Fame and fortune...is the grass greener over there?

 Just yesterday a famous Korean actor committed suicide. The reason? He was blackmailed about using drugs in the past. Now, this has been happening for years in South Korea. The rich and famous tend to use drugs. Actually, many people do. It is more commonplace now than it was years ago. Yogita and I were on our date night number 1. (we have two date nights) We were in a park near where we live. A young man comes over to us and offers us drugs! So this is becoming common. We think that man was a police officer though.

So does fame and fortune bring real happiness in life? NO! The Bible tells us actually Jesus stated that riches have a deceptive power. Money can be stolen, it can rot, or we can die. Then what becomes of all of that paper or digital currency? I keep thinking of a student of mine who had it all! His parents both drive BMWs, and he has a gaming PC, tablet, smartphone, and so many nice toys. I had to cancel his class. The reason? He was not a happy boy. In fact, his family was not a happy one. This led to very disrespectful behavior. Without a mom and dad following Godly principles a house is on a poor weak foundation. 

So money didn't make that boy happy. Sure he liked the things. But, it seemed that he wanted something more. He wanted his Dad. 

What about being famous? That actor who killed himself likely did so in shame. Not wanting the public to find out about his drug use. His fame brought him not happiness but an immovable pride and drove him to kill himself rather than just confess the things he had done.

This is a lesson to me! Will I chase money and fame in this dead world? If I did it would hurt my family, just like it hurt years ago when I was chasing money. No, I want to do as I am doing now, and strive to do better! 

Fame and fortune what ugly dead brown grass you have!

/tata

Listening and following directions

 In today's world, too many people think they know what they should and should not do. Too many are opinionated and not ready to be reasonable. 

Our organization has told us to prepare go-bags. These bags are to be used in times of tribulation. For example, our brothers and sisters in Ukraine had theirs ready and when war broke out they go up and left! They did not hang around worrying about getting this item or that valuable. They grabbed go-bags ID papers and left. 

So here we are nestled in South Korea the land of lu lu la la where everyone thinks everything is hunky-dory without our go-bags ready. So we took action quickly. Now we have the bags and items to place them. First aid kits have been ordered and are on the way. We have tuna right now, and water. I will get flashlights tonight and maybe more batteries for them. We need to be ready. This world is going to be overturned. It has already taken place in Europe. World War 3 is being fought in a proxy-style war. Satan can easily deceive people into thinking it is not bad because it is JUST Russia and Ukraine. But many people from around the world joined the war on both sides. On both sides, weapons have been donated. 

So here we are in East Asia. China is rapidly building up its military, South Korea, and Japan are doing the same with a very strong American presence. This has everything ready to burn only one tiny spark is needed. The Anglo-American world power is weakened by 2 long wars. But they are aided by other partners who have been building up capability.

If we do not pay heed to the advice given to us, we will be in a teeth-gnashing situation. We will have to rely on others and possibly cause them added stress. However, if we are ready, and continually on the watch, we can be of help to others first of all ourselves. We can stand ready when Jesus returns. 

So tonight for our family bible study I will remind our sons to be vigilant and always ready to obey. I will need to do the same. 

/tata

The Tribulation

 Our watchtower study this week will cover the need to obey. It seems we are getting many constant reminders leading me to think that this preparation is for a good reason. The Great Tribulation is around the corner. I can only imagine as we explain these events to my mother when she is resurrected the look on her face.

I think we all have our own nightmarish ideas of what it will be like. I think more and more that I am likely wrong in what I think will happen. I know from the bible that at Jehovah's appointed time He takes action! Everything he said would happen happens and those who listened to the loving advanced warning fared well. 

You see we live in the realm of the king of the south. We have many attacks made against us. These are very subtle. It might be wanting "our time". To have more "fun". To attain the newest "thing". To do what everyone else is doing. So many wrong practices are ok today. If you go back 130 years even mentioning some of the things people do today would get you kicked out of a community. Some examples: having an open relationship, doing mind-altering drugs, pornography being widely accepted everywhere, and letting children do whatever they want. The list could go on. Also, the way people dress today! It would have caused a riot 120 years ago!

I feel that with the great tribulation looming our "normal" way of life will be disrupted. I think that if we are of a mind to obey the faithful and discreet slave we will be ok. In fact, we might even appear to be thriving despite global hardship. IF WE OBEY. 

We have been getting advised to be ready to listen even if the directions we receive do not make sense, or might seem illogical to us. We need to go not by our understanding. That is very dangerous. We might ignore orders that take us out of danger. I think of the first-century Christians the Roman armies left! Many might have thought: "huh?" Well, I am going back to my normal life. Then when the Romans returned it was too late. Likewise, we need to look at them and realize we are in the same situation today. In those days the Jewish system of things ended. In our day this current world order will end. 

Ok the police are here due to a dispute with a teacher and students. Time to go now.

/tata

A year almost over.

