‘The Greatest Contentment I Ever Knew’

NOT long ago a mother and her two daughters showed up at a Kingdom Hall in Nashville, Tennessee, for the Watchtower study. At one time the mother had been active in Jehovah’s service but had drifted away. She asked if someone would again study the Bible with her and her daughters. Arrangements were made, and good progress has been shown.

This dedicated sister also had a brother in Georgia who had fallen away from the truth. Her oldest daughter wrote to him, and he replied: “It is usual when one has his shortcomings called to his attention to feel a flare of resentment, but I can assure you this is not the way I felt in reading your letter. Mostly, I think, I felt very much ashamed that I have allowed myself to stray so far from the truth and from Jehovah’s organization and his people. The happiest and greatest contentment I ever knew was in working with Jehovah’s people. I sincerely do feel a great loss and know that I must take steps to join myself to them again. This I must do; because there is certainly no happiness or contentment in anything else in this world. I do not say that I do anything really bad perhaps, but I am inactive. In fact, so much so, I just don’t feel that Jehovah’s spirit is on me anymore. It is almost heartbreaking to realize that I have let this happen to me. But I know that Jehovah knows my heart . . . I know too that it only takes effort on my part to overcome this sluggishness.”

A week later he wrote again, saying that he had had a busy week: “I began by going to the Watchtower study on Sunday. This started the week off right and pleasant. I think I can give some credit here because your letter set me to thinking . . . Well, any way, I went to the book study on Tuesday, to the ministry school on Thursday and enrolled again, and then yesterday I had two wonderful hours in service.” Yes, he was happy to be back.

Others, too, who may have become inactive can likewise regain that happiness and contentment that were once theirs. There are many thousands of active Witnesses who will be glad to help them.