Jehovah supports us all. An encouraging visit.

So it was a Sunday and after the meeting a couple invited us over to their home. 

They have a very nice comfortable home. They never once bragged about it or told us how much it is worth. They were very down to Earth. 

We ate a very tasty lunch together and talked at length about thier experience. I wanted to share ours but I discerned it was not the time for our story to be told.

Our sister has a background that would make is difficult to learn the truth about the bible and Jehovah's will for us on Earth.

She prayed to Jehovah to help her. She received the help she needed. But she had to really work hard and think outside of the box to take advantage of the help she was given.

She then had to make a choice to give up her comfort at that time, rely on Jehovah and take a leap of faith. She did this and every prayer was answered.

Every, single, one, was answered. The prayers were not only answered in a timely way others were taken care of before she made the request of Jehovah. 

This experience has taught me by yet another living account that our prayers are answered. Just not always in the way that our lower level of thinking and knowledge feels it needs to be answered. At the end of her story she was living comfortably with her husband thankful to the true source of her comfort.

/tata

Teaching here shows us a reality.

Teaching in South Korea is good way to support oneself or a family.l

In, South Korea there was a prestige that came along with it. The community gave a lot of respect to teachers. Now, over 26 years later teachers are getting little to respect. They are bullied by students and parents. 

Today there have been a few famous cases where teachers have committed sucide. They did so in such a way that the school authorities could not cover it up 

Now, we do not work for private institutions. We work for a private English Medium School.  

The education is terrible. There are so many events that take time away from education. Frequently, we have to pause what we are.doing. Many of these events have no real educational purpose. Teachers often use the time to chew the fat and just relax.

In South Korea many private schools rely on what I call a script. As students learn it or rather memorize it they become like parrots. They seem to understand but ask them anything outside of that script and they are like a person who never never spoken English before.

Here, teachers have such poor English, they pass poor English speaking habi5s to the students. It is crazy. The principal sees it and tries to turn things around.

This tells me one thing; we do not know what we are.doing. The bible tells us that learning needs to be at home. Most kids I see really want to spend time w8th thier families. 

Where I was in South Korea wasting class time checking homework here I am in another broken system. We need Jesus's kingdom to show us how to live.

We have no clue!

/Tata 

When will the end come?

 The funny thing is, the end has already come for many millions of people. The end that crept on them came in the form of death. Yet, the bible speaks of an ending of a system of things. That Satan is very angry because of this. He misleads many, and in fact, his activity has been intensified. 

Many people around the world have read Matthew chapter 24, and other passages that accurately show us the season we are living in.

But when will it come? The Bible tells us! It gives us a word picture. It is written that it will come like a thief in the night. I still remember a friend of mine telling me that certain prophecies have not come true yet. He then told me, exiting my car with a grin, "Brother, we have time!" 

If I am to stay awake and keep a watch for the thief who will in the end surprise me, which mindset should I have? I think listening to the faithful and discreet slave and the elders is the way forward. They point to the bible and remind us that one: there are things about the prophecies we do not understand at this point in time. We are also told that this is ok not to get stressed out about it. 

It is dangerous to think we can accurately track Jehovah's movements. What is to prevent me from focusing on matters of making more money? Or perhaps go back to my old way of life, just for a short time. I would be making a snare for myself based on my own sinful desires and neatly placing my neck in it and then locking it tight. I am sure that friend of mine will come to his senses. 

/tata

Bible principles and Jehovah's law

Bible principles pull from the foundations of Jehovah's laws. Today, many people play around with immoral acts, thinking that they are not violating the Bible law.

Under the law, a man and a woman once married are allowed to have sexual relations. 

The world's view using the penis to physically enter the vagina violates this law if the two people are not married.

Bible principle: sex outside of marriage is wrong. When people engage in behavior that results in both persons feeling sexual release outside of marriage, this too is wrong!

One way I saw this is when a family relative told me it is ok to engage in these sexual like practices. I then asked that person, "How would you feel if they did the same thing with someone else?" 

