LIFE STORY
I Feel Safe Cuz I Trus Jehovah
WEN peopo ask me wat I wen do wit my life, plenny times I tell um, “I one suitcase dat Jehovah take wea eva he like!” Jalike I take my suitcase wea eva I like, I let Jehovah an his hui do da same ting with me—fo tell me wea fo go an wen. Some of da places I wen go was supa hard an sometime dangerous. I wen learn dat da ony time I safe is wen I trus in Jehovah.
HOW I WEN START FO TRUS JEHOVAH
I was born in 1948 in one small village southwest side of Nigeria. Dat time, my Uncle Moustapha, my faddah’s younga braddah, an my oldest braddah Wahabi wen get baptized as Witnesses fo Jehovah. Wen I was nine, my faddah had mahke. Dat wen broke my heart. Wahabi wen tell me oua faddah was going come back alive from mahke. Dat wen make me feel good an dat wen make me like fo study da Bible. I wen get baptized in 1963. My three odda braddahs wen get baptized too.
In 1965, I wen go Lagos wea my olda braddah Wilson was an had good fun wit da pioneas ova dea in da Igbobi Local Hui. Cuz I wen see dey was happy an wen go all out fo preach, I wen start fo pionea in January 1968.
Da north side of Nigeria wen need spesho pioneas. Cuz a dat, Albert Olugbebi, one braddah at Bethel, wen meet wit all us younga guys. I still rememba wat Braddah Olugbebi wen tell us: “You young, an get da time an da powa fo work fo Jehovah. Get plenny work fo do ova dea!” I wanted fo be like Isaiah an go weaeva Jehovah wen like me go, so I wen sign up.—Isa 6:8.
In May 1968, dey wen send me fo be one spesho pionea in Kano, one city in da north side of Nigeria. Dat time da Biafran War was raging (1967-1970). Plenny peopo wen suffa an mahke from da fighting ova dea, befoa da war wen move to da east side of Nigeria. One braddah told me no go, cuz he neva like me get hurt. But I told um: “Tanks but if Jehovah like me go ova dea, I know garans he going take kea me.”
I WEN TRUS JEHOVAH IN ONE PLACE ALL BUSS UP FROM DA WAR
Some sad how tings was in Kano. Da war wen buss up dat city big time. Sometimes wen we was out preaching, we would see bodies of da guys who wen get killed. Even though had some local huis in Kano, mos of da braddahs wen dig. Had less den 15 of dem left ova dea an dey was sked an all bum out. Dose braddahs an sistahs was real happy wen six of us spesho pioneas wen show up. We wen give dem good kine words an dey wen feel betta. We wen help dem fo start up da meetings an go preach again. An send dea time to da branch an ask fo da tings dey need fo preach.
Us spesho pioneas wen start fo learn da Hausa language. Wen dey wen hear us preach to dem in dea own language, plenny locals wen like fo lissen. But da main religion ova dea neva like us preach to da peopo, so we had fo watch out. One time, one man wit one knife wen chase me an anodda braddah. Good ting he neva catch us cuz we wen run moa fas den him! Even if was dangerous, Jehovah wen “make me live so dat notting bad going happen to me,” an started fo get moa preachas ova dea. (Songs 4:8) Now get ova 500 preachas in 11 local huis in Kano.
GUYS WEN GO AGAINS US IN NIGER
Wen I was one spesho pionea in Niamey, Niger
I was in Kano fo ony litto while, den in August 1968, dey wen send me an two odda spesho pioneas to Niamey, da main city in Niger. We wen find out real fas dat Niger is one of da hottest places on da earth. On top of dealing wit da heat, we had fo learn French cuz was da main language. Even if dis was hard, we wen trus Jehovah an wen start fo preach in Niamey togedda wit da litto bit preachas ova dea. Neva take long, almos everybody who could read had get da book The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life. Some guys even wen come look fo us fo get one book.
Not too long afta, we wen find out dat da govament guys neva like da Witnesses Fo Jehovah. In July 1969, 20 of us wen get togedda fo da first eva big kine meeting fo da circuit in dat country. Two guys was going get baptize. But on da first day of da big kine meeting da cops wen come an shut us down. Dey wen take da spesho pioneas an da braddah fo da circuit to da police station. Dey wen ask us a bunch of questions and wen tell us fo come back da next day. We wen figga dey was going cause trouble so we wen go somebody house fo da baptism talk an den wen baptize dem in one riva secret kine.
Few weeks layta, da govament guys wen tell me an 5 odda spesho pioneas fo get outa da country. Dey wen give us 48 hours and we had fo figga out on oua own how fo do um. We wen lissen an go straight to da branch in Nigeria, an dey wen give us new places fo go.
Dey wen send me to Orisunbare, one village in Nigeria. Dea I had good fun preaching an teaching peopo da Bible wit da local preachas. But six months layta da branch wen ask me fo go back Niger by myself. At first, I was shock an nerjus, but den I no could wait fo meet up wit da braddahs in Niger again!
