One of the major concerns I had was with the belief that Jesus Christ’s invisible presence began in the year 1914. The Bible says nothing about being able to determine an exact year for such an event by means of calculating “seven Gentile times.” Jesus mentions “the appointed times of the nations” – but nowhere does he say that there are seven of them, or that the “prophetic rule” of “a day for a year” should be assigned to them so that they last 2,520 years. .
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My brothers and I soon found that our lives were totally changed from what we knew before. I was forced against my will to become part of my parents’ new religion, and was baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness at the age of 13. Being Jehovah’s Witness children meant that we were being completely separated from our usual friends and school activities. My brothers and I were totally blind-sided by these changes. We’d have no more worldly friends, no sports, no holidays, no standing for the Pledge of Allegiance of the Flag. Life – as we knew it – was over.
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I did not leave because I thought I was smarter than everyone else or the Watchtower Society. Nor did I believe that my ways and thoughts were better than God’s. Intelligence, or any lack thereof, had nothing to do with my decision. The truth is, it doesn’t take a lot of intelligence to examine a matter based on verifiable evidence, and then arrive at a sound conclusion. It’s a fact that most people do this every day. While no one is infallible, we all tend to make good, healthy decisions based on evidence
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I was enthusiastic about going out in field service. Even though I was only eight, I didn’t fear strangers or what other people might think about Jehovah’s Witnesses. By the age of nine, I was not only drinking Kool-Aid for my lunch at home, I was also swallowing the Watchtower’s version at the Kingdom Hall. At ten I was a totally committed and active “publisher.” For me the thought of cheating on hours never crossed my mind – simply because I knew that Jehovah would know that I lied and I’d end up a “crispy critter” at Armageddon. “Cheating” just wasn’t worth it.
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