xjwsforChrist

I tell you, dear, dear beloved ones... MUCH can be accomplished when we LET go, LISTEN to Christ, and LET JAH. When we trust IN OURSELVES, we are heading in the wrong direction... and can't help ANYONE. It just doesn't work that way! When we LISTEN, though... put our OWN thoughts and desires... and FEARS... aside.. and just DO... TRUSTING in our dear Lord that HE will make what is to occur OCCUR (because WE aren't in control of ANYTHING, but only have the PRIVILEGE of showing him and the Father that we DO have faith [in them])... then what we WANT... the thing "HOPED FOR"... WILL OCCUR.

You might say, "But, yeah, Shel, that's easy for YOU to say! You've SEEN (and heard) things!"

Dear, dear beloved ones... as Christ said:

"Happy are those... WHO DO NOT SEE... yet... believe!"

If you're wanting your children, brother, mother, friend, neighbor, whoever, to get what YOU "have"... then you MUST put faith IN what you "have"... AND in the One who "gave" it TO you! And in doing that... there is NO place for fear! If they don't (seem to) get it just then, then KNOW... IT IS NOT THEIR TIME. But you don't give up!! You don't give OUT!! You PUSH on THROUGH... and wait for the NEXT opportunity. Which opportunities you sometimes have to make!

Do you hear our Lord saying to you, "YOU need to tell your brother/sister/child/father/mother... such and so?" Do you HEAR him? Then DO what he SAYS... and TELL them? Push past your (sigh) FEAR... and DEMONSTRATE your faith!

As our dear, beloved, tec (the greatest of love and peace to you, dear, dear sister) did! She pushed past her own voice... and fear... and did what she HEARD needed to be done! And what was the result? Was she rejected? Ridiculed? Attacked? NO! What was RECEIVED!

My apologies. I am not yelling. I'm not even speaking out loud. I am simply sharing with you dear... BELOVED... people... the zeal of the Spirit within me! How long do we put our own fears over our professed faith in HIM? What don't HAVE to "tread lightly" or "carefully" when it comes to telling others about Christ! We CAN'T! Remember? "BOLDNESS" of speech!

Yes, we must be cautious as serpents and innocent as doves... but that's NOT with regard to those we LOVE! It is with regard to those we KNOW will OPPOSE! Who WISH us illwill and maybe even (spiritual, if not physical) harm! Like when speaking with active JWs. We KNOW they're not amenable to the GOOD news... because they think THEIRS' is that news. And others like them (although yoked to different harlots).

But our dear loved ones... DEAR, BELOVED people, HEAR this: YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW MUCH TIME YOU HAVE! YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW MUCH TIME IS LEFT! COULD be a lifetime, another generation, yes. BUT... YOU DO NOT KNOW! What, then, if you did NOT tell those you love... but whom you have HEARD from him to TELL... and the time for telling comes to a close?? Will YOU not be held responsible for them?? For not doing the "work" given YOU, of "telling the good news"?

If your loved ones love Christ... they love YOU. If they love YOU... than CAN love Christ!

There is no time for delay. There is no time for fear that CAUSES delay. And... hear this:

To fear rejection by those who reject the message from you... is WRONG! To take that rejection PERSONALLY... is wrong! Why?

Because... it is not... ABOUT you! Or ME! It is about HIM... and THEM!

So, being afraid that someone is going to reject/have a problem with YOU... is... dear, dear ones... hear and understand me when I share this with you... ARROGANCE! Because IT IS NOT YOUR MESSAGE. It is HIS. And so, it is HIM they are rejecting! And when you take that rejection personally... you are "SEATING YOURSELF in HIS seat!"

Do you SEE?

Please do not read anger, or offense, or whatever you might read into this to ALLOW your "feelings" to be "hurt." NO ONE is trying to hurt ANYONE's feelings. Rather, our dear Lord... and because of him... I... am only trying to WAKE YOU UP!! You have had PLENTY of time to sleep! NOW is NOT the time! Because... your loved ones LIVES may be at stake! And yours!

What, does this sound "an awful/too much like" the WTBTS? Dear, dear, DEAR people! Remember what Christ said:

"Do as they SAY... NOT as they DO!"