The response was a strong view that the act itself, being done with someone else, would upset them the most. Ah, so we can see if it was OK, why feel bad if others are doing the same thing with the person we did the act with initially? This tells us that marriage and sexual relations belong only there! 

These things are all of a sexual nature. The law stands strong, the principles makes us think of similar situations in which we should or should not do something.

There is another area where, when we meditate on biblical principles, we can help others around us and even ourselves. 

Drinking in moderation is one that comes to mind. In, South Korea, it is a point that people are proud of if they can drink a few or more bottles of soju without "feeling or looking drunk".

The bible tells us to use moderation, and that there is a time for everything under the sun.

If my friend can only drink one bowl of rice wine, and I can drink five. I will drink one bowl slowly with him. Then, once finished a short time later return to my home with my family. 

The world's view? Drink and be merry, for tomorrow we will die. 

The result? That friend gets sick drunk, and causes a scene. I then go home and cause even more problems for my family.

Moderation? I go home enjoy some leftovers from our pot luck party. Maybe drink some more with my wife and sons (moderation is the key). 

The result? The next day we are all happy recalling the events from the day before. The next day we all carry on our regular activities with no ill effects. I remember Sunday mornings having breakfast with my family, then making our way to our Sunday meeting in a peaceful manner. Then after the meets sometimes going on in the ministry, or returning home and enjoying our evening. 

I am happy to obey and eager to learn more about bible principles. With out them...it is truly a nightmare!

/tata

Kerala a beautiful place!

We have been  here over 3 weeks. We went to the local kingdom hall last Sunday. It felt like home. Our brothers and sisters helped us to get to a store to buy some groceries. Later we ordered burgers ...it was not all that good. I know the boys will not enjoy it. The French fries were good. The pizza was not good at all. We could have made it more delicious at home. 

The place we're we live is really nice and cool. The weather is much better than lucknow! I think the hottest months here will pass much easier than the 40 to 44 degree weather in lucknow. We don't even need an AC, just the ceiling fan.

In this area we are surrounded by forests which are rich in greenery. Here are some pictures: 

The last picture is of the event being held today.

The food is very interesting as well. I will be posting some pictures of the food of Kerela here as well.

The boys are still in Lucknow and will join us in about a month or two. They will enjoy it here as well.

Ok I have.to go.

the road pauses in Kerela

Wow what a roller-coaster these past two monthes have been. First we got a good offer but there were no kingdom halls in the area. So we had to turn that offer down. Then we got a very good offer with a Korean company. However, then location was just.too isolated. In the future when we have a car that location could work out. 

So then the original people who we had to politely refuse before found another place that needed tow teachers urgently. Apparently, the teachers who were here before got caught drinking and partying on school grounds. 

The principal really had many doubts about us and I am sure she still does in her heart. But, over time she will understand that we are not like that at all. 

We have been teaching here since yesterday and it has been much better than South Korea in some ways. However, in others South Korea can not be beaten.

If return to South Korea I will try to work at a kindergarten or public school. It allows more time for the more important things. Like making meetings, family worship and evening ministry. The typical hogwon jobs are too rigid in that whike ministry is possible in the mornings, the mid week meeting is hard to attend or even impossible. 

So I should say public schools verus private schools are the issue here.

South Korea even with its frozen wages a teacher can earn more than enough (if they teach on the side). 

This school has been challenging but I feel that I am learning from mistakes I made in South Korea. If I do return to South Korea it will be even easier that before. Just avoid schools that do things in extremely odd ways, and make sure the school does it's papers correctly and is stable. Finding such a school is even harder today which is why public schools are the best bet!

/Tata

I love our meetings more now...

 Worshiping is something built into us as humans. Leave us to our own designs, and we will worship a tree. Heck, we might even worship our bowels! We see this all around the world in different ways. People worship people, money, demons, themselves, or statues. 

Some people hate to admit this. But it is true. 

As we are preparing the final stages to leave Lucknow (this will be in two parts), I am thinking about how I love our worship of Jehovah.

