WANFALA member bilong KGB * hem tok raf long mi and sei: “Iu nogud dadi. Iu lusim waef bilong iu wea babule and baby gele bilong iu. Hu nao bae lukaftarem olketa? Lusim religion bilong iu and iu savve go bak long famili!” Then mi sei: “Nomoa, mi no lusim famili bilong mi. Iu nao arrestim mi! Why nao olsem?” Hem sei: “From iu wanfala Witness, iu wanfala criminal.”

Datwan hem happen long 1959, long prison long Irkutsk, wanfala taon long Russia. Distaem mi laek storyim, why mi and waef bilong mi Maria willing for ‘safa from mifala duim samting wea stret,’ and olketa blessing wea mifala kasem from mifala gohed faithful long God.—1 Pet. 3:13, 14.

Mi born long Ukraine long 1933, long wanfala vilij long Zolotniki. Long 1937, aunty bilong mi and hasband bilong hem wea stap long France visitim mifala. Tufala Jehovah’s Witness, and tufala givim mifala olketa buk hia, Government, and Deliverance, wea Watch Tower Society pablisim. Taem dadi readim tufala buk hia, datwan strongim faith bilong hem long God. Sorre samting, long 1939 hem barava sik big. Bifor hem dae hem sei long mami bilong mi: “Diswan nao truth. Teachim long olketa pikinini bilong iumi tufala.”

Long April 1951, gavman sendem staka Witness long west part bilong USSR go long Siberia. Mi, mami, and young brata bilong mi, Grigory, mas lusim West Ukraine. Mifala go long train for winim 6,000 kilometer for kasem Tulun, wanfala taon long Siberia. Tufala week bihaen, olketa sendem big brata bilong mi, Bogdan, long wanfala labor camp wea stap klosap long taon bilong Angarsk. And olketa judgem hem for stap long there and hem mas barava waka hard for 25 year.

Mi, mami, and Grigory, savve go preach long olketa settlement wea stap long Tulun, bat mifala mas iusim gudfala tingting. Olsem example, mifala savve ask olsem, “Hao, eniwan long hia laek for salem buluka?” Taem mifala kasem man wea salem buluka, mifala savve storyim hao olketa buluka barava spesol. Gogo mifala start for story abaotem Creator. Wanfala niuspepa long datfala taem storyim olketa Witness ask abaotem buluka, bat sheepsheep nao olketa lukaotem! And mifala faendem pipol wea olsem sheepsheep! Mifala hapi for studyim Bible witim olketa hia wea hambol and welkamim mifala. No enitaem Olketa Jehovah’s Witness preach long disfala territory. Bat distaem, wanfala kongregeson stap long Tulun, wea garem winim 100 pablisa.

Waef bilong mi Maria lanem truth long Ukraine, taem World War II hem gohed. Taem hem 18 year,  wanfala member bilong KGB trae for switim hem for durong, bat hem rejectim datwan. Wantaem hem go bak long haos, hem lukim datfala man leidaon long bed bilong hem. Maria ranawe from hem. Datfala man barava kros and sei bae olketa putim Maria long prison bikos hem wanfala Witness. So long 1952, olketa putim hem long prison and sei for hem stap for tenfala year. Hem sei hem olsem Joseph wea stap long prison from hem faithful long God. (Gen. 39:12, 20) Draeva wea tekem Maria from kot haos go long prison, sei long hem: “Iu no wari. Staka pipol go long prison bat taem olketa aot, pipol still respectim olketa.” Datfala toktok strongim hem.

Long 1952 go kasem 1956, Maria waka insaed wanfala labor camp wea stap klosap long Gorkiy, (distaem hem Nizhniy Novgorod) wanfala taon long Russia. Olketa talem hem for digim aot olketa tree nomata weather hem barava cold. Datwan barava affectim health bilong hem, bat long 1956, hem kamap free and go long Tulun.

Taem wanfala brata long Tulun talem mi wanfala sista hem arrive, mi raedem baesikol for go meetim hem long bas stop and for help for karem olketa basket bilong hem. Semtaem mi lukim Maria, mi barava laekem hem. Mi traem best for hem laekem mi, and gogo long 1957, mitufala marit. Wanfala year bihaen, firstborn gele bilong mitufala, Irina hem born. Mi hapi tumas, bat no longtaem nomoa mi lusim tufala tu. Long 1959, olketa arrestim mi bikos mi printim olketa Bible pablikeson. For sixfala month, mi stap seleva insaed wanfala prison cell. Mi evritaem prea and singim olketa Kingdom song mekem mi garem peace long heart bilong mi. And tu, mi gohed for tingim olketa samting wea bae mi duim long preaching waka taem mi free moa.

