Jehovah Helped Us to ‘Bloom Where We Were Planted’

The Kassholms attended Gilead School in 1979 and over the years were “planted,” or assigned, to serve in Iran, Mauritius, Myanmar, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zaire. It was at Gilead that they heard an instructor, Jack Redford, give the advice that helped them as they were “planted,” “uprooted,” and “replanted” many times. Let them explain.

Mats, please tell us first how you found the truth.

Mats: Living in Poland during World War II, my father saw much hypocrisy in the Catholic Church. Still, he often said, “The truth must be out there somewhere!” In time, I was able to confirm that it was. I bought many secondhand books. One was a blue book called The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life. That title really caught my attention, and I read the entire book on the night that I got it. By morning, I knew that I had found the truth!

From April 1972 onward, I read many more publications of Jehovah’s Witnesses and received answers to my Bible questions. I felt like the merchant in Jesus’ illustration who, after finding one pearl of high value, sold everything he had in order to buy it. I “sold” my plans of pursuing a university education and becoming a physician​—all to buy the “pearl” of truth that I had found. (Matt. 13:45, 46) I got baptized on December 10, 1972.

Within a year, my parents and younger brother also accepted the truth and got baptized. In July 1973, I started full-time service. Among the zealous pioneers in our congregation was an attractive, spiritually-minded sister named Ann-Catrin. We fell in love and got married in 1975, spending the next four years in the town of Strömsund, a beautiful, fruitful territory in Sweden.

Ann-Catrin: My father learned the truth toward the end of his university studies in Stockholm. I was only three months old at the time, but he took me to the meetings and out in field service. Mom did not like this and tried to prove the Witnesses wrong. But she couldn’t, so in time she too got baptized. At age 13, I got baptized, and at 16 years of age, I started pioneering. After serving in Umeå, where there was a great need for Kingdom publishers, I became a special pioneer.

After Mats and I married, we had the joy of helping several people learn the truth. Among them was Maivor, a teenage girl who gave up a career in sports and became my younger sister’s pioneer partner. They attended Gilead in 1984 and are serving as missionaries in Ecuador.

In your many missionary assignments, how did you follow the advice to “bloom where you are planted”?

Mats: We were frequently “replanted” in new assignments. But we tried to stay “rooted” in Jesus by doing our best to imitate him, especially his humility. (Col. 2:6, 7) For example, instead of expecting the local Witnesses to adapt to us, we tried to learn why they did things a certain way. We wanted to understand their thinking and culture. The more we imitated Jesus, the more we felt that we were “planted by streams of water” to bloom wherever we were assigned.​—Ps. 1:2, 3.

Ann-Catrin: To grow after being replanted, a tree also needs warm sunlight. Jehovah always proved to be “a sun” for us. (Ps. 84:11) He provided us with a warm, loving brotherhood of spiritual brothers and sisters. For example, in our small congregation in Tehran, Iran, we experienced hospitality that was common in Bible times. We would have loved to stay in Iran, but in July 1980, Jehovah’s Witnesses were officially banned there and we were given notice to leave in 48 hours. We were reassigned to Zaire (now known as Congo) in Africa.

When I first learned that we were reassigned to Africa, I cried. What I had heard about snakes and diseases in Africa scared me. But two close friends who had long served there told us: “You haven’t been there yet! Give it a chance, and you’ll see​—Africa grows on you.” And it did! The brothers and sisters are loving and warm. In fact, when we had to leave Zaire six years later because of a ban, I smiled to myself because I realized that I was now praying to Jehovah, “Please, let us stay in Africa.”

What joys have you experienced over the years?

Mats: I have to mention the warm friendships we have forged with missionaries of different nationalities and backgrounds. Also, in some assignments, we experienced the exceptional joy that comes from conducting many Bible studies​—sometimes about 20 each! The love and hospitality of the African brothers and sisters also stands out in my mind. During our visits to the congregations in Tanzania, many friends showed us hospitality “beyond their means” when we parked our “bedroom”​—a Volkswagen Kombi—​alongside their homes. (2 Cor. 8:3) Something very special to us is what we called story time. That was when, at the end of each day, Ann-Catrin and I would sit down to talk about the day’s events and thank Jehovah for being with us.

Ann-Catrin: For me, a great joy has been to live among our international brotherhood. We learned new languages​—including Farsi, French, Luganda, and Swahili—​while experiencing a variety of interesting cultures. We nurtured new disciples, made true friends, and worked “shoulder to shoulder” with them in Jehovah’s service.​—Zeph. 3:9.

We also saw amazing variety in Jehovah’s beautiful creation. Each time we accepted a new assignment in Jehovah’s service, we felt as if we were taking a journey with Jehovah as our Guide. He has given us experiences that we would never have had on our own.

