Good JW

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Posts by Good JW

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  13

  April 2018 Watchtower

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  here's a few little gems from the latest watchtower.. 5 many today think that to be truly free, they must be able to do anything and everything they want to do, regardless of the consequences.. this statement is just ridiculous, any normal functioning individual understands the necessity for restrictions, for their own protection and justice as well as for others.

  it's a very childish statement with no substantiation and written only to create a perception in jw minds of how worldly people are selfish to the point of being reckless and unrestrained.

  they liken adam and eve's sinning which resulted in disaster as being like a pilot not following their designated flight path and make this commenthowever, if the pilot chose to disregard that guidance and fly any route he desired, the result could be disastrous.. this is a very bad analogy because when adam and eve sinned, they had already been forewarned of their disaster to follow.

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  Good JW

  What I used to hate about WT "advice" was the blanket statements - assuming that everyone is the same. Such a case is here in that WT:

  "All things are lawful [or, “permissible,” ftn.], but not all things are advantageous. All things are lawful, but not all things build up"

  In quoting this it puts a negative light on higher education. How do they know what is advantageous to the individual? How do they know what effect this will have on them even spiritually? Take for example the youth who is intelligent enough to not feel that this higher learning is anything out of the ordinary, or more specifically, will be driven quite mad if they don't use their brain to its full capacity! What effect will that have on them?

  > Low self worth

  > Frustration

  > Resentment

  > Struggling to make ends meet with the "middle class squeeze"

  The list goes on. It's not just about the education per ce, it's about the faulty mindset it instils in youth:

  "Don't bother even trying because unless you're putting the WT first you'll fail in life".

  Thus, the person's desire for doing well for themselves (putting their back into any endeavour) is severely suppressed, and so is their general feedback/well-being due to not being who they can be. They don't reach their potential, which as many belief, was given by God in the first place.
  

  Are any of these traits advantageous in the kingdom of God? Of course not. You become MORE focussed on yourself and your own inadequacies (self centred), or the stresses of life because you're only getting back what you put in (i.e. a token amount because it's "Satan's system"). So even in a religious sense, it holds the membership back.
  
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  13

  April 2018 Watchtower

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  here's a few little gems from the latest watchtower.. 5 many today think that to be truly free, they must be able to do anything and everything they want to do, regardless of the consequences.. this statement is just ridiculous, any normal functioning individual understands the necessity for restrictions, for their own protection and justice as well as for others.

  it's a very childish statement with no substantiation and written only to create a perception in jw minds of how worldly people are selfish to the point of being reckless and unrestrained.

  they liken adam and eve's sinning which resulted in disaster as being like a pilot not following their designated flight path and make this commenthowever, if the pilot chose to disregard that guidance and fly any route he desired, the result could be disastrous.. this is a very bad analogy because when adam and eve sinned, they had already been forewarned of their disaster to follow.

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  Good JW

  We would be here all day looking for the inconsistencies, erroneous ideas and plain old manipulation / propaganda of Watchtower. Lol

  There's one extremely valuable lesson that I have learned from WT conditioning, and that's the fact that if they can "brainwash" you into negative / destructive traits (and we escaped)...we can not only de-program ourselves (ie become neutral), but also go the other way and re-program our minds to be 10x more productive than the average person! Really powerful stuff. The moment I realised that (e.g soaking up every self help book I can get my hands on) the moment I began to get excited about the future and realised how much you hold yourself back. Not going to be a victim anymore :)
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  30

  Annoying jws

  by Jrjw in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a 'concerned' jw in my congregation rang me earlier and said she's noticed my daughter sits miserable at the meetings and said she's a right miserable girl in general.

  i said she's happy and hyper when she's not at the meetings they're just really boring and she doesn't want to be there.

  apparently i'm a bad parent coz she feels that way.

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  Good JW

  LisaRose, agreed!

  The org tends to bring out certain attributes in different people; those with a propensity to lack of self worth latch onto the parts that make them worse (e.g. counsel about pride, being submissive etc).

