The difficult literal journey from Babylon to Israel could take about four months, but Jehovah promised that any obstacles that seemed to prevent their return would be cleared away. In the minds of faithful Jews, the benefits of returning to Israel far outweighed any sacrifices they would make. The greatest blessing involved their worship. There was no temple of Jehovah in Babylon. There was no altar where the Israelites could offer up the sacrifices required by the Mosaic Law, and there was no organized priesthood to offer those sacrifices. In addition, Jehovah’s people were greatly outnumbered by pagan men and women, who had no regard for Jehovah or his standards. So God-fearing Jews​—thousands of them—​were looking forward to returning to their homeland where they could restore pure worship. w23.05 14-15 ¶3-4

We need the help of God’s holy spirit so that we can keep conducting ourselves “as children of light.” Why? Because it is a definite challenge to remain clean in this immoral world. (1 Thess. 4:3-5, 7, 8) Holy spirit can help us to combat the thinking of the world, including its philosophies and viewpoints that conflict with God’s thinking. Holy spirit can also help us to produce “every sort of goodness and righteousness.” (Eph. 5:9) One way we can receive holy spirit is by praying for it. Jesus said that Jehovah will “give holy spirit to those asking him.” (Luke 11:13) And when we praise Jehovah together at Christian meetings, we also receive holy spirit. (Eph. 5:19, 20) The wholesome influence of God’s holy spirit will help us to live in a way that pleases God. w24.03 23-24 ¶13-15

Do you need more patience? If so, pray for it. Patience is an aspect of the fruitage of the spirit. (Gal. 5:22, 23) So we can pray for holy spirit and ask Jehovah to help us cultivate its fruitage. If we face a situation that tests our patience, we “keep on asking” for holy spirit to help us be patient. (Luke 11:13) We can also ask Jehovah to help us see matters from his point of view. Then after praying, we need to do our best to be patient each day. The more we pray for patience and strive to be patient, the more this quality will take root in our heart and become part of our personality. It also helps to meditate on Bible examples. The Bible contains many examples of people who were patient. By meditating on those accounts, we can learn ways to demonstrate patience. w23.08 22 ¶10-11