00:00:03 Right about the time
00:00:04 I started studying the Bible,
00:00:06 an opportunity came up for me
00:00:08 to start doing secretarial work
00:00:10 at a church.
00:00:13 I was the one who cared for all
00:00:15 of the money that the church would receive.
00:00:20 But at that moment, I didn’t see any problem
00:00:23 with staying where I worked.
00:00:26 I studied the Bible and learned that the festivals
00:00:29 I used to participate in
00:00:31 were displeasing to Jehovah.
00:00:35 But it did not seem possible
00:00:37 that I would be the only one not participating
00:00:39 in those festivals.
00:00:41 These opportunities brought families closer together,
00:00:46 and they were fun too.
00:00:49 One night at a meeting,
00:00:51 I was talking with an elder,
00:00:54 and he told me that I wouldn’t even be able
00:00:56 to give student parts at the Kingdom Hall,
00:00:59 since I was still working
00:01:01 as a secretary at the church.
00:01:04 That made me very sad
00:01:08 because I found myself just receiving guidance from Jehovah
00:01:11 and learning his truths,
00:01:13 but I was not giving back anything to him
00:01:16 despite what he was doing for me.
00:01:20 However, I have to admit
00:01:22 that I still hadn’t
00:01:23 completely made up my mind,
00:01:25 since my husband had back surgery
00:01:26 and wasn’t able to work at the time.
00:01:29 We had our little daughter to care for,
00:01:32 so I kept thinking: ‘What should I do?
00:01:35 ‘Right now,
00:01:36 this is the only money we have coming in.’
00:01:40 I prayed a lot to Jehovah
00:01:43 for help with this issue.
00:01:45 I thought about Jehovah’s feelings.
00:01:48 I didn’t want to do anything that hurt Jehovah.
00:01:53 When I stopped participating in religious festivals,
00:01:58 my family stopped speaking to me.
00:02:02 When it was time for the festivals,
00:02:04 it made me think that they were together
00:02:07 and I was by myself.
00:02:09 So at times, I cried.
00:02:16 I meditated
00:02:18 on God’s promise at Psalm 27:10.
00:02:23 Jehovah promised me that if my parents abandoned me,
00:02:28 he would receive me as his child.
00:02:31 It helped me to stand firm.
00:02:36 Personally, I tried to attend the meetings
00:02:39 and participate in the ministry too.
00:02:43 All of these activities
00:02:45 made me feel that the congregation is like a family
00:02:49 and that Jehovah
00:02:51 is the Father of all of us.
00:02:55 But I never forgot my parents.
00:02:59 So I tried to help them in whatever ways I could.
00:03:04 I took about three or four days of vacation
00:03:08 to go help them harvest rice.
00:03:14 I had great help from my instructor.
00:03:18 Just as Jehovah doesn’t force us, she didn’t force me.
00:03:23 As she told experiences and showed me
00:03:25 in the Bible what really pleases Jehovah,
00:03:28 it made me realize that I had to make a decision.
00:03:32 As my Bible study got deeper,
00:03:35 I began to realize that I really was already loving Jehovah
00:03:38 and wanted to please him.
00:03:44 Before Jehovah, my conscience
00:03:46 was already affecting me.
00:03:48 I had to make a decision on his side.
00:03:52 That’s exactly what I did.
00:03:59 Two weeks later, I got a job,
00:04:02 and it was close to my home.
00:04:05 I was able to gain a clean conscience before Jehovah.
00:04:08 I have seen this in my life:
00:04:11 Anyone who trusts in Jehovah is not helpless.
00:04:19 When I told my parents that although I changed my religion,
00:04:23 I still loved them,
00:04:25 they started to open up and talk to me gradually.
00:04:33 So I invited them to attend a meeting.
00:04:36 When my father attended the meeting, he said:
00:04:39 “Oh! You made a good decision, my son.”
00:04:44 Then I was very happy.
00:04:47 I still hope
00:04:50 that my family will one day study the Bible
00:04:53 and worship Jehovah along with me.
