Why, once when he was preaching near the temple, one of the men in charge there got heated up about what he said and slapped him and then had him locked up in the stocks. Several times the rulers had him thrown into jail. At one point Jeremiah got so despondent about it that he said: ‘I am not even going to talk about God anymore.’ But he got over it. (Jer. 1:19; 20:1, 2, 9) Yet after twenty-three years he reported that the people in the territory still were not very responsive. “These twenty-three years . . . I kept speaking to you people, rising up early and speaking, but you did not listen.” (Jer. 25:3) In spite of it all, Jeremiah was still on the job, preaching courageously after forty years. He stayed with it right down to the time when Jehovah brought about the things of which he had sent Jeremiah to preach. It is courageous examples such as those that stimulate us to “run with endurance the race that is set before us.”

COURAGE IN THE FACE OF DISAPPOINTMENT

14. What disappointing experience is often had when we call back on persons who were at first willing to listen to the good news, and why?

¹⁴ Among those to whom you talk about God and his kingdom you are going to encounter some who listen, but even many of them will be disappointing, and it is good to know it. You are going to meet persons who listen when you first meet them but who show no interest at all when you return. Jesus likened this situation to seed that fell by the roadside and was snatched up by the birds before it could take root. In these cases the Devil has used those who manifest a spirit like his to misrepresent the Word of God and so to destroy whatever interest was there. Do not become disheartened.—Matt. 13:3, 4, 19.

15. Why is it that others who for a time manifest considerable joy over what they are learning later stop studying with Jehovah’s witnesses?

¹⁵ Others will do more than just listen when you call on them; they will receive the word with joy, and it will make you feel good to have talked to them. They may even welcome you when you return a number of times. Yet some of them are like plants that sprout rapidly in shallow soil; their roots do not go deep. When ridicule is hurled at them by their relatives and other associates, it is more than they care to face. They may know that the things they have heard from the Bible are the truth, and they are rather apologetic when they tell you that they feel it would be better to discontinue studying the Bible with you. But, dominated by fear of man and lacking enough love of God to be moved to obey his commandments, they fall away.—Mark 4:5, 6, 16, 17.

16. What else chokes the word out of the lives of people?

¹⁶ Another group, like seed that falls among the thorns, may allow the word to begin to grow, but they are so weighed down with other matters, problems that are a cause of anxiety to them and that they feel demand their first attention—long hours of secular work, entertaining guests and seeking recreation—that they just do not have time. They may be pleasant; they may say that they wish they could sit down and listen, but they just do not feel that they can take the time.—Luke 8:7, 14.

17. How should we react in the face of these experiences?

¹⁷ Are you going to allow yourself to become downhearted and discouraged about these experiences? Equipped with foreknowledge, avoid that. Rather, by holding on to the truth and ‘bearing fruit with endurance,’ prove that in your case the Word of God has been received into a fine and good heart. By your zealous continuance in the ministry, show that you are not one who withers up in the face of persecution or one who abandons the prospect of God’s new world for the material gains of the old world. Prove that you have the courage to keep on doing the will of God.—Luke 8:8, 15; 2 Tim. 4:10, 11.

18. What should be done when others in whom one had confidence let him down?

¹⁸ One who has a balanced view of these matters is going to be strengthened to face other problems as well. He is not going to let personal problems cause him to lose heart. It is true that at times one’s associates, even those within the Christian congregation, do things that may disappoint one. They try to do what is right, but they are not perfect; none of us are. What should we do when others let us down? Consider the pattern set for us by Christ Jesus, the Chief Agent of our faith.

19, 20. In this connection, what experience did Jesus undergo, and what example did he set from which we can profit?

¹⁹ It was on the last night of his life as a human that he went to the garden of Gethsemane with his disciples to pray. Before long a mob with swords and clubs moved in and put him under arrest. The disciples stayed long enough to see what was happening, but, then, as the record tells us, “all the disciples abandoned him and fled.” (Matt. 26:56) Later that night, in the courtyard of the high priest, a servant girl on seeing Peter said that he must be one of Jesus’ followers. But Peter retorted: “I do not know him, woman.” Three times it happened, and all in the courtyard where Jesus saw him after the cock crowed. (Luke 22:55-61) But Jesus did not falter. He did not allow the shortcomings of his associates to cause him to waver in his faithfulness to God. He looked to his Father in heaven and trusted in him.