They TRAINED us for this, beloved! They TAUGHT us how to NOT fear rejection when we share "the good news"! Just because we're out does not mean we discard the TRAINING. We know how to speak to others about our faith... because WE DID IT FOR THEM! Some of us... FOR DECADES! To PERFECT STRANGERS!

Were we still JWs we'd have absolutely NO problem telling our loved ones about THAT harlot. And that false prophet. And those false Christs.

NOW... we have the REAL DEAL!!

Or... do you not TRULY think so? Because THAT could be what holds you back, if you're holding back: that you don't TRULY have the faith you THINK you have! Because faith... is the ASSURED EXPECTATION... of the thing HOPED for. Here, that "thing"... is that your loved ones... children, parents, siblings, etc.,... WILL GET IT.

If YOU don't believe they will... that, through Christ, what YOU hope for will come to reality... then you don't TRULY have faith.

And if YOU don't have faith... in Christ... how can you expect to persuade anyone else to have it?

Again, I mean no offense. I am just... trying... to get you... to see. It really is important... for you... AND for your (ENTIRE) household... that you do.

Dear Tammy... I am SO happy for you. I am so proud of you. And I am so happy for your dear mom. Who, BTW, has always been our sister. She learned, apparently, even before most of us... that you don't need a religion in order to know, be joined to... or hear... Christ. Hug her for me, please, when you next can. Give her a kiss and greeting of love from me personally. Please. Tell her that I am PRIVILEGED to know her, through her daughter and sister, MY sister... you.

Peace... and ears to hear... to you, ALL!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shel

I will tell her, Shelby. Thank you for all of that.


Peace and love to you,
your sister, servant, and fellow slave of Christ,
tammy

I just found this thread again from 3 years ago. It was so wonderful to read again that you were able to share communion and your faith in Christ. I am trying to read things about communion and hearing Christ.

I am only a week into taking communion everyday and praying but I have not experienced any feeling of spiritual enlightenment or holy spirit and certainly I have never felt I heard Christ speak to me or hear me. I am trying not to hold back anything and little things that I have been doing that now are bothering my conscience I have quit doing. So I hope that I am not doing something wrong. I have never really had a spiritual need in that I pursued it, in fact I have rejected it but now that I am pursuing it I am wondering what to expect other than me talking to Christ and unburdening myself of my woes and failings.

Thanks for listening and I hope to hear if its usual to take so long to gain faith and love in Christ.

Greetings, dear Zoe, and peace to you, dear sister! I think you are confused. Partaking of Christ's flesh and blood (i.e., eating the bread and drinking the wine) does not, in and of itself, result in one experiencing a feeling of enlightenment, receiving holy spirit, or hearing the Master's voice. The Apostles first ate and drank the night before my dear Lord was put to death... but didn't receive holy spirit until after his resurrection. Many didn't until Pentecost... and some of those may not have partaken, yet. If eating and drinking were all it took, well, then, there's a whole lot of JWs who should have had SOMETHING occur... or at least have received holy spirit... yet none of them have.

You, though, dear sister, are kind of putting the cart before the horse. By eating and drinking, you are demonstrating your faith. Well, beginning to, which is what should be done ("He that is faithful in what is least is faithful in much"). But you have to examine your motive: are you eating and drinking because "we" told you to (which means you would NOT do it if "we" told you do)... and so are obeying US... or are you doing it because you love Christ and want to obey HIM?

Much of this has been confusing to you because you are listening to US... rather than listening to HIM. And EVERYTHING WE have shared, he ALREADY shared... with EVERYONE. And it's all recorded... somewhere. One does not have to read his words, however, but only listen to his voice. And you HAVE heard it - ALL have heard it. They just don't KNOW it... know HIM... so as to know his voice WHEN it speaks (to us).

I would exhort you, then, rather than waiting in anticipation of "something," some kind of manifestation on which you can THEN have faith... you exercise faith FIRST. It only takes an amount the size of a mustard seed and, again, you've demonstrated SOME faith by beginning to partake. Faith as well as courage. But, again, examine your motive.

Because if love of Christ is not your PRIMARY motive... it might take some while before you "receive" whatever it is you (believe) you need in order TO believe. TO have faith in... and so eventually love... Christ.

