Blessings "in Favorable Times and Difficult Times"/AS TOLD BY TROPHIM R. NSOMBA

WHEN I came into the world in March 1930, I was surrounded by relatives and friends who were faithfully serving Jehovah.  That was in the village of Namkumba, near the city of Lilongwe, in the country that is now called Malawi. In 1942 , I dedicated  my life to God and was baptized in one of our scenic rivers. Over the next 70 years, I endeavored  to do just as the apostle Paul urged Timothy, to "preach the word; be at it urgently in favorable times and difficult times." - Timothy 4:2. 

The first visit of Nathan H. Knorr and Milton G. Henschel to Malawi in early 1948 kindled my desire to serve Jehovah full-time. I remember with fondness the encouraging comments of those representatives from the world headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses in Brooklyn, New York.  Standing in a muddy field, some 6,000 of us listened  attentively to Brother Knorr's encouraging talk, "Permanent Governor of All Nations." 

When I met Lidasi, a lovely sister who, like me, had been raised in a family of Jehovah's Witnesses, I learned that she too had the goal of the full-time ministry. In  1950 we got married, and by 1953, we had two children. Even with the added responsibility of rearing them, we decided that  I would be able to begin regular pioneering. Two years later, I was invited to serve as a special pioneer. 

Next time: Continue with:  Blessings "in Favorable Times and Difficult Times"

From the Watchtower magazine