 So now 2023 is coming to an end. Wow, what a year this has been! It has been filled with successes and failures. It has been filled with recovery from those failures. I feel happier now than at the start of the year. I have made some changes gradually all year long. I have a long way to go. I feel that although I have a long way to go I can see such positive changes in my family, and I feel encouraged to keep going the way that I am. 

Our boys have gotten baptized! They have publicly dedicated their lives to Jehovah our God. I am so proud of them for making this choice. It means that they are on the path of life. The proper life. The one for which we have been made, a full and satisfying life forever here on Earth. Here I sit in this office waiting on the new rotation of 5 daily classes (a far cry from the 6 or 7 classes I am used to) and I am feeling ready. Ready to obey and ready to learn more about what I need to do to be in better standing with Jehovah God. I do not want my prayers to be hindered. Nor do I want to disappoint my God, Jesus, my wife, or my boys. 

A life without end is in front of us. I can not help feeling happy while I am teaching. The students likely think it is a Friday. Another student (going through something he never smiles much anymore) said he doesn't understand why I am never angry. I told him I do get angry and make mistakes. It is just that I did not tell him this, my wife and work out our issues well before I sit in front of a class to teach. 

What life is there without the kingdom headed by the prince of peace? Here it is! First you work very hard at your schooling to get into a good school. If you are fortunate your student debt is not too high. However, likely it will be. Then you get a mediocre job where you are making less money than your parents did! The number looks higher when you report taxes. However, due to inflation, it is MUCH lower. Even the cars we drive today have less in them. They are so light and all the techy stuff breaks easily. Ok, so now you have your job you are still sinking though because your wage can not keep up with inflation, and the cost of living...it just can't. 

You get married! You have a couple of kids. You and your wife combined resources and bought a house using something called a subprime mortgage. YOU HAVE ACHEIVED THE AMERICAN DREAM. Now you both decide to get new cars. On TV you see an advertisement saying no credit so what get a car! Poor credit? So what get a car! Have a job? GET A CAR!

You do not realize that the house is based on bad debt, those cars are more added debt. You are now enslaved to them. You lost your job! You must stay in the area because...YOU HAVE A HOUSE! But wait...bills are adding up! Your wife tries to take on more over time. You get a part-time job (37 hours a week at a bit above minimum wage. 

Now all of this time your kids are growing up. You then realize saving for their education is just not possible. That is ok they can get students too.

Now you are in your 50's. The world is on the brink of another world war. Mass shootings are commonplace. There is a drug epidemic that is killing more people than it should. You hear police sirens but you know likely they are rushing to save someone who overdosed. You are working more and more mainly paycheck to paycheck. Both you and your wife have some mild health concerns but you can not afford to pay for medical treatment. 

How does all of this sound? It sounds depressing because it is. The Prince of Peace will free us from this system that was prophesied to fail in the bible. We can see it falling apart all around us.

Young people feel it. They have to lie flat movement in China. In Korea, there is the hell Josen movement. I had a teenager telling me about how bad South Korea is. I told him so is America!

With this dead system, it is time to make sure we love our heavenly father with our whole being. Show love to one another in mildness.  Do chase after the things in this world. Those things will just be used by others in the new world order headed by Jesus with Jehovah's backing. So I will keep putting my anxiety in this system on Jehovah, and I need to pray constantly. I must not stop what I am doing. I must improve upon it! Thankfully I have plenty of help!

/tata

A tragedy in India..

 In Kerala, there was a bomb blast at an assembly hall of Jehovah's Witnesses. Of course, this is destressing and I will pray for them. I know that they will endure this trial. I will look to this as yet another sign of the times we are living in. I think the attack in Germany and now in India might become more prevalent. How so I do not know. The Bible states that once Christendom is brought down we will be next. 

So I will spend this time at this moment doing all I can to build myself, and my family up as much as I can. I will endeavor to be keenly aware of my spiritual needs. I know that this will bring blessings from Jehovah. 

Some nice changes for the short term are the boys will spend time with friends once a week on Wednesdays are some other day each week. This is of course fun, but it is sorely needed time associating with other Christians. As we live in the last days of this dead world we have to be ever on the watch. This is easier to do when we focus on Jehovah's coming kingdom. I keep my hands busy with work, family study, exercise, time with my sons, time with my wife, and finally time with fellow worshipers of Jehovah. NOW I GET IT MOM!

/tata

Another month nearly gone!

 Now October is nearing an end I can only say "WOW!". Next month George and Jeyo will publicly show that they have dedicated themselves to Jehovah by means of baptism. I feel so happy. Happy for them, and I just feel happy. I know this battle, or rather this race will have entered a new phase but I am ready.

NOW, I understand what my mother was saying all those years ago. I wish I had listened sooner.

However, now that I am on this path I will not stray from it. Next year we will study Draw Close to Jehovah and Stay in Jehovah's Love as a family before resuming our bible oriented bible study.

This week is family week so we will go to han ok village and look around then we will have dinner in Iksan. Then rest at home. In two weeks we will go to the special day circuit assembly.

