Jehovah No Ever Fail Me!

I GROW for one place for Austria wey dem dey call Graz. When I dey seven years, my papa and mama send me go one church school. But I come see sey Catholic priests dey sleep with the sisters wey dey stay the church. Because of this one, I no stay the school reach one year before my mama allow me comot for the school.

Later, I come dey boarding school for Graz. E get one night wey my papa come carry me from school because dem dey bomb the area well well. We come run go one town wey dem dey call Schladming. E get one bridge wey we cross. As we just cross finish, dem bomb the bridge. E still get one time wey me and my grandmama see some aeroplane wey dey fly near ground. Dem come dey shoot come where we dey for inside our compound. When the war end, we come dey feel sey both government and church don fail us.

I LEARN ABOUT THE PERSON WEY NO DEY FAIL

For 1950, one Jehovah Witness come dey study Bible with my mama. I dey listen when dem dey study with my mama, and I even follow am go meeting sometimes. My mama see sey na Jehovah Witness people dey teach the truth wey dey Bible. So e come baptize for 1952.

That time, the congregation for our area just be like where old people dey gather. Na so because old people full am well well. Later, we come visit one congregation wey different from the one wey dey our area. We see many young people for there. When we go back to Graz, I come dey go meeting everytime. E no tey, I come believe sey wetin I dey learn na true. I learn sey Jehovah na God wey no dey fail im people. Even if our problem big pass us, and nobody dey to help us, Jehovah ready to help us.​—Ps. 3:5, 6.

E come dey hungry me to tell people the truth wey I don learn. The first people wey I try to preach to na my brothers and sisters. That time, my four senior sisters no dey stay with us again. Dem dey teach for different different village. But I dey go visit dem for there, and I tell dem sey make dem try to study Bible. Later, all my brothers and sisters study Bible and dem become Jehovah Witness.

The second week after I start to preach from house-to-house, I come meet one woman wey dey around 30 years. And I start to study Bible with am. That time wey I dey study the woman, the study make my faith strong. Why? The truth be sey, nobody really sitdown study Bible with me. Before I dey study the woman, I dey first prepare well. So e just be like sey I dey teach myself first so that I go fit teach am! This one really help me understand Bible well well. I give Jehovah my life and I baptize for April 1954. Later, the woman, im husband and im two son still baptize.

DEM SUFFER US, BUT JEHOVAH NO LEAVE US

For 1955, I go international convention for Germany, France, and England. When I dey London, I meet Brother Albert Schroeder. This brother dey teach for Gilead School that time, and e later become Governing Body member. When we go visit British Museum, Brother Schroeder show us some old paper wey dem write Bible put. Dem use Hebrew language take write God name for the paper. The brother still tell us why dem value this old paper. This one really touch my mind and e come make me love Jehovah and Bible pass before. I come get mind to continue to tell people the truth wey dey Bible.

I become regular pioneer for January 1, 1956. After four months, dem make me special pioneer for Austria. Dem send me go one town wey Jehovah Witness no dey. The name of the town na Mistelbach. But I face one problem. E get one sister wey be pioneer like me, and we dey preach together. Me and this sister really different. I don nearly reach 19 years that time, but e dey 25 years. Na city I come from, but e come from village. I no dey quick wake up for morning, but e dey quick wake. For night, I no dey quick sleep, but e dey like to quick sleep. But even as things be, the advice wey dey Bible help us fit stay together. And Jehovah really bless our work.

E get other wahala wey we face. Dem even suffer us sometimes but Jehovah no leave us. (2 Cor. 4:7-9) One day when we dey preach for one village, the people for the village come release their dog. The dog dem surround us. Dem big, dem dey bark, and dem ready to bite us. We come hold each other hand, and I even pray self. I tell Jehovah sey: “If the dog dem reach where we dey, abeg, make we quick die!” When the dog reach where we dey, dem come stop. Dem shake their tail and waka comot. We know sey na Jehovah really save us. After this thing happen, we preach for everywhere for the village. And e surprise us sey the people listen well well. Wetin make dem listen? E be like sey dem surprise as the dog dem no do us anything. Or maybe, e surprise dem sey we still dey preach after this kind thing happen to us. Later, some of the people for the village become Jehovah Witness.

E get another wahala wey make us fear. One day, our landlord drink come house. E come dey talk sey we dey cause trouble for the area, and e sey e go kill us. Im wife try to talk to am, but e no hear. Na from our room wey dey upstair, we hear wetin dey happen. We come quick carry chair take block our door. And we start to dey pack our load. When we open our door, we come see our landlord. E don climb reach up, and e carry one big knife for hand. So we come carry our property run pass back door, and we follow bush comot. We no ever go back.

