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.:THE TESTIMONY OF FRANK

My name is Frank and for 13 years I have associated myself with Jehovah’s Witnesses as a Watchtower Publisher (one who distributes Watchtowers and Awakes door-to-door). My mother became ill at an early age and after my parents divorced, I began to rome about the neighborhood. I met Jews, Catholics, whites, blacks, rich, poor and even perverted people. Between 9 and 12 years of age, I was a rebellious child. Since my mother and her friends would speak of “Jehovah” and Watchtower beliefs, I naturally accepted their religion, but I was wrong! Deep down in my heart, I always felt like I was serving man. Jehovah’s Witnesses would teach that Jehovah God didn’t want people to go to college and that a high school education was enough; yet, these same people who were preaching this would send their kids to college. That seem hypocritical to me.

In my latter years, I found out that they--the Jehovah’s Witness elders--would follow you around to see if you were hiding from Jehovah and “bringing reproach” on His organization by how you were living. When I look back, I think about how stupid that is.

I would ask myself, “Where is the power of God? If this is the right religion, why are my fellow Jehovah’s Witnesses so unloving? Why do they teach that if you miss their religious gathering for work, you should quit your job or they would think of you as not being spiritual? Why do they act as if someone at the Kingdom Hall (Jehovah’s Witness meeting place) doesn’t notice your spirituality, you are not going to live forever?”

I began to question why I didn’t try looking for a relationship with Jesus, instead of a man-made organization. I used to wonder why the music in the Kingdom Hall had to be classical all the time. “What if I lose my speech and or limbs? Will I be rejected from being part of the great crowd (people who will live on earth forever), because I can’t go door to door? Will I lose all of my Jehovah’s Witness friends and thus lose favor with Jehovah God and lose life forever?”

I found the REAL Jesus in 1999 and that is when I left this “cult” of the Watchtower. I now attend college and have a loving Christian family that I lead spiritually in the Word of God. I pray every moment that I can, and I even humbly get on the floor in prayerful gratitude for the grace that brought me out of this false religion.

I am grateful to my great, great grand parents on my mother’s side who led in my deliverance and utter change of faith from the Watchtower teachings to true belief in the real God of the Bible. It was a hard struggle to reach clarity on many doctrinal issues, but I have a supportive family outside of the Watchtower organization.

I love my first cousin on my dad’s side. She lives in Tennessee and would preach that as long as I was involved with the Watchtower, I had no protection from Jesus and was thus doomed. When I would visit my Aunt in Alabama, she would secretly play Shirley Caesar Christian gospel music for me at her house. One of my mother’s sisters would speak of the Trinity and the love that Christ has for ALL mankind. My grandmother would sneak me away to a Christian country church in Alabama, and my favorite aunt at home in Tennessee showed me love and patience as she also took me to a Christian church along with my cousins as a child.

In my Bible Study, I look at the first chapter of Saint John weekly as it helps me keep my focus on the true Light — Jesus Himself. I challenge all Jehovah’s Witnesses to study this powerful chapter as all scripture is from God (2 Timothy 3:16).

Well, I’ve got to go now. I am putting my kids to bed as my wife works in Kuwait right now. I must also get to church online to hear my Pastor Ricky Temple whom I have been listening to online for 3 years and have been a member of his church since October 2005 - http://www.overcomingbyfaith.org and lastly, I praise God that there is only one faith as our unity in Christ overcomes all denominational barriers.