/tata

Teaching....do we know how?

 I have had quite an interesting time in South Korea when it comes to work. It has led me to one conclusion. Only one. We do not know what we are doing when we call ourselves teachers in this system.

In South Korea, the main reason to study hard is to land a stable well-paying job. Along with the job comes a house, family, and the ability to retire well. However, there is a sad reality. It is all based on a lie. The world that we live in does not have the resources nor the way so that people can live meaningful lives, full of peace and security. 

Looking at South Korea we can see a rote memorization-based education system. Everything is memorized. Tests are memorized. If you are poor and recalling data from your brain you will have a hard time studying here. With this fact, you then have a system where there are not enough spaces or jobs for everyone to get and then start a family. So many graduates in South Korea. Yet many stay home jobless due to this reason. The low birth rate shows that people do not feel secure enough to start families. There is also the selfish notion of wanting to "live one's own life". 

So students cram away to get good scores on tests to advance in a system where they will fail in the end. 

I have worked at eight different private education schools (insert business here not school!). Some have very similar approaches to what is considered an education. Others have radically different ways. However, because the main goal of private and even public schools all over the world is for profit you get the same results. The wealthy the real rich control who gets into the world that they live in. So all of the different places I have worked the outcome has been the same. Kids who can barely speak English, overthink what they want to say due to overreliance on grammar. Emphasis on giving empty-headed busy work to aid in the memorization of useless language patterns.

After 23 years in this industry, I  can clearly see there is no real way to really educate.  But wait! There is! Jehovah's holy word can teach us. I am now learning from it in a way that I feel will benefit me in the future. I find it helpful to realize that what I am doing now will have NO impact on student's lives.

We provide a service to give students aid in passing exams, being looked after as parents must work more to support families, and to a minor degree teach. I am not proud of my work experience in this world. I am more proud of serving Jehovah. Only our creator can give us lovingly what we need. Only our heavenly father. This system is in a dead dark, blind state!

/tata

Some pc upgrades..

 There are some things I feel are needed and with the coming holiday, I hope to complete some of these upgrades. They mainly focus on the PCs I have given to my sons to use. One PC I call it the white PC needs to be replaced. Actually, the motherboard is okay but a RAM slot is damaged and it is very cheap to just replace the motherboard. 

Right now Yogita and I use an app called Karrot Market. It is an online site where people can sell second-hand goods. You see in South Korea, there was and still is (in older generations) a stigma related to using second-hand goods. So when I would go to buy items from a second-hand shop the prices would often be too high. The owner would say that it is actually a new item.

Now, with regular people using the Internet to sell goods prices are normal now! I can get a very good 6th to even 8th gen intel-based PC for very little money. My plan is to get a tower place my gtx 780ti in it and go from there. Saves time, and money, and upkeep is super easy. While at the same time, it is very powerful. Oh, I plan to have base 16 gigs of RAM in it as well. The black PC (I name all of my computers) needs better cooling for the CPU. I want to get a second-hand AIO cooler for it. Perhaps I will make sure the fan on the radiator is new. 

I do want to get upgrades for my system namely a 1080ti GPU (1070ti looks more likely) and a better storage option. Basically, a PCI card that can house multiple m.2 SSDs. For Yogit'a PC upgrading the RAM and putting in a 1070ti is my plan. 

My main focus is the white PC as it is falling apart. During the holidays or perhaps next week I can buy a tower and salvage the white PC. I hope to have all of these upgrades in place before Jan 2024. 

We shall see. But the main target is the white PC.

/tata

six day holiday coming in 3.5 weeks

 Holidays I view them differently now. Before, I would want to "party it up" with friends around Iksan. Then rest and recover at home. I would play some online games. Perhaps, watch a few movies, and binge-watch a drama or two. Now? 

My wife was a quiet annoying (at that time) whisper "return to Jehovah!" She did say those words rather she would say when are we going to start the family bible study. Over the years her words changed to "When will YOU start them?" Finally, I did. There is a special force that Jehovah uses and Jesus stated that when two or more gather in his name (Jehovah) his presence will be there. It seems that both Jehovah and Jesus tune in when we gather in Jehovah's name.

This special force is called the holy spirit. When I started reading and praying and reading even more. Then did research and read the bible more. Things slowly started to change. I started looking forward to Mondays! Why? We changed our first bible meeting to that day. Well, I changed it to that day. I forget the reason why. Now, when I see that a holiday is coming there are no "wild parties". Ok, not all of those meetings were wild but they were not something that Jehovah would approve of. 

You see while it appeared that I was spending time with my wife. I wasn't! I was talking to and encouraging other people! I remember one man when he saw me he became emotional. He clapped me across the shoulders and said "Jemal! you always make everyone feel better!" or something to that effect. I felt good about those words. What a fool I was. I am a husband, A father. I was ignoring my wife and spending too much of my time with others. I was ignoring my sons by not sitting down and teaching them about things that would save their very lives. I was ignoring them leaving to the demons to sway with worldly ideas. They grew to hate and have a morbid fear of me. It would not have been apparent in everyday life but these negative feelings were there. Why? This is because of the choices that I had made. 