You might ask, "How can I love someone I don't KNOW?" I would say, you can't, not TRULY. You can have a FORM of love... for instance, with JAH and Christ, there is a "FORM of 'godly devotion'", but it's a false love and so its power is false.

You might, therefore, want to cultivate that LOVE... FIRST... AS you CONTINUE to build your FAITH (again, beginning with obeying, which you have already started, to your great credit). WHILE you build, you can ASK for MORE faith... as WELL as love... as both are "fruits" OF God's holy spirit. So that, the more you RECEIVE... the more you have to GIVE.

I hope that makes sense. I would also encourage you to consider the following account and my dear Lord's words recorded by Luke (7:36-50):

"One of the Pharisees kept asking [Jesus] to dine with him. So he entered the house of the Pharisee and reclined at the table. But look! a woman who was known in the city to be a sinner learned that he was dining in the house of the Pharisee, and she brought an alabaster jar of perfumed oil. Taking a position behind him at his feet, she wept and began to wet his feet with her tears, and she wiped them off with her hair. She also tenderly kissed his feet and poured the perfumed oil on them. Seeing this, the Pharisee who had invited him said to himself: “If this man were really a prophet, he would know who and what kind of woman it is who is touching him and that she is a sinner.” In reply Jesus said to him: “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

Simon responded, 'Teacher, say it!'

’Two men were in debt to a certain lender: one for 500 de'narʹi'i, the other for 50 de'narʹi'i. When neither of them had anything with which to pay him back, he freely forgave them both. Therefore, which one of them will love him more?’

In answer Simon said: ‘I suppose it is the one whom he forgave more.’

[Jesus] said to him: ‘You judged correctly.’

With that he turned to the woman and said to Simon: ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet. But this woman wet my feet with her tears and wiped them off with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but this woman, from the hour that I came in, did not stop tenderly kissing my feet. You did not pour oil on my head, but this woman poured perfumed oil on my feet. Because of this, I tell you, her sins, many though they are, are forgiven, because she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.’

“[Jesus] then he said to the woman: ‘Your sins are forgiven.’

Those reclining at the table with him started talking among themselves, saying, ‘Who is this man that he can even forgives sins?’

But he said to the woman: ‘Your faith has saved you; go your way in peace.’”

It was this woman's LOVE... for HIM... that resulted in her FAITH in him... SUCH love and faith... that our dear Lord FORGAVE her sins... even though they were MANY... right then and there. She didn't have to wait!

I finally, I would encourage to obey the Master again and heed his words:

"KEEP asking, KEEP seeking... KEEP knocking; it WILL be opened to you."

The operative words here are "keep"... and "will." They "operate" based on whether you BELIEVE the "will" part so as to obey the "keep" part. And if you find yourself running out of patience... ASK for some. Because patience/long-suffering is a "fruit" of God's holy spirit... and He will NOT withhold that spirit from anyone ASKING... in FAITH.

I hope that helps, truly, and as always, peace to you!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shel

Thank you Shelby, this is exactly what I needed to hear!!! My motivation is probably wrong and I don't love or know Christ enough yet.

I will take this to heart - "KEEP asking, KEEP seeking... KEEP knocking; it WILL be opened to you."

Question??
I am partaking everyday to thank our Lord for his sacrifice and to remember it. Having never done this before I need some help in making sure I do this right.
#1. Who do I thank and pray to when I partake, Jah or Christ or both. Do I do a formal prayer to Jah through Christ or just pray to Christ?
#2. I am eating a unleaven cracker but it has pepper and salt in it. Do I need to eat a "plain" cracker or is that okay.
#3. I do not have red wine and have been drinking cranberry juice instead to represent his blood. Is this okay or does it have to be wine?

Thanks in advance *HUGS*

Rather than tell you what "I" do, specifically, dear Zoe (peace to you, dear sister!), since each one must "answer" for himself/herself I will share the following:

Thanks is due to both JAH and Christ. Christ, first, for giving his body and blood (so that you can (1) be cleansed of your sins (by means of the blood); and (2) live forever, whether via resurrection or changing (by means of eating of the "leaves" of the "Tree of Life" that he is)). Then JAH, for loving you so much that He GAVE His Son as a sacrifice for YOU... so that you can BE resurrected/changed. I put Christ first only because one has to approach... and go THROUGH... him first... to even be granted entry so as to approach the Father (to thank the latter).

