touch him, and he was healed. So I asked her "why do you suppose Jesus made a special effort to TOUCH the lepers?" We talked a bit about what leprosy was, how it made those people outcasts, etc. Then applied that to today - who are the "lepers of today? and "how could we reach out to touch them?" You could go a bit further with this one by asking your daughter "if someone really needed help and love, but they didn't believe in your religion - do you think Jesus would still want us to reach out and touch them like he did the lepers?

Here's a site with some good ideas - I use this one a lot for inspiration: http://www.kidssundayschool.com. Check out the games and the lessons links.

It is imperative that you counteract the mind controlling tactics of your husband. And I agree with other's comments to teach her to think for herself and not to be afraid to ask questions - even questions such as "is there really a God" and evolution questions. Allow her to really consider all the possibilities - she'll trust you more and open up to you more.

12

Any witnesses celebrating a birthday?

by evergreen in

.

my childs bithday is coming up in october and this year im going for it.i have her present bought and everything is in place to give her fantastic day to remember.for to long i have doubted this unfair policy of the borg and push has finally come to shove!.

anyone else doing the same either priavately or openly

Dawn

Awesome! You will have a great time and a wonderful memory - with many more to come!

I started celebrating birthdays after I was DF'd so my son had his first birthday celebration when he turned 5. He's in college now, needless to say, we've had many upon many fun celebrations since then. I'm glad I got out when he was still little - he hadn't bonded with any JW friends yet, so he didn't miss any of them - and he was able to grow up with normal fun celebrations.

My daughter was born after I left - she's been spared ALL of that crazy crap!

24

do i know you???

by in a new york bethel minute in

jw
friends

what i was thinking about is, since most of us that post on jwd remain annonymous, i wonder how many of us know someone else that posts on this site, but dont know that they post on this site... i keep hearing of new apostates (people that are aquaintances of mine) that are popping up... and i notice that a few people here are from ontario, canada.

too bad i may never know who you are, even though i may know who you are (get it???!!!).

it really spells out to me just how afraid most of us are.

Dawn

Darn - I don't know ANY of you! boo hoo.

I keep somewhat anonymity for the sake of my mom. She's still a JW and although I could care less what anyone thinks of me, I do want to keep what ties I have with my mom because she's elderly and needs my help. So, out of respect and love for her I am laying low for now.

Other than that - I'd be more free to post .

1

When it doesn't rain it POURS

by neverthere in

jw
friends

i have been having a hard time with my as kids the past few weeks, not to mention not feeling well myself.

i went to the doctor's today and found out i have fibromyalgia.

all i can ask myself is "why is all this happening to me?".

Dawn

((Diana))

My cousin has fibromyalgia also. Man - your day sounds a lot worse than mine! Hang in there girl.

6

What a crapy day!!

by Dawn in

jw
friends

ever have one of those days where you should have just gotten back into bed and waited for tomorrow?

i had one of those today!.

1) overslept and was rushed to get ready for work and get my daughter to school, then.

Dawn

Thanks for your sympathies! I think the wine and bubble bath are a great idea!

As Scarlet said "after all, tomorrow is another day".....

6

What a crapy day!!

by Dawn in

jw
friends

ever have one of those days where you should have just gotten back into bed and waited for tomorrow?

i had one of those today!.

1) overslept and was rushed to get ready for work and get my daughter to school, then.

Dawn

Ever have one of those days where you should have just gotten back into bed and waited for tomorrow? I had one of those TODAY!

1) overslept and was rushed to get ready for work and get my daughter to school, then

2) got in a spat with hubby in the morning before work, then

3) stopped to get a latte and ended up spilling it on my blouse while driving out of the parking lot,

4) was only 2 miles from home, so stopped back at home to change my blouse, but turned into the garage too sharply and scraped my car!, then

5) pushed the button to shut the garage door, and the other garage door went up instead. Then it wouldn't close - it was stuck open!,

6) gave up -went inside to change my shirt, came back out and got the garage door shut - headed off to the location I needed to work at today (2 hrs away), then 15 minutes out of town, realized I had forgotten some of the things I needed, so had to head BACK home again to pick it up, then

8) called hubby to let him know I had arrived on location safely and ended up spatting again.

