Dear Family & Friends,
Yesterday was Annual Meeting. It was PACKED OUT. There were so many
visitors. There were a total of 13,242 in attendance.I didn't take a whole lot of notes because many of the parts were
interviews and/or experiences and it's hard for me to get all of that.
I usually just listen during those parts.Guy Pearce gave the talk regarding the 2009 Year Text. It is Acts
20:24=2 0to bear thorough witness to the good news.The talk was all about Paul and how preaching was his main concern.
Bro Pearce said they've heard some people think we're in the gleaning
work as if the major harvest has been done. He said emphatically
"Erradicate that thinking from your mind". We have much work yet to
do and we are not in the gleaning work.Steve Lett gave the talk Will Your Family Survive Armageddon? This
talk was all about the family study night. He said to family heads
that it's their main responsibility to make sure their families are
spiritually strong and that we will survive only if we are spiritually
alive and strong when the great trib begins. He said the GB has
prayerfully deliberated this matter for several years before making
the decision they did. There are 2 objectives for the family study night:
1. To Draw Closer to Jehovah-He read Ezekiel 9:5- Pass through the
city after him and strike. Let not your eye feel sorry, and do not
feel any compassion. Old man, young man and virgin and little child
and women you should kill off to a ruination. - He emphasized the
fact that children must be taught to draw close to Jehovah if they are
to survive Armageddon. They must receive their own mark if they are
of the age of accountability. Parents must use this time to help
their children draw close to Jah.
2. To Draw Close as a Family- Married couples who spend
time20together with Jehovah draw closer to each other. This goes for
parents and children too.He said there are 3 elements for success. They are:
1. Be Consistent- Do not adopt a hit or miss arrangement. Such
arrangements are usually miss. Their suggestion is that we use the
same evening that we currently use for Book Study. Also, we have prep
time for book study such as getting ready, travel time to and from so
our evening is longer than the one hour for the study. He said this
to emphasize that we do not have to limit our study time to one hour.
He said if we use this time for TV viewing instead of study, Satan
will have gained a victory. He read Job 1:6 and 2:1 to show that
Jehovah has set aside designated times to instruct his heavenly
family. Shouldn't we?2. Make it Practical-periodically we could have Field Ministry
practice sessions, have practice sessions on how to help your kids
cope with peer pressure at school, use this time to implant spiritual
goals in your children such as pioneering, bethel, int'l construction,
gilead etc. Use material that addresses specific family needs.3. Make it enjoyable- There are pages in the new YPA book that are
designed for family discussion. Use this tool. We can view and
discuss any of the society's videos. Read the bible as a family
perhaps assigning roles. Do something innovative- for example, a
family in asia has a s on who was absolutely fascinated with scrolls
and wished his bible was a scroll. So they reconstructed one. Made
it 24 feet long and used paper towel tubes at the ends. They used the
computer to copy Isaiah onto pages and erased the chapter and verses
and then glued all the pages together and then to the tubes and had
their son act out the scene in Luke where Jesus stands up to read the
scroll of Isaiah. He realized how hard it was to find Isa 61:1,2 and
how hard it was to roll and unroll and decided he was glad we don't
have scrolls today. Interesting project.Annual Report
Altogether there 13, 242 in attendance for this wonderful event.
5,262 in New Jersey
2,396 in Patterson
2,329 in Walkill
2,810 in Brooklyn
445 in Canada
The meeting opened promptly at 10am with song and prayer.
Bro Herd, member of the governing body opened the meeting by stating,
in the voice of Bro Sydlick (he sounded just like him, it was quite
comical), "It's good to be alive and serving the living God. We are
serving a God that is Good. " Psalms 25:8, Psalms 100:1-5Reports from distance lands:
Argentina, Down under really applies to Argentina more than
Australia. There's a saying about Argentina, Aqui termina el mundo
(here the world ends) The preaching working commenced there in the
1920's, in spite of two government bands the work has continued. The
work grew under ban, from 33, 503 to 50, 151. There is seldom worked
territory in Argentina, in fact there where 400 brothers that moved to
seldom worked territory and commenced on a long 4 month campaign. This
resulted in a 20, 000 increase, Isaiah 42:10. 8 congregations in that
area, they have now finished the Bible Teach in sign language. How
thankful we are that Jehovah has held back the 4 winds of destruction
to save these souls!Hong Kong, There are 500, 225 JW's in Hong Kong, Buddhism has left a
strong mark on this country. Many accept ancestor worship and Buddhism
only because it is common. The people are poor so they have constant
challenge of making a living. Commercialism and materialism keeps them
from learning about Jah.One young man named Keith wanted to know why there are so many god's?
What happens to the dead? Keith had 4 earrings in his ear and looked
like a thug. A sister witnessed to him and he heard the ring of truth.
