Posts by VanillaMocha73

70

"Who else are we to go away to?"

by simon17 in

to the intellectually honest witness, it seems like it often comes down to this principle.

"fine, if the witnesses aren't the truth, then show me the better answer and i'll consider it.

" and how do you deal with that?

VanillaMocha73

to Simon:

"Fine, if the Witnesses aren't the truth, then show me the better answer and I'll consider it" ... "Try to top everlasting life.." etc.

Here is the trouble with that thinking. (And please don't take offense, because I'm not really good at typing what I mean with the right inflections, etc.) "Better answer' - "everlasting life" - it is all about "I am a Christian / JW/ Bhuddist <<insert religion here>> because of what I am going to GET."

As an ex-JW and now a Christian ... I stopped having a relationship with God because of what I am going to get. It seems so weird that I go back to think about that pet panda now and shake my head.

There is no "better" or "worse" answer .. in fact why does there have to be an "answer" that you are selling to anyone, anyway? Instead of saying "there are no good answers" it is "There are no good answers right now." Life is an adventure of learning and seeing what is beyond the next corner.

Sadness and lonliness is a step from leaving JWs. It does feel like "going away." Many is the night and day I spent crying over it. But, honestly, it is the first step towards going toward Jesus. You might not believe in Him right now, and I can understand that. But be assured that He believes in you.

You say you "would like to believe" ... and you want to see something unmistakeable. Problem is, how will you know what it is when you see it? People saw the Lord Jesus in front of them, ressurecting dead people, and they didn't see it. If you want to believe, then read the Bible book of John. Think about it. Ask God (and you can add "if You exist") in your prayer to speak to you. Tell Him point blank that you don't believe, that you don't see why there is all this crap in the world. And then listen.... Prayer can do what you cannot do, but it is not the way you might expect. You can do what your babies cannot, but when they expect you to hand them a Mercedes Benz ... it ain't happening!!

Yes, there is suffering in this world. There is poverty. There are people with mental disorders and emotional disorders. I think they are all here to teach us about life. Is God going to be Santa Claus and just magically fix it all? Define fixed.... Is it to be rich like Bill Gates? There are poor people happier than him, because they know something that is more important than money. Is it not to be in mental torment because of a bad upbringing? Jesus can take that torment away and replace it. And also help you to grow from it. There are people who have never had a clue what mental and emotional illness is, and seldom do they reach a hand to a sufferer in understanding. We support each other with "I've been there, I've done it."

No, I don't have faith in unseen things. I see Jesus in the people around me, in my heart. I don't care if I am going to a better place or nowhere at all. I'd like scores to be settled as much as the next guy, but I accept that I don't know enough to be able to step out and tell anyone how to settle the score. Is Jesus looking after me in my day to day life? Sure - He walks with me, He dwells in my heart. Can bad stuff still happen to me? Can it get so hard that I just don't think I can go on? Do I live a charmed and wonderful life because I have Jesus? I promise, bad stuff still happens.

Will I call you tomorrow, or come to your house? I don't know.... But Jesus will ... He's knocking right now. He doesn't recommend a group. He recommends Himself. The group, if you so choose, is a side thing. They will be human - they will not be right all of the time. And its OK - and you get to disagree with them without penalty. How cool is that?

27

Open apology from former elder

by im stuck in in

jw
friends

i just finished watching worlds apart and was very moved by it.

i served as an elder for many years.

i wanted to convey to all how sorry i am for all of the jc's i participated in.

VanillaMocha73

If you were the elder who df'd me... I would say that your apology would mean the world to me!

And I would say that it was the best gift (the df'ing) that you ever gave me - the "shove" out of the nest cult to finding freedom.

8

praying for a jw partner

by varian in

jw
friends

during my early 20ies while studying the bible, and many years after babtizm, i never dated even one sister!

my cong was like in nomansland, and consisted of many older jws.

so it was pretty depressing as a young brother without the slightest hope of finding an appropriate partner.. but one day, a very hot looking sister joined our club for a while, so all of a sudden, there were all types of dudes from other congs coming to our meetings.. i don t know how this conversation came about, but one jw gave me the advice, not to mention a persons name in prayer, because god will know who the right sister will be a suitable partner.

VanillaMocha73

As I read from the Bible, you can pray ANYTHING to your Father. We have freedom to come boldly before the throne with whatever.

JWs add all the prayer rules....