D@mn this was a crappy day! But - it ended ok. I made it back home safely, got my work done, inspected my car and found it only had a little bit of paint transfer that can be buffed out - went to dinner with my little girl. Made up with hubby's who then left town for a hunting trip so I have the house (and T.V./remote) to myself for a few days.

I sure hope tomorrow goes better! Now I just have to endure the harassment of my friends over scraping my car on the side of the garage - how stupid is that?!

17

What do you dream about?

by Glenmore in

jw
friends

i suppose i shouldn't admit this, but darn it, i will.

for the past 6 years i have been a daily user of a certain illegal herb, the one that blocks your dreams.

in my defence i have chronic pain and it helps.

Dawn

I often have dreams where I'm visiting my dead father or dead brother (or both). They are pleasant dreams. They seem so real - I can actually feel their hugs. I always wake up feeling good to have seen them again - even if it was just a dream.

I used to have nightmares about Armageddon a lot, but those are gone now. I haven't had one in years.

Sometimes I still dream about being at the kingdom hall - I just had one last week where I was sitting in the front row and no one seemed to remember I was DF'd so they're all talking to me. I figured - what the hell - and visited back. Then there was a big screen TV up on the platform and it was playing a great movie - we were all really into it when the speaker got up and said we had to start the meeting. No one wanted to start the meeting and I felt bad for the speaker - kind of like he was the outcast because he was a boring speaker. Weird hu?!

4

What does it mean to have an "abundance of life"

by Dawn in

jw
friends

i posted a question (re: jesus words at john 10:10) under the research section - it kind of morphed into another question.

someone suggested that i start a new thread - so here goes..... what does it mean to have an "abundance of life" - as spoken about in john 10:10. i don't believe it applies to a life "in abundance" financially or even through the fun we have, etc.

i think it's something more....is it relationships?

Dawn

I posted a question (re: Jesus words at John 10:10) under the research section - it kind of morphed into another question. Someone suggested that I start a new thread - so here goes....

What does it mean to have an "abundance of life" - as spoken about in John 10:10. I don't believe it applies to a life "in abundance" financially or even through the fun we have, etc. I think it's something more....is it relationships? self acceptance? Here's the background to my question.

My brother was one of those individuals you would categorize as "full of life". When I would make comments like "some day I'd like to xxxx" my brother's response would be "why are you waiting? Just do it!". He died at 48 - but did more living in 48 years than most people do in a life-time. He had literally traveled the world, was a fireman at one point in his life, a policeman at one point in his life, owned his own business, and even became a commercial deep sea diver. He traveled to Japan, Figi, Indonesia, and numerous other places I can't even remember them all. He lived in California, Hawaii, Texas, Mexico, even owned property in Figi. He had great stories to tell and was the envy of many people.

However - he was very lonely, and very sad. He did all these great things - but did not have anyone in his life to share them with. He had friends - but not a close family. He was twice divorced, and had strained to no relationships with his adult children. In addition he was very very sick and in constant pain. He had to take daily injections and a high dose of pain killers to keep going. He lived with habitual guilt, pain, and regret.

I feel sorry for him and I wish his life had been different. So - what really does it mean to have life "in abundance"? I'm thinking it must be something deeper - like a state of mind. Perhaps having life in abundance is reaching a point where you are fulfilled each day - perhaps it's all about relationships....intangible things.

What are your thoughts?

39

John 10:10

by Dawn in

john 10:10the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; i have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

a friend of mine quoted this and applied it to life "right now" - her application was that jesus meant for people to enjoy life now - not always putting off for the future - but to have joy, peace, etc in this life.

this life is a gift in itself.

Dawn

Good idea - I started one under friends. I'm interested to see what others think having an "abundance of life" is. Perhaps it's something different to each person.

14

Meat Eating Creatures? Please Don't Think About it!

by Quotes in

i have thought about this myself: if jehovah's creatures are "amazingly designed", why is it that carnivores are obviously amazingly designed to kill other animals and eat their flesh (and blood, oh my!).

how does that fit the idea that all animals were (and will again become) vegetarians in the paradise(tm)?

well, the official resonse is: don't think about it!!!.

Dawn

Maybe they all drank Boost.

Did ya mean Booze?? 'Cause like - hey - I'd go on that cruise!