Email sent to me from a friend in New York City.
Brooklyn Update – January 10, 2015
We have spent the last few weeks in training at the
Montgomery facility (near Walkill) There are 6 couples that were trained to go
on the road as LDC Field Representatives of the Branch. We will have a work week that mirrors the
brothers & sisters in the CO work – Tuesday thru Saturday – Sunday &
Monday off for meetings & service (and everything else!)
Our full-time job is to take specific projects assigned by
the Branch according to who has the greatest need in a particular area – then
meet with the local elders to understand the needs of their congregations –
figure out where the absolute best place to put a new KH – (based on need, not
price). Once we figure that out – then
the Branch will direct us to go after that property weather or not it is for
sale. Elders will get the full scope of the new arrangement on Jan 31st
when the LDC rolls out the new arrangement to the nation – you are gonna love
it!!!!
Right after our school – the instructors went to Palm Coast
FL to train 4 couples for Zone 2 – then California – then Texas. So 4 of the 7 zones in the US will be up and
running within 6 weeks.
Zone 1 includes the entire Northeast (from Virginia up to
Maine) – currently all 6 couples have been put in the New York/ New Jersey/
Conn area. Dave Palen, our overseer, said we are going to
take NYC by storm! We are going to be
working 12-14 hour days, at first, to pound it out and get it off the ground –
the friends here have waited a long time.
This is a demanding job – I have a lot of respect for the RBC brothers
who were doing this work while holding jobs, raising families, being elders –
that’s such a heavy load.
We started working immediately - and have already started
visiting local halls that either need a renovation or a complete change. It is eye opening to see what the brothers
deal with in the city. Across the
country the friends who have less money in urban areas have the greatest need. Under the old arrangement – they couldn’t
afford to upgrade – but now Jehovah is making sure they are cared for
first!!! Such a loving arrangement!
We visited a Hall yesterday – that truly looked like a
1970’s funeral home! It had everything
but the organ music and the corpse! Very
dated, unappealing façade, poor layout, leaky roof – not a place you would feel
proud to invite an interested bible student – however the brother showing us
around reminded us that this particular Hall is the best building in the
neighborhood – and nicer than all the homes near there – so it’s all relative. Wow!
It’s going to be fun to be a part of giving these friends a
dignified place to worship – they are so humble and faithful! I understand now why we are living in the
city – there is no way you can truly understand the issues for the friends here
unless you have lived here. Only now do
we realize that placing a Kingdom Hall a few blocks one way or another on a map
may look fine – but in real life – it means an elderly sister or single mother
has to deal with that walk, in all kinds of weather every week. This arrangement allows us to accommodate the
friends and bible students by being put in the best spot possible – regardless
of price! We are told - this is “need”
driven, not “money” driven. We will save
money where we can but not at the expense of the spiritual health of our
brothers. How cool is that!
At our graduation – Brother Palen made a point that I found
really powerful. “When you are concerned that you can’t do this job and it’s
too overwhelming – even for oversight – remember – even if you don’t know what
you are doing – you will succeed! How
can that be true? Prophecy!”
“Turn to Ezekiel 38:11,12 “I will invade the land of
unprotected settlements… it will be to take much spoil and plunder…places that
are now inhabited by a people regathered from the nations, who are accumulating wealth and property “. (check cross
reference for ‘property’) In this time
of the end Jehovah’s people will be the largest property owners in the world –
and our great God Jehovah’s name will be on every one of them!! And “they will have to know that I am
Jehovah”!!” (vs 23)
