Jehovah Helpem Mitufala for ‘Grow lo Ples wea Hem Plantim Mitufala lo Hem’

Brata and sista Kassholm attendim Gilead Skul lo 1979 and lo olketa year bihaen, tufala kasem assignment for serve lo Iran, Mauritius, Myanmar, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zaire. Taem tufala lo Gilead nao tufala herem wanfala instructor, Jack Redford, hem givim disfala advaes for helpem olketa redi for taem wea Jehovah bae “plantim,” “aotem,” and then “replantim” olketa staka taem. Distaem tufala bae storyim datwan for iumi.

Mats, plis storyim hao iu faendem truth.

Mats: Dadi blo mi stap lo Poland during World War II, and hem lukim hao Catholic Church hem barava hypocrite tumas. Nomata olsem, staka taem hem savve sei, “Wanfala tru religion hem mas stap!” Gogo, mi faendaot hao datwan hem tru. Mi savve peim staka second hand buk. Wanfala lo olketa hem datfala blue buk wea olketa kolem lo, Truth Where Bringim Man Long Life All-the-Way. Mi barava interest lo title blo datfala buk, and mi readim full buk lo sem naet mi tekem kam. Lo morning, mi savve mi faendem truth nao!

Start lo April 1972, mi readim staka pablikeson moa blo Olketa Jehovah’s Witness and mi kasem ansa from Bible for olketa kwestin blo mi. Mi garem sem feeling olsem datfala bisnisman lo tokpiksa blo Jesus wea bihaen hem faendem wanfala pearl wea barava expensive, hem go and salem evriting wea hem garem for baem datfala pearl. Wat mi duim for baem datfala “pearl,” wea hem truth wea mi faendem, hem nao for mi “salem” disison blo mi for go lo university for kamap wanfala doctor. (Matt. 13:​45, 46) Mi baptaes lo December 10, 1972.

No longtaem bihaen datwan, parents blo mi and younger brata blo mi tu acceptim truth and olketa baptaes. Lo July 1973, mi start for duim full-taem service. Wanfala lo olketa strong pioneer lo kongregeson blo mifala, hem wanfala naesbola sista wea nem blo hem Ann-Catrin. Mitufala lovem each other so mitufala marit lo 1975, and for fofala year, mitufala stap lo taon lo Strömsund, wanfala beautiful territory lo Sweden wea staka pipol interest lo truth.

Ann-Catrin: Dadi blo mi lanem truth taem hem duim university study blo hem lo Stockholm. Mi thri months old nomoa lo datfala taem, bat hem savve tekem mi go lo olketa meeting and lo field service. Mami blo mi no laekem datwan and hem trae for pruvim dat olketa Witness olketa rong. Bat hem hard, so gogo hem tu baptaes. Mi baptaes taem mi 13 years old, and taem mi 16 years mi start for pioneer. Bihaen, mi serve lo Umeå, wea garem big need for olketa Kingdom pablisa, mi kamap wanfala spesol pioneer.

Afta mitufala Mats marit, mitufala hapi tumas for helpem samfala pipol for lanem truth. Wanfala lo olketa hem Maivor, wanfala teenage gele wea disaed for lusim career blo hem lo sports and hem kamap pioneer partner blo younger sista blo mi. Tufala attendim Gilead lo 1984, and tufala serve olsem missionary lo Ecuador.

Lo olketa missionary assignment blo iu, hao nao iu followim advaes for “grow lo ples wea Jehovah plantim iu lo hem”?

Mats: Lo each niu assignment, hem olsem Jehovah “replantim” mitufala lo there. Nomata olsem, mitufala traem best for mekem “rut” blo mitufala stap strong lo Jesus lo wei for followim example blo hem, especially hao hem hambol. (Col. 2:​6, 7) For example, instead for mitufala expectim olketa brata and sista lo there for duim samting olsem hao mitufala duim, mitufala savve trae for lanem why olketa savve duim wanfala samting. Mitufala laek for understandim tingting and culture blo olketa. Taem mitufala traem best for followim example blo Jesus, mitufala feel olsem Jehovah hem ‘plantim mitufala lo saed wata’ wea datwan mekem mitufala for grow nomata wea nao assignment blo mitufala.—Ps. 1:​2, 3.

Ann-Catrin: For wanfala tree hem grow bihaen olketa replantim, hem needim tu sunlaet. Jehovah nao hem olsem “sun” for mitufala. (Ps. 84:11) Hem provaedem olketa loving brata and sista for strongim mitufala. For example, lo smol kongregeson blo mifala lo Tehran, Iran, wei blo olketa brata and sista for welkam, hem olsem wei blo pipol bifor wea Bible storyim. Mitufala laek tumas for stap lo Iran, bat lo July 1980, gavman banim Olketa Jehovah’s Witness lo there, and olketa talem mitufala for leavim datfala ples insaed 48 hours. Branch reassignim mitufala go lo Zaire (wea distaem olketa kolem Congo) lo Africa.