Now, I listened to the voice of my wife. Now my sons love me, there is a fear of displeasing me and in a greater far more importantly displeasing Jehovah God.

So holiday time means more family time. More bible study time. Going to a restaurant together. Going to the beach and grilling meat together. Hanging out time. Prepping food together. We have served in field service together as well. During holidays we make all of the meetings together. This excites me far more than what I used to do!

This new way allows us to keep a closer watch over the family and each other. George had a moment of weakness and we came together as a family with Jehovah's aid and overcame it.

So holidays are more time to show our Heavenly Father Jehovah God of Armies that we love and fear him, and want to follow his will.

/tata

Self Abuse

 The act of masturbation has many names today. Some of them seem funny or light-hearted. Actually, it is a dangerous practice. I now view it as a gateway sin to greater evils and bigger stumbling blocks. In fact, this practice can actually lead one to view other sexual sins in a light-hearted way. 

When one is engaged in this activity the mind is active. What is the mind actively doing? Well, we are pursuing the wrong ideas. We are acting on them as well. I can imagine King David looking at the woman whom he has sexual desires for. Perhaps he too engaged in masturbation while thinking about that woman. He then went on to commit serious sins. In the end, though he ran back to our heavenly father Jehovah. Our God forgave him! King David is spoken of honorably. What this means is that while we might make a mistake we can turn around and return to our Heavenly Father. We SHOULD never take this for granted! Just because we serve a loving God does not mean we can just "make mistakes" and then say sorry. No! We must struggle and fight with our fleshly desires. Paul a holy man mentions his own fight with the flesh. 

While the act of masturbation is not mentioned in the bible we can figure out using our conscience and other clues that it is a dangerous practice. The fact that people of this world say "It is a healthy practice" shows us just how wrong it is. 

It affects marriage life later on. It creates a warped view of sexual relations. It can lead to self-doubt, addictions, and to fornication. Yes, we are told that fornication is committed in our minds. If I am dwelling on some lady mentally, then I masturbate thinking about this lady...yes, I have acted on a sinful thought and I have sinned. It is like a double sin. When I did this act I felt empty afterwards. I felt like I had done something wrong. Now that I am married I can see I took something away from my future wife. 

So let us make our idle hands busy! Struggle to keep our minds clean! And never live a double life! Rewards will be in store for us!

/tata

More on friends

 I guess this is really something on my mind. You can tell true friends because they love Jehovah and try their best to follow the way he wants us to live our lives. We are told how by the inspired words of Jesus, Paul, Timothy, and many other faithful men. 

One sister who is my friend thought she offended me. She mistook my fatigue for being upset. She right away called and apologized. I right away told her that she had done nothing wrong! I was just tired. I also enjoyed our interaction that night. Looking back our old acquaintances would not have done that. There would backstabbing, gossiping, and eventually a confrontation that would cause a feeling of hate between us. Another nice thing I realize about true friends: They are happy when you are happy, not jealous or envious. When I would hold my wife and show affection to her. Our old "friends" would respond in disgust. Just me holding her hand or giving her a peck on the cheek would result in people saying "That's nasty!" Yet they would be making out with tongues in mouthes with someone who they are not married to. Others would either cheer or show jealousy. 

When your friend is sad you feel sad. You want to only build them up. If they buy a new car or a house you celebrate it happily. There is no smile that is only skin deep. 

True friends want to follow bible principles. They make a point in making this a priority in their lives. They strive to put Jehovah's kingdom first in their lives. Not the ambitions of this dead world which doesn't realize it is dead yet!

Ok time to get this work part of the day started!

/tata

Spending time with real friends

 We have had "friends" over the years. We would meet and eat, drink, and dance with them. From time to time we would even sing together in singing rooms. We thought they were our friends. We were wrong. We were very very wrong. You see every time after spending time together we would have very negative interactions. Arguing and having no peace in our marriage. Strangely these so-called friends were at the center of many of our disagreements. I must say the main problem was me. I wanted to spend time and build them up so to speak. So that is what I did. I didn't realize that I was ignoring my wife. I was honoring other people over her. Well, she my little Yogita did not like it one bit. Jehovah instituted marriage. Rules are laid out in the bible regarding this holy institution. 

As we spent time with people who did not love Jehovah I developed many bad habits. It took peace away from us and hurt my wife and my sons. Now I can see I was hurting myself as well.

At the same time, I was doing things against what our creator told me to do. Living in sin brings the wages of death. But before death comes there is a gnashing of teeth. A constant stressful situation. I was doing things my way, not Jehovah's way. 

We spent time with real friends last week during our summer vacation. It was a wonderful time! Yogita felt comfortable, the boys associated with friends left and right as I did as well. It was like paradise a sample of it. We went home with peace in our hearts. The next day at the Sunday meeting we again had a wonderful time. Learning, singing together, and talking together. 

