Prayers, are you worthy to do them? [5/15/90 wt]

by sowhatnow 13 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  sowhatnow

  For those who still pray, and go to the kingdom hall, when was the last article on prayer? whats the view now?
  

  I always wondered, what was the original purpose for man to bow and pray to invisible things.

  but no matter that i can find out, but here is what blew me away one day while doing random research.

  a 1990 may 15 watchtower page 10 - 15,fear Jehovah the hearer of prayer] paragraph 9 says this:

  to be heard by God a person must express prayerful sentiments that are in harmony with the divine will. yes he must be sincere, but more in required."without faith it is impossible to please [GOD] well, ....[hebrews 11 6]

  then in par 10 it says:

  aware that prayer is a restricted privilege, [italics mine] [so much for the other scriptures that say God is the hearer of praayer]
  

  King Solomon asked that Jehovah hear only foreigners who prayed toward gods temple in Jerusalem.
  

  now think about that...

  of course the obvious contradiction is that its stated that prayer is restricted, then Solomon says hey God, let foreigners can pray as long as they pray to the temple direction, lol. gee what made them 'privileged'
  

  my first thought was , this leaves all children who do not have the mental maturity, praying for no reason. and 3/4 of the world,lol.
  

  and according to Solomon, anyone living outside the area of Jerusalem,[ that cant pray toward, the temple]
  

  unable to gain Gods attention, lol.
  

  [AND what right does Solomon have is asking GOD TO DO something? lol ]
  

  paragraph 11 the last sentence [again contradicting the prior paragraph]
  

  AND ONLY BAPTIZED BELIEVERS HAVE AN UNRESTRICTED PRIVILEGE OF APPROACHING THE KING ETERNAL IN PRAYER .

  Wow. what a statement.
  

  so to me the bible is representing only one religion, the ancient faith of Israel. this would be so obvious.
  

  now ,
  

  lets assume, the Bible is the word of God.

  it is clear that God does not answer prayers, in my opinion. I am more convinced that prayers from the followers of all religions especially Islam, or other Muslim sorts of faiths, who focuses on these ritualistic prayer sessions, are in vanity. For half the world of people who do not follow religious practices are often no worse or better of , than those who do. everyone has the same eventuality. [what God would deserve to be worshiped who allowed such views and acts against women, the very one's who give life to man? happy mothers day indeed, lol]
  

  I have heard the lame explanation form my jw mom, that God answers prayers he feels should be answered because we don't know the outcome of the situation, and God sees things we do not.

  well then, that means God CAN see into the future. and he chooses to let people suffer. hmm. and then no one ever knows if they have a reason to pray. if we dont pray were no worse off.
  

  my mother says, " Ill pray for my kids that they find their way to God"[ie the JW god]
  

  and yet all three of us are not at all interested. after 40 years of my own jw experiences I find it logical to leave.
  

  so one day, when she said Ill pray for you,

  I asked, Mom is God answering your prayers? apparently he is not.
  

  she then says ' satan has got into your hearts"

  Then I said

  'well that makes Satan stronger than God, right? why cant God influence us to the good then? and answer your prayers, are you not worthy of him?"

  [gee, after all she "s privileged to pray shes a baptized jw of over 50 years] and so were many of us here once.
  

  [shes been saying that sort of thing as long as ive been alive." Ill pray for you to find what your looking for".] "what about all those innocent children in the world who do not know of god who are sick, starving, or being made slaves, and God does nothing to show them he exists? wouldn't that be a good way for God to gain faithful followers?
  

  subject changes...

  To me, this is the cement proof a god does not exist.

  if the belief now is God his the hearer of prayer, what is he holding back for?
  

  If God did indeed answer the unselfish prayers of everyone who prayed to him, would that not give us the proof and opportunity to see how real he/she is ?

  
  

  Now I know the bible has in it a few scriptures that tell us we should not be seeking a sign, however I seriously doubt that this is talking about prayer, there is no proof of it.
  

  so of those who have had previous faith in prayers, have your prayers in reality proven to be of value other than to make yourself feel better? do you pray, ' just in case' God is real and is judging you? as if he wouldn't perceive that anyway? after all hes a reader of hearts, lol
  
• 

  Tater-T

  prayer is the ultimate evidence that one .. does not actually believe in any of the qualities of God

  If he knows everything.. what could you ask for?

  It''s all random.. so you better be paying attention

  or end up a victim [ie some ones lunch]

  snw interesting
  
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  John Aquila

  God, Please Watch over me today.

  
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  WTWizard

  Prayer is a way to transmit psychic energy to the reptilians, and the alpha draconians above them, with the view of enslaving the whole human race. Any prayer in the format that xian churches (the jokehovians included) or in Islamic formats will do this. Of course, you should not expect to receive anything worthwhile--that is just the bait joke-hova uses to get this psychic energy out of you.

  And that includes saying grace before meals and bedtime and morning prayers.
  
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  a watcher

  April 15, 2015 Study Watchtower: How Real is Your Relationship With Jehovah?

  Prayer---You Speak to Jehovah

  Excerpts: In prayer we draw close to Jehovah. We praise him, thank him, and seek his guidance. (Ps 32:8) But for your relationship with Jehovah to be real, you must be convinced that he is hearing your prayers.

  When you are specific in your prayers, you become more keenly aware of Jehovah's answers, even though they may be subtle. Answered prayers will make Jehovah more real to you. In addition, the more you express your innermost concerns to Jehovah, the closer he will draw to you.
  
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  little_Socrates

  Miracles are rare so most of the time you pray to change YOU.
  
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  pronomono

  The power of prayer was one thing that helped me wake up a little. I sat there thinking when was the last time I really had a prayer answered? When was the last time I ever felt a spiritual connection to my heavenly father in the sky? Answer. Never.

  I always assumed that I must be the odd one out, that there was something wrong with me. But I tried my best to be a good person. I tried my best to serve Jehovah no matter how insufficient I felt. I assumed that Jehovah was blessing me because I was going from Mic handler to MS to Literature Servant to Accounts Servant to giving Public Talks. He was giving me so many privileges. He was blessing me in other ways than having this personal connection. But then I realized what assume does - it makes an ASS out of U and ME.

  Someone actually has to be there for your prayers to be heard and answered. Otherwise it's like the tooth fairy when a child puts a tooth under the pillow and finds a dollar in its place the next morning. The child believes, but it doesn't make it real. Someone on earth deceived the child - for better or worse.

  Same today. We may pray. Sometimes we may even feel that a prayer was answered. But in reality we were deceived. If it wasn't plain coincidence, we probably had a parent (or some other person / good samaritan) looking out for us answering that prayer. Just because someone takes care of one of our needs (answers a prayer) doesn't make God any more real than the tooth fairy.

  I sincerely want to believe, but I can't find sufficient evidence.
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  Doltologist
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  zeb

  the prayer rule.

  • stand up
  • speak up and
  • shut up.
• 

  Doltologist

  Sowhatnow:

  
  I always wondered, what was the original purpose for man to bow and pray to invisible things.
  The act of bowing one's head is subservient one. The act of praying is an acknowledgement that there is a sky wizard.
  Those in control in jovie land are then able to see who can be manipulated and then, presumably, manipulate them.
  Those who don't bow their heads low enough become the subject of further brainwashing by jovie landers.

  The question shouldn't be: "are you worthy enough?", it should be "are you stupid enough?"