Long datfala taem nao samting wea mi storyim long start, hem happen long mi. Datfala man wea kwestinim mi hem tok kros and sei: “Klosap nao bae mifala finisim iufala!” Then mi sei: “Jesus sei olketa disaepol bilong mi BAE talemaot disfala gud nius abaotem Kingdom long evri ples long world and hard for eniwan stopem datwan.” Then datfala man iusim nara teknik. Hem sei long mi for lusim religion bilong mi mekem mi savve go bak long famili. Taem mi no duim wanem hem talem, olketa putim mi long labor camp long Saransk for sevenfala year. Taem mi gogo for datfala camp, mi herem mek-tu gele bilong mitufala, Olga, hem born. Nomata waef and tufala dota bilong mi stap farawe, mi no wari bikos mi savve mitufala Maria gohed faithful long Jehovah.

Wanfala taem evri year, Maria savve lusim Tulun for kam long Saransk for visitim mi. Datfala gogo savve tekem 12-fala day long train. Evritaem wea hem kam, hem savve tekem kam niu boot for mi. Hem haedem olketa niu Wastaoa magasin insaed datfala boot. Wantaem Maria kam visit, hem tekem kam tufala gele bilong mitufala. Datwan mekem mi barava hapi tumas!

Long 1966, mi kamap free from labor camp and mifala famili muv go long Armavir, taon wea stap klosap long Black Sea. Long there nao tufala son bilong mitufala, Yaroslav and Pavel tufala born.

No longtaem bihaen, olketa bilong KGB kam long haos bilong mifala for lukaotem olketa Bible  pablikeson. Olketa lukluk long evri ples, nomata ples kaikai bilong buluka stap long hem tu. Wantaem olketa lukaot gogo olketa swet nao, and uniform bilong olketa barava dirty. Maria sorre long olketa bikos hem luksavve olketa waka hard from olketa obeyim nomoa bigman bilong olketa. So hem givim juice for olketa, brush for aotem dirty from kaleko bilong olketa, wanfala dish wata, and samfala towel. Taem bigman bilong KGB kam, olketa talem hem abaotem gud samting wea Maria duim. Taem olketa go, datfala bigman smile and baebae long mifala. Mifala hapi for lukim olketa blessing wea kamap from mifala ‘gohed for duim gud samting mekem mifala savve winim nogud samting.’—Rome 12:21.

Nomata olketa duim olsem, mifala gohed preach long Armavir. Mifala help for strongim tu samfala pablisa long wanfala smol grup long taon bilong Kurganinsk, wea stap klosap. Mi hapi tumas for lukim distaem sixfala kongregeson nao stap long Armavir and fofala long Kurganinsk.

Samfala taem mifala wikdaon long spiritual wei. Bat mifala thankiu long Jehovah from olketa brata and sista stretem and strongim mifala for gohed worshipim hem. (Ps. 130:3) Wanfala big test wea mifala feisim, hem nao taem samfala insaed kongregeson saedem olketa KGB. Mifala no luksavve bikos olketa hia barava strong for duim ministry. Samfala garem tu bigfala responsibility insaed long organization. Bat gogo, mifala faendaot olketa hia saedem olketa KGB.

Long 1978, taem Maria 45 year, hem babule moa. From hem garem heart problem, olketa doctor wari nogud hem dae, so olketa trae for encouragem hem for olketa killim dae datfala baby. Maria no laekem datwan. Bat samfala doctor lukaotem eni chance for nilam hem mekem datfala baby born nomata hem no naen month yet. Maria mas ranawe from datfala hospital for protectim datfala baby.

Olketa KGB komandim mifala for lusim datfala taon. So mifala muv go long wanfala vilij wea stap klosap long Tallinn, long Estonia, wea stap anda long USSR long datfala taem. Long there nao Maria bornem datfala baby and tufala evriwan olraet. Hem wanfala baby boy and mifala nemim hem Vitaly.

Then mifala lusim Estonia, and go stap long wanfala settlement long Nezlobnaya, long south part bilong Russia. Mifala mas iusim gudfala tingting taem mifala preach long olketa taon wea staka pipol evriwea long Russia savve kam holiday long hem. Olketa savve kam long there for saed long health bilong olketa, bat samfala kasem tu hope for laef olowe!

