I recently had a very interesting conversation with an online friend. She was baptized at 12 years old because her 15-year-old boyfriend was baptized, and she wanted to spend time with him. Pioneering was the only option, so she got baptized. I was alarmed, wondering how a parent can allow a 12-year-old to make such an important decision. Her mother's explanation was that there was an article in one of the magazines that "advised" parents to let their young ones get baptized IF THEY WANTED TO. How does such a young child even know what they want anyway?
Since then, she's been twice DF, and now she's questioning whether she wants to remain a JW. She commented that sometimes she feels like she's living for her parents and elders, and not herself. She's depressed, unhappy, and utterly miserable. I asked her whether she truly WANTS to be happy. She replied "Yes, but I don't want to die at Armageddon either"
I tried to reason with her that if Jehovah judges the heart condition, and she's "serving Him" with the wrong motives ... it makes absolutely no sense continuing! She also agreed with me that her life shouldn't be ruled by guilt and fear. I believe that deep down she knows what she should do, but she's just so very scared of making the decision.