  Then there's the type who're overflowing with confidence, and the org makes them worse (more entitled, more empowered etc).
  
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  64

  Wave your phone lights and dance at the Assemblies!

  by days of future passed in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  my sister sent me this youtube.

  in it are witnesses waving their phone lights and dancing in the aisles.

  sorry if this vid has been posted before.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4k7iw-zisgw.

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  Good JW

  Well this kind of thing only feeds the JW conspiracy theorists inside the org that "the one true religion" has corruption within its ranks. Never forget the types who suspected that "apostates may be influencing the GB"; those people suggested that could be the reason why the Tuesday book study arrangement was discontinued.

  "Stay strong brothers and sisters, remain seated while the Satanic wolves in sheep's clothing are dancing"

  "Indeed, this corrupt dancing and clapping even within our organisation is more proof that the end is near!"
  

  LOL
  
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  13

  Ended my last J-Dub friendship...

  by Joliette in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i wrote her a text message telling her not to contact me anymore.

  found out that she went back and told my mother some stuff about me.. i shouldnt have never given her my phone number....she's my next door neighbor.. she would always ask if i was going back to the kingdom hall, i would tell her no...people know that i'm not going back to the kingdom hall, and they still think that i'm going back.. i'm planning on moving from my hometown in 2 years and i cannot wait to leave!!!!

  so tired of people still thinking i'm a j-dub, i've told people i havent been to the kingdom hall since 2011, and they still think i'm going back.

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  Good JW

  Just tell them you've joined another cult, a better one
  
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  6

  I've Returned

  by m3tadata in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hello friends.

  recently i had been reflecting back on my past life as a witness, and happened to find myself googling jehovah witnesses and ended up on this website.

  i was once an active lurker and occasional poster on this site about 7 years ago when i was exiting the organization and had always enjoyed reading others experiences and topics.

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  Good JW

  Hello M3tadata, welcome! I too discovered this site about 6 years ago while having questions about "the truth". Have just come back after my world was turned upside-down and realised what was behind the curtain :) Been out for about 5 years now and there's no turning back, nor do I desire to. Just waiting on others in my congregation now, including a close childhood friend, although not holding my breath.
  

  Even though some of what you've described is pretty crappy, you are very fortunate to have discovered this while relatively young; still got a great road ahead! Sadly for some they don't discover The Truth About The Truth (TTATT) until much later in life. This happened with a JW friend of mine, he just "woke up" after 50+ years of 100% dedication to the org (AKA a self aggrandising publishing company who get free labour). He's very frustrated about that, being 60 years old and knowing you've wasted all that time.
  
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  11

  New video on youtube

  by blownaway in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i saw a new video on youtube the jws put out.

  it was an elder in his basement and other jws were showing up knocking with a special knock to get in.

  outside you could hear people yelling where are the witnesses.

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  Good JW

  These videos you're referring to are what woke me the hell up.

  I knew they would do that for many. I didn't experience those years in the org but could imagine being in the usual semi conscious/comatized state during the assembly but waking up to watch those vids (because it's something half entertaining) and thinking "how the heck did I end up here??!!".

  My brother who usually daydreams through most of the meetings (lol) suddenly started observing what was going on and woke up to TTATT in the recent few years. The rebranding was just too much cheese for his liking.
  
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  13

  Ended my last J-Dub friendship...

  by Joliette in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i wrote her a text message telling her not to contact me anymore.

  found out that she went back and told my mother some stuff about me.. i shouldnt have never given her my phone number....she's my next door neighbor.. she would always ask if i was going back to the kingdom hall, i would tell her no...people know that i'm not going back to the kingdom hall, and they still think that i'm going back.. i'm planning on moving from my hometown in 2 years and i cannot wait to leave!!!!

  so tired of people still thinking i'm a j-dub, i've told people i havent been to the kingdom hall since 2011, and they still think i'm going back.

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  Good JW

  I'm in agreement with "moreconfusedthanever"; it's part of the package deal we get for "fading". May feel like we're getting sloppy seconds (not their full attention), or as a recent fader said to me, like a girlfriend who'll only see you at the weekends lol.

