Mi born long Mulhouse, wanfala taon long France. Staka pipol long datfala taon olketa savve raf tumas. Staka famili savve faet and killim each other. Long famili bilong mifala, mifala olketa man ting daonem olketa woman and no laek herem tingting bilong olketa. Mifala expectim olketa woman for duim evri waka long haos.

Laef bilong mi hem no isi taem mi pikinini. Taem mi ten year, dadi bilong mi hem dae bikos hem ova tumas long alcohol. Faevfala year bihaen datwan, wanfala brata bilong mi hem suisaed. Long datfala sem year, tufala relative bilong mi raoa, gogo wanfala killim dae narawan. Mi barava feel nogud taem mi lukim datwan. Olketa long famili bilong mi lanem mi hao for faet and hao for iusim gun and naef. Mi start for drink and mi sutim staka tattoo long body bilong mi.

Taem mi 16 year, mi savve drinkim winim 10-fala beer evriday, and gogo mi start for iusim olketa drug. Mi savve go lukaotem olketa pis iron for salem and mi stealim olketa samting tu, mekem mi garem selen for baem olketa samting hia. Nomata mi no 17 year yet olketa putim mi long prison bikos mi stealim staka samting and mi raf long pipol.

Bihaen mi 20 year, mi duim staka nogud samting. Mi savve smokem winim 20-fala rol long marijuana evriday and mi iusim heroin and olketa nara drug tu. Tu-thri taem mi klosap dae from datwan. Then mi start for salem olketa drug, so for protectim miseleva mi mas tekem naef and gun witim mi evritaem. Wanfala taem mi sutim wanfala man long gun, bat lucky nao datfala bullet hem bangam nomoa buckle bilong belt bilong hem! Taem mi 24 year, mami bilong mi hem dae and mi barava sorre. From staka nogud samting olsem kasem mi, mi savve kros kwiktaem. Taem pipol lukim mi wakabaot kam and luksavve mi kros, olketa bae go long narasaed long road. Mi man for faet tu, so staka weekend olketa police putim mi long cell or mi stap long hospital from mi garekil.

Taem mi 28 year mi marit, bat mi nating lukaftarem gud waef bilong mi. Mi tok spoelem hem and mi savve killim hem tu, and mi no savve stap kwaet long haos. Mi tingse hem shud hapi bikos mi givim hem staka expensive nekles and earring wea mi stealim. Gogo, waef bilong mi duim samting wea mi no expectim. Hem start for studyim Bible witim Olketa Jehovah’s Witness. Bihaen hem studyim Bible wantaem nomoa,  hem stop for smoke, hem talem mi hem no laekem mi for givim hem selen wea mi stealim, and hem givim bak olketa nekles and earring wea mi givim hem. Mi barava kros and mi talem hem mi no laekem hem for studyim Bible. Taem mi smoke mi savve blowim datfala smoke long feis bilong hem. Mi savve story nogud abaotem hem long olketa narawan.

Wanfala naet, taem mi drunk, mi bonem haos bilong mifala taem mifala evriwan insaed. Bat waef bilong mi sevem mi and gele bilong mitufala wea hem faev year. Bihaen datwan, mi barava guilty and mi tingse bae hem hard nao for God forgivim mi. Mi tingim hao wanfala priest sei olketa wea duim olketa nogud samting bae go long hell. Wanfala doctor sei long mi: “No eniwan fit for helpem iu nao.”

Bihaen datwan, mifala go stap witim mami and dadi bilong waef bilong mi. Taem olketa Witness kam for study witim waef bilong mi, mi askem olketa, “Waswe, God savve forgivim olketa sin bilong mi?” Olketa readim 1 Corinth 6:9-11 long mi. Olketa verse hia storyim olketa samting wea pipol duim wea God sei hem no stret, bat long verse 11 hem sei: “Hem nao wei bilong samfala long iufala bifor.” Datfala toktok helpem mi for luksavve man savve change. Then olketa readim 1 John 4:8, and datwan helpem mi for luksavve God hem lovem mi. Datwan mekem mi laek for studyim Bible witim olketa, and mi duim datwan tufala taem long week. Mi start for attendim olketa meeting bilong Olketa Jehovah’s Witness, and mi prea evritaem long Jehovah.

Bihaen wanfala month, mi disaed for stop for iusim olketa drug and for no drinkim alcohol. Bat from mi addict long olketa samting hia, taem mi stop, datwan mekem mi barava sik. Hed bilong mi soa, bele hem pain, body bilong mi seksek, and mi savve dream abaotem olketa samting wea mekem mi fraet. Nomata olsem, mi luksavve Jehovah helpem mi for deal witim olketa samting hia. Mi feel olsem Paul wea sei: “Nomata wanem samting hem kasem mi, paoa wea mi kasem from God nao hem strongim mi for gohed.” (Philippi 4:13) Gogo, mi stop for smoke tu.—2 Corinth 7:1.

Wanem mi lanem long Bible helpem mi for changem laef bilong mi, and tu, datwan helpem famili bilong mi. Mi respectim and tok kaen long waef bilong mi. Mi start for lukaftarem gele bilong mitufala tu. Gogo, waef bilong mi baptaes and kamap wanfala Jehovah’s Witness. Bihaen mi studyim Bible for wanfala year, mi tu dedicate long Jehovah and baptaes.

Mi luksavve sapos mi no followim olketa Bible principle bae mi no laef distaem. Nomata olketa long famili bilong mi wea no Witness, olketa sei sapos mi no changem laef bilong mi, mi shud dae finis from mi iusim olketa drug or from samwan killim mi dae long faet.

Wanem mi lanem long Bible helpem mi for kamap gudfala hasband and dadi, and datwan mekem famili bilong mifala for stap gud and for duim olketa samting tugeta. (Ephesus 5:25; 6:4) Distaem, mi no expectim waef for duim evri samting long haos. Hem savve spendem 70 hour long preaching waka evri month. And hem sapotim mi tu, mekem mi savve gohed elder long kongregeson.

Mi barava tinghae long wei wea Jehovah lovem and forgivim mi. Mi laekem tumas for helpem pipol for savve long olketa nambawan wei bilong Jehovah, especially olketa wea maet pipol tingse olketa no savve changem wei bilong olketa. Mi savve Bible garem paoa for helpem evri difren kaen man for garem gudfala laef. Bible hem helpem mi for tinghae and showimaot respect long pipol, especially long olketa woman, and tu, Bible helpem mi for no ting daonem miseleva.