TrueTomHarley

Facts are nice, but they are overrated. They are downright dangerous things in the hands of some, who handle them as deftly as a surgeon with a jackhammer.
Facts mean little in themselves. It’s how you put them together that counts. That’s why the Bible lays relatively little emphasis on the head and instead lays it on the heart.
The heart determines what it wants and then entrusts the head to devise a convincing rationale for it, giving the appearance that it is the head running the show. But it is the heart all along.

Of course! There is no question in my mind that you should be running everything.

Facts are nice, but they are overrated. They are downright dangerous things in the hands of some, who handle them as deftly as a surgeon with a jackhammer.
Facts mean little in themselves. It’s how you put them together that counts. That’s why the Bible lays relatively little emphasis on the head and instead lays it on the heart.
The heart determines what it wants and then entrusts the head to devise a convincing rationale for it, giving the appearance that it is the head running the show. But it is the heart all along.

The premise, and apparently the hope, of this entire thread Kos stated early on:
“I told my wife that maybe there will never again be meetings as before. I hope the JWs will wake up and start to examine the scriptures seriously and search what all this could lead to.“
In fact, it looks like meetings are pretty much going on with barely a hiccup. They have simply switched to conference-call software, with telephone tie-in for any not up to speed on this. If Kos foresees that every child in the world can download apps showing the alignment of the planets, I don’t why he would have any problem foreseeing this, but it doesn’t appear that he did. Rather than take his self-predicted five years to make himself even more insightful and pure than he already is, maybe he should repent if possible and try to get into that new format with his wife rather than being a drag that she must contend with.
Our congregation will start with the conference calls at this mid-week meeting, Zoom in our case. (We will meet in Zoom Rooms—who would have thunk it?) Over the weekend we streamed it from apparently one of the Bethels. I could not help but think how the contents would have been disappointing to any ‘anti-cultist’ because there was not a bit of alarmism and everyone treated the virus threat as just one more run-of-the-mill challenge to adapt to. Referred to several times in comments, it wasn’t even called the ‘Chinese virus.’ They didn’t get into any squabbles if they should be able to do it that way or not—since it gets some all incensed, they avoided the term, and just said virus or Covid 19 or Corona or whatever. It is so much like this world to ‘taunt’ the other side, deliberately getting them going usually for the sake of putting down, if not ridicule, but they didn’t stoop to that for a moment. It almost made me ashamed that i do stoop to it (but probably not ashamed enough to stop), though I am trying to restrain myself, not always easily.
They didn’t sensationalize this virus even a little bit, much less use it to ‘scare’ people. It easily could be used that way. They didn’t. Not even a hint of it. So I will—just in a speculative bent, you understand, no more.
For the longest time we have said our preaching will end someday. What if this turns out to be it? It’s not impossible, though no one suggests it. I expect this to blow over and normal preaching and activities will resume, but there is no reason to accept that as a foregone conclusion. What if the world leaders who just assume you can shut down the entire world economy and start it up again are wrong, and instead another worldwide Great Depression ensues? The deaths then will dwarf anything that the virus itself brings on, including many a suicide. Will people endure it as resolutely as they did 90 years ago? I wouldn’t hold my breath, not with the belligerence and non-cooperation that defines the overall culture today. And wouldn’t that be a decisive verdict to the facades men have erected? The worldwide financial bedrock, that everyone depends on and have taken for granted will endure no matter what—dissolving so easily in the face of what might well be an overreaction to a virus only two or three times more nasty than the regular flu—bad, to be sure, but not nearly as bad as the devastation triggered in the all-out war to contain it, a war that leaders can only hope will be won but do not know. As that mighty structure crumbles, who knows what efforts nations may go to in their desire to shore it up?
Then all these ones on the outside lambasting the Witness organization every time one of them so much as farts may begin to feel less comfortable. For the Witness brotherhood appears to be holding up pretty well, and it is holding up well independent of material assets. If worse comes to worse, you can run the whole program from a server in Brother Lett’s dorm room. It might even be that conditions could devolve to Acts 2 mode, in which Christians are physically caring for the needs of others. If you have kept yourself plugged into the brotherhood that, with all its flaws, is one run on love, you will be able to weather whatever shaking of the world is going on. Those who have put themselves outside it and are united in nothing other than their finding fault—of them I am not so sure.
A speaker quoted from Numbers 12 recently. “Face to face I speak with [Moses], and not in riddles. Why then, did you not fear to speak against him?” Yes, I know, I know—those taking the lead today are not Moses, but I am not so unfearful to declare they are not filling exactly the modern role that he did the ancient. Yes, they are not Moses, but then Moses was not Moses in the eyes of his critics. What were they murmuring about? His Hittite wives. He really did have Hittite wives. It was not an invalid complaint. God accepted him anyway and struck down those who would rise up against him.
I can easily extrapolate, based on the snarling hate expressed by some here for the theocratic organization, and current events showing that opposition shifting into high gear, most notably in Russia—I can envision that attack on the city ‘existing without bars’ and ‘the city that seems open to plunder’—I can easily envision it—not as a slam-dunk gonna-happen-now, but certainly as a possibility. Will religions in general hold onto their own as JWs hold on to theirs? Time will time, but I’m dubious. How many will so easily switch to new methods of keeping in touch? How many are so organized into not just congregations, but groups within congregations, so that no one other than those who willfully keep their distance is overlooked?
Revelation presents scenarios of people ‘warring against God’ and one can’t help but wonder: ‘Who would be stupid enough to do that?’ Now some scenarios emerge. ‘Do not meddle with these men so that you may not be found actually fighters against God,’ Gamaliel said. It was enough to dissuade the Sanhedrin. ‘Forget that!’ enemies say today as they go in for what they imagine is the kill.
The view of the humanists is that human solutions must prevail, and they are livid that any would look to another source. They are livid that any would put their trust in anything else. They attack and put the most ridiculous interpretation on Letts’ words about what doesn’t bother him at all, because they can’t stand what he looks to for salvation. To one of these yo-yos ranting about how he uses calamity to ‘exploit’ members with fear so as to keep them in line, I said that ‘the entire premise of the faith is that we are living in the last days of this system of things in which difficult times will prevail. To point to evidence of that does not frighten them; it strengthens them—it validates their faith.’