An Elder does NOT go on and on and on about himself or who we should vote for. We do not get lorded over by elders or ministerial servants who give Bible-based talks. Bible-based talks that give glory to Jehovah. Words that teach us and guide us. At times those words discipline us. There are so many reminders! I now understand we need those reminders!! Oftentimes we forget things we studied or read two days ago. 

So I love our worship of Jehovah. It is not heavy and stressful. We get daily reminders of the day we are living in and ways to deal with this time. Some parts of our worship are training for preaching work.  

Sometimes we learn new things about bible verses that were not so well understood before. 

I look at others here on a hot or cold Sunday, complaining about the length of the worship at the church they attended. Sometimes they are upset because the message was in part hypocritical. 

It is stressful in this world but still we can enjoy the spiritual nation we have here on Earth. 

/tata

Moving soon...

 So, major update time, Yogita got the job in Chennai with a Korean company. As it is in Chennai, we will have many congregations around us. There are two English congregations located there. In South Korea, the nearest English congregation was more than 100 kms away. 

So this will be good for us for a few big reasons. One language barrier goes away. Two, many more of our people are there. For us, this is a big help. As I have only recently returned to Jehovah and his people, it is needed for me to associate more with them. In Lucknow it was ok, but the language issue caused a distance.

Three supporting ourselves is easier in this southern coastal city. 

However, there is a bigger, more important reason...distractions! Here in Lucknow, where we are staying, there are many distractions. Of course, playing video games, or listening to music, watching reels, these are there, and we do well to reduce and manage our time doing these things as much as possible.

Yet, with two other families who do not make the kingdom a number one priority, there are other hidden distractions. Politics, false religions, holidays, not actively putting on the new personality, and the mind of Christ. This causes a hidden, dangerous distraction. One member talks about immoral things and bad practices openly! We informally witness to this person, but there comes a time when it becomes yet another distraction. 

I am not saying moving to Chennai or moving to another rental property in Lucknow will solve the issue of distractions. But, it will be easier to be conscious of our spiritual need without those distractions.

In both families there is much shouting that can goes on. In one family much more than the other. There is a constant loss of peace. So when we do leave we will use the examples that we saw see clearly why Jehovah's way is the best way.

Personally, I need to fight against the distraction of reels, short videos that really pull you in and wastes dangerous amounts of time!

Ok now I will try to comment during the watch tower study.

/tata

How can one tell if they have a truth while attending church or a Kingdom hall of Jehovah's witnesses

 Which one does Jehovah use? Does Jehovah use both? No! Jesus stated that those who show love among each other and have unity would be the ones we should seek out. In addition, when someone is on the stage, ministering is ONLY about the word or that person's will or opinions. 

Jesus always gave praise to his father, Jehovah. He never called himself father or Jehovah. He stated that they are one in the way that when people are united, they are indeed one in spirit. When a man and woman marry, they become "one flesh". Do we merge into one organism? No! We live in harmony with Bible-based principles. 

We have our roles within the family as outlined in the Bible. 

I feel bad for Mom and Dad; they listen to people prattle on about themselves. Often, it is hypocritical and self-serving. Meetings can last for a very long time in the heat or cold. 

Our meetings are focused and to the point. Providing much for mediation in the days after the meeting.  When we come home, we feel light. We have just finished examining some portion of the bible with valuable reminders. When Dad and my brother-in-law and his family return, I often hear them complain how long some part of the program took. 

In Jehovah's Kingdom halls, you do not hear anyone praising one political party over another. Or someone praising themselves or another in the congregation. We receive reminders and thought-provoking Bible-based discussions. Even our songs are taken from the bible or giving praise to Jehovah. 

Our meetings are short and sweet not long and drawn out with useless information coming from men. Some of these men are even paid large sums of money to "minister" things that were given to use free from Jesus, God's first born son. 

When Jesus comes again many will be in big trouble but the religions of the world many of them actually know the truth but train their priests to not teach it to congregations. 

/tata

To the south?

 So we got a very good offer in Chennai, and unlike the previous offer, this location is perfect for our family. I can see Jehovah helping us. Now things are not set in stone as of yet. But they are looking very, very promising.