56

Tame animals in the New System

by brotherdan in

so i was thinking about this whole idea of animals being tame and getting along with each other and how the wts depicts this in their artwork.

i'm having a major issue with this.

how far down the food chain would this go?

VanillaMocha73

Funny .. I clung to the "tame tigers I can play with" picture for sooo long.

and yet the pictures of "perfect life" with no conflict ... seem so fake now. Floating around through our days playing piano and petting tigers .... Really? How can we be so disconnected with the reality of life and work and the way things are? It's as bad as the picture JWs paint to "Christendom" - are you just going to heaven to sit on a cloud and play harps? Are you just going to sit on earth and pet tigers?

I still want to pet a tiger... but my picture of "perfect" life is so much more realistic and satisfying now.

42

Letter from an anointed reader who DA'd after 33 years

by Dogpatch in

jw
friends

dear randy, early this year i requested disassociation from the org and have been meaning to publish some sort of statement.

i was a member for over 33 years and partook of the emblems.

being an older widow it took some deliberation and guts to make the move but am currently very happy with the change.

VanillaMocha73

This is my mommy!!!!! I am so happy that she is free. She is one awesome wonderful lady!!!

7

Help for newly disassociated member

by VanillaMocha73 in

jw
friends

haven't posted here in a long while, but i was seeking two people who used to be members and whose names i cannot remember for the life of me.... my mom da'd this week for doctrinal reasons - realizing that the jw is all about idolatry of a group of men / organization.

she has been a jw for 35+ years and anointed, so she is getting a lot of pressure from elders, etc.

i wanted to find the grandmotherly lady from england that has been through this and also the sister / brother from edmonds, wa that i knew when i was in the kh there.

VanillaMocha73

Haven't posted here in a long while, but I was seeking two people who used to be members and whose names I cannot remember for the life of me...

My mom da'd this week for doctrinal reasons - realizing that the JW is all about idolatry of a group of men / organization. She has been a JW for 35+ years and anointed, so she is getting a LOT of pressure from elders, etc.

I wanted to find the grandmotherly lady from England that has been through this and also the sister / brother from Edmonds, WA that I knew when I was in the KH there. Both resources would be great support. (Well, all of y'all who would like to email her ... )

11

Is this normal?!

by Lo in

i'm one of those ones who drifted away before getting to heavily in...thank god...but upon arrival in my new house i found a letter, a hand written letter in my letterbox from a local witness saying they had called around a few times and no one had been in, had a special message etc etc and gave an address which is a kingdom hall should the residents wish to contact her.

is it usual to write such a long hand written letter??

i think it's a bit strange.

VanillaMocha73

My mom and her friends get together to do this once a week - they are disabled and can't do the door to door anymore. We got a letter once - something about the Trinity and not believing in a three-headed God.... I carefully replied with the dream letter - practically inviting a study - then found out it was my mom who sic'd them on my husband. Anyway, the sister was practically drooling over the potential study until my mom said who I was. She was going to write back until the magical word "disfellowshipped" came into play.

10

Does the Watchtower "Sell" Automobiles?--by request!

by Atlantis in

does the watchtower sell automobiles?--by request!

request from researcher: hello, atlantis.

i was wondering if a rumor i heard was true or not.

VanillaMocha73

http://www.oyetools.com/search.php?target=www.circuitleasing.com&queryType=all
[email protected] is the lovely "Brother" who runs this site.

115

How Can We Expose Child Abusers - Who Got Away with it as Witnesses ?

by flipper in

i got the idea for this thread by talking with a friend this weekend who had been abused by a father when young.

this person confronted this parent about it and got a very self righteous reply back from the offender.

already a precedent for exposing the watchtower society has been set.

VanillaMocha73

What I find horrifying is that every single area my son has been raised in is listed as "has child abuser". And my ex continues to take him to these areas.

13

Elders who have destroyed people's lives on the conference call 6/21

by kool aid man06 in

on saturday june 21 at 7p.m.est the rapidly growing conference call will be focused on elders who have destroyed people's lives!

our guests will be former new york elder, charles riley who will tell his story of cover-ups in the org.

from the local level all the way to the top.

VanillaMocha73

I just sat in a courtroom where I was asked if I had ever asked for help with the domestic violence I experienced in my home. I looked dead at the elder whom I had begged for help over and over and who DF'd me and said "Yes, I asked many many times." He wasn't sure which way to look.....