God Took My Burden
By Lewis Petty
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My name is Lewis Petty and I am married to a wonderful woman named Susan. Together with our four children, we serve in a small Pentecostal church that loves the Lord. But my life has not always been this good. In 1975, my family received a visit from Jehovah’s Witnesses while we lived in Greenwood, S.C. Within a short time, at the age of 11, I began to study their material and started attending meetings at the Kingdom Hall. My mom also got me involved in a "bible" study. I really felt like I was part of something, and it felt good. |
As I grew, however, I became more independent. In fact, I began to ask questions and even have doubts about what I was being taught at the Kingdom Hall. But even though I was having doubts, I still ended up marrying a Witness girl when I was 19 years old. Unfortunately, we made the mistake of spending some time alone together just before we were married—and the rest is history. We were disfellowshipped even after being completely open and honest with the elders. We continued attending the meetings, but then stopped when we moved to a different location.
Meanwhile, I continued to have questions about the Watchtower Society’s teachings. Fortunately, the Lord made it possible for my mom to receive some video tapes of several ex-Witnesses. We watched the videos, but neither my wife nor I were ready to accept what the ex-Witnesses were saying. Over the next few years, the Lord began to work in my wife’s life, but I wouldn’t budge. As a result, our marriage fell apart and we later divorced.
I was an unstable man with a lot of hatred built up inside. Furthermore, I was suffering from depression. Sadly, I had been taught as a Jehovah’s Witness that the only place I could go for help was the Society. But that wasn’t an option since I was disfellowshipped. I had nowhere to go, and no one to turn to. The only thing that made me feel like I had anything to live for were my two girls, so I decided to try to get custody of them. When I spoke to a lawyer, she told me that fathers usually don’t get custody of girls. She also gave me tips on improving the way I dressed as well as the attitude I expressed. And finally, she told me to start going to church because it would help me.
So, I went back to the Kingdom Hall to begin the reinstatement process. I
thought I had someone to depend on. While moving in the direction of the WT
Organization, however, the Lord began to bring more questions to my mind. I
determined to find out for sure whether what I was being taught by the
Organization was true or not. So I prayed, "Jehovah, you said that I would
know the truth, and that the truth would set me free. Please, I really want to
know the truth. With all I have, I want to know
the truth."
Almost immediately, my relationship with the Lord began to be the most important thing in my life. The next day, I was at home alone when two Mormons came to my door. I really did try to consider what they said with an open mind. Later that afternoon, however, my mom gave me a phone number and asked me to call someone at New Light Ministries. I called and the person I spoke with invited me to a meeting with several ex-Witnesses. I agreed to go.
Well, I arrived hours early on the day we were all scheduled to meet. I met with a woman named Helen Ortega (who was once an anointed JW) and I began bombarding her with questions. With the help of the Spirit (and much patience), she answered all of my questions. Then, she asked me if I was willing to receive the Lord into my heart as my personal savior. I said "yes," and prayed for His forgiveness and received Him. The meeting with other ex-Witnesses was about to start, so we went out to meet them. Everyone took turns giving a brief introduction, and then it was my turn. I looked at everyone and said, "Hi. My name is Lewis Petty. I’m an ex-Witness and I have been saved for about 10 minutes and 37 seconds. I feel good. No more guilt and I’m not carrying around a heavy load."
Since God put his mark on me for eternity, He has grown and matured me in many ways. Furthermore, He has never left me or forsaken me. The truth really did set me free.