As a JW I never doubted there was ahearer of my prayers. In fact, over the two plus decades that I was a JW, I know there were answers to specific petitions, and I felt strongly that my prayers to be a stronger, better person were heard and answered. Now, I no longer have anyone to whom I can address prayers, and I feel I wouldn't get a hearing anyway. How can this be? How could it be that a god would hear my prayers then, but not now? Why would he ehar and answer prayers from duped cult members, and not those of us who have had the strength to get out and be more? This has me thinking that perhaps the power of prayer lies in my own abilities and faith in my own goodness, such as it is. Would I have the same, positive affects by making the object of my petitions my own will? This is a tough one to articulate. Has anyone taken this mental journey yet? Can you save me some steps, lazy slob, I? Thank you. HbH
Does God Hear JW Prayers?
by HomebutHiding 6 Replies latest jw friends
-
-
LDH
HBH,
God Who?
Lisa
-
HomebutHiding
LDH...My point exactly. I cannot imagine a god without the face and qualities that the JWs instilled. He, of course, is no longer real for me. So, in order to pray, since I found it very productive in the past...to whom should these intentions be directed? My own will? Perhaps you ahven't gone this mental route, and this sounds like so much nonsense. Still, I trust SOMEONE will get my thoughts here....HbH
-
BluesBrother
My thoughts for what they are worth.
We must seperate entirely the teachings of the WT from the God of the Bible. When one is inside the distinction is blurred so that we felt that "Our " prayers were more meaningful to God than those outside, unless they prayed for a witness to call and by co incidence they did call - then it was a miracle.
The Bible ,any translation you like, clearly describes a God who invites humans to pray to him, and allows Bibe writers to call him a "Hearer of prayer"
We cannot put limits on his ability or willingness to hear our prayers or anyone elses . It must be a personal matter. I believe that God is there , and hear and answer prayers if he is so minded to do so.
-
HomebutHiding
And what of the peaceloving Buddhists, who don't know the god of the Bible (And who of us CAN?) do their petitions go unheard? They seem to have an envied peace with self and brother....HbH
-
Francois
Well, I hope I can shine some light on this, consisting of course in my opinion only. I has worked for me.
It really does require a reorientation of thinking when you come out of a cult that has ill served you by redefining certain spiritual truths in order that they comport more closely with and support other of their teachings.
First, I believe we need to realize the deliberate mistranslation of a certain scripture upon which so much of JW so-called theology is based. That scripture has been mistranslated, deliberately as I say, by them to read, "...the kingdom of heaven is in your midst." This is an outright lie. The scripture actually reads, "...the kingdom of heaven is within you." And this is the eternal truth.
Thus formerly when you prayed to a human-like Big Daddy in the Sky, you were making your appeals as trained by the WTBTS. In reality, that spark, fragment, or individualized Spirit of the actual existential God that lives in your heart and mind was the hearer of your prayers.
That indwelling Spirit that is "within you" is STILL THERE. It is not dependant on membership in the man-made social phenomena called Jehovah's Witnesses (or any other religion for that matter). Since "all who are led by the spirit of God are the children of God" your relationship with the Father is direct and independant of any other factor.
If, then, you feel your prayers are only getting no higher than the roof, it's an artificial limitation placed on your prayers by you as a consequence of your JW training.
The actual Father, the Eternal Absolute, continues to live in your mind and continues to hear your petitions. The only thing that has really changed is your attitude, and that because of the illicit opinions of a man-made organization who has the gall to arrogate to itself the position of intecessor between God and His children, between you and your spirit Father.
Realizing this, now your prayers can be even more intimate, personal, and productive than ever before, because now your prayers are addressed to that kingdom of heaven that is within you. And now they're not subject to the overburden of interpretive nonsense laid upon them and you by the WTBTS.
Try it with this new viewpoint and outlook and see how it feels. I'd really like to know if this has helped you. I certainly hope it has. I'll pray that it be so.
Peace & Light,
FrancoisEdited by - Francois on 25 June 2002 7:18:22
-
Amazing
Hi HBH: LDH summed it up best. Yes, I have gone through this journey, and am still in the middle of it. I still believe in God, yet I have come to have many reservations about what I thought I knew about God - or - whether he is listening to me. Maybe he reads my posts instead.
When I was a Catholic and then a JW and then a Baptist, and now simply a Christian, I have at times believed God answered certain prayers ... but such belief, regardless of religous affiliation, is strictly that ... it requires us to interpret events to assume that it is God who answered a prayer. Admittedly, some events work out in ways that it seems only God could have know and acted to assure the right response ... what I don't know is if suchs things are truly from her/him/it or simply my own mental state of wishful thinking. I just don't know.