LAEF STORY
God Hem Kaen Tumas Long Mifala Long Staka Difren Wei
DADI bilong mi, Arthur, hem young man wea lovem God, so hem laek for kamap minister bilong Methodist church. Bat tingting bilong hem change taem hem readim olketa pablikeson bilong olketa Bible Student and hem start for joinim olketa. Long 1914, taem dadi bilong mi hem 17 year, hem baptaes. Long taem bilong World War I, gavman askem hem for joinim army, bat hem no acceptim datwan. So olketa putim hem long prison for tenfala month long Kingston Penitentiary long Ontario, long Canada. Bihaen hem kamaot from prison, hem kamap wanfala colporteur, wea hem nem bilong olketa pioneer long bifor.
Long 1926, dadi bilong mi maritim Hazel Wilkinson. Mami bilong Hazel lanem truth long 1908. Mi born long April 24, 1931. Mifala fofala pikinini and mi mek-tu long famili. Dadi bilong mi tinghae tumas long Bible, and hem teachim mifala tu for tinghae long Bible. Olketa spiritual samting nao hem main samting long laef bilong mifala. Full famili savve duim preaching waka evritaem.—Acts 20:20.
MI NO TEKSAED AND MI PIONEER, OLSEM DADI
Long 1939, World War II hem start. Long year bihaen datwan, gavman tambuim waka bilong Olketa Jehovah’s Witness long Canada. Olketa pikinini long skul mas salutim flag and singim national anthem insaed class rum. Evritaem olketa teacher savve letem mitufala sista bilong mi, Dorothy, for go aotsaed taem olketa duim datwan. Bat wanday, teacher bilong mi laek for mekem mi shame, so hem sei mi boy for fraet. Taem mifala kamaot from class, samfala classmate bilong mi hitim mi and mi foldaon long graon. Nomata olsem, wanem hem happen mekem mi disaed strong for obeyim God, and no olketa man.—Acts 5:29.
Long July 1942, taem mi 11 year, mi baptaes long wanfala farm insaed long wanfala wata tank. Mi savve laek tumas for duim vacation pioneer waka long taem bilong skul holiday. Distaem diswan hem auxiliary pioneer waka. Wantaem mi go witim thrifala brata long north part bilong Ontario, for preach long olketa wea duim logging.
Long May 1, 1949, mi start for duim regular pioneer waka. Then mi kasem invitation for duim construction waka long Canada branch, and bihaen mi kamap wanfala Bethelite long there. Mi kasem assignment for waka long printery, and mi lane for waka long flatbed printing press. Mi tingim yet tu-thri week wea mifala mas waka full naet for printim tract wea storyim persecution wea pipol bilong Jehovah long Canada olketa kasem.
Bihaen, mi waka long Service Department. Mi kasem assignment for interviewim samfala wea bae go pioneer long Quebec, ples wea bigfala persecution hem gohed long datfala taem. Wanfala long olketa pioneer hia hem Mary Zazula wea kam from Edmonton, long Alberta. Dadi and mami bilong hem joinim Orthodox Church. Taem Mary and big brata bilong hem no laek stop for studyim Bible witim Olketa Jehovah’s Witness, dadi and mami bilong olketa raosem tufala from haos. Mary and brata bilong hem baptaes long June 1951, and sixfala month bihaen, tufala start for pioneer. Taem mi interviewim Mary, mi luksavve hem barava lovem Jehovah. Long tingting bilong mi, hem nao gele wea mi laek for maritim. Naenfala month bihaen, long January 30, 1954, mitufala marit. Wanfala week bihaen mitufala marit, mitufala kasem training for duim circuit waka. For tufala year mifala duim circuit waka long north part bilong Ontario.
Taem preaching waka hem kamap big evriwea long world, need hem kamap for samfala missionary moa. Mitufala Mary ting raonem diswan and sei from mifala kam from Canada wea hem cold tumas, and wea hem savve garem staka mosquito long taem bilong hot season, mitufala fit for stap long eni ples. So mitufala attendim mek-27 class bilong Gilead and graduate long July 1956. Long November, long datfala sem year, mitufala stap nao long niu assignment bilong mifala long Brazil.
MISSIONARY WAKA LONG BRAZIL
Taem mifala arrive long Brazil, mifala start for lanem Portuguese languis. Firstaem, mifala lanem olketa isi toktok for startim story. Then, mifala baeheartim olketa short story for offerim magasin. Bihaen, mifala go long preaching waka and meetim wanfala woman wea interest for herem story long Bible. Mifala disaed sapos haosholder hem interest, bae mifala readim wanfala scripture abaotem wanem Kingdom bilong God bae duim. So mi readim Revelation 21:3, 4, and then nomoa mi faint nao. Long datfala taem mi no getius long weather olsem wea hot tumas, and hem samting wea mi gohed stragol witim.
