23. and he proceeded to go up from there to beth el.
as he was going up on the way, there were small boys that came out from the city and began to jeer him and that kept saying to him: "go up, you baldhead!
go up, you baldhead!
So, what should Elisha and Joe Hoover have done about being picked on by these little children?
Why didn't God teach those kids a lesson by instantly providing Elisha with a head full of luxurious hair and all the children became instantly bald? Nobody hurt. Lesson learned.
Sadly, I guess God can't do those kinds of miracles. Too bad.
B the X
i checked many many posts, and at the end of each one,,even if they were not on a 'religious' topic, the bottom of the page has an add for 'scientology'.
every single one i checked,,mighty odd.
orb.
I've got an ad for witness ringtones. There are witness ringtones?
Hort, when you get a Witness ringtone, just do like everybody else and pretend you're not home!
I get the Northern Kentucky ad.
just don't happen enough.......i miss the chatter.
we need something new already....new light or something.
i can't just sit idly by anticipating the death of the 1914 thingy.....oompa
Geez oompa, you're such a "Big Watchtower Announcement"whore! You just can't get enough, can you? hahaha
Since I joined up a few months ago, I can't believe all the crazy stuff in JW-land, and how quickly it's been revealed, discussed, and analyzed here on JWD. But after one big thing... we need another bigger thing... and another bigger, bigger thing! More, more, faster, faster!
Rest assured, oompa man, there will be more big announcements. Just keep your computer tuned to JWD !
B the X
please read this post!.
the ireland case is a big loss for the watchtower society.. it's a big win for ex-jws.
i read the very, very , very long irish high court's opinion.
Wow, time to sell another Brooklyn Hotel to pay court costs !
B the X
sometimes i look back at my 27 years as a witness and am astounded by the amount of double speak that goes on in the organisation.
god loves unconditionally, but only certain ones, god is going to save the world from its downward spiral, but first of all he is going to destroy millions of evil people.
it is all so fatalistic and unkind.
Heat it up,
Sounds fishy. I dunno, but I think maybe they were trying to seduce you. As they sat across the table, could you see their hands at all times?
B the X
please visit the blog: http://governingbodyletters.blogspot.com/2008/05/bethelites-viewpoint-on-recent.html.
a bethelite's viewpoint on the recent organization changesto me the most obvious reason has nothing to do with control, or money.
it has everything to do with the serious shortage of qualified brothers who can (or who are willing to) be used.
Thanks pseattle2 ! And I agree with the explanation. It is much more evident in some places than others.
Two shrinking nearby congregations were merged recently. For a while, it looked like they were doing great as one big merged congregation. Now the cracks are appearing. It is shrinking and the elders workloads are getting worse. No new ones are looking to step up to help. Who wants to be 'privileged' with more work as an unpaid clergy?
The book study change may help, but only briefly. The problems in the bOrg run deep. They are so glad that millions are so blindly devout... for now.
B the X
JeanV, thanks for the link.
Wow, all these great questions on this thread. It leads me to wonder...
WHERE ARE THE "CELEBRATED JW SCHOLARS" TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
Where is the deep research and clarity to answer some relatively simple, logical questions?
B the X
well hello all....yes...i'm a newbie.... and yep...i am an inactive witness.
haven't been to a meeting in a while.
my entire family are witnesses, actually had a relative that proclaimed to be of the 144000...thats how deep....this is third generation witnesses here in this family.
Welcome Mary !
I guess I suffer from "Fear Factor Fatigue". All the non-stop 'doomsday spotting' saps the joy one can find in life.
Yes, a lot of bad things have happened in recent history, and many more even worse things will happen. Does that mean the JWs are right? Terrible things have happened throughout history.
If I were to say that postage rates will increase over the next few years, would you think I'm a prophetic genius when stamp prices go up? Would you start investing in my stock market prophecies based on my 'stamp prophecies'... even though my investment predictions have failed consistently for over 120 years?
Yes, I do see problems in the world, but I no longer equate that with the JWs being 'da troof'.
B the X
i keep thinking about this when i'm driving but forget to ask when i'm online.
when prozac came out, i read an article by some "authority" who was debating the wisdom of changing someone's feelings artificially with antidepressants.
the argument was that it is better to be authentic and depressed than artifically happy and medicated.
Hey Hortensia!
Prozac is not a new drug anymore. It has been out since 1986. It was the first of the class of SSRI anti-depressants.
Now my philosophical interjection follows...
I think many people jumped to take Prozac early on, like an easy fix to life's troubles. A pill won't fix their problems, but left them spacy and with other side-effects...
...taking the Prozac or other antidepressant would make you avoid solving your problems.
People like that need counseling... with a professional, not an elder.
...the wisdom of changing someone's feelings artificially with antidepressants. The argument was that it is better to be authentic and depressed than artifically happy and medicated.
As an SSRI, Prozac is aimed to help those that suffer with a seratonin deficiency. It's not just a matter of having the blues and taking a happy pill for an artificial high, there are additional syptoms and conditions that exist in such cases. For me, I'm naturally a happy person. Nobody would have ever suspected that I had severe depression for a very long time. It was unnatural for me to have sleeping problems, anxiety, inability to concentrate, etc. Taking the medication didn't make me artificial, it made me authentic. Psychiatrists now can tell that SSRIs don't make someone "artificially happy", either they relieve the depression or they don't. The pills I started taking didn't give me a high or fix my life's problems. I didn't really have that many problems. But after taking them for 3 weeks, they helped me start getting better. By 3 months, I got to be the real Billy again. They improved the quality of my life and my outlook on life. Yes, they saved my life.
The example already used of blood pressure medication is an excellent example. Even some people that are health conscious about everything still need blood pressure medication, or insulin. Is it better for someone with hypertension or diabetes to be "authentic" or "medicated"? Duh. Is it better to be 'healthy and alive' or 'sick and dead'?
I didn't take Prozac. I am on a related SSRI, and I may be for the rest of my life. Right now, I am doing very, very well! I don't take any other medication. But I don't belittle those that need other medication either.
B the X
i guess its time to throw my little story out there.
i keep reading everyones stories and thinking how brave you have all been, coming out of the organisation and facing all the repercussions of doing so.. .
i only last august disassociated myself.
Hey man! Welcome to JWD!
That's an amazing story. I look forward to hearing more.
BTW, instead of calling you "str8?", can I call you "heat it up"?
B the X