²⁰ Then on the third day, when he was raised from the dead, Jesus had the opportunity to settle accounts with those who had let him down if he wanted to, but what did he do? He did not scold them for what they had done. He did not say: ‘After what you did the other night, don’t you ever speak to me again. We’re finished!’ Nor did he give them the cold shoulder and refuse to talk to them. To the contrary, he studied with them and prayed with them and helped them to grow strong so they would not falter again, but would prove to be courageous servants of God. He was more concerned with their faithfulness than with his feelings. What a wonderful example for us to follow!—Luke 24:44-50.

“FIGHTING SIDE BY SIDE FOR THE FAITH”

21. What should be our attitude toward association with the congregation of Jehovah’s people?

²¹ No one who wants to prove faithful in the service of God can afford to let hurt feelings, or materialistic pursuits or persecution separate him from the congregation of Jehovah’s people. Every true Christian needs that upbuilding spiritual association. It is at the regular meetings of the congregation that one becomes equipped to serve God. It is there that one’s faith is strengthened so that he can courageously persevere in doing the divine will. Servants of God today should feel about these meetings as the early Christians did, who were willing, not only to inconvenience themselves, but to face danger in order to congregate with their fellow believers. Even when persecution was intense against them, King Herod having killed James and holding Peter in prison, the others did not slack off in their attendance at meetings out of fear. While exercising due caution, meeting behind closed doors, they nevertheless gathered together to pray and to strengthen one another. They knew that they needed those meetings in order to stay spiritually alive and to have the courage to continue bearing witness, as Jesus had instructed them. (Acts 12:1-5, 12-17) The need is just as great today. Every true Christian should prize that privilege of assembling together for instruction from God’s Word as did the brothers in Troas, who, when Paul made a brief visit to them, stayed to listen to what was said even though Paul talked right through the night and the meeting did not end until daybreak. (Acts 20:7-11) When you have the opportunity to meet with the congregation of Jehovah’s people, take full advantage of it. In this be stimulated by the example of David, one of that great cloud of pre-Christian witnesses of Jehovah, who said: “I rejoiced when they were saying to me: ‘To the house of Jehovah let us go.’”—Ps. 122:1.

22. By what means does Jehovah help us to be courageous, and what should be our determination?

²² What wonderful encouragement there is for all who love God to do his will! By means of the Scriptural accounts of the lives of his faithful servants Jehovah has provided a marvelous stimulus for all who love righteousness to take hold of the opportunity to be preachers of the kingdom of God, pointing others to the ‘new heavens and new earth in which righteousness is to dwell.’ (2 Pet. 3:13) Through provisions for them to meet together and preach together with fellow witnesses, he helps them to grow strong and to remain firm in the faith. Through his Word he urges them to persevere in the ministry, to exert themselves vigorously in his service, ‘buying out the opportune time because the days are wicked.’ (Eph. 5:15-17) He extends to them the privilege of approaching him in prayer, and with his spirit he backs them up. If you regularly avail yourself of these divine provisions, you have every reason to be courageous; you will be able to stand “firm in one spirit, with one soul fighting side by side for the faith of the good news, and in no respect being frightened by your opponents. This very thing is a proof of destruction for them, but of salvation for you; and this indication is from God.”—Phil. 1:27, 28.

Finding Joy by Serving God

As told by P. A. Idreos

MY PARENTS are Greeks. I myself was born in Smyrna, Asia Minor, in the early part of the twentieth century. Shortly after World War I the place of my birth became a battleground between the Greeks and the Turks. Many thousands of people were taken captive by the Turks, and I was among them—a prisoner of the Turks while still in my teens.

Those were dramatic days. They awakened many questions in my mind. Could it be that I was destined to spend my life