Taem mi herem dat mitufala reassign go lo Africa, mi krae nao. Mi fraet bikos mi herem dat lo Africa hem garem staka snek and staka sik. Bat tufala klos fren blo mitufala wea serve longtaem lo Africa talem mitufala: “Iutufala no kasem lo there yet! Traem and bae iutufala lukim. Bae iutufala barava laekem Africa.” And datwan hem tru! Olketa brata and sista barava kaen and lovem mitufala. Dastawe, six years bihaen taem mitufala mas lusim Zaire bikos gavman banim waka blo iumi, mi smile lo miseleva bikos lo datfala taem mi prea lo Jehovah and sei, “Plis, letem mitufala stay lo Africa.”

Wat nao olketa blessing wea iu kasem lo olketa year wea go pas?

Mats: Wanfala blessing hem wei wea mitufala fren klos witim olketa missionary from olketa difren kantri and difren baekgraon. And tu, lo samfala assignment, mitufala hapi tumas from mitufala savve conductim staka Bible study, samfala taem hem samting olsem 20 Bible study each! Love blo olketa brata and sista lo Africa and wei wea olketa kaen hem samting wea mi hard for forgetim. Taem mitufala savve visitim olketa kongregeson lo Tanzania, staka brata and sista kaen tumas and givim samting wea “winim wanem olketa garem.” Mitufala savve parkim vehicle blo mitufala saed lo haos blo olketa, and mitufala savve sleep insaed lo datfala vehicle. (2 Cor. 8:3) Samting wea mitufala savve barava enjoyim, hem nao for duim wat mitufala savve kolem lo “story taem.” Mi and Ann-Catrin duim diswan lo end blo each day, mitufala savve sidaon and storyim olketa tings wea happen lo datfala day and thankiu lo Jehovah for wei wea hem stap witim mitufala.

Ann-Catrin: Wanfala blessing wea mi kasem, hem wei wea mi savve lo staka brata and sista from evriwea lo world. Mitufala lanem olketa niu languis olsem, Farsi, French, Luganda, and Swahili, and mitufala lanem staka difren culture. Mitufala helpem olketa niu disaepol, mitufala garem olketa tru frens, and mifala evriwan “wan mind” for waka tugeta for servem Jehovah.—Zeph. 3:9.

Mitufala lukim tu staka difren kaen creation blo Jehovah wea luk naes tumas. Each taem mitufala acceptim wanfala niu assignment lo service blo Jehovah, mitufala feel olsem Jehovah leadim mitufala lo wanfala interesting journey. Hem teachim mitufala staka samting wea hard tumas for mitufala lanem seleva.

Wat nao olketa challenge wea iu feisim, and hao nao iu deal witim?

Mats: Lo olketa year wea go pas mitufala kasem olketa didifren sik, olsem malaria. And tu-thri taem Ann-Catrin mas kasem samfala emergency operation. Mitufala wari tu abaotem parents blo mitufala wea olo. So mitufala barava tinghae lo wei wea olketa brata and sista blo mitufala willing for lukaftarem olketa. Olketa patient, hapi, and showimaot love taem olketa faithful for duim datwan. (1 Tim. 5:4) Nomata olsem, samfala taem mitufala feel sorre bikos mitufala laek for duim moa samting for sapotim parents blo mitufala bat mitufala stap farawe.

Ann-Catrin: Lo 1983, taem mitufala serve lo Zaire, mi kasem cholera and mi barava sik big. Doctor talem Mats, “Tuday, iu tekem waef blo iu aot from disfala kantri!” Lo next day, mitufala go lo wanfala kago plane, wea hem nomoa flight wea available, and mitufala flae go for Sweden.

Mats: Mitufala tingse bae hem hard nao for mitufala duim missionary waka, so mitufala sorre tumas and krae. Nomata doctor tingse Ann-Catrin hard for recover, hem kamap gud. And wan year bihaen, mitufala go bak lo Zaire, bat mitufala go serve lo wanfala smol Swahili kongregeson lo Lubumbashi.

Ann-Catrin: Taem mitufala lo Lubumbashi, mi babule bat then mi miscarriage. Nomata mitufala no garem plan for startim famili, taem baby blo mitufala dae mi sorre tumas. Bat during lo datfala taem wea mi sorre tumas, Jehovah givim mitufala present wea mitufala no expectim. Mitufala startim staka Bible study winim enitaem bifor. No kasem wan year nomoa, kongregeson hem grow from 35 tu 70 pablisa, and meeting attendance hem increase from 40 tu 220. Jehovah blessim wei wea mitufala barava busy lo ministry, and datwan comfortim mi. Nomata olsem, staka taem mitufala tingim and storyim smol baby blo mitufala. Mitufala barava luk forward for taem wea Jehovah bae duim samting for barava healim heart blo mitufala.