One Yogita will be working with a Korean company as a translator. So this places us in a familiar language and culture. Of course, just because it is Korean culture does not mean it is not full of nonsense, like all cultures here on Earth. 

In the Korean work culture, they are hamstrung when it comes to problem-solving. We saw many cases where an assembly line was shut down. They had an engineer on site who could have replaced a spare part. But due to company policy, they HAD to wait for the support engineer to arrive from another city in South Korea. So the entire management staff was just sitting around playing on their cell phones.

This is just one of many examples we saw while in South Korea working for over 25 years.

Another major positive is that there are two English language congregations and I think two or three Hindi language congregations. 

I am excited to see the new episodes of The Good News According to Jesus in English.

Also this area is a costal area with wonderful beaches and seafood. There is also a Korean town there. There are many Korean companies operating factories in Chennai. 

I must say the thing that excited me the most was the number of available Kingdom halls.

We will see what happens very soon.

/tata

An offer turned down...an update

 So now we are in May, and we are looking to relocate for work. Maybe we will stay here in Lucknow, or move to South India. Personally, my entire family is leaning towards going south. The areas are cleaner, people are more literate, jobs are more comfortable, and they pay more. The roads are better. 

The food is amazing all over India. But, Kingdom Halls are everywhere in the South. In the Northern regions, there are fewer English congregations. Depending on the region very few Hindi congregations as well.

In our hunt for a job, Yogita was able to find two jobs that came with housing for the entire family! We had the interviews they went really well. An offer is to come on Monday. Then we felt we needed to look closer at the exact location. To our dismay, we found that there are no kingdom halls in that region. The nearest one is in a language we do not know. Yogita can not translate for us. I felt a feeling of worry. Without this, there is no way we can go there. It could cause us to become far from Jehovah. This is scary. It means that without regular meetings, field service activity would take a major hit. Yogi and the boys would not be able to pioneer. Many who have left Jehovah have truly missed out on the fellowship we get from attending meetings, field service, and parties with fellow brothers, which builds faith. This is a part of rooting ourselves in the truth. If we went there, we would be isolated and end up spending time with others who do not share our beliefs. Actually, this danger is everywhere, even within the congregation. But in that location Gujrat there are no congregations we could join. Bad association waits at the door! 

So today I will send a message stating we can not take their offer as the location is too remote. We have no kingdom halls in that area. My old personality I would have jumped for joy! Now! It frightens me! 

We are by no means out of woods so to say we are still in this system of things. George and Jeyo will enter the work force so this will be a new challenge for them. 

Some things I like about the second offer and the location Chennai is that is it costal region so great seafood beautiful beaches. Here in Lucknow seafood well there isn't much variety and it will not be very fresh. Seeing the ocean is something we have all enjoyed in South Korea. Also there is a large number of Koreans living and working in Chennai as many South Korea companies are located there. 

Looking forward to the interview tomorrow as it will help see what challenges we will face there. 

/tata

When given advice by those in the lead follow it!

 I have had some really nice counsel given to me by elders and circuit overseers. I was even angry but respectful when I expressed some frustrations with one overseer. He listened closely and then gave me counsel. I was deeply moved by it. I have been following that since. When we arrived in India about two months ago, the circuit overseer who serves this circuit gave me some counsel. It was unexpected, even a little strange, but lathered in love and respect.  

This counsel I am working to follow as well. I have seen only good things result from this. When I was working in South Korea, the academy had a really strange and unnatural approach to teaching English. Even so, I had a hard time following the guidance I was given. In short, I was not being humble. Personally, I struggled to show humility. It paid off; I was able to clearly communicate my objections to their approach in a mild, polite manner. There was no fighting, although my boss lost sleep trying to see what she could do to help me. The details of this are well known in Iksan and among those who know me and them (the couple I worked for). So those details I will not share here. My reason? What good will it do in the future? When Jesus comes, and we are all being taught and restoring the Earth, I will not speak of these things. 

People today hate to take advice. Many get angry. Many become unreasonable. To many rely on the stupid traditions of men that do not have roots in bible based principles. Instead those principles are based on "it is how we do it here". Or in my family this is how it was done. 