Bad association ruins good habits, takes away peace, and produces so much stress!

/tata

Another typhoon coming tomorrow..

 Well, here we are again. Another typhoon is heading up through the middle of South Korea. It will brush past us a bit closer than other typhoons. Being that we are in Iksan not Gunsan this one might be bad for this city. We will see. We will follow precautions as the bible tells us to. A bug went through our house and once again it is hitting me last. I do not know why this is. First, George gets sick, then Jeyo. Then Yogita gets sick usually the bug hits her longer. Then finally I get sick. Either the symptoms build up slowly and then subside with a runny nose and some mild congestion, or they build and I get really sick for about 18hrs. Then I am feeling better (weak) and able to function normally. 

 I know this to be due to Adamic sin. He wanted something that did not belong to him. He rebelled and sin took away our favorable standing before Jehovah at the genetic level. This can be seen in Romans 5:12. Adam was not thinking about us. However, Jehovah and Jesus did look after us. This can be seen in Genesis 3:15. One of my favorite scriptures to teach our boys about why things are the way they are. This is of course a lesson to me as well. 

Jehovah's word told of the time we are living in now. Typhoons are one of these things.

So I hope it passes this area and does not hurt people or kill be people. 

/tata

Summer Vacation

 This was the best summer vacation I have had in my life. First I spent two days in the preaching work. Then we had our two family bible studies. On Thursday I was able to attend the midweek meeting. Wow. Just wow! When Yogita and I have our time together we now pray to Jehovah and our time together is better than ever. More positive, no anger, or feeling low. Instead, we discuss things and make plans. We joke with each other or recall times in the past without fighting. We also talk about the signs of our times, and recent talks given at the kingdom hall. We look forward to each Sunday more and more.

Yogita has gotten an upper respiratory infection so she is feeling down since yesterday. She listened to me and lightened her schedule so that she can get home and rest. We watched Jeyo give his first part during the midweek meeting. It was very nice and encouraging. A far cry from where we were not so long ago. Goerge is now teaching part-time and enjoying it a lot. Even if it is temporary. Things are going well for us. 

I will say that all of this is due to Jehovah's blessings on us. The more I rely on Jehovah the easier my way becomes! 

Ok, time to finish this work part of Monday!

/tata

Summer plan update...

 Well, we will not be going to Seoul. At this moment we will spend more time as a family. We will attend both meetings next week. We will also go out in field service for 3 days next week. Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. This might change based on if we can book the pension next week. As it is I expect to enjoy time together as a family. We will visit an older sister and cook together perhaps we can play some board games? I am not sure. Another day I hope to spend at another friend's house. 

/tata

Summer plans

 Living in South Korea unlike India we really have to pay attention to our paperwork. In South Korea, we live year to year. It really is annoying. However, we have gotten used to the pause that must be taken to renew our 1-year visas. In addition, Goerge must go every 90 days to renew his visa!

Now, we are passed the 50% mark on our current visas. We need to go to Seoul and update our OCI cards for myself and George. Jeyo's we will have to postpone until later this year during the winter vacation. Once we have his perhaps in April of 2024 we will all be ready for any need to return to India suddenly. 

So our summer plans are dominated by a trip to Seoul. We are hoping it does not take long. 

Most of our holidays are taken up with paperwork. Or preparing for a move or something major. Last year we had to keep the house in a special way so that people could come to view the apartment. My former boss for some odd reason wanted me to provide for our own housing. This is not done in most academies. People do this, but I got a feeling that he would let me go from my contract early. It seems like he had some plans and did not want a 2 year lease sitting on his head when he decided to act on whatever plans he had.

This summer vacation we will visit a dear older sister in our congregation and spend the day with her. Next weekend I am hoping we can go our pension spot. It might be sold out as the heavy rains have stopped. I will ask Yogita to look into it. If not then field service, then relax at home and go to a park in the evening is what I am looking forward to.

The district assembly was about having patience. I am so thankful for Jehovah's patience. I now understand what we might see as a delay for us is actually a saving of more people! It also gives us time to do what is right before Jehovah. I can only imagine standing before the heavenly court and having had this time and using it well to do what God's word tells us to do, I would feel no morbid fear. I would feel an awe-inspiring fear. A fear of not wanting to do what is wrong in front of Jehovah. To hate what Jehovah hates, and to love what Jehovah loves is my goal in life. 

So this summer which has had unprecedented weather patterns, natural disasters, and the usual signs that mark these as the last days, we will be very chill. The reason? Well, first it is just too hot. Also, we did not book places in advance. I will see if we can get a couple of days at the pension next week. But I am not in the mood to hunt around for a good place. Actually, we can save a ton of money as well. There is a nice wholesale food market we can use. But even if we can not it will be nice.

/tata

Driving in the rain

 All across South Korea, there has been very heavy rain. This is unprecedented. Usually, there is rain but not this heavy. Usually, heavy rains like this come at the end of August, or when a typhoon is passing close by or even over South Korea.