He is now a regular pioneer.Street witnessing is a portal they use to witness. They set up a
booth and passersby's look at the literature. Almost 100 studies have
been started that way in one month.Madagascar, the 4th largest Island in the world, also known as the
red island. There is no translation for the word soul, and Christendom
has really taken advantage of this. The New World translation has just
been translated in Madagascee, a glossary has been provided to give a
true definition of the word soul.There are over 20k publishers there, over 54k Bible studies being
conducted.A person in a rural area requested a bible study. "You people come to
all the villages except ours and we need someone to teach us the Bible
and since you people have an advertisement regarding free Bible
studies, we would like a visit!"Someone followed up and this isolated area yielded 528 in attendance
for the Memorial.Where does the land end and the sea begin??????
Portugal (I found this brothers comments about the water and fish
and their responses very interesting)Portugal is divided by two types of water and fish, the warm African
waters which contains the warm fish that are easy to catch and
cultivate, then you have the other side of Portugal that is the
European sea which is cool waters and fish that are not so easy to
cultivate that require more patience.In the Cape Islands, there was a woman by the name of Silvita, who
was heavy into politics and was very prejudiced towards Jehovah's
Witnesses. A dear friend of her died and wanted answers. She started a
bible study, she denounced her lifestyle along with the politics. She
is now a regular pioneer.Prison witnessing in Portugal has been producing good works. There
are currently 56 studies being conducted and 30 unbaptized publishers
in the prisons. 2 after release became Ministerial servants and three
have become elders and some have become pioneers.Year text 2009 is........drum role please....Given by Guy Pierce
Nothing greater can happen to a human being than to become one of
Jehovah's Witnesses. A lot of times the law of diminishing returns can
affect us. Our enthusiasm begins to lose fire in our hearts. (this is
a direct quote) If worldly people had a bit of sense they would
realize their financial situation is the least of their worries. If
they don't have a good relationship with Jehovah, they have more
serious problems ahead, instead of lining up at banks they need to be
lining up @ the Kingdom Hall.Acts 20:24 is where this years text is taking from, with emphasis on,
"bearing thorough witness to the good news of the undeserved kindness
of God."Please eradicate all thinking from your mind that since we are at the
end there is no need to preach more. That is Satan's thinking and we
need to be at the preaching with urgency!WILL YOUR FAMILY SURVIVE ARMAGEDDON?? by Steve Lett
Jeremiah 35:23
The question you must ask is, "Will my household survive this
momentous event? Will my children and will my mate survive that great
day?"A key ingredient for the family is having a family worship evening. A
major factor for the bookstudy change was the importance of family study.What are the family worship objectives?
Draw closer to Jehovah, Ezekiel 9:5.6, the objective is to have the
mark, the mark is the Christlike Personality.What are the three elements for a successful family worship?
1. Be consistent.
2. Make it practical, ex: Have field ministry practice
sessions, have practice sessions on how to cope with peer pressure in
school. Use this evening to encourage spiritual goals!3. Make it ENJOYABLE!
One young brother took that chapter of Isaiah that Jesus read aloud
in the temple which he fulfilled and removed all the verses, then used
rolls like we use for aluminum foil and paper towels, tied it to both
ends and rolled it up like the scroll and re-enacted what Jesus did
and he stated, "Boy was it hard to find that scripture without the
verses."After Armageddon is over SPIRTUALLY STRONGFAMILIES will be in tact.
Out of all the people Jah could have chosen a wealthy family to raise
his son, he chose a poor family? Why? He knew they would keep His
son's spiritual interest at the fore.Who is the faithful and discreet slave? (this talk stresses their
personality) Bro SplaneTrue anointed ones listen to the congregation as Paul and Barnabas
did. Paul spent 3 years in the Arabian desert and was directly
appointed by Christ, yet he never usurped the governing body's and
their decisions, he always respectfully asked their decision and
direction on things. 1 Cor 12:14-18The faithful and discreet slave don't go around introducing
themselves as anointed and expect special treatment. NO, quite
contrary, they understand being anointed is not a calling card. It is
a privilege to receive this invitation, they understand it is just
that, an invitation and they must remain loyal to the end.They understand among the governing body there will be differencing
of opinions and it is an advantage to that, it's good to see how
someone views things outside of yourself, doesn't mean you're right or
wrong, just means you have different views. Whatever decision the
Governing Body makes is out of AFFECTION and we love one another no
matter what the decision is. The same is expected of the great crowd
when they make decisions and getting along with one another.The last talk was awesome because it was an interview of the oldest
serving Governing Body members, Barr, Jerez and Losch. I can't report
everything because it was just that good. BUT one thing that stuck out
was Bro Losch, he wasn't raised in the truth and NONE of his family is
in the truth. So for those of you kinda like me and really don't have
family in the truth, it's all right, just do what you have to do.Bro Jaracz stood out because he was the youngest to receive
privileges. At 21 he was a district overseer and at 49 he was invited
to be part of the Governing Body. He said he could really appreciate
what Paul said to Timothy as far as not letting anyone look down on
your young manhood. So folks, don't give these young people a hard
time that are reaching out, encourage them.Bro Barr, stated he is terribly shy, he had to pray to Jehovah to
this day (he's in his 90's to combat this), in addition, he once
wanted to go to Gilead and was rejected, he was hurt, he felt he was
qualified, but he respected the brothers decision. He then learned a
vital lesson, NO ONE CAN STOP YOU FROM A PRIVILEGE OF SERVICE IF
JEHOVAH WANTS YOU TO HAVE IT....a lot of times we think we know what's
right and we don't. We feel we're suited for certain things and we are
not, we need to accept Jehovah's instructions when he says NO and
accept the assignment with pleasure that he does give us.