We must become like a reed ready to bend to the will of Jehovah when expressed by his son our King Jesus Christ. Many, will survive Armageddon. The scriptures state "a number which no man is able to number comes out of the great tribulation.". 

So it is better to ignore some traditions of men especially those that leave a person feeling bad,  embarrassed, or that elders are treating younger people partially. 

/tata

Hot weather in India

When I arrived in India many people in the congregation kept going on an on about the impending hot summer that was coming. At one point I got annoyed. Now that we are here in this early part of the hot season I can see I was being too sensitive. You see the weather today is getting more and more out of hand. Strange is a good way to describe it. It is out of order. One cause of the critical times we are living in which Jesus warned us about in Matthew chapter 24. 

The friends are afraid. I can see why. It has been averaging 106 degrees F for more than a week. Many in the congregation have become ill or very careful. My father in law became sick, the boys and Yogita became ill. I was not sickened though. I think the heat waves of Philadelphia helped me for this. 

It annoys me when Indians and Koreans we throw Americans in this boat as well assume things because a person is not from their country. In Korea one brother told me "Jemal you need to sweat!" This is popular in South Korea but here it will kill you. I had to just nod and smile. Here though I see more of people expressing their fear by trying to give helpful tips. It is truly not normal. I too fear what the temperatures will be in May and June. I am worried that it will kill my parents here in India. I fear that can seriously hurt Yogita as well.

So for this week we are joining the meetings on zoom and ministry is only in the morning hours. Next week we will go back to 3 or 4 days of ministry and attend the meetings in person. The reason? This heat wave looks like it will end. So we will take advantage of it. 

ok time to go our food is almost here.

/tata

The traditions of men are mostly ugly.

In India in the place where I stay I see some age old human ideals that are ugly. I saw this in South Korea, and The United States. We act like we are owed things like respect honor, or kindness due to our age or station in life. This is truly ugly to me.

According to this idea, it is ok to shout at a child and verbally abuse them (I was guilty of this too!) Yet, if you go back in time to when the elders were young they HATED it when people would shout at them and verbally abuse them. Yet according to traditions of men this ok because "it happened to me" "it helped me become the person I am today". Such stupidity! Especially, among those who claim to follow Jesus's teaching calling themselves Christians. Once, again I was doing the same thing. I am not perfect, nor are my hands free of such practices which I practiced in the past. I will say this, I am striving to not continue doing this.

Another stupid thing I see is "respect is earned". From what we can see of Jesus's life he freely gave love, respect and honor to those with whom he interacted. He freely gave these things. Today, some cultures age equates to more respect to be given. Another stupid tradition. An older man or woman can act foolishly running after what they think is correct. I saw this at the last school I taught at in 2025. My boss an older woman had a really stupid idea that stressed out teachers left and right. Yet, she demanded and received respect (although in my 3 year tenure I have seen more than 30 teachers quit). In her eyes some of them were lazy and selfish. Actually, her practices were stupid. Yet, she is able to make large sums of money babysitting students. This aids into the illusion that she has wisdom on how to teach a language. 

What will happen when Jesus's rule extends to the Earth after his second coming? On this occasion, our King might deem a mere boy of 26 years as worthy of being a leader over thousands or millions. Will we look at him and think, "I am 50 years old! I will not listen to this puppy!"

You see, these traditions are based on the fleshly view that the bible teaches us is very limiting. We must learn and meditate on how Jehovah sees. Not the outward appearance, but the fruitages of the spirit. That puppy has a spiritual maturity that the firstborn of all creation has taken notice of. Also, if he has taken notice of it we can understand fully that Jehovah, the 144000, and the other angels have seen it too!

Now, I may seem to be bashing my former boss, but that is not my aim. You see I thought at many times over the 25 years of teaching in Korea that I know the way to teach. Now, I see that if I were in her position, I too would act in the same way. Very likely much worse. I would be more successful, make more money, and sin in a way that is far worse! 