The reason they want to keep banks afloat, rife with ‘moral hazard’ though that course is, is that all employment depends on them, and no one wants to throw most people in the world out of work. 
It is sort of like how Abraham Lincoln said that he is not smart enough to lie. Once you tell one, you will be telling them till the end of your days in an attempt to shore up that first one.

Did Tom Henry pass off the scene so that we now see the Ghost of Tom Henry?

Not this weekend, but starting with the mid-week meeting, we will be. They will be held in ‘Zoom rooms’—who would have thought it? In the meanwhile, different options for different friends, even entire congregations. Many have streamed meetings from jw.org. A trial meeting which would ordinarily be the meeting for field service was held Saturday. Most took some time to get their heads around the app, including me. Some never made it at all. But I have not the slightest doubt that anyone desiring will be brought up to speed in fairly short order. It is not that hard. Meanwhile, though not an elder, I make it a point to phone one or two each day, and I try to think of ones who may be at some risk of falling through the cracks.

If you like, you may be able to vote for Andrew Cuomo, seeing as you are so eager to vote. You can vote for him. In the best of times, he is a nanny, and now that it is the worst of times, he has gone into overdrive, oozing his concern for everyone, and there are many who are blown away by his caring (and contrast him with Trump, who is so heavy of tongue that some wish they would get Aaron to fill in for him). I am seeing in comments to his tweets: Cuomo for President. There is a hashtag for it. This crisis is made to order for him, as he does best when there is no scrutiny whatsoever about the price tag. Someone speculated that if Biden gets the nod, it will somehow end up being AC running the show—probably starting with a VP nomination.
You would like him, James. He would tell you to be cautious with your chickens in case there are any health risks to living in close proximity to them. He tells New Yorkers to bundle up when it is cold. He explains how when the temperature drops it can get dangerous to be out in the weather. He refers on occasion to the ‘family of New York,’ notwithstanding that one family member wins the Nobel prize and another family member lands in the hoosegow for knifing yet a third. They are all family members. You would make a good family member, too. 
This is human government, James. Do your bit to smooth his way. Or do your bit to oppose him and smooth someone else’s way. He will take your guns, probably. On the other hand, by doing so he may be saving you a lifetime of trouble, for if you use one and kill/injure somebody you may spend the rest of your days fending off litigation of one sort or another.
Savor in the blessings that human government can bring, if you like.

Inadequate attention has been paid, and is being paid, to the signs of the prophet Simon. In his writings, he declares how people will live in these latter days that include plagues:
”Hiding in my room, sacred in my room, I touch no one and no one touches me.” - Paul Simon
He continues, indicating where people may find relief:
”I have my books. And my poetry to protect me.”
Let the reader use discernment. The ‘books’ he is referring to are the 66 books of the Holy Bible. The ‘poetry’ consists of the poignant remarks he posts right here on the worldnewsmedia forum.

