what would say to someone that asks you that question now?
?
There?s a Greek term (which I cannot currently remember) that is used for cases when two truths don?t reconcile. I believe God exists, but I don?t understand why He allows wickedness to exist. I don?t get it. But like have said for years, on God?s desk is a little sign that say?s to the visitor, " Welcome to the Universe. I?m God and you?re not."
Steve
Oh yea, I forgot one:
The self-righteous!
People who start talking to me when they can plainly see I?m on the phone
Morons who fart in elevators
Nextel service
People who use their horn as an extension of their middle finger
Getting my yard fertilized by people who let their dogs roam the neighborhood
Gutters
People who only want to hear the sound of their voice
People who don?t listen, who are just waiting for you to take a breath so they can make their point
Fear
Cats that use the door molding as a scratching post
Blockbuster late charges
Large corporation bureaucracy
"Its not my job", syndrome
Weeds
Screwed up fast food drive through orders
Heartburn
Disorganization
Nextel ?chirps?
People who take up two parking spaces so their car won?t get ?dinged?
Soccer moms who make you wait for someone who hasn?t even gotten to their car yet, so they can get a closer spot to the store when there is ample parking available three spaces down
Al Qaeda
09/11/01
Religion
WBTS
Tailgaters
Inconsiderate assholes
Geeks who ?get off? making computer viruses
Rednecks
In-laws
Software developers who don?t ?road test? their ?buggy? products before launch
Transmission repair ($$$)
People who think there?s a conspiracy behind everything
Being overwhelmed by TV commercials the last fifteen minutes of a movie.
Pop-up ad?s
Damn, I could go and on, but I gotta stop to take my Prozac medication now.
it takes time (usually several years for most folks), to attain a certain level of inner peace about leaving the watchtower society and all its psychological baggage.
it?s a process we all go/grow through and just because you haven?t attained the perfect balance yet doesn?t preclude you from enjoying the success that you have attained, so far.
anyway here are a few i thought of myself.
I?d like to clarify something here after reading the posts so far (which are all excellent BTW). I want to be very clear, in that by suggesting we want to "put the Watchtower behind us", I am by no means proposing that we should not acknowledge how it has changed and affected our lives. We need to learn from this experience(s) and carry the wisdom of that experience with us, always. I suppose to use an analogy, we should carry the scar to be sure, but we should also work to get past the pain the scare caused, until there is no more pain associated with the scare. Alas, this takes time and work, but it dose slowly come.
Finally, I think participating in a forum such as this is healthy and even cathartic. While I feel total peace concerning my JW and former JW experiences, I still feel the need to ?connect? with those, who like no others, have walked in my shoes. We need each other and we always will.
Steve
you might be an apostate if...........you find your forsaken bookbag , covered with mold,,and the issues of the wt dating back to 1975,,,,,and the end didn't come.. you might be an apostate if.........you have a wiener roast and use the bound volumns to start a bon fire in the front yard for all the elders driving by to see.
sumpin,,,,,,,,along those lines........i am sure ya'll can come up with some things better than this .
but , ya get the idea.
Just kidding about the basement thing. Uh, excuse me now, I have to go throw some more lime on the ground downstairs (basement). Boo haha!
you might be an apostate if...........you find your forsaken bookbag , covered with mold,,and the issues of the wt dating back to 1975,,,,,and the end didn't come.. you might be an apostate if.........you have a wiener roast and use the bound volumns to start a bon fire in the front yard for all the elders driving by to see.
sumpin,,,,,,,,along those lines........i am sure ya'll can come up with some things better than this .
but , ya get the idea.
You might be an Apostate if you understand this:
Things that will spare you a return Witness Visit:
I think this add-on deserves a thread of it?s own, but I?ll add my two cents here. Try saying some of these things next time a JW visits:
Hey, could you hold this for me? And could you kindly shake it a few times for me when I?ve finished?
Come on in and sit for a spell. Listen there?s absolutely no truth in the accusations that I have buried Jehovah?s Witnesses who have visited here before down in my basement. By the way, would you like a little sherry?
So where?s the Ouija board?
Uh, I can?t pay, I mean I can?t make a donation for the magazines but I still want them. And I would also like to have a copy of ALL you?re literature, every book you have, and I can?t pay, I mean I can?t make a donation for that either. Could you set up a time next week so you could bring all that by? Did I mention I have a basement?
I like to get stoned when I study the Bible. Is that a problem?
Sure I?d love to have a bible study. I have a place set up just for that purpose in the basement!
Ok, sure let?s have a bible study. But later on, I get to punch you in the face, for every lie you?ve told me, K?