Missionary assignment bilong mifala hem long taon bilong Campos. Distaem, 15-fala kongregeson nao stap long datfala taon! Bat taem mifala arrive long there, wanfala isolated grup nomoa long datfala taon, and tu wanfala missionary hom wea fofala sista nao stap long hem. Olketa sista hia nao, Esther Tracy, Ramona Bauer, Luiza Schwarz, and Lorraine Brookes (wea distaem hem Lorraine Wallen). Assignment bilong mi long missionary hom hem nao for help for waswas kaleko, and for tekem firewood for kuki. Wanfala Monday naet, bihaen mifala duim Wastaoa Study, Mary hem leidaon long cushion chair and mifala gohed story abaotem wanem mifala duim long datfala day. Taem hem getap for sidaon, wanfala snek nao andanit long pillow wea hem iusim! Evriwan singaot and ran olobaot taem olketa lukim datfala snek, so mi mas killim dae datfala snek.
Bihaen mitufala lanem Portuguese languis for wanfala year, mifala start for duim circuit waka. Mifala visitim olketa kongregeson wea stap long olketa ples wea no garem paoa. Mifala savve sleep nomoa long mat, and for travel mifala iusim horse and olketa wagon wea horse pullim. Wantaem mifala iusim train for go kasem wanfala taon wea stap antap long olketa maunten mekem mifala savve preach long wanfala territory wea no eni witness stap. Mifala rentim wanfala rum long there. Branch office sendem 800 magasin for mifala iusim long ministry. So, mifala mas go staka taem long post office for karem kam olketa box magasin hia long ples wea mifala stap.
Long 1962, Kingdom Ministry Skul hem kamap long samfala difren ples long Brazil. Mi kasem assignment for kamap wanfala instructor long skul hia. For sixfala month miseleva travel go for teach long olketa difren ples. Olketa ples wea skul hia kamap hem long Manaus, Belém, Fortaleza, Recife, and Salvador. Taem mi long Manaus, mi organizem wanfala distrik convention wea kamap long wanfala opera haos, wea staka pipol savve long hem. From hem taem bilong rain, no eni gud wata for drinkim, and tu, no eni gudfala ples for olketa brata and sista sidaon for kaikai long taem bilong convention. Mi storyim problem bilong mifala long wanfala man long army. Hem mekem arrangement for mifala kasem klin wata for drinkim long taem wea datfala convention gohed. And tu, hem sendem olketa soldia for putim ap tufala bigfala tent, wea mifala iusim for kuki insaed and for sidaon for kaikai.
Taem mi go, Mary hem preach long wanfala bisnis territory wea no eniwan interest for storyim Bible. Olketa hia from Portugal, bat olketa kam long Brazil for duim bisnis. Datwan mekem Mary feel nogud and hem sei olsem long olketa fren bilong hem: “Lalas ples long earth wea mi bae laek for go stap long hem nao hem long Portugal.” No longtaem bihaen datwan, mifala kasem wanfala leta. Mifala kasem invitation for go duim missionary waka long Portugal. Long datfala taem, gavman tambuim preaching waka long there. Mary barava seke fogud! Nomata olsem, mitufala acceptim datfala assignment and go long Portugal.
ASSIGNMENT BILONG MIFALA LONG PORTUGAL
Long August, 1964, mitufala arrive long Lisbon, long Portugal. Olketa police long there givim hard taem for olketa brata bilong iumi. From datwan, hem wise for mifala no contactim olketa Witness taem mifala arrive. Firstaem, mitufala stap long wanfala rum wea mifala rentim. Then, taem mifala kasem visa bilong mifala, mitufala rentim wanfala haos. Bihaen faevfala month, hem sef nao for contactim olketa brata long branch office, and mifala hapi tumas taem mifala savve attendim olketa meeting long there.
From gavman tambuim waka long there, olketa brata no iusim olketa Kingdom Hall bat olketa holem olketa meeting long haos bilong olketa brata and sista. Olketa police chekim haos bilong olketa brata and sista evritaem. Staka handred brata and sista nao police tekem olketa go long police station for kwestinim olketa. Police spoelem olketa and trae for forcem olketa for talem nem bilong olketa brata wea lukaftarem waka long Portugal. So for protectim olketa brata and sista, olketa no iusim famili nem bilong olketa, bat iusim nomoa olketa first nem.