  Before any hasty decisions are made you have to weigh up whether it's worth cutting the "umbilical cord", or perhaps there's a way around it? As much as it's not ideal (i.e. the relationship between a JW and an ex JW), it's still a connection that's hard to replace, especially when it comes to long time friends or family. It's not impossible, just difficult and may take years before you truly bond with another person, depending on your personality.
  

  Of course, it's totally your call and you know the situation better than anyone here. Just speaking from personal experience - I, like yourself got to the end of my tether at one point and pretty much cut off all ties from friends in the kingdom hall (except one). However, in hindsight I know now that it didn't have to be that way, and the loneliness felt could have been prevented. Long story short, I have my own gym and let the brothers use it, although eventually I started to feel taken for granted (which lead to all sorts of brooding/self pity lol, much of which I blamed on the religion) so told them all to stop coming. That kind of threw a spanner in the works (fobbed them off a lot) and eventually they got the message and stopped making the effort.

  It's definitely hard when you know for sure that you're the victim in all this, been nice/understanding yet still getting gossiped about. In this regard though, it's only preparatory for life in general so you don't necessarily have to see it as a negative thing. It happens to various degrees in all walks of life. It'll be old news sooner or later, and I've found that riding the storm will keep your sanity and help to keep things in perspective. You'll accept it as part of life, and understand that no matter what you do you'll be gossiped about (either because their life is so sad, out of jealousy, or both). You're damned if you do, and damned if you don't. If you "sin" you'll be talked about. If you're successfully people will resent you. Eventually, gossip often comes round to bite the gossiper in the *ss (and sometimes the willing listener too); it negatively affects those involved (e.g. you label that person as untrustworthy), not just the person being spoken about.

  Just got to rise above it all, and express yourself to those who understand. The ex JW community have been through it all and can totally relate.
  
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  64

  Wave your phone lights and dance at the Assemblies!

  by days of future passed in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  my sister sent me this youtube.

  in it are witnesses waving their phone lights and dancing in the aisles.

  sorry if this vid has been posted before.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4k7iw-zisgw.

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  Good JW

  Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!...err I mean Jehovah

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIApF3nCJZ4
  
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  30

  Annoying jws

  by Jrjw in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a 'concerned' jw in my congregation rang me earlier and said she's noticed my daughter sits miserable at the meetings and said she's a right miserable girl in general.

  i said she's happy and hyper when she's not at the meetings they're just really boring and she doesn't want to be there.

  apparently i'm a bad parent coz she feels that way.

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  Good JW

  @Jrjw - I work with a lady just like yourself, and have a similar nature myself (even though being male). The thing you have to realise is that you DO have rights (this is not wrong or prideful/unchristian/selfish), and it's not unkind to draw boundaries for people (show where the line is without resorting to anger/malice etc). Don't make the mistake that "our type" always do and get confused between niceness and others constantly getting something from you (in this case, the woman is thriving on power). There are limits, and believe it or not, Jesus himself said so:

  "Be innocent as doves, but cautious as snakes".

  Of course, Jesus wanted people to be loving, but at the same time he knew the state of humanity - that given the chance some people (too many) will exploit what they see as "weakness". Hence the advice to be cautious, or in other words, have your wits about you - become more aware of the situation in an unbiased way (not automatically assuming that others will give the exact same decent courtesy to yourself).

  This change in perception will take time, and at first it will feel wrong, but ultimately if you care about other people's feelings (i.e. our nature, the sensing types), then you HAVE to look after yourself first otherwise you'll be so sick and fed up you no longer have the emotional energy for others. This involves not feeling like some second class citizen who has to oblige all the time to other people.

  Understand that you have the power to change this situation; not exactly how others behave, but how you let it affect you. In this case, I'd go for disfellowshipping the nosey sister from your life. Believe it or not, she may reflect upon how she's been behaving....and if not, she wasn't a true friend anyway. You don't need people like that in your life.