Notes from AGM
by besty 3 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
-
besty
-
Leolaia
The New World translation has just been translated in Madagascee
That's not a name of a language. I suppose they mean Malagasy.
The faithful and discreet slave don't go around introducing themselves as anointed and expect special treatment. NO, quite contrary, they understand being anointed is not a calling card.
Ah, the fiction that the F&DS is the "anointed remnant". Translation: Hey you R&F anointed-professing JWs, don't go about making special claims about being of the F&DS.
He read Job 1:6 and 2:1 to show that Jehovah has set aside designated times to instruct his heavenly family. Shouldn't we?
LOL, if you can make those passages pertain to family Bible study, I suppose you can make it refer to anything.
-
asilentone
Besty, Thank you for posting this.
-
Amha·aret
Steve Lett gave the talk Will Your Family Survive Armageddon? This
talk was all about the family study night. He said to family heads
that it's their main responsibility to make sure their families are
spiritually strong and that we will survive only if we are spiritually
alive and strong when the great trib begins. He said the GB has
prayerfully deliberated this matter for several years before making
the decision they did. There are 2 objectives for the family study night:
1. To Draw Closer to Jehovah-He read Ezekiel 9:5- Pass through the
city after him and strike. Let not your eye feel sorry, and do not
feel any compassion. Old man, young man and virgin and little child
and women you should kill off to a ruination. - He emphasized the
fact that children must be taught to draw close to Jehovah if they are
to survive Armageddon. They must receive their own mark if they are
of the age of accountability. Parents must use this time to help
their children draw close to Jah.
2. To Draw Close as a Family- Married couples who spend
time20together with Jehovah draw closer to each other. This goes for
parents and children too.So basically they want the parents to brainwash their own kids now to save the GB a job?
Any clues on what this mysterious "age of accountibilty" might be? I suppose its that magical time in one's life when you're old enough to enter in to a lifelong non-escapable contract called baptism but too young to get married....
He said there are 3 elements for success. They are:
1. Be Consistent- Do not adopt a hit or miss arrangement. Such
arrangements are usually miss. Their suggestion is that we use the
same evening that we currently use for Book Study. Also, we have prep
time for book study such as getting ready, travel time to and from so
our evening is longer than the one hour for the study. He said this
to emphasize that we do not have to limit our study time to one hour.
He said if we use this time for TV viewing instead of study, Satan
will have gained a victory. He read Job 1:6 and 2:1 to show that
Jehovah has set aside designated times to instruct his heavenly
family. Shouldn't we?Satan is easily pleased if he ranks a victory when a family watches some tv together! And the study has to be as long as it takes to get ready, travel to and from and attend the book study? That's at least a couple of hours! And, according to their application of those scriptures, even if you do all that you might still raise a child to turn out like Satan!!!
2. Make it Practical-periodically we could have Field Ministry
practice sessions, have practice sessions on how to help your kids
cope with peer pressure at school, use this time to implant spiritual
goals in your children such as pioneering, bethel, int'l construction,
gilead etc. Use material that addresses specific family needs.This just screams cult indoctrination at me now. Why don't people see this?!
Give your kids goals such as pioneering (aka fulltime recruiting), bethel (live in a cult compound), int'l construction (free labour) and so on.
"It's good to be alive and serving the living God. We are
serving a God that is Good. " Psalms 25:8, Psalms 100:1-5Except for the verse mentioned in Ezk where he kills lots of children, right?!
Nothing greater can happen to a human being than to become one of
Jehovah's Witnesses.Yeah, my sentiments exactly - not! Note that they didn't say coming to know God, Jesus or the Bible. No, no, being a JW is far better than all that stuff!
Please eradicate all thinking from your mind that since we are at the
end there is no need to preach more. That is Satan's thinking and we
need to be at the preaching with urgency!Translation - Get a move on slackers! we're leaking people fast and need replacements!!
I used to really enjoy hearing all the experiences. Now it just makes me sad to think of all the people falling for this crock of crap.