I would have partied more, taken money that does not belong to me. I would have shown off what I was able to accomplish. My former boss? She knew it was "not a normal way." She even told me with words laced with worry and stress for me, that she would try something to help me. Truly, she has love in her heart. But we humans we do not know that way. We need God's word to teach us better traditions. I am working on that now. It is not easy at first, but I have learned being consistent, makes making these changes easier. 

So I will keep working to root out the ugly traditions my parents taught me and make new ones based on bible principles. The traditions of our elders are ugly if they are not based on love or bible principles. 

/tata

Stress is dangerous!

 Here in India, there are many reasons for people to feel stressed. The job market is super tight! There is a huge population with few jobs. Interestingly enough, this is the case in South Korea as well, even though its population is shrinking. A person I used to spend a lot of time with has a son who graduated from college. He could not get into medical school but he can work and earn for himself. He will not. He will, and he is at this moment studying for the civil servant exam in South Korea. This will take years. Even if he passes on the first try, it will still be months or even one or two years before he gets his placement.

So jobs create stress. This world does not have the answer to this. This issue is worldwide.

Political unrest is another source of great stress. This can affect everything from food prices to housing, travel, education, and healthcare; the list could go on and on. Here in India, just like in South Korea and the USA, people in power cannot come to an agreement. They are puffed up with pride, lovers of money. When you take a look at the leading powerful political figures, there is one thing they all have in common.

They are very rich! There was an article in the Korea Times that mentioned it recently. 

So even though they are rich and have power, they can not agree with each other, often fighting verbally and sometimes even physically. So while the people who voted for them run in circles, voting left and right, they often regret their choice. 

US presidents and South Korean prime ministers often end their rule with low popularity. 

The bible tells us of Jesus, who, when he came to earth, campaigned for the kingdom he would be placed as king over. During his preaching, he gave real hope, showing that he has been given the authority to take care of all of our needs. One, he healed the sick and raised the dead! He fed thousands with very little on two occasions. He controlled the weather and is able to read human hearts. He will always know what is best for us. When Jesus was on Earth in human form, he kept directing praise to his father Jehovah.

If we stress not following the advice Jesus gave in Matthew chapter six, we will end up doing the wrong thing. Running after money, blaming Jehovah for our ails (death of a loved one, natural disasters, and sickness), and when Jesus does come, we will be at a great disadvantage. 

What do I mean by this? The Israelites are a good example for us. They saw Jehovah's power and saving hand, and support. Yet a whole generation lost out on the promised land due to their lack of faith.

They were all saved from bondage in Egypt! But they later died free in the wilderness. 

When Jesus comes, if we are striving to live a life according to the guidance that he gave, and later the apostles gave to the congregations, we will be in a good position when Jesus comes. We will not take it for granted that Jesus died for our sins, and due to Jehovah's love and undeserved kindness, we are allowed to continue living and enjoying the peace that the new world will offer.  

If we are not doing these things but allowing the anxieties of life to overwhelm us, we will be at a great disadvantage. 

Jesus said it is better for those to believe without seeing. When People see the greatest witness of Jesus's second coming, many will fall on their knees and humble themselves. Many of these believe only what they can see. It is easy for them to start to complain once Satan is locked up and the Earth is being restored. 

The restoration of the Earth will not be easy. We will not suddenly become perfect at that time! Our issues with our old personality and that battle will continue. Better to start working on putting on the new personality NOW in THIS system of things. It is so much better to make the truth our own. Not mom's or dad's truth. Not my husband or wife's truth. Not my best friend's truth. What happens if that one should die? Many might blame God and abandon the good path they were on.

Stress is a powerful snare that Satan uses!

/tata

The Iran war

 You see the bible tells us that there will be reports of wars and that these things MUST take place. I thank Jesus for saying these words. I thank Jehovah for preserving them. 

Here in India, there is a lot of stress over the situation in Iran. For me? Not so much. I am planning to buy supplies (a bit earlier than usual), but I will not stress. I know these things will happen and that they need to happen. 

I will not allow these things to distract me from my spiritual routine. I want to draw closer to Jehovah and I am working hard in this regard. Fear of events that are getting worse and worse, and then focusing on them well, I will be panicking. I might be drawn into joining protests, not attending meetings, or going out in the ministry. 