Mitufala traem best for teachim olketa pikinini for lovem Jehovah and for laek worshipim hem. Staka taem mifala invaetem olketa brata and sista wea savve encouragem olketa pikinini bilong mitufala. Wanfala man wea visitim mifala evritaem nao brata bilong mi Grigory, wea hem duim traveling waka, from 1970 go kasem 1995. Mifala hapi tumas taem hem visitim mifala, bikos hem man for mekfani and hem hapi olowe. Taem olketa narawan kam long haos, mifala savve pleim olketa Bible game. Datwan helpem olketa pikinini for tinghae long olketa story long Bible.

Long 1987, son bilong mitufala Yaroslav, hem muv go long Riga, wanfala taon long Latvia, wea isi for  preach long hem. Bat taem hem les for joinim army, olketa putim hem long prison for wan and haf year, and hem stap long naenfala difren prison. From mi bin storyim experience bilong mi taem mi long prison, datwan helpem hem for no givap. Bihaen, hem kamap pioneer. Long 1990, taem Pavel hem 19 year, hem laek pioneer long Sakhalin, wanfala island long north Japan. Firstaem, mifala no laekem hem for go. Long datfala island, olketa garem nomoa 20-fala pablisa, and hem winim 9,000 kilometer from ples wea mifala stap. Bat gogo, mifala letem hem, and datwan hem gudfala disison. Pipol long there acceptim message abaotem Kingdom. Insaed tu-thri year nomoa, olketa garem eitfala kongregeson. Pavel pioneer long Sakhalin go kasem 1995. Long datfala taem, Vitaly nomoa stap witim mitufala long haos. Hem laekem tumas for readim Bible taem hem smol. Hem start for pioneer taem hem 14 year, and mi pioneer witim hem for tufala year. Mitufala barava enjoyim datwan. Taem Vitaly 19 year, hem kamap spesol pioneer long nara ples.

Tingim toktok bilong datfala member bilong KGB long 1952, wea sei olsem long Maria: “Lusim religion bilong iu or bae iu stap long prison for tenfala year. Taem iu kamap free, bae iu olo and bae no eniwan tingim iu.” Bat datwan nating tru nomoa. Mitufala lukim wei wea Jehovah, olketa pikinini, and olketa narawan wea mitufala helpem for lanem truth, showimaot love long mitufala. Mitufala hapi tu for go visitim ples wea olketa pikinini pioneer long hem. Mitufala lukim tu hao olketa Bible study bilong olketa pikinini bilong mitufala tinghae long help wea olketa kasem for lane abaotem Jehovah.

Long 1991, gavman letem Olketa Jehovah’s Witness for gohed duim waka bilong olketa long Russia. Diswan mekem preaching waka for kamap big. Kongregeson bilong mifala baem wanfala bas for go preach long weekend long olketa taon and vilij wea stap klosap.

Mi hapi from Yaroslav and waef bilong hem Alyona, and Pavel and waef bilong hem Raya, olketa waka long Bethel. Vitaly and waef bilong hem, Svetlana, duim circuit waka. Firstborn gele bilong mitufala, Irina, and famili bilong hem stap long Germany. Hasband bilong hem, Vladimir, and thrifala son bilong tufala olketa elder. Nara gele bilong mitufala, Olga, hem stap long Estonia, and hem savve ringim mi evritaem. Mi sorre tumas, long 2014, waef bilong mi Maria wea mi lovem tumas hem dae. Mi barava luk forward for lukim hem taem hem laef bak! Distaem mi stap long Belgorod, and olketa brata and sista long there barava sapotim mi.

Staka year wea mi worshipim Jehovah, mi luksavve taem man gohed faithful bae hem kasem hard taem, bat peace wea Jehovah givim, hem wanfala barava spesol samting. Olketa blessing wea mitufala Maria kasem from mitufala gohed faithful, hem barava winim eni gud samting wea mi savve tingim. Bifor olketa kantri wea stap anda long USSR kamap independent long 1991, winim 40,000 pablisa nomoa stap long there. Bat distaem winim 400,000 pablisa nao stap long olketa kantri wea bifor olketa part long Soviet Union! Distaem mi 83 year, and mi gohed for elder. Olketa samting wea Jehovah duim for mi barava strongim mi for no givap. Tru nao, Jehovah hem barava blessim mi.—Ps. 13:5, 6.