Da day afta I wen get back to Niamey, one guy wen figga dat I was one Witness Fo Jehovah an wen ask me questions about da Bible. He wen start fo study, an had get baptized afta he wen quit smoking an stop sucking um up plenny. I was real happy fo go back preach wit da braddahs an sistahs an see da trut grow litto by litto all ova Niger. Wen I first got dea had 31 Witnesses an had 69 by da time I wen leave.
“WE DUNNO HOW OUA BRADDAHS AN SISTAHS DOING IN GUINEA”
In Decemba 1977, I wen go back Nigeria fo get training fo three weeks. Afta pau, da Branch Committee coordinator, Malcom Vigo, had me read one letta from da branch in Sierra Leone. Dey was looking fo one pionea braddah who was healthy, no stay married, an could talk English an French fo be one circuit ovaseah in Guinea. Braddah Vigo wen tell me dass why I wen get da training. Cuz no was going be easy, he sed, “tink real good befoa you choose wat fo do”. Right away I wen tell um, “Jehovah da one asking me, so I going go.”
So firs I wen fly to Sierra Leone fo meet with da braddahs at da branch. One of dem wen tell me, “We donno how oua braddahs an sistahs doing in Guinea.” Even if dey had da kuleana fo take kea da preaching in Guinea, no could talk wit da preachas ova dea cuz had political kine pilikia. No matta how hard dey wen try fo send somebody fo visit da braddahs, neva happen. So da branch wen ask me fo go to da main city in Guinea, Conakry, fo ask da govament if I could live ova dea.
“Jehovah da one asking me, so I going go”
Wen I got dea, I wen go to da Nigerian embassy fo talk to da ambassador. I wen tell him I wen like preach in Guinea. He wen tell me not fo stay cuz I could get lock up o hurt. He said “Go back Nigeria an preach ova dea.” I wen tell him, “No, I going stay.” So he wen write one letta to da Minister of da Interior in Guinea, an dat guy wen help me.
Not too long afta dat, I wen go back to da branch in Sierra Leone fo tell dem wat wen happen. Da braddahs was real happy fo hear how Jehovah wen make tings work out good. I wen get fo live in Guinea!
Working fo da circuit in Sierra Leone
From 1978 to 1989, I was one circuit ovaseah in Guinea an Sierra Leone, an one back up circuit ovaseah in Liberia. Wen I firs wen start, I wen get sick plenny. Sometimes I was way out in da boonies. Da braddahs wen always take kea me an try get me to one hospital.
One time I wen get real sick cuz I had malaria an worms in my stomach. Wen I wen get betta, I wen find out da braddahs was talking about wea fo bury me cuz dey thought I was going mahke. Even though I wen thru all dat kine stuff, I neva tink fo bag from my assignment. I believe dat ony God can proteck us fo real kine cuz even if we mahke, he going bring us back.
ME AN MY WIFE TRUS JEHOVAH
Da day we wen get married in 1988
In 1988, I wen meet Dorcas, one humbo, spiritual pionea sistah. We wen get married an she wen join me in da circuit work. Dorcas wen work hard an was willing fo give up plenny fo Jehovah. Togedda we wen walk up to 15 miles between da local huis, carrying all oua ukana. Fo da local huis dat was moa far away, we wen use wateva way we could fo travel on da muddy roads dat had plenny pukas.
Dorcas, she geev um. Sometime we had fo go across da watta an had plenny crocodiles inside. Like one time, da bridge we was going use was broken, so we had fo use canoes. Dorcas wen stan up fo get out an wen huli inside da deep watta. We no could swim an had crocodiles inside da riva. Good ting, had some young guys ova dea who wen jump in an save her. Both of us had bad dreams about dat fo long time, but dat neva stop us.
Jahgift an Eric, oua kids, been spiritual gifs to us
Da beginning part of 1992, we was shock fo find out dat Dorcas was hapai. So we had fo figga out if we could keep being spesho pioneas. We wen tink, “Jehovah wen give us one gift!” Dass why we wen name oua girl Jahgift. Four years afta dat her braddah Eric was born. Oua two kids really was gifts from Jehovah. Jahgift got fo work in da remote translation office in Conakry, an Eric is one helpa guy.
Dorcas had fo stop being one spesho pionea, but she still wen stay one regula pionea even if she was raising da kids. Cuz Jehovah wen help, I wen stay in da spesho full-time work. Afta oua kids wen grow up, Dorcas wen spesho pionea again. Now both of us is missionaries in Conakry.
JEHOVAH DA ONE DAT PROTECK US
I always wen go wea eva Jehovah like me go. Plenny times me an my wife could feel Jehovah proteck an bless us. Cuz we trus Jehovah an not in da stuffs dat we can get, we had way less problems an tings fo worry about. From all da tings we went thru we wen learn dat Jehovah da one dat “get us outa trouble.” (1 Rec 16:35) I know fo shua dat all da guys who trus Him, Jehovah going “take kea all da peopo dat suppose to stay alive.”—1 Sam 25:29.