Mats: Gogo, body blo Ann-Catrin kamap wik and hem taed tumas. Mi kasem stage-four colon cancer and mi need for kasem big operation. Bat distaem mi olraet, and Ann-Catrin hem gohed duim wat hem fit for duim.

Mitufala luksavve dat hem no mitufala nomoa wea deal witim olketa hard taem. Bihaen lo datfala genocide lo Rwanda lo 1994, mitufala visitim olketa brata and sista lo olketa refugee camp. Taem mitufala lukim faith blo olketa, wei wea olketa no givap, and olketa gohed for kaen, datwan teachim mitufala dat Jehovah garem paoa for strongim pipol blo hem for deal witim eni hard taem.—Ps. 55:22.

Ann-Catrin: Nara challenge kamap taem mifala attendim branch dedication lo Uganda lo 2007. Bihaen lo program, mitufala travel witim 25 missionary and Bethelite for go lo Nairobi, Kenya. Bifor mifala kasem border blo Kenya, wanfala trak swing kam lo lane wea mifala followim and bangam front lo bas wea mifala insaed. Draeva and faevfala fren blo mifala dae semtaem, then bihaen, nara sista hem dae taem mifala kasem hospital. Mifala barava missim olketa and luk forward for lukim olketa moa lo future!—Job 14:​13-15.

Gogo, mi recover from olketa garekil blo mi. Bat mitufala Mats and staka nara passenger, kasem trauma from datfala accident and safa from stress. For mi, lo naet nao mi savve stress, and mi savve seke and wekap and feel olsem mi garem heart attak. Datwan mekem mi feel fraet. Bat mitufala savve prea strong lo Jehovah and kasem comfort from samfala favorite scripture blo mitufala wea helpem mitufala. Mitufala kasem tu help from olketa doctor for deal witim datwan. Distaem olketa feeling olsem hem katdaon, and mitufala askem Jehovah for helpem mitufala for comfortim olketa wea deal witim sem samting.

Taem iu storyim hao iu deal witim olketa challenging situation olsem, iu sei Jehovah karem iu “olsem olketa an-tane egg.” Wat nao iu minim?

Mats: Datwan hem from wanfala toktok lo Swahili languis wea sei “Tumebebwa kama mayai mabichi,” or “Hem karem mifala olsem olketa an-tane egg.” Lo sem wei wea samwan hem careful for karem an-tane egg nogud olketa brek, Jehovah hem barava kaen for sapotim mitufala lo each assignment. Mitufala evritaem garem wat mitufala needim and even winim wat mitufala needim. Wanfala wei wea mitufala feelim love and sapot blo Jehovah, hem thru lo Governing Body wea barava tingim mitufala.

Ann-Catrin: Mi laek for storyim wanfala example lo hao Jehovah barava kaen and sapotim mitufala. Wanday mi kasem wanfala phone kol for letem mi savve dat dadi blo mi lo Sweden, hem barava sik big and hem lo hospital. Mats hem just start for recover from malaria. Mitufala no garem selen for baem ticket for flae go lo hom, so mitufala disaed for salem car blo mitufala. Then mitufala kasem tufala phone kol moa, wanfala hem from wanfala couple wea herem situation blo mitufala and laek for baem wanfala ticket for mitufala. Nara phone kol hem from wanfala olo sista wea sevem samfala selen insaed wanfala box wea hem raetem disfala toktok lo hem “For samwan wea garem need.” So insaed tu-thri minutes nomoa, Jehovah hem lo there for rescuem mitufala!—Heb. 13:6.

Taem iu luk bak lo winim 50 years wea iu insaed full-taem service, wat nao iu lanem?

Ann-Catrin: Mi lanem dat iumi savve strong taem ‘mind hem kwaet and iumi trustim Jehovah.’ Taem iumi trustim Jehovah, hem olsem hem nao bae faet for iumi. (Isa. 30:15; 2 Chron. 20:​15, 17) Taem mitufala duim best for servem Jehovah lo each assignment, mitufala kasem staka blessing winim if mitufala duim eni nara samting.

Mats: Main samting mi lanem, hem for depend lo Jehovah lo evri situation and lukim hao hem bae duim samting for mi. (Ps. 37:5) No enitaem hem fail for keepim promis blo hem. Mitufala still gohed lukim hao diswan hem tru lo assignment blo mitufala distaem lo Bethel lo Myanmar.

Mitufala hope staka young wan wea laek for duim moa samting lo ministry blo olketa bae experiencem sem loyal love wea Jehovah showim lo mitufala. Mitufala confident dat bae olketa kasem datwan, if olketa letem Jehovah for helpem olketa grow nomata wea nao Hem plantim olketa.