Faith That Transforms

In Finland, a certain young husband once had a serious drug habit. At 14 years of age, he had joined a gang of drug users and had become a thief to finance his habit. For this he ended up in prison. Eventually, he began living with a girl who belonged to the same gang. In 1977 she made an effort to break the drug habit, and, after reading “The Watchtower” and “Awake!”, they both attended a Christian assembly. The spiritual cleanness noted at that gathering made a deep impression on them. Seeing the happy families touched them, their consciences were pricked, and they realized that they were doing wrong. A Bible study was started with them and they began to attend Christian meetings. In September 1977, the young woman broke her ties with Babylon the Great, the world empire of false religion, and the two of them also legalized their marriage. Thereafter, they began to take part in the field service, sharing the Kingdom message with others. The husband remembers that, earlier, he was encouraged at the 1977 district assembly when an acquaintance, who previously had been on drugs, patted him on the shoulder and said: ‘Have you been using amphetamines? I once took them, too. But, don’t worry. You will be able to get free from them, even as I did, with Jehovah’s help.’ The baptism of this young married couple at the Helsinki international convention on July 15, 1978, was a living example of victorious faith​—a faith that has transforming power.