See 'Serving where the need is great'

Work along with the angels

The angels are in midheaven directing the preaching work. They try to direct us to find those who deserve the good news. But if we are always negative and we make excuses for not to talk, it's hard for them to work with us. How can they use us and direct us if we don't let them? Think about the following: Imagine you are an angel, and you have to work and encourage someone like yourself, how would you feel? Will you enjoy it? We need to do our best to be positive about the preaching work, and in that way, the angels may use us to find someone who is deserving of the message.

Winston Churchill’s quote

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty (http://www.goodreads.com/quotes)

On reverse?

Can we go forward if you are on reverse? We cannot obtain positive, good results, if we have a negative attitude.

Ambassadors and envoys

In 2 Corinthians 5:20 the anointed are called ambassadors for Christ. The other sheep have been described as envoys for the kingdom of God. If they get involved in the affairs of a foreign government and start supporting it, it would be treason. As ambassadors and envoys for the kingdom of God, we have to remain neutral.

The insane inmate

A young brother imprisoned in Korea in the 90's due to the neutrality issue had a cellmate that was sentenced to death. This cellmate was very violent. One time he punched our brother and tried to start a fight. At that moment, the brother prayed to God to remind him of a Bible account that could be practical in that situation. He then recalled the account when David was persecuted, and he started to act like he was insane. ( 1 Samuel 21:12-15) So, as he was getting hit, the brother started to act like he was crazy. This threw off the attacker and made him confused and disconcerted. The result? He stopped the violence against our brother. Eventually, the young brother moved to another cell. This brother survived the ordeal, remained faithful and now serves as a full-time servant. Lesson? We don't need to be afraid if we face opposition due to our neutrality. Jehovah will sustain us and make us recall exactly what we need to keep our integrity. And that help may come in very unexpected ways.

See also ‘Dedication’

Driving license

Do you remember the day you took the driving test? Probably you prepared diligently and practiced well to make sure you drove flawlessly. But after you got your license, are you still striving to be as careful and flawless in your driving skills? Ironically, for some people, the best driving day in their lives was the day they took the test. It can happen the same in the congregation. The spiritual peak of some is immediately before and immediately after baptism. They are so serious about the truth! But then, as time goes by, they let their guard down and stop progressing. Never may that happen to you!

Diet

When someone starts a diet, it's usually very exciting to think about the prospect of being healthier and losing weight. But usually what happens next? It becomes hard to keep it up. Maybe the expectations were not realistic. Perhaps the willpower is not strong enough because the consequences of eating unhealthy may not hit us until many years later. In a similar way, those who want to commit to Jehovah and become true Christians must make a conscientious decision knowing they are deciding to lead a life of self-sacrifice. If they only look forward to the blessings but not the sacrifices and tribulations, it will be difficult to keep it up when trials come their way. Some new ones leave Jehovah when they face these challenges. Unlike the deferred consequences of quitting a diet, quitting to serve Jehovah will have an immediate impact on our spirituality.

Latest Personality?

Paul said: 'You should put on the new personality which was created according to God's will in true righteousness and loyalty.' (Ephesians 4:24) According to the Watchtower March, 1993, 'New' here refers, not to time, but to quality. This means that it is not new in the sense of being the latest version or that came into existence recently. It's like if you buy a 1968 Chevy Camaro, in what sense can you say it is new? It is new for the buyer because he just bought it, but it is really not new because it was made long ago. The new personality is, in reality, the oldest personality in existence, because it is the very personality of God. It is also the template personality of perfect individuals. Humans were created in the image of that personality. For imperfect people it is new in terms of quality, because it is an upgrade to our own imperfect personalities. Would you like to take a ride in this classy Chevy Camaro?

Put on the new personality

We don't just jump into our clothes and miraculously get dressed. We need to put on each piece one by one. The same with the new personality. The old one will be taken off little by little as we start putting on the new one gradually.

Restoring an old car

Making the changes in our personality necessary to become a worshiper of Jehovah can be likened to the restoration of an old automobile. When you first find the car, it's rusty and dull. So you sand and putty and paint and polish... and the car looks good! But, when you look inside, the interior is faded and torn, and the dash cover is missing. So you re-upholster and clean and refurbish.... and now the car looks good, inside and out! But when you turn the key, nothing happens. When you raise the hood, the engine is covered in oil, spark plug wires are missing, and the distributor cap is cracked. So you begin to clean and replace and overhaul. Now your car looks good and runs well also! Putting on the Christian personality takes work. Sometimes progress is slower than we would like. But as long as progress is being made, eventually we can accomplish those necessary changes. But can you just drive your restored car without ever waxing the exterior or cleaning the upholstery or changing the oil? No. If neglected, with time the automobile will revert to its original condition. Putting on the new personality is much the same. Many of us have made tremendous changes to become acceptable worshipers of Jehovah. But if we do not maintain that Christian personality—by personal study, meeting attendance, personal application of counsel and field service—we could also be in danger of reverting to our old and useless personality.

Human body's worth

How much is our human body worth? Just think about it, our bodies are almost 60 percent water —the brain being particularly watery with 73%— the rest is calcium and other minerals that can be found in the dust of the ground. Thus, in reality, our material bodies don’t worth that much if seen from a molecular perspective. But Jehovah took the dust from the ground and gave it life; then it became invaluable. And although it is very difficult to successfully modify the human genome, our life —which is the soul that we are with our inner person— can be molded by God if we allow him to do so.(https://water.usgs.gov/edu/propertyyou.html)

See also ‘Paradise’

Just a nightmare

When we wake up abruptly and realize we just had a nightmare, we feel so relieved it wasn't real. It will be the same relief when after millions of years in the new world we look back and we see the nightmare of the old world. What a relieve to see that it was not real, it was not the real life! (1 Tim. 6:19)