Māris Krūmin̗š, who also serves at Bethel, had to make major changes in his life in order to serve Jehovah. “After serving in the military,” explains Māris, “I became disillusioned with life. Later, I was expelled from a university for missing lectures. Aimless, I got involved in crime, and one night after a drunken brawl, I was arrested. Sitting in my cell, I thought about the laws I had broken and concluded that many of them actually stemmed from the laws of God. For the first time in my life, I prayed to God for forgiveness and vowed to search for him.

“After being released from prison, I attended various churches but each time met with disappointment. So I started to read the Bible and other religious books. In 1990, while traveling on a train, I met a former schoolmate and learned that he was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. During that short journey, Jehovah opened up my heart as I listened to my old friend explain God’s purpose for mankind and the reason for the suffering in the world. I began to study and became a publisher in 1991. In 1992, I was baptized. A year later, I became a member of the Latvia Bethel family, and in 1995, I married Simona, a Finnish pioneer.”

[Pictures on page 207]

When in prison, Māris Krūmin̗š prayed to God for the first time