JW subtitle extractor

In what ways have you seen people
treat others who are different from them?
When I was at school,
a common viewpoint of my schoolmates
was that you should be accepting
of whatever lifestyle
someone chooses to lead.
Teachers would encourage us to support
those with different sexual orientations.
In my final year of high school,
a new teacher arrived.
He was different.
He came from the capital,
and I lived in a small town.
He had spent many years at university
and didn’t believe in God.
On social media, it was very common
to see extreme viewpoints
about different lifestyles.
I often saw comments
attacking others for their lifestyles.
The teacher had a very different personality.
He seemed to like attacking the students
and putting them on the spot.
He would ask probing questions
about controversial topics in class
and even made comments to the class like,
“The people from here
aren’t made for learning.”
Of course, the students
didn’t react very well.
Many of them refused to attend his classes,
or if they did, they refused to speak to him
during the class.
I remember them saying,
“I’m not going to talk with that atheist.”
I remember that some classmates
would say to me,
“Don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses
hate gay people?”
It seemed like many students assumed
that we must have an extreme viewpoint
and that we would completely reject those
who don’t conform to our beliefs.
What helped you get the Bible’s viewpoint?
My parents always helped me
to have a balanced viewpoint.
As I was growing up,
they helped me understand that even though
we completely reject certain conduct,
we don’t hate the person who practices it.
I learned a lot from my mom’s example.
She used to work at a beauty salon,
and I saw how she
was always kind to others she worked with,
regardless of their sexual orientation.
I thought of Jesus’ example
—how he shared the message with everyone
no matter their thinking or background.
Jesus took the time to talk with them,
no matter who they were
or what others thought of them.
I love the scripture at Matthew 5:45,
where it says that Jehovah
makes the sun shine
and the rain fall on all people.
This is an expression of his love,
to provide what each person needs
no matter who they are.
As I was thinking about Jesus’ example,
I remembered his words recorded at Matthew,
where he tells us
that what “you want men to do to you,
you also must do to them.”
This helped me to think about
how I should act around my teacher.
It made me treat him differently.
I mean, if Jehovah, the Almighty God,
is kind, good, and respectful toward all,
why shouldn’t I be?
And that would include those
whose conduct I don’t agree with.
Jehovah has given us the best way
to show our love for our neighbor,
by helping them to come to know him.
What has been the outcome
of applying Bible principles?
At my previous job, I worked at a hotel
where there was a waiter who was gay.
Some of his coworkers would treat him poorly.
So I made sure I didn’t join in with them
and treated him like I would anyone else.
I was able to have conversations
with my teacher about the Bible
and share scriptures with him.
He was impressed by what the Bible
had to say on scientific matters
and said he wanted to find out more.
One day, the waiter came up to me
and thanked me for being different
from the others in the way I treated him.
Even some of the other waiters
asked me why I was like that.
This opened up the opportunity
to explain that I try
to apply Bible principles in my life,
including how I treat others.
There was a noticeable change in the teacher
as the school year went on.
He told me that he was impressed
by my conduct
and because I had spoken with him
when none of the other students would.
His classes became so much better
because he started
to be nicer to his students.
Little by little,
the students returned to class,
and by the end of the year,
it had become one of the classes
that we enjoyed the most.
When I think about the way
that Jehovah treats people
and how he gives everyone a chance
to learn about him,
I’m drawn to him even more.

Reasons for Faith—How We Should Treat Others