What challenges have you faced, and how did you deal with them?

Mats: We contracted several tropical diseases over the years, including malaria. And Ann-Catrin had a few emergency surgeries. We also worried about our aging parents, so we are grateful to our siblings who acted as primary caregivers. They faithfully carried out that role with patience, joy, and love. (1 Tim. 5:4) Still, at times, we struggled with negative emotions, wishing that we could do more for our parents than just provide support from a distance.

Ann-Catrin: In 1983, while serving in Zaire, I suffered a severe attack of cholera. The doctor told Mats, “Take her out of this country today!” The following day, we were on a cargo plane​—the only flight available—​headed for Sweden.

Mats: We thought that our missionary service had come to an end, so we cried bitter tears. Contrary to the doctor’s predictions, though, Ann-Catrin recovered. And a year later, we were able to return to Zaire, this time to a small Swahili congregation in Lubumbashi.

Ann-Catrin: During our time in Lubumbashi, I suffered a miscarriage. Though we did not have in mind starting a family, the loss of our baby was extremely difficult for me to bear. During that time of sadness, however, we experienced an unexpected gift from Jehovah. We started more Bible studies than ever before. In less than a year, the congregation grew from 35 to 70 publishers, and meeting attendance climbed from 40 to 220. We were intensely occupied in the ministry, and Jehovah’s blessing brought me considerable comfort. Still, we often think and talk about our dear little one. We can’t wait to see just how Jehovah will provide complete healing for our hearts.

Mats: At one point, Ann-Catrin became extremely fatigued. I was diagnosed with stage-four colon cancer and needed major surgery. But today I’m doing well, and Ann-Catrin is doing all she can.

We have come to realize that we are not the only ones dealing with trials. After the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, we visited many friends in refugee camps. Witnessing their faith, endurance, and never-failing hospitality taught us that Jehovah has the power to sustain his people through any trial.​—Ps. 55:22.

Ann-Catrin: Another challenge came when we attended the branch dedication in Uganda in 2007. After the program, we were traveling with a group of about 25 missionaries and Bethelites to Nairobi, Kenya. Before we reached the Kenya border, an oncoming lorry suddenly swerved into our lane and hit us head-on. The driver and five of our friends died instantly; one sister passed away later at the hospital. How we long to see our friends again!​—Job 14:13-15.

I eventually recovered from my physical injuries. But Mats and I were among several of the passengers who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. In my case, the anxiety attacks came at night, waking me up with symptoms resembling a heart attack. That was frightening. But fervent prayer to Jehovah coupled with comfort from some of our favorite scriptures helped us to cope. We also received professional help, which proved to be beneficial. Now the symptoms have become more manageable, and we ask Jehovah to help us comfort others who battle a similar affliction.

When describing how you have been able to cope with challenging situations, you said that Jehovah carried you “like raw eggs.” What did you mean?

Mats: That expression comes from the Swahili saying “Tumebebwa kama mayai mabichi,” or “We were carried like raw eggs.” Just as a person carefully carries raw eggs to prevent them from breaking, Jehovah has tenderly supported us in each one of our assignments. We have always had what we needed, even more than we needed. One way that we have felt Jehovah’s love and support is through the empathy shown to us by the Governing Body.

Ann-Catrin: I’d like to mention an example of Jehovah’s tender support. One day I received a phone call informing me that my father, in Sweden, was in intensive care. Mats had just recovered from a bout of malaria. We could not afford to buy tickets to fly home, so we decided that we needed to sell our car. Then we received two more phone calls; one was from a couple who had heard about our situation and wanted to pay for one ticket. The other call was from an older sister who had saved some money in a box that she had labeled “For someone in need.” Within minutes, Jehovah had come to our rescue!​—Heb. 13:6.

Looking back over your 50 years of full-time service, what have you learned?

Ann-Catrin: I have come to appreciate that our strength is “in keeping calm and showing trust.” When we trust in Jehovah, he in a way makes our battle his battle. (Isa. 30:15; 2 Chron. 20:15, 17) By serving Jehovah to the best of our ability in each assignment, we have received more blessings than we could have received any other way.

Mats: The main lesson I have learned is to rely on Jehovah in every situation and see how he will act in my behalf. (Ps. 37:5) He has never failed to fulfill his promise to do so. We are still seeing the truthfulness of this in our present Bethel assignment in Myanmar.

We hope that many younger ones who want to expand their ministry will experience the same loyal love that Jehovah has shown to us. We are confident that they will if they allow Jehovah to bring them to full bloom, wherever they are planted.