Posts by Pete Zahut

Thank you all so much for your advice. I’m planning on living on my own soon so I’m trying to come to a decision and trying to see my life play out with either decision. It’s very scary stepping into the unknown... of a normal life...lol

Even without the JW issue, It's often scary for young ones when they contemplate leaving home and consider the future before them, especially when they don't have concrete plans made. The future can look quite daunting if you look at it all at once rather than take it day by day. You're not the first one to feel this way nor will you be the first one to overcome those feeling, move forward and grow by facing and accomplishing an important milestone.

I think I'd take it a step at a time so that you won't become overcome with fear or paralyzed by indecision. I'd focus on getting out on my own before I though about tackling the JW problem as well. Once you get out on your own, you'll find you're not as dependent on your families approval on every little thing. They'll get used to your independence and you'll make sure that they don't intrude on your personal business the way they likely do now.

You can start setting boundaries now by not asking for your families advice or approval on every little thing (unless of course it's something really important and you do in fact need their advice). You can start doing little things such as going somewhere (safe) or doing some (safe) activity without telling them in advance or reporting in with them or answering their questions afterward.

Little by little you can phase yourself out of your current life as much or as little as you want. At first it might be a missed day of field service or a meeting here and there. You'll get comfortable with giving your family vague but unapologetic responses when they inquire as to your whereabouts.

Soon after you move out you'll need to set even stronger boundaries, otherwise their old habit of being intrusive will continue.

Mom: You weren't at the meeting, where were you last night?

You: Mom, I love you to death but out of principal, I'm not going to answer questions like that anymore. I'm not trying to be secretive with you but you're going to have to get used to not keeping track of my every move and expecting me to answer every question you put to me. You raised me to be smart and to make wise choices so you'll just have to trust that I'm capable of conducting my life without you having to monitor me.

You'll get good at not feeling as if you have to explain yourself to them. You'll enjoy seeing them see you in a whole new way.

49

"You owe Jehovah humility and HONESTY" - an email from a JW

by Wake Me Up Before You Jo-Ho in

hey forum goers.

i'd like your opinions on constructing an email reply to this shocker below.

bit of background about the sender: she is a middle-aged, cheery uberdub whose siblings left when a schism occured in her congregation in canada way back when.

Pete Zahut

Hello SisterBlindFaith,

I read with interest, you latest email and was left left somewhat astonished at how you not only presumed to know the inner most thoughts of Jehovah, stating what he thinks or doesn't think, what he likes or doesn't like on such a wide variety of matters but you also managed to apply them all to me. You even went so far as to imply that I need more humility and even warned me about sinning against the holy spirit.

I'm sure your advice was well intended but I will continue to search for knowledge and conduct my personal relationship with our creator, as I see fit even though you apparently view it as deficient.

20

I want to be all my dog believes me to be ...

by compound complex in

jw
friends

greetings, pet owners and lovers:.

while i have no pets of my own, i do care for dogs and cats and have cared for bunnies and guinea pigs in the past.

i'm working on an essay with an 11-year-old student, and the subject is symbiotic relationships and how humans learn from their close interaction with animals.. here is a portion of the reference material under study:.

Pete Zahut

My Son's faithful little dog is living out his last days due to old age and illness. I went to visit them the other day and the poor old fellow was lying in his favorite spot in the kitchen. Although he can barely walk, when he heard the sound of my voice, his tail thump-thump-thumped on the floor and he tried to raise himself up to greet me.

I rushed over and knelt down next to him so that he wouldn't attempt to give me his usual ticker tape parade of a welcome. I rested my hand softly on his side, put my face against his face and murmured comforting words in his ear. He licked my cheek and nuzzled my face with his and sighed as if he was saying "I'm sorry, this is all I can do today".

Despite his own discomfort, his main focus was on greeting me and letting me know he loves me. I knew that in his heart he was on his hind legs leaping and spinning with excitement like the puppy he once was. If that's not loyalty and unconditional love, I don't know what is.

21

"The last DAYS?"

by eyeuse2badub in

i was asked last sunday, after a meeting that i attended with my wife, by a good friend if i believed that these were indeed the "last days".

what prompted his question was the public talk given by a young man that i have known since he was 7 years old and is now an elder at 30.. the talk made mention several times that we are 'definitely' living in the "last days".

i assume that the expression "last days" was prominent in the outline.. i hope that he way i answered my friend's question jump started his thinking.

Pete Zahut

Him :Do you believe we're in the last days?

You: Well it seems to me no one could say for certain whether or not these are the last days, until after they've and come and gone. I avoid making a claims like that because I realize how easy it would be for me to look for clues that might not be there. No one ever worries about the end of the world coming after they're gone, they're usually only concerned whether or not it will come in their lifetime and they tend to look for reasons to prove this is so.

We've seen that happen in the past. Ever since the time of Jesus, everyone was certain that the end would happen in their lifetime. The Holocaust happened over 70 years ago and I'm sure everyone back then thought they were witnessing the end.