I will drive about 200 km north to Gimpo. We will be having the first in-person district assembly since 3 years ago due to covid-19.  So many people including my family are excited about this. I remember in the past we would go to the meeting. Then afterward we would go to a restaurant with another friend and his family. Now, I am happy to go. I will bring a wireless keyboard and take notes. Those notes I will be using for our weekly family bible studies. I look forward to the evenings with our boys and then a bit later with my lovely wife Yogita. Then a very nice shower then rest. Sunday, after the meeting we will aid in clean-up service. After we will hit the road and at a rest stop we will get some food then head home.

I want to take a 1 hour nap then get to work to finish my work, and game at the same time. I want to come into work next Monday to work on homework for Tuesday. Monday night I will be helping a student with public speaking. Where I work is unusual. This always seems to happen to me working at places most would run away from LOL.

But I pray for help everyday and Jehovah aids me EVERY DAY!

/tata

Babylon's fall all around us.

 When we look at history we can see that when Jesus came to Earth for some time afterward his teachings were poisoned with lies and falsehoods. In fact, many were mixed with pagan religions.

We know this due to bible students being blessed with an understanding to be  Babylon the Great. This is the world empire of false religion. For centuries this empire has ruled over kingdoms. It has crowned kings, and waged wars. In the bible, Jehovah has stated that it will fall at the hands of the Kings of the Earth. A beast that represents the U.N. will attack and completely destroy this empire.

However, there are signs that this empire is in decline, and has been for quite some time.  When I was little respect for the Church was in question due to allegations of priests molesting boys. These boys when they became men came forward. So likely this practice has been going on for a long time! Once the public knew about trust in Christendom started to fall away. 

Today when I tell someone I am a Christan I am looked at as being simple-minded, or gullible. 

Of course, this very attitude was prophesied in the bible! Like in Noah's day, people mocked him when he began prophesying about rain coming. Something that had not happened up until that time. Then when the rain did fall you can only imagine the panic, fear, even humiliation as everything they had were being swept away!

The Bible warns us to get out of Babylon! For myself, I will stay far away from it!

/tata

Long time no post!

Well, we are at that time of year when you realize wow time flies! It is not July 13th. That means that this year is already passed the 50% mark. We are very excited as we will go to the district convention located in Gimpo. We already attended the circuit assembly and wow was that very nice! Now, most of our preparations are complete. Our hotel room and food are already set. Our breakfast and lunch will be light but dinner will be nice! 

Of course, the main course will be the spiritual food we will receive. We will all take notes so that we can pay closer attention, and recall nice points we will go over during our family bible study and the mid-week meeting. I am looking forward to the prayers the talks and just being near others who look at Jehovah the way my family does. 

We all are going through various difficult situations and we all are relying on Jehovah to aid us to keep us strong in this race until the finish! So this is what is on our minds these days. After this, it will be our weekly preaching, weekly meetings, and our upcoming vacation.

After all of this, we will be suddenly in August! Time flies. Of course, all of this time means that the kingdom which Jehovah has promised will be even closer at hand! Glad tidings all these things are. 

However, we will need to always keep on the watch. To make sure our doors are guarded against practicing sin. Making sure we are building and maintaining a good relationship with our heavenly father! There is much to do! This system is still here!

/tata

A tech update.

As I am the PC tech in the family I need to upgrade from time to time. Now is the time for such an upgrade. I feel that I need to be as careful as I can so as not to waste money on upgrades that are not needed. 

Now, I need to overall or replace the white desktop that we have been using since 2018. Maybe it was 2017. The motherboard is damaged and it is running only 4 gigs of dd3 ram. The GPU is very good a GTX 780ti. 

I am thinking of modernizing Yogits's PC upgrading my GPU and passing on Yogita's current rig to George to use instead of the white PC. The white PC would be taken apart and useful parts will be stored or used and the motherboard and case tossed out. The name of the game here is to do so in a cost-effective way. One option would be to leave Yogita's PC as is and install a water cooler on the CPU. Get a cheap but capable system with 8gigs of ddr4 ram (ill upgrade it later to 16gigs) system for around 150 to 200,000 won. I could then upgrade my GPU to a 1080ti. Finally, prices have dropped. The black PC NEEDS water cooling badly on its CPU and 2 8 gig ddr3 RAM chips.

I want to complete these upgrades over 2 weeks. However, I need to be able to save money while making sure that the upgrades work well. I am hoping that prices continue to fall as I am in the waiting and watching phase. Perhaps this Saturday I will visit a second PC shop and ask about prices. Ok, time to go!

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A time for everything

 We are living in a day where so many people tend to live for just one or two days of the week. This I have grown to not understand. King David wrote that he wants to use all of the time he has to praise Jehovah. This means that every day that he lived he lived for every day. So many students of mine and Yogita's say "I hate Monday". Or there is some other day of the week they hate. I do not blame them as they are studying and toiling after university seats, and job positions that have already been parceled out to an inner group of connected people. What I mean is there is a group of people who make sure that their friends get into the best schools. Others have to basically be rich to have access to these resources. It has been shown in various documentaries and dramas that this is the case. 