Inadequate attention has been paid, and is being paid, to the signs of the prophet Simon. In his writings, he declares how people will live in these latter days that include plagues:
”Hiding in my room, sacred in my room, I touch no one and no one touches me.” - Paul Simon
He continues, indicating where people may find relief:
”I have my books. And my poetry to protect me.”
Let the reader use discernment. The ‘books’ he is referring to are the 66 books of the Holy Bible. The ‘poetry’ consists of the poignant remarks he posts right here on the worldnewsmedia forum.

My favorite circuit overseer—an old fellow—long ago said that he doesn’t argue with trinitarians. “I’ve never convinced one,” he said.
I’m struck by the verse that has cropped up a few times recently on how ‘wicked men and impostors will advance from bad to worse, misleading and being misled.‘ Trouble is, if you apply that verse to anyone, they just turn around and apply it to you, as Tom Henry discovers multiple times every week.
Let whoever it is be firmly convinced in his own mind’ Paul said somewhere. It will have to be one of those things you leave in God’s hands, and see whether the blessings flow to wherever you have chosen to be. To quote an odd expression of Jesus: ‘where the carcass is, there the eagles will gather.’ Fine carcasses where i hang out, I think.
My books—I think all of them—include contact information with the proviso that I’m not an arguer. “Sometimes people disagree. He can live with that,” I say in the third person of myself.
God knows if he is a trinity or not. For atheists, he knows if he exists or not. For characters here, he knows if he has a ‘true anointed’ to pull from his sleeve or not. He knows if he is going to have all the heavenly bodies stand on their heads so we can draw conclusions or not. He knows if his home base is a Facebook page or not. I’ll preach truth as I know it and throw all the rest on his lap. He can handle it.

My favorite circuit overseer—an old fellow—long ago said that he doesn’t argue with trinitarians. “I’ve never convinced one,” he said.
I’m struck by the verse that has cropped up a few times recently on how ‘wicked men and impostors will advance from bad to worse, misleading and being misled.‘ Trouble is, if you apply that verse to anyone, they just turn around and apply it to you, as Tom Henry discovers multiple times every week.
Let whoever it is be firmly convinced in his own mind’ Paul said somewhere. It will have to be one of those things you leave in God’s hands, and see whether the blessings flow to wherever you have chosen to be. To quote an odd expression of Jesus: ‘where the carcass is, there the eagles will gather.’ Fine carcasses where i hang out, I think.
My books—I think all of them—include contact information with the proviso that I’m not an arguer. “Sometimes people disagree. He can live with that,” I say in the third person of myself.
God knows if he is a trinity or not. For atheists, he knows if he exists or not. For characters here, he knows if he has a ‘true anointed’ to pull from his sleeve or not. He knows if he is going to have all the heavenly bodies stand on their heads so we can draw conclusions or not. He knows if his home base is a Facebook page or not. I’ll preach truth as I know it and throw all the rest on his lap. He can handle it.

My favorite circuit overseer—an old fellow—long ago said that he doesn’t argue with trinitarians. “I’ve never convinced one,” he said.
I’m struck by the verse that has cropped up a few times recently on how ‘wicked men and impostors will advance from bad to worse, misleading and being misled.‘ Trouble is, if you apply that verse to anyone, they just turn around and apply it to you, as Tom Henry discovers multiple times every week.
Let whoever it is be firmly convinced in his own mind’ Paul said somewhere. It will have to be one of those things you leave in God’s hands, and see whether the blessings flow to wherever you have chosen to be. To quote an odd expression of Jesus: ‘where the carcass is, there the eagles will gather.’ Fine carcasses where i hang out, I think.
My books—I think all of them—include contact information with the proviso that I’m not an arguer. “Sometimes people disagree. He can live with that,” I say in the third person of myself.
God knows if he is a trinity or not. For atheists, he knows if he exists or not. For characters here, he knows if he has a ‘true anointed’ to pull from his sleeve or not. He knows if he is going to have all the heavenly bodies stand on their heads so we can draw conclusions or not. He knows if his home base is a Facebook page or not. I’ll preach truth as I know it and throw all the rest on his lap. He can handle it.

