Me too LL. I had Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, The Kingdom Interlinear, The Emphatic Diaglott and the Aid To Bible Understanding which was replaced by Insight On The Scriptures Volumes 1+2. Of course, all those interesting factoids are forgotten now LOL. Back in the '70's it was all about refuting trinitarians, thus all the study we did with the word sourcing in Greek.
Nothing! Otherwise undeserved kindness would be void.
Good question!
The close of a good study was the trail of books on the floor?
yes so true that some stumbled JWs have done this. They are angry and bitter but perhaps will come around and make the clear distinction between Jehovah, and the Gov Body. and that’s it!!! that’s why we are here we have made that distinction.
Lol @Assadour Just as it is written at Luke 11: 9,10 “So I say to you, keep on asking, and it will be given you; keep on seeking, and you will find; keep on knocking, and it will be opened to you. For everyone asking receives, and everyone seeking finds, and to everyone knocking, it will be opened.”
@Driven- you taking notes? hahaha
)))
It is what I have as my signature@Driven- you taking notes? hahaha
yep. that is what it’s all about. Keep seeking and keep asking. Bless Jehovah and his King Jesus Christ.
I wonder how much or how many people shucked it all because of the repetition of "to whom shall we go?". It is no excuse but I do still wonder.
I think in large part for me what it really boils down to for those of us that are here really is humility. All of us who spent many years and some their whole lives as one of Jehovah's Witnesses, what we believe becomes a part of our identity. The reason you can show someone absolutely, and factually that they are wrong, and yet they reject the truth right before their eyes, is tied to their pride in their identity. There is a certain unmistakable and usually uncalled for arrogance among Jehovah's Witnesses that I have observed my whole life, especially in my own family up close and personal. Of all the people of earth now over 8 billion, there are still only a tiny minority of people who believe "the truth." It takes incredible humility to admit your wrong. And possibly arrogance is why Ex-JW become atheists. It is puzzling why so many become atheists. Perhaps because part of accepting the truth is realizing how little we actually know, and being okay with the things we do not know.
When I found your site and info, I was so relieved and completely surprised anyone like you, and the rest of us here were even out there. When I watched the first video that I found which was about whether JW's were going to have to take the jab, the first thing I thought is, "this guy must be a witness", in the back of my mind I thought "probably an apostate" and then this was the first time I had this kind of clarity of thought about the GB, I thought, "Oh, all it takes to be an apostate, is to disagree with the GB."
the very first essay i read of Robert’s was his KINGDOM BULLETIN #19 after i performed a precise duck duck go search- and i was at the end of the road and the end of my rope. There were no more places for me to try, so when i read KB19 i was shocked at how well it was written and how thoroughly it captured every detail of what i was thinking, asking, wondering, worried about, upset about, what was weighing heavily upon me, what I was concerned about. Half way in i just felt this joy and excitement because all my questions were being answered. then when i started reading the bible, i realized how much of it was just flat out new to me- scriptures i never read before, concepts i never considered before, words of Jehovah i never knew existed, all of it was opening up before my very eyes. Jehovah was revealing truths to me that were kept hidden both by and from Watchtower. The scriptures all fit like a lego kit- so precise and intricately connected. It all made sense. Everything makes sense.
Yeah, I do enough rambling on for everyone here!
I have really been noticing this lately. The arrogance is unmistakable, but not that long ago I was under the spell of thinking JWs were hand picked by Jehovah and given special insight and protection etc etc. I was listening to a meeting recently and the brother giving the prayer said "Out of the billions and billions of people on this planet you chose us." Now, I've heard that before and thought it was a statement of gratitude and humility, but this time it struck me as WOW how arrogant to think you are that special out of billions.
Exactly the same for me. I searched Jehovah's witnesses vaccine and clicked on KINGDOM BULLETIN #19 and BOOM, that was the beginning of the unraveling. With each article and video by on e-watchman I felt something I haven't felt in years... maybe decades... the scales falling off my eyes. As you said, I found new meaning and significance from the scriptures that blew me away and filled a spiritual need that had been lacking for so long because I only limited my research to WT publications. I am so glad I took the "dangerous" leap to research outside.
Sorry that was the case with your mom. Just remember when Jesus walked the earth, the Israelites considered him as a blasphemous apostate, even though everything he did was backed up by evidence form God Himself. The scripture makes this point clear:I have really been noticing this lately. The arrogance is unmistakable, but not that long ago I was under the spell of thinking JWs were hand picked by Jehovah and given special insight and protection etc etc. I was listening to a meeting recently and the brother giving the prayer said "Out of the billions and billions of people on this planet you chose us." Now, I've heard that before and thought it was a statement of gratitude and humility, but this time it struck me as WOW how arrogant to think you are that special out of billions.
Add to that, once you start questioning doctrine, they almost immediately stop treating you like a human. Even close family and people you have known your entire life. Even when I was completely under the spell, I really struggled with shunning. I felt guilty for talking to DFd people, but I did because they were humans who deserved to be treated with compassion, not looked down on like they didn't deserve to exist.
Exactly the same for me. I searched Jehovah's witnesses vaccine and clicked on KINGDOM BULLETIN #19 and BOOM, that was the beginning of the unraveling. With each article and video by on e-watchman I felt something I haven't felt in years... maybe decades... the scales falling off my eyes. As you said, I found new meaning and significance from the scriptures that blew me away and filled a spiritual need that had been lacking for so long because I only limited my research to WT publications. I am so glad I took the "dangerous" leap to research outside.
BUT like @PJ54 quoted Ecclesiastes 1:18 - For an abundance of wisdom brings an abundance of frustration, So that whoever increases knowledge increases pain.
This in-between space is very painful. So incredibly painful. I want to share what I have learned, but if I do I will no longer be a human worthy of consideration to my entire network of friends and family. I tried to share something with my mother and this was her reply. "Well I guess you're an apostate now. Sorry, I guess we really crapped out as parents." How do you even reply to that?
(now I'm the one rambling)