So, you?re the pedophile folks, right?
I?ll come to you Kingdom Hall this Sunday, if you?ll come to my church next Sunday.
it takes time (usually several years for most folks), to attain a certain level of inner peace about leaving the watchtower society and all its psychological baggage.
it?s a process we all go/grow through and just because you haven?t attained the perfect balance yet doesn?t preclude you from enjoying the success that you have attained, so far.
anyway here are a few i thought of myself.
It takes time (usually several years for most folks), to attain a certain level of inner peace about leaving the Watchtower Society and all its psychological baggage. It?s a process we all go/grow through and just because you haven?t attained the perfect balance yet doesn?t preclude you from enjoying the success that you have attained, so far. Anyway here are a few I thought of myself. I?m sure that given other people?s experiences they could think of a few.
You?re no longer threatened or intimidated by words like, apostate or Armageddon.
You?ve found the balance between hating the Watchtower Society and loving the JW.
You have no guilt on any level about having left the Watchtower organization.
You have no fear on any level about having left the Watchtower organization.
You come to understand that the Watchtower Society would be the last organization on this green earth that God would choose to represent Himself. So there?s no need to worry.
You?ve come to peace within yourself concerning those family member?s who have decided to disassociate themselves from you, albeit mother or father or sister or brother. That?s their choice and life goes on without them.
If you (or someone you?re responsible for) need(s) a blood transfusion, you don?t have any nagging Watchtower ?pop-ups? in your mind from the ?old days?. You make your decision rationally and on the facts concerning your particular situation.
When you drive by a Kingdom Hall, you feel pity and/or a righteous indignation.
You come to understand that you have the right to be angry about your experience(s) as JW (and your subsequent exodus), and are not threaten by it. Righteous anger dose not necessarily equate to unresolved anger. There?s a difference.
You can enjoy the things of life (celebrating Holidays, patriotism, etc.) without even thinking about your JW upbringing.
You realize, that in your lifetime, if you?re able to stop just one person from becoming a JW that you?ve done a good deed and you?ve helped your fellow man.
Steve
you might be an apostate if...........you find your forsaken bookbag , covered with mold,,and the issues of the wt dating back to 1975,,,,,and the end didn't come.. you might be an apostate if.........you have a wiener roast and use the bound volumns to start a bon fire in the front yard for all the elders driving by to see.
sumpin,,,,,,,,along those lines........i am sure ya'll can come up with some things better than this .
but , ya get the idea.
Wow, that was a fast reply! Good question. I had a lot of fun with it.
you might be an apostate if...........you find your forsaken bookbag , covered with mold,,and the issues of the wt dating back to 1975,,,,,and the end didn't come.. you might be an apostate if.........you have a wiener roast and use the bound volumns to start a bon fire in the front yard for all the elders driving by to see.
sumpin,,,,,,,,along those lines........i am sure ya'll can come up with some things better than this .
but , ya get the idea.
You?re probably apostate if:
You prefer answering the door on Saturday morning to knocking on it.
You knowingly enjoy things that may have pagan origins.
You no longer think you?re intellectually superior just because you happen to know things like, Jesus probably wasn?t born in December.
You get pissed when you hear the number 1975.
You secretly wish the Squibb building was gone, and the World Trade Center was still standing.
You feel like getting a blood transfusion just to piss off your old friends.
You?re proud to be an American, finally.
You?ve taken the time to learn the words to the Star Spangled Banner, and you?re in your forties.
You can spot a JW in a neighborhood from three blocks away.
Your pastor asks you to head up the cult ministry for your church.
You can see parallels between the Watchtower Society and the Third Reich.
To you, an Easter egg hunt, is just an Easter egg hunt.
You get an erection by throwing away Watchtower literature at the Laundromat.
It?s more probable that you?ll experience instantaneous human combustion than ever becoming a Jehovah?s Witness (again).
You consider the slapping of a JW elder in the face, an art form.
You no longer think that just because things may be going wrong for you, it?s necessarily the result of something you bought at a yard sale.
You come to understand the word, freedom.
You understand that wearing a cross around your neck can ward off more than vampires.
You realize that you?re probably not going to get your inheritance.
You think that picketing outside the Squibb Building with your new found friends, would be a great time and a lot of fun.
Steve
after two months of terribly abusive emails from my mother telling me that i "am not capable of appreciating true love" and her weird delusions that i have no friends and my life is a mess, i finally cut her off.
i blocked her email address, and i told her to stop contacting me.
yes, the jehovah?s witnesses.
Doing what's right by you, is nothing to feel guilty about. It's the healthiest choice.
