Laef Story

Thankiu Long Jehovah—Thru Long Full-Taem Service!

STORY BILONG STANLEY E. REYNOLDS

Mi born long London, England long 1910. Bihaen World War I, dadi and mami bilong mi muv go long wanfala smol vilij long Wiltshire wea olketa kolem Westbury Leigh. Taem mi young boy, planti taem mi ting, ‘Hu nao God?’ No eniwan savve talem mi. And mi no savve reason why nao smol community bilong mifala needim tufala chapel and wanfala church tu for worshipim God.

LONG 1935, fofala year bifor start bilong World War II, mi and smol brata bilong mi, Dick, raedem bicycle go long Weymouth long saedsea long south bilong England for camp long there for holiday. Taem mifala sidaon insaed tent bilong mifala and lisin long rain and tingim wanem nao for duim, wanfala olo man kam and offerim thrifala buk for studyim Bible—The Harp of God, Light I, and Light II. Mi hapi for tekem olketa from mi no garem eni samting for duim. Stretawe mi barava interest long samting wea mi readim, bat long datfala taem mi no savve datwan bae changem laef bilong mi evribit—and bilong brata bilong mi tu.

Taem mi go bak long haos, mami bilong mi sei Kate Parsons, wea stap long vilij bilong mifala, hem givimaot semkaen Bible literature olsem. Planti pipol savve long hem bikos, nomata hem olo, hem raedem wanfala smol motobike for visitim pipol long bigfala area bilong mifala. Mi go for lukim hem, and hem hapi tumas for givim mi tufala buk Creation and Riches and tu olketa narafala buk bilong Watch Tower Society. Hem talem mi tu hao hem wanfala Jehovah’s Witness.

Bihaen mi readim olketa buk hia witim Bible bilong mi, mi savve Jehovah nao tru God, and mi want for worshipim hem. So mi sendem wanfala leta for resign from church bilong mifala and start for attendim olketa Bible study long haos bilong John and Alice Moody. Tufala stap long Westbury, taon wea klosap long mifala. Sevenfala long mifala nomoa go long olketa meeting hia. Bifor and bihaen olketa meeting, Kate Parsons hem pleim harmonium and mifala singim big olketa Kingdom song tugeta!

Olketa Taem Bifor

Mi luksavve mifala stap long olketa important taem, and mi laek tumas for share insaed long preaching waka wea Matthew 24:14 hem profesi abaot. So, mi finis smoke, baem wanfala basket, and dedicatem miseleva long Nambawan God, Jehovah.

Long August 1936, Joseph F. Rutherford, president bilong Watch Tower Society, hem visitim Glasgow, Scotland, for story long subject “Armageddon.” Nomata Glasgow hem 600 kilometer from ples wea mi stap, mi disaed strong for go and baptaes long datfala convention. Mi garem lelebet selen nomoa, so mi tekem bicycle bilong mi long train for kasem Carlisle, wanfala taon long border bilong Scotland, and raed for nara 160 kilometer go long north. Mi raedem bicycle klosap full wei kam bak long haos, and nomata mi taed long physical wei bat mi feel strong long spiritual wei.

Start from datfala taem, mi raedem bicycle long evri ples for sharem faith bilong mi witim pipol wea stap klosap. Long datfala taem, evri Witness garem wanfala testimony card wea garem wanfala Bible message for olketa haosholder readim. Mifala iusim tu olketa phonograph wea isi for karem raon for playim olketa Bible tok wea president bilong Society hem givim. And tu, mifala evritaem karem wanfala magasin bag,a wea mekem pipol luksavve long mifala olsem olketa Jehovah’s Witness.

Pioneer Long Taem Bilong War

Brata bilong mi baptaes long 1940. Mek-tu world war hem start long 1939, and mitufala lukim bigfala need for olketa man for preach full-taem. So, mifala raetem pioneer application. Mitufala hapi for kasem assignment for go long Bristol pioneer hom, for stap long there witim Edith Poole, Bert Farmer, Tom and Dorothy Bridges, Bernard Houghton, and olketa nara pioneer wea mifala tinghae long faith bilong olketa for longtaem finis.

Wanfala smol trak wea garem nem “JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES” wea olketa raetem long saed nao kam for tekem mitufala. Draeva hem Stanley Jones, wea bihaen hem kamap wanfala missionary long China and stap long prison seleva for sevenfala year bikos long preaching waka wea hem duim.

Taem war go ahed, mifala no savve sleep gud long naet. Olketa bomb foldaon raonem pioneer haos bilong mifala, and mifala mas lukaot for olketa bomb hia. Wanfala evening, bihaen wanfala nambawan assembly wea 200 Witness attendim, mifala lusim main part bilong Bristol and mas go bak long haos nomata olketa gun sutim olketa aeroplane wea mekem staka pis steel foldaon raonem mifala.

