yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Do "true" atheists care what believers think? I don't think they do.
It's secret agnostics, wannabe atheists, who go out of their way to prove believers wrong...in order to strengthen the wall they have erected to keep out their own spiritual leanings.
to active jws: your january 5, 2014 daily text contains an error.
sunday, january 5. the anxiety of this system of things and the deceptive power of riches choke the word.matt.
one factor that chokes the word is the anxiety of this system of things.
To Active JWs: Your January 5, 2014 Daily Text Contains an Error
Sunday, January 5
The anxiety of this system of things and the deceptive power of riches choke the word.—Matt. 13:22.
One factor that chokes the word is “the anxiety of this system of things.” In these “critical times hard to deal with,” there is much that could make you anxious. (2 Tim. 3:1) With the high cost of living and rising unemployment rates, you may find it difficult to make ends meet. You may also be anxious about the future and wonder, ‘Will I have enough income after I retire?’ Because of such anxiety, some have been led to pursue riches, thinking that money will guarantee security. The other factor is “the deceptive power of riches.” That element combined with anxiety can choke the word. The Bible acknowledges that “money is for a protection.” (Eccl. 7:12) However, the pursuit of riches is not wise. Many have found that the more they struggle to acquire riches, the more materialism entraps them. Some have even become slaves to riches.—Matt. 6:24. w12 8/15 4:3-5 (underlining added)
The error in today’s text is Hypocrisy.
(Matthew 23:2, 3) . . .“The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the seat of Moses. Therefore all the things they tell YOU, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds, for they say but do not perform.
In the U.S., the Governing Body has required that the brothers put the material before themselves, their children, common sense, and their wallet.
For instance, in the U.S. today the appearance of the carpeting and seating in most Kingdom Halls and Assembly Halls is put first; young mothers with bottle fed infants and small children last. All this of course is blamed on Jehovah because, as the JWs are told, Jehovah wants his people to take good care of their meetings places. Such good care, that even the accidental drip from a baby bottle is something to be vigorously avoided in the main seating area and mothers are told to take the bottle fed infant to the nursing area apart from the main hall.
This of course, makes many parents paranoid with their other small children who may put a shoe on the seat or god forbid have a piece of food in their mouth in the main hall. But there was a time when the Organization did not think Jehovah was so picky.
Once Upon a Time: Mothers fed their bottle fed infants in the main seating area of the KH. The Kingdom Hall was kept clean, walls painted, floors swept and polished, a simple sign for the years text made by a local brother hung over the platform, sisters sewed the curtains for the platform and the windows. The foyer was neat and simple. Brothers cut the grass only lawn, if there was any, and the few flowers and plants in front of the hall were easily cared for. Things were kept simple. (Many community churches today have simple meeting places as well so this is not a thing of the past; it's putting what is important before the unimportant.)
(Luke 11:34) . . .When your eye is simple, your whole body is also bright. . .
(Luke 10:41, 42) . . .“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and disturbed about many things. A few things, though, are needed, or just one. . . .
Today in many Kingdom Halls and Assembly Halls in the U.S.: The fine, many times very fine, furnishings require much time, hard work and expense to maintain in the condition required by the Governing Body: “pristine”. Many JWs sit in large finely furnished Kingdom Halls and Assembly Halls with manicured lawns and gardens. Every step in, and every step out, is encased in the pleasures of the material; of fine buildings, furnishings and manicured lawns, plantings and decorative trees.
There is nothing wrong with having a fine place to meet or a fine home to live in. The problem is that on the one hand when it comes to the publishers’ personal finances and hopes for retirement the Governing Body warns of materialism but when building superfine Assembly Halls they readily accept materialism. It’s called talking out of both sides of your mouth- to the publishers scripture is quoted to encourage a fugal life but then in practice when building small palaces called Assembly Halls they throw out those same scriptures and choose others which appear to support their building efforts.
“Some have even become slaves to riches.” But the GB does not mind that JWs are slaving to maintain the “rich” surroundings the GB has required of many congregations and circuits here in the U.S.
“With the high cost of living and rising unemployment rates, you may find it difficult to make ends meet.” But the finely furnished buildings with apartments for circuit overseers MUST be built brothers otherwise we let Jehovah down, they are told. Yes much financial anxiety exists in the congregation; GB produced anxiety.
When you visit your Assembly Hall again look around and take note of what is not necessary, what is excess. Look around the grounds and ask yourself:
Why was my hard earned money spent on decorative plants, trees, fountains etc.? Why can’t we just have a simple meeting place as Jesus himself would have encouraged? Why does my wife have to leave her family to bottle feed our baby alone in a separate room so that the seats in the Assembly Hall are protected? What would Jesus have said about that?
Then turn to the January 5, 2014 text again and read it carefully once more.
(We are moving. This will be my last post for a while. Take Care everyone.)
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Zound,
I believe the Lazarus account serves to teach. Whether it was moral, or right, of Jesus to do what he did I'm not sure we can say without a doubt it was.
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Zound,
I'm going to go to the Bible on this so please be patient.
When Lazarus' sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick, Jesus stayed where he was even though he knew he could cure him. Then 2 days later when Jesus knew Lazarus had died he went. Martha said to him, Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died then a bit later Jesus was moved to tears even though he knew that in a few moments he would resurrect Lazarus. So here we have Jesus delaying and allowing Lazarus' death, Jesus knew much grief would occur with his own grief being added to it.
Was it moral for Jesus to allow Lazarus to die and to force his sisters to grieve so? We must make our own judgment on that.
Was it moral for God to allow so many to die in the tsunami? I don't know.
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
LOL. Yes, believe what you will.
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Cofty,
The question is why did he not intervene on 26th Dec 2004?
He chose not to. Why? He is a free agent just as we are.
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Viviane,
Sometimes during a debate a participant feels the need to declare their right to believe as they do. It should not though be interpreted as claiming their rights are being infringed.
Pelican
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
DS211,
It is reported that on the cross Jesus said, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"
These are not the words of a man fully trusting that the end justifies the means. No, these are the words of a man who is asking, WHY!
I do not believe Christ's terrible death on the cross is justified by his resurrection. I also do not believe that the death of those burned at the stake for their beliefs is justified by their resurrection or life in heaven.
Pelican
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
No Comment.
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Doofdaddy,
The topic is about god's inaction when a tsunami killed 250,000 people and destroyed the lives of countless others. For a person to say "just trust god" needs to be asked by nonbelievers how do you come to that conclusion and what kind of god acts this way?
I trust the Bible's account describing Jesus and his teachings. (One thing missing from many discussions, I'm not saying this one in particular, but from the forum in general, is the simple and truthful teachings of Christ. Perhaps one day a thread can be started on that. But now I'm going off topic.)
If you believe my trust in Jesus and his teachings or the reports of his teachings is misplaced, I understand why you would. But, I do trust Jesus and the reports about him though to many it may appear a foolish thing to do. It's who I am, it is what it is, and I truly wish I had a more concrete answer for you but I do not.
Pelican
