by czarofmischief 18 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
In regard to "god is testing us".....
The purpose of a test is to acquire information that is unknown.
A teacher gives a student a test because the teacher does not know what the student knows or how well they have mastered the subject. The test enables the teacher to overcome that ignorance.
What is god's excuse?
There has been a lot of good stuff posted already. One thing you could try, if you can sit still for 15 minutes, is a passive meditation. This type of meditation lets a person observe thoughts that come up, and then practice not getting involved in them. Basically just observing them without reacting. This practice helps a person to relax and center himself.
The method is simple, but maybe not easy, especially at the start. Here is how it goes. Sit on a comfortable upright chair, feet on the floor. Simply focus on your breathing. Count your outbreathes, from one to five, or whatever number feels right. When thoughts come, don't resist them, or try to stop/suppress them. Just observe them, while continuing w the counting. If you lose track, start again. Do this for 15 minutes per day, at a time when you aren't too stressed, too full of food, at a place that is quiet.
This technique allows a person to detatch from thoughts that the brain churns out. After a while, a person can get to a deeper level, below those thoughts. There might be shit there that you would rather not see. But seeing it, can let you deal w it.
S
Terry,
I was told God does not test us, Satan does. God only allows it.
Of course the story of Abraham and Isaac kinda dispels that malarkey.
I think sh*t just happens.
tor
TOR:
Terry,
I was told God does not test us, Satan does. God only allows it.
Of course the story of Abraham and Isaac kinda dispels that malarkey.
I think sh*t just happens.
tor
************************************************************* Kind of like a policeman saying: I didn't mug the guy; I just stood by and watched it happen so I could have somebody to arrest. :) Terry
I THINK WE ALL SUFFER FROM THAT OLD COGNITIVE DISSONANCE.
THAT CONSTANT RAGING WAR BETWEEN WHAT WE WERE TAUGHT "AND BELIEVE".
VERSUS THE THINGS WE SEE AND EXPERIENCE IN REAL LIFE, THAT TELL US, WHAT WE WERE TAUGHT IS WRONG.
IN ADDITION SOME OF US HAVE RELATIVES ETC. THAT CONTINUE TO TELL US WHAT WE WERE TAUGHT IS CORRECT.
EVEN TELL US THAT IT IS NOT BELIEVING ANY LONGER, THAT IS THE CAUSE OF ALL OUR DISCOMFORTS AND NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES.
HERE IS THE BIG ONE. (WE STILL) ARE NOT 100% SURE THAT THEY ARE NOT CORRECT. WE STILL HAVE NAGGING THOUGHTS THAT MAYBE THE WBTS IS CORRECT.
WHAT WORKED FOR ME, WAS TO ONE BY ONE ATTACK ALL THE WBTS TEACHINGS. AND IN MY MIND DESTROY THEM.
WHAT HELPED ME "THE VERY MOST" WAS TO SEARCH AND LEARN OF THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE WBTS AND TOBACCO COMPANIES, COMPANIES WITH CONNECTIONS BY CONTRACTS WITH THE MILITARY. THE U.N. FIASCO. ALL THE FLIP FLOPS. THEIR HATEFUL CONDUCT TOWARDS PEOPLE SUCH AS RAY FRANZ & THE OLDER MEN AT BETHEL WHO DARED TO QUESTION THEM.
ACTUALLY TO STEP BY STEP DESTROY ALL OF MY BELIEFS IN THEIR" LEGITIMACY".
IT TOOK ABOUT TWO YEARS OF WORK AT THIS AND THEN I REALIZED THAT THERE WAS QUITE A CHANGE IN MY THOUGHTS, FEELINGS, TOLERANCE OF OTHERS. MY ACCEPTANCE OF OTHERS, THAT BEFORE, I WOULD HAVE LOOKED DOWN ON AS UNWORTHY.
THE BIGGIE WAS "MY ANGER WAS DIMINISHING". I DIDN'T START TO GET ANGERY WHEN I LEFT THE ORG. MY WHOLE LIFE WAS ONE FILLED WITH A CONSTANT RESIDUAL ANGER.
I WAS THIS WAY FROM CHILDHOOD. WHY? BECAUSE I WAS BORN INTO A JW FAMILY WITH A RABID JW BELIEVING MOTHER . MY COGNITIVE DISSONANCE BEGAN IN CHILDHOOD.
I HAD CONSTANT INNER CONFUSION THAT I WOULD DENY IT EXISTED.
THIS BRAIN ACTIVITY USES UP A LOT OF ONES ENERGY AND SHADOWS ALL OF OUR OTHER FUNCTIONS. MAKING THEM LESS ACTIVE AND OPERATIVE.
THOSE FUNCTIONS SUCH AS, FAMILY LIFE, HUSBAND WIFE RELATIONS, WORK AND FELLOW WORKER PROBLEMS "LOVE AND RESPECT FOR OURSELVES" AND OTHERS .
MOST OF ALL ,OUR ABILITY TO BE HAPPY, PLAYFUL, CONTENTED, CHILDLIKE WITH OUR CHILDREN, OPEN AND FRIENDLY WITH NON JW PEOPLE.
I STILL WORK AT IT. IT TAKES TIME. BUT IT SURE IS WORTH THE EFFORT.
just m 2 cts.
Outoftheorg
Out of the org,
Let us face it, when your mind is stolen from you everything goes! Reality vanishes. A mythical Disneyland takes the place of the real world and we live everyday holding hands with Mickey and Minnie and Goofy spinning on the ferris wheel and eating cotton candy.
Then, we wake up! We catch the obnoxious little twit who wears the Mickey costume behind the men's restroom smoking a cigarette feeling up Minnie and talking smack. We are devastated! Our beautiful vacation in DisneyWorld is ruined! We complain to the management and they kick us out!
We cry. We rage. We become depressed. We try going to the local carnivals and amusement parks. Nothing quite compares. Life is now mundane. No tilt-a-whirl or Ferris Wheel can bring back the magic!
Everything we thought was bright and beautiful is just a lie. Our world view is worthless because it is make-believe.
Our future has been stolen from us! That better, brighter, more perfect future is no longer an option! Who wants to give up perfection in Paradise??? Nobody, that's who!
We get angrier and angrier. Why?
We have to settle for the real world! That ain't near as nice as Disneyland!!
The loathing begins because we have to face the fact about ourselves that we were fooled and we spent a good deal of our time fooling others.
The worst part? JEALOUSY!!
All our family and friends are still in there happy as a lark riding all the rides and watching all the shows dumb as a beaver hat, grinning from ear to ear! They are having all that fun we use to have and they don't care that Mickey is just a pimple-face guy in a costume!!
The bastards!
People do heroin for the same thing. Shoot the moon...
And they never want to come back, no matter how terrible their fantasy makes reality become.
But I'm mainlining reality, baby! Pure oblivion awaits me, and I love it!
CZAR
This is when I really enjoy this site. People trying to get healthy & other people trying to offer suggestions.
Terry, I have been reading your posts, very interesting & thought provoking I love reading stuff posted by someone with something to SAY!
gypsywildone: I'll be tarred and feathered soon! But, thank you sweetie.