I feel much freer not living for things of this world. I realize that if I want riches I must forsake my family. I must forsake my preaching work, attending meetings, and spending time with friends, our sons, and time with my wife. If I do this I will make even more money. But to what effect? My house would be sick again. These riches do not last. They can be stolen, it can rot, and as this system will be done away with, what will I say to Jehovah on the last day? What will happen when I am asked "What did you do in the last days?" I know from so many talks and bible studies that LOVE is needed. The love that comes from Jehovah, for he is the God of Love. 

I am happy to learn and see where I need to learn more. 

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The most important day of the year!

On this day over 2000 years ago Jesus finished his Earthly mission and died so that his blood could be used by Jehovah to cleanse all humans of sin. Now, what can we do? We need to follow the words of Jesus Christ and the words of his prophets who preached on after he went to heaven. We have to listen and make changes in our lives then tell others about this good news. Jesus taught us to show love to one another. He taught us to show a love that is defined by Jehovah's principles. Not this worldly view of love that is often very selfish and narcissistic.  In fact today people are told to "love yourself". This matches bible prophecy about the day we are living in now. Namely, that people will be lovers of themselves rather than lovers of God. 

So while we could not go to the congregation we held our own ceremony at home. Yogita became overwhelmed with emotion. I too felt strong feelings within me. I wanted to maintain my composure and I was able to do that. I feel that the more I study the bible the more and more I am understanding things. The more I realize that I need to learn. I am on a path of learning to be humble, mild, and slow to anger. This is my aim, and my end goal for this system. It is not to retire with earthly riches. I will work hard so that I can be of help to my sons. But it is not my end goal. I do not want to spend my years constantly toiling away after riches that can be stolen, lost, or damaged over the passage of time, and have it's value reduced year in and year out. Inflation will always be with us. ALWAYS! It means to live in Satan's system is to be a slave to it for the rest of one's natural life. 

To our Lord Jehovah and his only begotten son The Prince of Peace thank you so much for your undeserved kindness in saving us all even at the moment that Adam sinned. 

Time to finish this part of the day. That is this work part of the day.

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The dangers of social media!

 One big issue with the world today is that things that are wrong in the bible are praised as normal today. When I was a kid I saw a pornographic movie that my uncle kept on VHS tapes. When I saw what was on them my first response was to hide the tapes. Why? Because I knew deep down that what I was watching was wrong! 

Likewise today so many things related to pornography are accepted as "normal" or even "healthy". I noticed on my Facebook feed there was a video of a woman doing household chores. Then I did a double take. She was wearing a garment in which you could tell she was wearing no underwear. I stopped watching that video. However, I know that I need to keep a watch on myself first. Then on my boys and family. If I fall to fleshly desires they will as well. 

You would think that social media is a nice place where you can "socialize". No this is not the case. Instead, you see people showing off, or boasting, and in some cases actually advertising. Some of these products or services are immoral. These days are dead. People are gnashing their teeth. Satan is raging about because he knows his time is coming to a close. I feel more and more determined to run away from what is bad. Cut things off from my life that can drag me down into a double life, or practicing sin. The wages sin pays is death. I do not want that payment!

So I need to stay away from videos on Facebook just like I stay away from pornographic websites! 

Ok time to get this work part of the day done!

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Middle school testing period a new experience

As I am at another private language school I am at a period of time when I usually have some more free time due to students needing to cancel classes to prepare for the mid-term exams. Usually, I do nothing. Here I have duties. It is a nice change of pace. I really hate sitting around doing nothing. In the past, many academies would just let me go home. That was nice as I could spend more time with my family. Certainly, if I could have free time now I would spend it more constructively than I have in the past.

In the past, I would waste time with friends who do not share God's view on things in this world. I too was showing that I support those debased views. In fact, I partook in many bad practices. I realize more and more the damage it did to my family. To turn away from such a bad way I need to cut off things from my life that are not approved. How can I know what to cut off? Jesus told us and his Apostles told us in very clear language in the bible. No wild parties and getting drunk using abusive speech. No irritating my children by not teaching them what is right and wrong yet punishing them when they do wrong. How can I say a word when I am up to my own neck in badness? 

What a waste if I continue in this way. My lovely wife our time together what a waste yet again. What of what she wants and needs, my sons? No, I must cut away these bad things that only hurt not only me but my family, and greatly offends our creator. I feel ready like never before. I feel an urging deep within me to strive to try and do what is right!

If I have to stand in front of a court I want to found as one difficult to say a bad word about myself. So I know if I show love to my wife and my sons then blessings will pour out from Jehovah. Those around me will see me in a different light. Many will hate me and despise me. Yet, if I follow the bible's principles they will not find fault with me except that I do not do as they are doing.