Long next morning mi and Dick go bak long datfala taon for kolektem samfala samting wea mifala lusim. Mitufala seke fogud. Bristol hem pisis evribit. Olketa bombim evribit datfala main part bilong taon and burnim tu. Park Street, wea Kingdom Hall bilong mifala stap, hem wanfala hip rabis wea go ahed for smoke. Bat, no eni Witness dae or garekil. Mifala hapi from mifala muvim finis olketa Bible literature from Kingdom Hall and putim long haos bilong olketa member bilong kongregeson. Mifala thankiu long Jehovah for olketa samting hia.

Freedom wea Mi No Expectim

Bristol Kongregeson wea mi serve olsem presiding overseer hem grow for garem 64 member taem mi kasem pepa wea talem mi for serve long army. Planti Witness go long prison bikos olketa no teksaed, and mi ting bae freedom bilong mi for preach bae finis tu. Kot case bilong mi kamap long Kot Bilong Bristol wea Brata Anthony Buck, wea hem waka long prison bifor, hem toktok for saed bilong mi. Hem wanfala man wea barava nating fraet, wea strong for truth bilong Bible, and from hem toktok long barava nambawan wei, olketa letem mi go free for no serve long army bat only sapos mi go ahed insaed long full-taem ministry bilong mi!

Mi hapi tumas for free, and mi disaed strong for preach long bigfala wei. Taem mi kasem nius for go long branch office long London for story witim Albert D. Schroeder, wea hem branch overseer, mi tingting wanem nao bae olketa talem long mi. Tingim sapraes bilong mi taem olketa invaetem mi for go long Yorkshire for serve olsem wanfala traveling overseer, visitim difren kongregeson evri week for helpem and encouragem olketa brata. Mi barava feel olsem mi no fit for duim assignment olsem, bat mi free long saed bilong law and fit for go. So mi acceptim direction wea kam from Jehovah and willing for go.

Albert Schroeder introducem mi long olketa brata long wanfala assembly long Huddersfield, and long April 1941, mi startim niu assignment. Mi hapi tumas for savve long olketa nambawan brata hia! Love and kaenfala fasin bilong olketa mekem mi tinghae tumas long wei wea Jehovah garem wanfala pipol wea loyal evribit long hem and wea lovem each other.— John 13:35.

Moa Privilege Bilong Service

Wanfala national convention kamap long 1941 long De Montfort Hall long Leicester wea mi no savve forgetim. Nomata olketa sharem aot kaikai and stopem olketa transport, olketa wea attend long Sunday kasem peak bilong 12,000; bat, long datfala taem mifala garem winim 11,000 Witness nomoa long kantri. Olketa pleim recording bilong olketa tok wea president bilong Society givim, and releasem datfala buk Children. Datfala convention hem wanfala barava important samting long theocratic history bilong pipol bilong Jehovah long Britain, wea kamap midolwan long World War II.

No longtaem bihaen disfala convention, mi kasem invitation for serve witim London Bethel famili. Long there, mi waka insaed shipping and packing department and bihaen mi waka long office for deal witim olketa samting wea join witim olketa kongregeson.

Bethel famili mas go ahed for waka taem olketa aeroplane dropim bomb long London long naet and day, and tu taem olketa bilong gavman checkim evritaem olketa brata wea waka long there. Pryce Hughes, Ewart Chitty, and Frank Platt evriwan go long prison from olketa no teksaed, and gogo gavman sendem Albert Schroeder go bak long United States. Nomata olketa hevi hia, branch lukaftarem gud olketa kongregeson and samting bilong Kingdom.

Go Long Gilead!

Taem war hem finis long 1945, mi apply for missionary training long Watchtower Bible Skul Bilong Gilead and olketa acceptim mi for insaed long mek-eit class long 1946. Society arrangem for samfala long mifala, olsem Tony Attwood, Stanley Jones, Harold King, Don Rendell, and Stanley Woodburn, for go long boat from fishing taon bilong Fowey long Cornwell. Wanfala Witness long there nao peim pasis bilong mifala long wanfala smol cargo ship wea karem kaolin. Rum wea mifala stap insaed hem barava smol, and deck hem fulap witim wata planti taem. Mifala hapi tumas for kasem ples wea mifala go long hem, Philadelphia!