They say we shouldn't serve Jehovah with a date in mind but rather we should serve Jehovah regardless of when we think the end will arrive. I suppose the thing to ask ourselves is, would we go from door to door out of love for our fellow man or out of love for Jehovah if we knew for an absolute certainty that Armageddon wouldn't happen in our lifetime? Are we only serving him because we are afraid he'll destroy us if we're still alive when Armageddon arrives?

8

Has anyone seen this?

by wokeup in

google: vintage freemason compilation collinsworth family.. several pages into the program has a familiar face..

Pete Zahut

https://archive.org/stream/VintageFreemasonCompilationCollinsworthFamilyAlbum/Vintage-Freemason-Compilation-Collinsworth-Family-Album-#page/n29/mode/2up

37

2018 Courage Convention video invitation

by Listener in

the video invitation for the 2018 convention is just creepy.

i thought it was some parody at first as it seems 'dark'.it begins with a young man being pushed whilst standing at his locker and the voice over says that 'in critical times we need courage more than ever'.

next, comes a clip of a male putting his hand on the shoulder of a female worker, the look she gives him would be enough to give him nightmares for the next year.

Pete Zahut

pale.emperor 4 hours ago
Also, we need to caption competition this beauty:

Why should we assume the man gently touching her shoulder is a "worldly" co-worker?

Who's to say she doesn't work from home and that the man touching her, isn't her Husband?

(P.S. I notice they made sure this "sister" was wearing extra eye makeup.)

23

Wasted A #@$%&!** Day

by FedUpJW in

well i got to waste another day.

for the sake of still in family i attended the circuit assembly.

they say a joy shared is doubled, and a burden shared is halved.

Pete Zahut

Theme was Don't Give Up In Fulfilling The Law of Christ.

How does one fulfill the Law ?

I could see them saying "Don't give up obeying or following the law of Christ" but fulfilling seems more like a term one would use when speaking about a prophecy.

16

Retirement Planning

by Whynot in

jw
friends

since waking up i can't help but look at the future in a different way.

while i was working i felt it was ridiculous for me to start a 401k because i thought for sure the end would come before i retired.

but now, i'm a stay at home mom with very small children and it bothers me that i have done nothing to prepare for the future.

Pete Zahut

Good for you for facing up to something that a lot of people find a bit scary and overwhelming to think about. Sometimes it feels as if the small amount you may have available to invest now, isn't worth bothering with but it's not true.

Suze Ormon focuses a lot on financial tips for women. https://www.google.com/search?q=suze+ormon+tips+for+women&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b

She even has a podcast that you could listen to in the car or have playing in the background while you do other things. https://www.podcastone.com/suze-ormans-women-and-money-show

If your husband has a company matched investment program at work, be sure and put as much as you can in that because the portion they match, is basically free money.

I was thinking of getting a Roth IRA since my husband works I can do that. What have uou guys done?

I have a pension plan at work that I've been paying into for about 32 years. My JW contemporaries said I'd never be able to use it but here I am, ready to take early retirement any time now because I didn't listen to them. It will pay me 65% of my highest wage for the rest of my life when I retire and when I'm gone, it will cover my wife for the rest of her life.

I also put the most I could into a "deferred compensation" 457(b) program that comes out of my paycheck before taxes. I found that because of the tax offset, you barely notice that it's gone. Once I begin using that money, I'll have to pay taxes on it but it will be at a lower tax rate because I'll be retired.

Each year when we'd do our taxes, we'd put the most money the IRS would allow us to invest, in an IRA. That way, instead of paying taxes at the end of the year, we'd get a pretty nice refund. For instance, this year, instead of getting a refund of around $200, we put around $11,000 in our IRA and will be getting nearly $2,000 back from the IRS.

I spent about 25 years doing jobs where the employer paid into Social Security but for the last 11 years I've been working in a job that has a Social Security replacement program. The idea is that if Social Security goes bust, the way they're predicting, this Social Security replacement will be there instead.

Historically when the stock market has a major downturn,it takes about 3 years for it to recover. I keep 1year of living expenses in a Money Market Account that has a guaranteed return, 2 years of living expenses in a Bond Account which are considered low risk. The rest I have invested in various Mutual funds.

The idea is that if the stock market takes a dive and I need my money, I'll have 3 years of living expenses to live on, giving it a chance to recover before I begin using my other funds.

My wife didn't work until our boys went into Jr High and then it was only part time. She is working full time now and has a pension plan that her employer pays into and she has her own IRA's etc.

I hope you get started investing with whatever minimum amount you are able to spare right now. You'll be glad you did even though it may seem like a pittance at first. Be sure and let the kids know what you're learning and let them see you being financially responsible and unafraid. It will give them a feeling of security and will be a good example to them in terms of being able to handle their own financial stability one day rather than being victims of whatever circumstance that may come their way.

42

Famous last words spoken by every jdub at one time or another

by nowwhat? in

"oh i'm not going to worry about it, armageddon will be here by then!".

-including me.

Pete Zahut

The only reason the end hasn't come already is because Jehovah is lovingly extending it so that everyone gets a chance to hear the truth.