Service Meetings for October
Week Starting October 3
10 min: Local announcements and selected Announcements from Our Kingdom Ministry. Remind all to bring their copy of the brochure When Someone You Love Dies to next week’s Service Meeting.
17 min: “Now Is the Time.” Questions and answers. Include comments on subheading “Pursue Spiritual Goals” on pages 4 and 5 of the November 1993 Our Kingdom Ministry.
18 min: “Be Magazine Conscious During October.” Discuss with audience. Have two well-prepared demonstrations showing how to use the magazines to start conversations. Stress importance of offering magazines at every door with the goal of starting and maintaining a magazine route.
Song 212 and concluding prayer.
Week Starting October 10
10 min: Local announcements. Accounts report and any donation acknowledgments.
20 min: “Parents—Be Supportive!” Talk by an elder based on first three articles in August 8, 1994, Awake! Make local application of material. Briefly interview a parent who may have had experience speaking with teachers or school officials. Emphasize how parents can be supportive of their children.
15 min: “Using the New Brochure Effectively.” Discuss article with audience. Point out features of the brochure, and give suggestions showing how it can be used in comforting the bereaved.
Song 108 and concluding prayer.
Week Starting October 17
10 min: Local announcements. Theocratic News.
15 min: Let Us Not Give Up in Doing What Is Fine. Talk by an elder. Spiritual fatigue can diminish our joy and zeal in Jehovah’s service. Review some ways to renew our spiritual strength using suggestions offered in January 15, 1986, Watchtower, page 19 (box). Stress wholehearted support of congregation activities.
20 min: “Lovingly Help Those Who Show Interest.” Discuss with audience. Arrange for two demonstrations using the suggested presentations. Explain what is recommended in regard to offering subscriptions. Usually it is best to wait until you have made one or more return visits. There should be evidence of genuine interest. Start with a six-month subscription. If the interest is questionable, deliver the magazines personally until there is a more positive response.
Song 156 and concluding prayer.
Week Starting October 24
12 min: Local announcements. Review “We Will Study the Revelation Climax Book Again.” Remind all of the importance of studying the lessons in advance and attending regularly.
15 min: Do You Have a Standing Order? The Watchtower and Awake! magazines are tremendous aids in spreading the Kingdom message. We should offer them at every opportunity. The March 1984 Our Kingdom Ministry recommended that each publisher have “a definite magazine order . . . for a set number of copies of each issue.” Otherwise we may find that we have no current issues to offer and have to rely on tracts or brochures. Good for each family member to have a standing order. Place orders at magazine counter. Be sure to pick magazines up each week. Tactfully inform householder that we accept a modest contribution for our worldwide work; make sure it is placed in the appropriate box at the Kingdom Hall. Mention benefits that come from having a standing order.
18 min: “Seek First God’s Kingdom—By Always Offering Sacrifices of Praise.” Questions and answers. Mention some beneficial goals that we might strive for personally. Discuss ways we may be able to help others to do more.
Song 171 and concluding prayer.
Week Starting October 31
12 min: Local announcements. With worldly holidays coming up in November and December, encourage all to think about enrolling as auxiliary pioneers. Give some suggestions on how we might find enough time to do it.
15 min: Local needs. Or have an elder give a talk on the article “Can You Exercise Patience?” in the May 15, 1994, Watchtower, pages 21-3.
18 min: Offer the New World Translation in November. Since most people already have a Bible, we need to show why the New World Translation is superior. Refer to the book “All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial” (pages 327-8, pars. 1-6). Explain why Jehovah’s name is used, and give some examples showing the advantages of using modern language. Point out helpful features in the back of the Bible, such as “Bible Words Indexed,” which can be used to locate familiar texts quickly. The “Table of the Books of the Bible” shows who wrote each book and where and when it was written, as well as the time period covered. Refer to Reasoning book (page 59, subheading “Bible prophecy explains the meaning of world conditions”), and discuss how you might start a Scriptural conversation based on John 17:3 and Psalm 37:10, 11, 29. Arrange for capable publisher to demonstrate how the New World Translation and the book The Bible—God’s Word or Man’s? might be presented in local territory.
Song 136 and concluding prayer.