These times are so different than before. These are truly the latter part of the last days. Today, students going to school and graduate sit at home idle. Why? Jobs are scarce, I mean the sought after jobs. The office jobs with high salaries with nice perks. They are still here but it is easier to see how they are reserved for a class of people in a special group.  There are some Korean dramas that shed light on these secret societies. 

So this war has laid bare one thing can cause a global tribulation a war that shuts down oil. If China decides to wage war oil supply will be even greater effected and this will cause more nations to declare a state of emergency. Currently only the Philippines have declared a state of emergency.

I feel that these actions are acts of God. Iran was in no way a real threat to the USA. Neither was Venezuela, or Greenland. Now, the US president has his eyes on Cuba! Another weak poor nation.

It seems that the USA is pushing other nations to follow it. The great tribulation is coming, and we can see how it might erupt. One super power causing a  ruckus that is really not needed. But it will cause HUGE stress to the world! I do not know exactly. But this recent moved stressed many nations. With China poised to strike Taiwan and Japan on an aggressive stance in fact they do not fear China means war breaking out in east Asia as will be very troubling indeed. I will listen to those who are taking the lead. The faith and discreet slave, governing body, our branch office, and our elders.

/tata

What is the real life?

 So many people feel that they have success when they have a good job, maintain good housing in a stable fashion, and are able to save very well month to month and invest those savings. 

I have seen many English teachers in South Korea reach this point. They, of course, seek to earn more money; they, of course, seek to better their lives. Yet, those who do reach what I have stated above often start conversations where they congratulate each other, while trying to seek other ways to find real fulfillment in life.  

They seek even higher education, travel more, try new hobbies, and while doing these things, still seem miserable and unhappy. It seems like there is something missing. 

You see, in the bible we are shown the entire picture. We learn that we are a part of a gigantic court case. A rebel is being allowed to prove his case. He is failing. This allowance really shows the perfect justice of Jehovah. This issue, once resolved, will never be brought back to the court. 

In human courts, the same issues get litigated on over and over again. Sometimes people die because it takes so long.

So what is the "real life"? 

Here it is: "People will build their own houses. enjoy meaningful jobs, people will no longer grow old and die, learn to love, fear, and worship Jehovah, and all of this under an abundance of peace.

Everyone gets a fair chance to learn about this and grow to perfection, the dead will be brought back to life under the conditions that are described in the bible.

I guess one feature about this real life that I like is "no resident will say "I am sick"". 

Imagine developing skills, building large families, houses, having land, taking care of animals, really enjoying hobbies forever! The image of that old house owner will seem vile and monstrous. 

All of this while giving glory and thanksgiving to the provider of it all, loving and fearing our grand creator, Jehovah God. 

What is Jehovah's plan for the galaxies he created? Only by remaining under his tent will we live to see amazing things forever!

/tata

Doesn't this world offer us greatness and success?

 Many people feel that what this world offers is what we should all be running after. That it get a good job making a large amount of money. Then with that money invest it watch it grow. All the while live a life of luxury. WHAT IN THE WORLD IS REAL LUXURY?

I always bought luxury cars. I enjoyed the extra features that came with them. Power seats, heated and cooled seats, navigation, very nice audio systems, a powerful engine, power folding mirrors a smart key...this list could go on and on with the features the cars I have driven had. WAS IT REAL LUXURY?

NO! These systems break over time and need to be repaired. My Enterprise has so many issues, yet I felt a dopamine-filled rush of pride when people would note the large size of the car and grandness of it. LOL

Where is it now? It has been broken down and recycled. Acura Legend gen2 I owned two of those....trash now. The Hyundai Equus is a very large grand car...oh, that is trash now too! Best car I ever drove (actually prayed before going to get it, but that is another story) is also in the junk yard now.