We come go hotel. When we reach there, we come tell dem sey make dem give us one room. We stay that hotel for nearly one year. The hotel make preaching easy. How? The hotel dey center of the town, and some of our Bible student like to dey come there to study. E no tey, we come dey do book study and Watchtower Study for our room wey dey the hotel. Na about 15 people dey come.

E pass one year wey we stay for Mistelbach. Later dem come send me go where dem dey call Feldbach. This place face southeast of Graz. Na another sister come be my pioneer partner. But congregation no still dey there. We dey stay for one upstair wey dem use wood make. Our room small well well. Space dey between the wood wey dem take build the house. So when breeze dey blow, e dey pass the space enter our room and e dey make noise. We come use newspaper take block the space. Na well water we dey use. But the time wey we spend for this place no be waste. After some months, we come get one group. E get one family wey we study with. Later, about 30 people for the family come start to serve Jehovah.

Things like this really make me value the way Jehovah dey support people wey put im work as the number one thing for their life. Jehovah go always dey there for us, even if person no dey there to help us.​—Ps. 121:1-3.

JEHOVAH DON REALLY SUPPORT ME

For 1958, e get one international convention wey dem arrange to do for Yankee Stadium and Polo Grounds wey dey New York City. I come fill form sey I go like go. But around that time, the branch office wey dey Austria come ask me if I go like dey class 32 of Gilead School. Wetin go make me sey no for that kind thing? So I no waste time talk sey, “Yes!”

When I dey Gilead School, I sitdown near Brother Martin Poetzinger. This brother suffer well well when Nazi government put am for prison. But e bear all this wahala. This brother later become Governing Body member. When we still dey class for Gilead, sometimes Brother Martin dey take style ask me sey, “Erika, wetin that one mean for German?”

Before the class end, Brother Nathan Knorr tell us where dem dey send us go. E talk sey I dey go Paraguay. Because I dey young that time, the government no go allow me enter the country if my papa no gree. So after dem see sey my papa gree, I come fit enter Paraguay for March 1959. Na the house wey missionary dey stay for Asunción dem send me go. And I get new preaching partner for there.

E no tey, I come meet one brother wey be missionary. Im name na Walter Bright. This brother graduate from class 30 of Gilead School. After sometime, we come marry. We come dey face wahala for life together. Anytime we dey face serious problem, we dey read wetin Jehovah promise for Isaiah 41:10. That place talk sey: “No fear because I dey with you. No worry because I be your God. I go make you strong.” This verse dey remind us sey Jehovah no go ever fail us if we no stop to serve am, and put im Kingdom first.

After some time, dem come send us go one place wey near Brazil. The church leaders for there tell young people to dey stone the missionary house wey we dey stay. And the house don already start to dey spoil before. My husband come start to dey study one man wey be the oga of police. The man send some police make dem dey near our house for one week. Because of this one, the people wey dey give us problem come stop. E no tey after that time, dem come give us another place to stay wey better pass the first place. The place dey for Brazil but e no too far from Paraguay. E good sey we pack go there because we come fit dey do meeting for Paraguay and for Brazil. Before we comot from that place, two small congregation come dey there.

JEHOVAH NO STOP TO HELP ME

My doctor tell me sey I no go fit born pikin. But for 1962, I come get belle. E surprise me no be small! We come go dey stay near Hollywood wey dey Florida, near my husband family. Me and my husband no fit pioneer for some years because we need to take care of our family. But we continue to dey put God Kingdom as the number one thing for our life.​—Matt. 6:33.

When we reach Florida for November 1962, black people and oyibo people for there no dey do things together. And e surprise us sey e don affect the brothers for there. Black people and oyibo people come dey do their meeting separate. Dem even get different area wey dem dey preach. But we know sey Jehovah no dey select. Later, black brothers and oyibo brothers come dey do things together. We know sey Jehovah hand dey the matter, na im make we get many congregation for the area now.

My husband die for 2015 because of brain cancer. E pain me well well. Na better husband e be, and we don stay together for 55 years. E love Jehovah and e don help many brothers. I dey wait for the time when I go see am again when Jehovah go resurrect am. That time, e no go sick again.​—Acts 24:15.

I don dey full-time service for more than 40 years. E dey really make me happy. I dey see how Jehovah dey bless me as I dey do am. For example, me and my husband don help 136 people learn about Jehovah, and we dey there when dem baptize. Na true sey we face some problem. But dem no make us stop to dey serve Jehovah. Instead, dem make us near Jehovah pass before. And we trust am sey when im time reach, e go settle matter as e want am. And na wetin Jehovah dey do be that!​—2 Tim. 4:16, 17.

I miss my husband well well. But as I dey pioneer, e dey help me fit bear am. E dey really help me well well when I dey teach people Bible, especially when I dey tell dem about resurrection. True true, Jehovah no ever fail me. E do wetin e promise. E don support me, help me, and e don use im “right hand wey good” take hold me.​—Isa. 41:10.