00:00:02 I got married in 2002.
00:00:04 Around that time,
00:00:06 I was appointed a ministerial servant,
00:00:08 and my wife and I were serving as regular pioneers.
00:00:12 In 2004,
00:00:14 we were given the opportunity to serve as special pioneers.
00:00:18 It was something that we really wanted
00:00:21 because we wanted to do more for Jehovah.
00:00:23 So when we got that assignment,
00:00:25 we were delighted.
00:00:28 The brothers in the congregation were also very happy for us.
00:00:35 But everything did not go smoothly.
00:00:38 As time went on, I faced some difficult situations.
00:00:42 The fact that I was not appointed as an elder made me feel disappointed.
00:00:49 In one congregation,
00:00:50 two brothers who had served as ministerial servants
00:00:54 for a shorter time than I had were appointed as elders.
00:00:59 I felt that those brothers did not have as much experience as I had.
00:01:03 I thought, ‘I am the one with the experience,
00:01:06 so why didn’t I get appointed?’
00:01:08 I started to question my own qualifications,
00:01:10 and this made me very sad.
00:01:14 After the two brothers were appointed,
00:01:16 I started to dislike them.
00:01:19 I was also angry with them,
00:01:21 and the anger even progressed
00:01:23 a little toward hatred.
00:01:27 It was a real challenge for me to serve in that congregation.
00:01:30 Attending meetings was difficult;
00:01:33 I would go with a heavy heart.
00:01:36 I put a lot of effort into making personal changes
00:01:39 —changing my attitude and getting rid of my negative traits.
00:01:43 I knew that if I did nothing,
00:01:46 it was going to affect the worship I gave to Jehovah
00:01:48 and also the relationship with my brothers.
00:01:52 My wife and I could end up completely losing our joy.
00:01:56 In order to make things right, I prayed intensely to Jehovah.
00:02:01 I spent time in deep, personal Bible study.
00:02:04 My wife would also find articles
00:02:06 about maintaining peace with the brothers
00:02:08 and would give them to me to read.
00:02:10 She even selected Kingdom songs that dealt with maintaining peace,
00:02:13 and she would sing them to me.
00:02:18 I made a lot of changes to my attitude and worked hard to progress
00:02:22 as a person whom Jehovah would approve.
00:02:25 I tried to view my brothers
00:02:27 the same way Jehovah did and to serve him with joy.
00:02:33 I really wanted to give my best to Jehovah and to the brothers.
00:02:38 At the same time, I did not want
00:02:40 those wrong thoughts to ever come back into my heart.
00:02:47 The valuable lesson that I have learned
00:02:49 is that privileges are not most important.
00:02:51 Rather, it is serving Jehovah that brings genuine happiness.
00:02:55 And now I am finding real joy and satisfaction
00:02:58 in my service to Jehovah.