Smartphones, clothes, houses, cars, fancy food, a large bank account, these are very, very deceptive! This world is passing away, and so is its desire 

Most humans who have worked hard for years buy homes that they can not really enjoy as their bodies have aged and continue to do so. We saw a man in Korea near where we lived moving in his garden, which was attached to his house. He was an elderly man with few years left in his life. He was bent double and seemed to be in pain. So I ask this question: Where is the success in that? What happens when he finally dies? Does the house, car, bank account, music collection, or some other hobby that he enjoyed get packed up in a box, and he will go and enjoy it somewhere else? 

NO! The bible states that the condition of the dead is like a sleep; they know nothing, their troubles go away, and they go back to dust. Now, to read the holy scriptures, humans today have to do something very difficult at first. We must be humble, realizing that the truth is in this book. We can not cling to our "higher education". It will be like a large stone around our neck!

Only the bible and relying on Jehovah and really running to find him can the veil of this world be removed from our eyes. 

With my nephew, I spend a lot of time trying to use bible teachings and principles to help him to see what is really there. What is really there beyond the veil is a big fat lie. There is a reason that suicide rates (even though many national governments try to hide it) is high. These people see a bit through the veil but not completely. They feel like there is nothing worth living for.

There is a reason people turn to drugs, alcohol, addictions, and the like; they too can feel that there is really nothing this world can really offer except a remarkable waste of time and effort for nothing but growing old suffering the whole while then dying.

Is national pride a good thing?

 I will answer straight away by saying no way! National pride makes no sense when you compare national leaders to Jesus Christ. He is the current King who is over all of the Earth. He lowered himself to come down to Earth to be killed by sinners, when he himself was not! He was innocent, he was eons of years old yet he willingly emptied himself and came down to Earth. When his memories where restored he showed love and compassion. He was granted authority to heal, to resurrect the dead, over the elements themselves, and he gave glory to Jehovah, his father. 

Next week is republic day in India, so there will be many displays of national pride. Now if you look closely at India there is really very little to be proud of. There is a wide gap between the middle class and the poor. Between the rich and the middle class there is a giant chasm as well. Some areas are beautiful and well maintained. While other areas are run down dirty and down right stink! Is this something to be proud of if you call yourself a Christian?  In India Hindus have a lot of power and they are dominating Muslims and Christians. Now theses two groups are about 16% of the population. Christians are only about 2.4 percent or so. 

Jesus offers the waters of life to all to put faith in him and his father, repent and change their ways. If we follow in Jesus's foot steps this makes Jehovah Jesus's father and ours as well happy!

So as an American I feel no pride in it. Instead I see the just how short these nations fall short in front of the Messianic Kingdom which is soon to come!

/tata

A new year with many changes!

 Our trip to get to India and how Jehovah aided us, I will leave to a future post. Now we are in India and are with family, and our spiritual family. We have been attending meetings since we arrived. George started about two weeks before we arrived. We have plans to spend time with our new family as well. 

My family here is doing well the boys yogi and I have been working hard at being regular in our spiritual routine. This has helped us a lot. There have been countless times for informal witnessing and likely two bible studies will be started. 

One thing that only my family understands and Yogita in equal measure, that sense, that feeling that we must leave South Korea is gone. I feel as peace like I did since 2023. This urge to leave was very strong and seemingly irrational. I could have easily joined another hagwon getting a release letter. I felt in my heart that, in the short term, it would be very dangerous for us, while in the long term, it would be very bad for the boys.

We joined in public ministry and this will be increased in the future. We must keep the kingdom first! 

Our G.I tracts have acclimated and our cirradian patterns are matching India well. 

It is so different now. We got our phones connected super fast and internet set up was fast as well, on par with South Korea. Speeds are very nice as well.

We are having a hard time dealing with the traditions of men ugh they are so stupid when they are not based on bible principles, or the traditions of Jesus Christ. 

Our next plan is jobs, extend jeyos period of stay, then GED for the boys.

Steps that have already been done make meetings (100%), ministry / daily spiritual routie on going!

Getting to know the friends and making plans to spend time with them this is in progess right now. 

Personally, I day starts at 5am, but boy am I tuckered out by 11pm or 12am. My hair has started to grow back in! 

There is a possbility of us working from home teaching with Joy in South Korea.

Ok time to choose my spiritual gems for tomorrow's mid week meeting.

/tata