00:01 Thousands of our sisters have been active
00:03 for many years in that “large army” of women.
00:07 Bertille Kupelian,
00:09 a special pioneer in West Virginia, in the United States,
00:13 entered the full-time service in 1958.
00:17 In that time, she’s helped more than 60 people to baptism.
00:22 How has her outlook toward the ministry
00:24 kept her going for almost 60 years?
00:34 My father was opposed
00:38 to the truth as I was growing up,
00:40 but my mother was very, very zealous.
00:45 I knew the things my mother was teaching me was the truth.
00:49 I knew that this was what I was going to do.
00:53 And it was not easy, but we did it.
00:58 I was Daddy’s girl,
01:01 but my mom made sure
01:04 that I and my siblings knew the truth.
01:07 And she studied with us when no other children
01:11 in the congregation had Bible studies at home.
01:16 Of course, we kind of kicked and didn’t like it,
01:20 but I was glad she did it.
01:23 My mother was a very, very positive person,
01:26 and although she had the opposition,
01:30 I saw how she dealt with it
01:32 and how firm and determined she was.
01:35 And that was something she taught us.
01:39 It’s a mind-set.
01:41 You know, your mind is a wonderful thing.
01:45 It can really influence you toward good or maybe not so good.
01:50 And so then, I was determined in my mind
01:54 that I was going to serve Jehovah then.
01:59 In our congregation, there were brothers and sisters of the anointed.
02:03 They were always very kind to me,
02:06 and they encouraged me.
02:09 I worked in service with them.
02:12 And I thought, ‘That’s the way I want to be.’
02:17 Children like attention.
02:20 And so then, if you give them attention
02:22 —you talk with them
02:24 and ask if you could work with them in the ministry
02:27 and help them prepare a presentation
02:30 and go over it and over it
02:32 so that they’re ready for the ministry
02:35 —then they’ll enjoy it more.
02:39 That was one of the things that the anointed
02:41 did in the congregation where I was.
02:43 They paid attention to me, and I loved it.
02:50 How I learned to teach was I think about the person,
02:53 and I think about their situation,
02:56 and I try to think in my mind what they are thinking,
03:01 and I work on that
03:04 and think of what kind of scriptures I can find to help them.
03:08 And so then,
03:09 I try to pattern our studies
03:14 to incorporate some of those things.
03:20 There are always challenges.
03:23 Some of the winters right on the lake where I lived were very harsh.
03:29 And my trailer was parked in such a way that every time
03:33 the wind blew and the snow came and the ice came,
03:36 it sealed the door.
03:38 And so then, I carried a big knife in my car,
03:41 and I would have to cut around the door
03:43 to get the door to open —break the ice seal.
03:48 It was interesting.
03:51 I had some opposition in the territories,
03:54 and one was this lady who was very irate.
03:56 And she went to kick me, and she kicked me right in the stomach,
04:00 and so then, anyway, I dismissed myself.
04:04 Then, a while later, it was time to work the territory again.
04:08 Nobody wanted to go there, and we didn’t have do-not-calls,
04:11 I don’t think, at that time, at least there wasn’t any in the territory.
04:15 So then anyway, I called by and I mentioned to her:
04:19 “Why, hello there.
04:21 I know I’ve had the opportunity to talk with you before.”
04:23 Yes, she remembered.
04:25 And I said, “Well, perhaps you were having a bad day that day.”
04:31 I hit a lull when I had few Bible studies,
04:34 and so I prayed diligently to Jehovah:
04:38 “Jehovah, help me. I need Bible studies.”
04:40 And then you have to be out there looking for them.
04:43 Well, I’ve lost my father, my mother,
04:47 my sister, my brother.
04:50 Well, naturally you feel at a loss,
04:55 but Jehovah strengthened me, and the friends strengthened me,
04:59 and I kept busy in the ministry.
05:03 But again, it goes back to that mind-set.
05:05 Are you going to let the challenge beat you,
05:07 or are you going to beat the challenge?
05:10 You and Jehovah can beat the challenge.
05:15 You know, discouragement is one of Satan’s biggest tools.
05:19 And I always tell myself,
05:22 ‘I’m not going to let Satan beat me down.’
05:25 As far as health is concerned, my everyday health is very good.
05:30 But I have a leg that drives me crazy.
05:34 I think back to Jacob.
05:38 He served Jehovah with a limp.
05:40 And then I think of Paul.
05:45 And so then, those things keep you humble.
05:51 I’ve prayed and prayed and prayed about it,
05:53 but just like with the apostle Paul,
05:55 it didn’t disappear.
05:58 And so then, I just say: “Patch me up till Armageddon.
06:01 It’ll disappear then.”
06:04 If your mind is made up that this is what you’re going to do,
06:08 this is your life, this is what Jehovah wants you to do,
06:12 and so then you do it.
06:16 I’ve seen how he’s kept me going.
06:22 You know that I’ve needed work; I’ve needed money;
06:26 I’ve needed strength.
06:28 I’ve needed companionship
06:30 because a lot of times I’m in the ministry by myself.
06:33 I talk to Jehovah.
06:35 And so then, he’s always there for me.
06:38 I definitely want to keep pioneering
06:42 or serving Jehovah the best I can,
06:44 regardless of what comes up.
06:48 There is nothing more joyful
06:51 than to see that you have helped somebody to live forever.
06:57 Well, how much better could it be?
07:06 Sister Kupelian had a profound effect on those she witnessed to.
07:10 I know this because she found me in the door-to-door ministry
07:15 when I was 14 years old.
07:17 At that age, I had the goal to be a doctor.
07:21 One night after the meeting, Bertille said to me,
07:24 “Well, you know, in the new world,
07:27 we won’t need doctors because Jesus will do all the healing.”
07:30 Honestly, that hit me hard
07:34 because I wanted to help people as well as provide for my mother.
07:38 But she added,
07:40 “What we will need are teachers.”
07:43 I thought that was a good idea.
07:45 Still focused on a career, I had one type of teacher in mind,
07:50 but she had another.
07:52 Through her patience and reasoning,
07:54 she helped me to become the most important kind of teacher
07:58 —a teacher of God’s Word.
08:01 Is there someone like Sister Kupelian in your congregation?
08:06 We are grateful for these sisters’ zealous spirit
08:10 and for the personal interest they show toward us.
08:13 And we’re sure Jehovah values them like we do.
