Conscious Class : Meetups or Meetings?
The current governing body has made sure with their policies that the Kingdom Halls are not a place to question or debate doctrine .Sitting through these long sessions of indoctrination is very frustrating and debilitating for your spirit .That is why many of us turn to online forums ,websites and youtube to fill this void with useful information and association with like minded Witnesses that go through the same process like we do .Useful as it may be it can never replace the face to face interaction with other like minded ones .The words of Paul come to mind in (Hebrews10:25):"not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together, as some have the custom, but encouraging one another, and all the more so as YOU behold the day drawing near."
Having this verse in mind I have been trying for sometime to find a new medium that will give me this face to face interaction .I stumbled upon this great website Meetup.com which I would highly recommend as a way to meet other ex or current jehovah's witnesses in your area that share your views .Meetup helps people create groups that meet regularly in their area .Because it is a a well known website and rank high on google search it is quite easy for others to find your group. Unlike Facebook, administrators of a group have more privacy controls in their hands .As an administrator you contol who can be a member,who can see information,photos and posts about your group.This way no prying eye of an outsider can see the activities of your group .
I started a meetup in my area last month and we already have 13 members .Now let me tell you ,it took 70 years for my congragation to get 100 publishers so I think 13 members is a big success.I will keep you updated with the progress of this group and let you know what works for us and what doesn't .
Now a couple of points worth mentioning when it comes to forming a MEETUP group .
1. Name of the group: I try to target initially only ex and current Jehovah's Witnesses to form the core of this group ,so I named the group : (My city...i.e.New York) ex-Jehovah's Witnesses and faders group
2. Description of the group : I made sure to offer an invitation to all sincere Christians in the area ,or Christians that want to debate their faith ,so the description goes like this : The aim of this group is to engage Christians (any denomination is welcome) in debate over Bible doctrine and issues that affect all Christians today. Now the reason I did that is because I don't want to meet only like minded Witnesses but I want to test also my beliefs compare to the beliefs of other faiths and engage in a real debate with other Christians something I could never do in the door to door ministry.
3. Search results :So when you type on Google:"( your city)ex Jehovah's Witnesses the second top result is your Meetup group,this is very important because anyone who's looking for ex Jehovah's Witnesses in your area will come straight to you .So my listing looks like this :
4. (Your city...) ex-Jehovah's Witnesses and faders www.meetup.com/Your city-Bible-Debate-Group-open-to-al...Share The aim of this group is to engage Christians (any denomination is welcome) in debate over Bible doctrine and issues that affect all Christians today.
5. Waiting List:Now I said the second top result because THE FIRST TOP RESULT is even more interesting .The first result is a MEETUP waiting list for all those that for the past couple of years have registered their interest on Meetup to be part of an ex-JW group .So you have a ready and waiting audience to advertise your group!I find this feature fascinating .I found 37 people in my area already registered in that list. I contacted them all because Meetup makes it so easy providing a link that you can email them directly.This list is updated regularly so I go back there every now and then .
It is only the first month but I'm very optimistic and I really this is a great way forward .Don't keep it all inside ,get out there and do something about it .
I have created a directory of all meetup groups in the world on my website so if you're looking for a group or you formed a group drop me a line or have a look at the link at the bottom of this video.