I have practiced what is wrong for far too long! It is time to stick to the true life. Not one in which we are dead due to practicing sin! Ok Time to prep for tonight's bible study and tomorrow's work.

/tata

Hidden traps everywhere!

 This world we live in is so dangerous. There are so many stumbling blocks. Some are in plain sight. Others are so subtle that we do not notice them until our lives start to fall apart. We notice that there is no peace with us. We tend to want to hide ourselves. The very mention of the bible and what it contains makes us angry. When topics are brought up like in my case to start regular study of the Bible, I would get so annoyed! Now I can see the damage that it brought. How many unclean things were going on in my house. It was my fault. If the head is sick so is the body. If I am not going to lead my family in spiritual matters then we will get sick spiritually. 

I have noticed Jehovah helping us in so many ways. I can now see how my mother was helped as well. She found out about my many secret goings on. It led to her teaching me and showing me, real love. She warned me to stay away from my father. Now, I can see why as they divorced some years later. My father then married another woman. She passed away during and due to covid-19.

I am sure I would have followed in his steps. Actually, I was following after his example. I am so glad to have a wife who by her example taught me and instructed me on what I should do. Her constant nagging was actually a plea powered by love. Now when one of our boys stumbles we can see it far faster and then attack the problem and fortify our home against that stumbling block. There is much I have to do. I am learning more and more from the bible than I ever have in the past. Thanks to Jehovah, Jesus, the 144,000, and the many angels of heaven who are helping us. Jehovah sustains us even though we go through hardships. He aids us and gives us what we need at the right time.

Tonight we will study Galatians chapter 5!

Bible books studied so far: Genesis Job Isaiah Mathews Mark Revalations John Ephesians Galatians and the district assembly which taught us how to get, maintain, and build true peace!

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Paperwork for visas almost done!

 It has been a very long transition to where we are right now. We had to switch jobs and move to another house well apartment. All this while George Jeyo and I were on expired passports! It was stressing me a lot last year. However, I started to make it a matter of prayer and my stress lessened. I was able to focus on other things related to getting a new job and house. This was not easy for us but everything came together very well. Once we made it a matter of prayer and followed the counsel found in the bible it was so much easier than our previous moves. We put all our worries on Jehovah. Yogita suffered no migraines due to this situation, and I had no insomnia. 

Our stress levels at the immigration office, and going to the American Embassy were nothing like in the past. We would often fight and lash out at each other due to the stress of this system. So all in all things turned out better than they have ever been.  However, I am not blind to the fact we are still living in this dead system of things. We are still not in a stable situation at all! War is around the corner in East Asia. China and the USA are building up forces. America and her allies which make up the king of the south are gathering for an attack on the king of the north or defending against the king of the north and its allies. It will have a direct impact on South Korea. I feel this will be a precursor of the Messianic kingdom being set up on Earth. This is great hope! So I look not to this world's leaders. Our problems can only be solved when Jesus comes and installs his government here on Earth!

So I am getting ready spiritually for this!

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Blessings to be counted!

 This is week two at my new place of work. Things have been going very well. I think past experiences where I was aided in me having an easier transition here. As, well senior staff being kinder, and more down to earth even when giving feedback. A kind word turns away rage. This is directly quoted from the bible. It is so true. I felt a loss of peace in past years due to being spoken to in a rude manner. Now, I am trying to do my best to support my family. Things are going very well. Our housing is far better than it has ever been in South Korea! It is larger, on the first floor, and kind of in a corner. Being on the first floor means getting in and out is very easy and fast.

As I have been working here for nearly a month I can see other blessings. The work is just work, there is no wasted downtime or desk warming. Here I must prepare materials for my classes. Something that I used to do for over 14 years in Gunsan, and 3 here in Iksan. I enjoy it much more than my previous workplace. 

I am not saying where I worked before was terrible. It was quite a nice place to work. It was very stable and it was easy to understand what people wanted you to do. It was boring for me though. 

I think as we live in this system of things we need to make sure to be thankful for the blessings we have in life. Jehovah aids us all, even those that do not believe in him get support as we are living on his Earth!

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Water cooling vs air cooling

I have used both systems and actually I am using a water cooled cpu at the moment. To be frank both systems are work just fine. However, air cooling requires more care when living in a dusty environment. In our case our dog sheds A LOT! This has caused well it is causing issues with Yogita's gpu fan, and her cpu fan. So I want to install a water cooling system. It is called an all in one system. The water pump, hoses, and radiator are all connected and preset up. All you have to do is mount the water pump on the cpu (of course make sure you put thermal paste and the cpu after cleaning off the old thermal paste). 

What I like about water cooled systems is that you only have to clean the radiator, and the radiator fans. This is so easy to do. Another, thing if the fans are failing it is easy to replace them. You just screw them on or off. So I am looking into replacing Yogita's  air cooled system with an all in one water colling system. I should note that both systems cool about the same.

This is an example of what I am going to install in her system.

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