i'm a very positive person who always try to focus on the good side of things.. however, my fading is becoming increasingly painful and i'm starting being shunned by some i thought were friends.
i'm missing some meetings so the rumour is spreading to neighbouring congregations where i'm known that i'm not as spiritual as i used to be.
elders want to have a shepherding meeting with me.
@jp1692 I see Warwick and Patterson as a materialistic move. I see lavish drain covers at the headquarters as a materialistic move. I see Samuel Heard's Rolex flaunted on JW Broadcast as a materialistic move. I see Stephen Lett admitting that the expenses for the new Bethel exceeded the available funds as a materialistic move. I see the Governing Body flying business class to zone visits as materialistic. I see...
You know what? Forget it.
there is an add that appears often here about a 'messianic bible, free reserve yours now.
' i contacted them and not wanting anything for free i sent what i thought was a fair price for such a bible.
no bible they seem to be working on it.
Ah, but @smiddy, the obscure nature of God's word is His way of drawing earnest searchers' hearts. Those who heard a parable delivered by Jesus would either say, "well, that's a nice story," and walk away. But those who were sincere stayed back and probed deeper to find the true meaning behind his words. Satan is in full force blinding men from the Word of God. To prove ourselves righteous, we must keep digging for those Spiritual Gems!
...Guh, how long for the tired sales pitch voice in my head to die off? I'm two weeks into my fade.
what did you imagine jehovah to look like?
i always pictured him like this:.
.
You know those old 80s and 90s illustrations of Him in the publications where he's this robed figure clad in sandals on a throne off in the distance with the sun shining outta his face? Yeah, like that.
i appreciate 10 commandments because they try to ensure law and order in the society.
however, i have problem with introductory statements that say: “you shall have no other gods before[a] me… you shall not bow down to them or worship them; for i, the lord your god, am a jealous god, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” (exodus 20:3-6).
1) this contradicts the characteristics of god described in mathew 5:44-48 where love is described as loving everyone without thinking whether others reciprocate or not.
@venus, in that case, the boat seriously got rocked and shipwrecked judging by the overwhelming evidence that the Bible is the work of man - not a supreme deity.
i'm a very positive person who always try to focus on the good side of things.. however, my fading is becoming increasingly painful and i'm starting being shunned by some i thought were friends.
i'm missing some meetings so the rumour is spreading to neighbouring congregations where i'm known that i'm not as spiritual as i used to be.
elders want to have a shepherding meeting with me.
@Skepsis I tried to fake the "return to Jehovah" attitude, but my elders were armed with secret evidence against me (implicating me for knowing the real truth about the organization) that caught me off guard. The whole meeting derailed and I was caught red-handed for thinking for myself. I really hope the elders haven't been "investigating" you for your sake. You could be very lucky and they just sincerely want to shepherd you. Either way, I wish you so much luck.
Which country are you moving to - can you say on this forum? I understand if you want to keep any personal info on the down low.
As for age, you are in your prime. I turn 27 in August and thank my lucky stars I still have a few years on my side to start over as a normal person without the cult. I think the only thing worse for you than being a JW for 30 years is being a JW for 31 years. Time is precious. Make your break while you are still relatively young. I'm rooting for you!
had the misfortune of stopping by the "regional" convention yesterday.
i promised my daughter i would come to sunday afternoon so she wouldnt have to ride home with her mother.... holy crap it was weird!
im sure all of this has been covered on the forum but to actually see it.... just wow.
Yes, the current Governing Body truly have blazed a trail.
A trail that veers off the NY State Thruway and into a column.
@joe134cd Baptism numbers were -27. Wait, do you count the three year olds who were lining up to get dunked?
there is no holy spirit.
i lead a double life.
i post on apostate web sites, swear like a sailor, covertly subvert the watchtower religion and do many other things i'd rather not mention.
@Half banana "To believe in fairy dust you have to believe in fairies."
It's a pity you can't publish a sentence. I'm convinced that one would be a best seller.
what attracts you in a male or female?
give me an example or better yet a pic to tell me what you like.😈.
@stan livedeath Fkn lol. No. Ass is ass here in Australia. Would hope her bottom isn't red!!! The bottom of her shoes, though, is another story : ). She's got sole!
i appreciate 10 commandments because they try to ensure law and order in the society.
however, i have problem with introductory statements that say: “you shall have no other gods before[a] me… you shall not bow down to them or worship them; for i, the lord your god, am a jealous god, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” (exodus 20:3-6).
1) this contradicts the characteristics of god described in mathew 5:44-48 where love is described as loving everyone without thinking whether others reciprocate or not.
I'm really interested in what the original ancient Greek word for "inspired" meant, when the Bible says that "all scripture is inspired of God." I know Witnesses take this word to mean a literal dictation of thoughts, as though a businessman were dictating a letter to a secretary. I'm going to take a gamble and guess that "inspired" in ancient Greek does NOT mean "verbatim rhetoric", but rather "pertaining to," like an homage to the God it was written about, or something. Anyone know much about this?
for me, i think it was just the right time as i was starting to wake up on other fronts as well (anyone who had went through these will know what i mean).
but it started when i was looking for what info goes on a publisher card, which led to me reading one person's story (ex bethelite) which was pretty crazy to an all-in jw but who trusts those apostates...?.
then i started watching videos on cults, as if my subconscious was trying to tell my concord mind something... when i saw a particular one about a young man in lds getting ready to start their 2 year preaching campaign, including a school, social activities etc, i realized that i couldn't tell the difference between the folks of this mormon cult and the jws (save for some religious differences) .
Good on you, @HereIgo. You asked all the right (or from the Witness standpoint, "wrong") questions that led up to your awakening. Takes a special kind of brain within the organization to dwell on the points you raised.