Main samting nao hem for olketa brata and sista kasem spiritual kaikai wea bae helpem olketa for no givap. Mary savve typem long wanfala spesol kaen pepa olketa study article bilong Wastaoa and olketa nara pablikeson. Then olketa savve iusim datfala pepa for printim olketa nara copy for olketa brata and sista iusim.
DEFENDIM GUD NIUS LONG KOT
Long June 1966, wanfala important kot case hem kamap long Lisbon. Gavman sei 49 brata and sista long Feijó Kongregeson olketa brekem law taem olketa attendim wanfala meeting long haos bilong wanfala brata. For redyim olketa for datfala kot case, mi act olsem wanfala lawyer and askem enikaen kwestin long olketa. Bat mifala savve finis, bae mifala lus long datfala kot case. Olketa putim evriwan long 49 brata and sista hia long prison, start long 45 day go kasem faev and haf month. Bat datfala kot case givim bigfala witness. Interesting samting, long taem bilong datfala kot case, lawyer wea Society iusim hem talem toktok bilong Gamaliel wea stap insaed long Bible. (Acts 5:33-39) Bihaen datwan, datfala kot case kamaot long nius. Mifala hapi tumas taem datfala lawyer hem start for studyim Bible and attendim olketa meeting.
Long December 1966, mi kasem assignment for kamap branch overseer and main waka wea mi duim hem for lukaftarem olketa legal samting. Mifala traem best for stretem evri samting saed long law mekem Olketa Jehovah’s Witness savve free for worship long Portugal. (Phil. 1:7) Gogo, long December 18, 1974, gavman letem preaching waka for gohed moa. Brata Nathan Knorr and Frederick Franz from hedquarter hapi tumas for kam joinim mifala long tufala hipap wea mi holem long Oporto and Lisbon, and 46,870 brata and sista nao attendim.
Jehovah openem wei for preaching waka for go kasem tu olketa island wea pipol iusim Portuguese languis. Olketa island hia nao Azores, Cape Verde, Madeira, and São Tomé and Príncipe. Taem namba bilong olketa pablisa long olketa ples hia kamap staka, mifala need for mekem branch office kamap big tu. Bihaen olketa buildim niufala branch office, Brata Milton Henschel givim dedication tok long April 23, 1988. Mifala hapi tumas for lukim 45,522 brata and sista olketa attendim datwan, and tu, 20-fala missionary wea stap long Portugal bifor olketa kam for datfala program.
EXAMPLE BILONG OLKETA WEA FAITHFUL HELPEM MIFALA
Long olketa year wea go pas, mitufala Mary hapi tumas for lane from olketa faithful brata and sista. Olsem example, taem mi and Brata Theodore Jaracz duim wanfala zone visit, mi lanem wanfala important samting. Branch office wea mifala visitim garem wanfala big problem, and olketa brata long Branch Komiti duim best bilong olketa for stretem datwan. Bat from datfala problem no stret yet, Brata Jaracz encouragem olketa and sei: “Distaem iumi letem holy spirit for duim waka bilong hem.” Mi hard for forgetim tu wanfala samting wea Brata Franz talem mitufala Mary taem mifala visit long Brooklyn staka year go finis. Samfala long mifala askem hem for advaes and hem sei long mifala: “Wanem mi savve talem nao hem olsem: Faithful for obeyim organization bilong Jehovah long earth nomata wanem samting happen. Hem nomoa only organization wea obeyim komand wea Jesus talem long olketa disaepol for preachim gud nius abaotem Kingdom bilong God!”
Mitufala Mary hapi tumas taem mifala duim olsem. And tu, mitufala garem olketa naesfala memory taem mifala duim zone visit long olketa difren branch office raonem world. Mitufala hapi tumas for meetim pipol bilong Jehovah wea young and olo, and for encouragem olketa for luksavve Jehovah hem tinghae long waka wea olketa duim for hem. Mifala evritaem encouragem olketa for gohed worshipim hem.
Distaem, mitufala Mary winim 80 year finis and health bilong Mary hem no mas gud. (2 Cor. 12:9) And mifala kasem tu olketa nara hard taem. Bat olketa hard taem hia hem strongim faith bilong mifala and mekem mifala laek for gohed faithful long Jehovah. Taem mifala ting bak long olketa year wea mifala duim full-taem service, mifala savve Jehovah hem kaen tumas long mifala long staka difren wei. *
^ par. 29 Brata Douglas Guest hem dae taem olketa redi for pablisim disfala story bilong hem. Hem faithful long Jehovah go kasem taem hem dae long October 25, 2015.
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