We speak to/with Christ, though, and pray to the Father (again, after going THROUGH the Christ - i.e., receiving permission from HIM to "enter" into the MOST Holy so as to go before the Father (John 10:9; 14:6). And no, dear one, they are not the same thing. We talk WITH one another, not pray to one another. And so while Christ told us to listen to his voice and ask things of him, he said to PRAY to the Father (Matthew 6:5, 6).

Giving THANKS to the Father, however, is not the same as "praying." PRAYER... involves very specific matters, those matters set out at Matthew 6:9-13. Besides these, there really is nothing else we need to pray for (Matthew 6:25-34)... nor is it something we are to do when others present (Matthew 6:6,8), except perhaps where a member of Christ's Body is gravely ill (James 5:14). Thanks, however, is ALWAYS due to the Father, for pretty much EVERYTHING (i.e., if you got up out of bed this morning, and aren't "terminal" - no offense to ANYONE - there's probably some thanks due). And thanks can always be offered in front of others.



As for the bread and wine, it is truly better to obey than to sacrifice. Here, you are trying to obey, to the best of your knowledge and ability. Do not let yourself be anxious, then, over ANYTHING, including the minutiae of this task. Rather, eat and drink IN FATH... and ask the Master to guide you. Then, listen for HIS "instructions." He will either give them to you directly... or direct you where to "find" them. In the meantime, again, do not be anxious.

I truly hope that helps.

Again, peace to you!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shel

Well thank you, I got it all except I am still confused about what to do before I eat the bread and wine. I think you are saying I pray through Christ and thank them both?? I am doing it 2 times, one time for the bread and 1 time for the wine??

(Smile) - I'm going to respond out of order (huge for ME - LOLOL!), dear Zoe (peace, luv!):



Our dear Lord doesn't care whether you give thanks once for both items; he just cares if you obey his "command" TO eat/drink. But if you want to do as he did, you would give thanks for each, separately (i.e., give thanks, break the "bread" and eat from that, then give thanks again, and drink of the wine).

Again, though, consider the tendency to get bogged down in the minutiae. The WTBTS "ritual" includes giving thanks before passing the bread, and then again before passing the wine. However, their "ritual" also PRECLUDES virtually EVERYONE present FROM actually EATING/DRINKING. So, what was the POINT of the "thanks"?? It has no VALUE, because NO ONE there PARTAKES so as to BENEFIT. And they virtually stop others from doing so! In this, they "strain out the gnat, while gulp[ing] down the camel."



You can approach and speak to/with Christ, thank HIM, then ask him to allow you to go before the Father... receive that "permission," then go before the Father and thank HIM. If you try to go before the Father and thank Him first, you are putting the horse before the cart (you haven't gone through the Door, Christ, and so you haven't actually entered... so as to be "heard.").

I hope that helps.

Peace to you!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shel

Okay Shelby, thank you. I guess its not rocket science and I am making it too complicated.

It's understandable that you would, dear Zoe (again, peace to you!), considering "who" and what we're talking about. I just want you to be assured that it's not complicated at all.

One way to look at it is "What would a child do/How would a child view this 'command'?" Because we ARE to "turn around and become as little children." It's the "adult" in us that has the difficulty - that part of us* tends to view... and so make... "spiritual" things quite complicated.

Again, peace to you!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shel, who hears a certain head snap 'round and a voice say, "Say, WHAT, now!? But you JUST said we needed to be ADULT!!" - LOLOL! The thing is, dear ones, we DO need to be "adult" when dealing with the BUSINESS of this world and make no mistake, secondary education is a business. AND we are also to be "grown men" in Christ at some point, having let HIM guide us past the "elementary" things. BUT... we must be "children/childlike" in our COMING to him, LISTENING to him, ALLOWING him to guide us, and RECEIVING what he gives us AS guidance. So, I hope that clarified - winks at dear Voices (peace to you, as well!)

I certainly feel like a little kid approaching all this not knowing much at all.

But unfortunately I have a lot MORE sins piled up on me than when I was a child so I need to OBEY.

Thanks so much Shelby for your patience and kindness.