My favorite circuit overseer—an old fellow—long ago said that he doesn’t argue with trinitarians. “I’ve never convinced one,” he said.
I’m struck by the verse that has cropped up a few times recently on how ‘wicked men and impostors will advance from bad to worse, misleading and being misled.‘ Trouble is, if you apply that verse to anyone, they just turn around and apply it to you, as Tom Henry discovers multiple times every week.
Let whoever it is be firmly convinced in his own mind’ Paul said somewhere. It will have to be one of those things you leave in God’s hands, and see whether the blessings flow to wherever you have chosen to be. To quote an odd expression of Jesus: ‘where the carcass is, there the eagles will gather.’ Fine carcasses where i hang out, I think.
My books—I think all of them—include contact information with the proviso that I’m not an arguer. “Sometimes people disagree. He can live with that,” I say in the third person of myself.
God knows if he is a trinity or not. For atheists, he knows if he exists or not. For characters here, he knows if he has a ‘true anointed’ to pull from his sleeve or not. He knows if he is going to have all the heavenly bodies stand on their heads so we can draw conclusions or not. He knows if his home base is a Facebook page or not. I’ll preach truth as I know it and throw all the rest on his lap. He can handle it.

If I could get over the stunned realization that you are SERIOUS about this .. I could have a have a good, long, extended, knee slapping, fall down and lie on the floor gasping for air crying jag belly laugh.

It took no time at all for the anti-cult crowd to latch on to that recent Stephen Lett video about how the brothers are doing worldwide in the face of Covid 19. (6 have died in Italy). Of course, he made remarks about being ‘deep in the last days’—and they were all over that. He was declared ‘oppontunistic’ and exploitive of current events so as to maintain control over members. Sheesh!
Now, Stephen Lett is a very unusual figure—Witnesses love this guy—but there is no one who over-emotes like this fellow. Sometimes I think a spokesman less ‘polarizing’ in his mannerism would be better suited, but who can say? He shows love for the friends, and maybe that overrides all else. I wrote up a post on him previously.
At any rate, I posted a few tweets of my own to kick back at some of these accusations—if that be what they are. As to the ringleader of the anti-cultists, who does not specialize in Jehovah’s Witnesses but also does not exclude them, I do not treat him as an enemy, and I am neutral as to his overall mission. To the extent he notices me, he doesn’t treat me as an enemy either, and if he does I take no offense. Mutual respect works here.
I posted:
A worldwide plague and concurrent financial collapse JWs do not dismiss as ‘one of those things,’ but their end-time words long precede this. Plus, they are nothing but cooperating with gov’t authorities in trying to contain virus
It is irrelevant to general society if it is accompanied by complete cooperation with govt authorities as they try to contain such, which is the case with JWs. After all, it is not them partying on the Fla beach.....1/2
Also, people cannot be buffeted about by such calamities as world plague & financial collapse and just shrug it off. An ‘end-time’ view is as good as any to cope. Few cooperate with gov’t containment efforts as JWs do. They promptly calledoff their door2door & are not the problem...2/2
The trick is to allow other viewpoints to exist besides your own. Tolerance. JWs in no way undermine govt efforts to control virus. Besides, until all chips in, who are you to say they are wrong? It has to be a ‘wait and see.’

Well, it’s not as though one needs only swallow a pill and that’s the end of it.
”Stop being anxious” Bro Morris quoted Jesus at the Regional from Atlanta, and then reiterated: “Just stop it!” as though you would scold a child - planting the notion that it ought to be possible.
Pssstttttt !    Ah.....that Miller is good.
Where is that verse—it’s there somewhere, find it for me, about wine existing so that mortal man can forget his woes as the need arises.

“We made Miller the number two selling brand in the country and everybody said, ‘No one will drink that stuff.’ - Mickey Spillane

Lord, that fellow is a moron! Post a comment about the Corona virus and the worldwide financial collapse and he attaches a laughing emoji to it!
Does it not remind anyone with a shred of decency of Jesus words? 
“How long must I continue with you? How long must I put up with you?”
He really is losing it.

Lord, that fellow is a moron! Post a comment about the Corona virus and the worldwide financial collapse and he attaches a laughing emoji to it!
Does it not remind anyone with a shred of decency of Jesus words? 
“How long must I continue with you? How long must I put up with you?”
He really is losing it.

Disparaging remarks are harmful and counterproductive. All the more so since we are living deep in the last days.
 I am calling for an immediate moratorium on them—to commence just after I get my own licks in.

Lord, that fellow is a moron! Post a comment about the Corona virus and the worldwide financial collapse and he attaches a laughing emoji to it!
Does it not remind anyone with a shred of decency of Jesus words? 
“How long must I continue with you? How long must I put up with you?”
He really is losing it.

As signs go, a worldwide plague that crashes public health systems, along with decimated markets that will throw endless people into poverty, if not death, is hardly a yawner.

Disparaging remarks are harmful and counterproductive. All the more so since we are living deep in the last days.
 I am calling for an immediate moratorium on them—to commence just after I get my own licks in.

....