Gilead stap long barava naes ples long South Lansing long New York, and mi barava tinghae tumas long training wea mi kasem long there. Olketa student insaed class bilong mifala kam from 18-fala nation—firstaem wea Society savve tekem kam planti minister from olketa ovasea kantri—and mifala evriwan kamap klos fren. Mi barava hapi for kaban witim brata wea mitufala sharem rum, Kalle Salavaara from Finland.

Taem go pas kwiktaem, and long end bilong faev month, president bilong Society, Nathan H. Knorr, kam from Brooklyn headquarter for givim diploma bilong mifala and talem mifala wea nao assignment bilong mifala. Long datfala taem olketa student no savve wea nao olketa bae go, go kasem taem bilong graduation ceremony. Mi kasem assignment for go bak long London Bethel for go ahed long waka bilong mi long there.

Go Bak Long London

Olketa year bihaen long war hem hard taem tumas long Britain. Olketa sharem aot kaikai and olketa nara important samting, and pepa tu. Bat mifala go ahed, and olketa samting bilong Kingdom bilong Jehovah grow. Witim waka long Bethel, mi serve long olketa distrik and circuit assembly and visitim olketa kongregeson, and samfala long Ireland tu. Hem wanfala privilege tu for meetim Erich Frost and olketa narafala brata and sista from Europe and for herem story from olketa abaotem faithful fasin bilong olketa Witness wea feisim barava nogud samting long olketa Nazi concentration camp. Bethel service hem wanfala bigfala privilege.

For tenfala year mi savve long Joan Webb, wanfala spesol pioneer wea serve long Watford, wanfala taon long north saed bilong London. Long 1952 mitufala marit. Mitufala laek for go ahed long full-taem service, so mifala hapi tumas taem, bihaen mi lusim Bethel, mi kasem appointment olsem wanfala circuit overseer. Firstfala circuit bilong mifala hem long saed sea long south bilong England, long Sussex and Hampshire. Circuit waka hem no isi long datfala taem. Mifala gogo long bus, bicycle, and baeleg. Planti kongregeson garem olketa bigfala territory long bush, wea planti taem hard for kasem, bat namba bilong olketa Witness hem isisi for grow.

New York 1958

Long 1957, mi kasem narafala invitation from Bethel: “Waswe, iu laek for kam long office and help for arrangem gogo for international convention wea bae kamap long Yankee Stadium and Polo Grounds long New York long 1958?” So Joan and mi busy for lukluk long olketa application from olketa brata for go long olketa aeroplane and ship wea Society haerem. Diswan hem Divine Will International Assembly, wea bigfala sekson bilong 253,922 attendim. Long convention hia, 7,136 nao showimaot dedication bilong olketa long Jehovah and baptaes long wata—tufala taem moa big winim namba wea baptaes long Pentecost 33 C.E., wea stap long Bible.—Acts 2:41.

Joan and mi bae nating savve forgetim kaenfala fasin bilong Brata Knorr taem hemseleva invaetem mifala for attendim datfala assembly for help for lukaftarem olketa brata wea arrive long New York from 123 kantri. Datfala experience hem nambawan and mekem mitufala hapi.

Olketa Blessing Bilong Full-Taem Service

Taem mifala kam bak, mifala go ahed long traveling waka go kasem taem mifala garem problem long saed bilong health. Joan hem go stap long hospital, and mi kasem wanfala smol stroke. Mifala kamap spesol pioneer bat bihaen garem privilege for serve moa long circuit waka for lelebet taem. Gogo, mifala go bak long Bristol wea mifala go ahed insaed full-taem service. Brata bilong mi Dick, stap klosap witim famili bilong hem, and planti taem mifala savve storyim olketa taem bifor.

Eye bilong mi hem kamap barava nogud long 1971. Start long datfala taem mi faendem hard tumas for read, so olketa kaset bilong Bible literature wea Jehovah provaedem hem nambawan samting. Joan and mi still conductim olketa hom Bible study, and long olketa year wea go pas, mifala garem privilege for helpem samting olsem 40-fala for savve long truth, and wanfala famili bilong sevenfala insaed diswan tu.

Taem mifala dedicatem laef bilong mifala long Jehovah winim 60 year go finis, mifala laek for go insaed long full-taem service and go ahed long datwan. Mifala hapi tumas from mifala garem strong yet for servem Jehovah—only wei wea mifala savve sei thankiu long hem for evri gud samting wea hem givim long mifala and for evri year wea mitufala stap hapi tugeta!

[Footnote]

[Piksa long page 25]

Witim brata bilong mi Dick (barava left saed; Dick hem standap) and olketa nara pioneer front long Bristol pioneer haos

[Piksa long page 25]

Bristol pioneer haos long 1940

[Piksa long page 26]

Stanley and Joan Reynolds long wedding day bilong tufala, January 12, 1952, and distaem