1. Yɛɛ berei 1 Pitɛ 5:2 e mo lai, le tii lɛlɛɛ ɓe ­korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai yeei?

 JEHOVAH trust the elder them by giving them the work to take care of his people. They grateful that Jehovah trust them to serve their brothers and sisters, and they can work hard to be “shepherds who . . .that real shepherd.” (Jer. 23:4; read 1 Peter 5:2.) We really happy that we get brother them like this in the congregations!

2. Mɛni-kpanaŋ-ŋa kɛɛ leŋ ɓe korai-toli-kpɔŋ ­laa-tuɛ-ɓelai taŋa da tɛɛ zui?

² The elder them can face plenty problems when they taking care of their brother and sister them. Infact, the elder them can really work hard to take care of the congregation. One elder in America name Tony, say he learn to not accept too much work. He say: “When COVID-19 started, I agree to do plenty work to organize meetings and the field service. But I not care how I work, I was still having plenty work to do. I was so busy that I was not having enough time to read the Bible, study, and pray.” One elder in Kosovo name Ilir, face different problem. When he was in one place where they were fighting war, he say it was hard for him to obey the instruction from the organization. He say: “When the branch office gave me one assignment to help the brother and sister them in one dangerous area, it was hard for me to obey. I was scary and the direction was not making sense to me.” One missionary in Asia name Tim, say it was hard for him to do all the thing them he suppose to do everyday. He say: “Sometime, I use to feel too tire to take care of the brother and sister them.” Wetin can help elders who facing problem them like this?

3. Mɛni lɛlɛɛ kɛɛ leŋ ɓe ku kelee kwa zɔlɔ ɓo kwa ku kukili-ŋa sia e pilaŋ Gidiɔŋ ŋɔmɛni-kɔɔŋ-maai ma?

³ Elder them can learn from Judge Gideon example.  (Heb. 6:12; 11:32) He use to protect God people and take care of them. (Judg. 2:16; 1 Chron. 17:6) Just like Gideon, Jehovah na appoint the elder them to take care of his people during this hard time. (Acts 20:28; 2 Tim. 3:1) We can learn from the way Gideon was modest, humble, and use to obey. Also, it was not easy for him to endure in his assignment. Whether we elder or we not elder, all of us can be more grateful for the elder them. We can support this hard working brother them who taking care of us in the congregation.​—Heb. 13:17.

4. Gidiɔŋ e maa-yeŋ-laa lɛ leŋ?

⁴ Gideon was modest and humble. b The time Jehovah angel tell Gideon that Jehovah na choose him to free Israel from the powerful Midianites, that humble man say: “My clan is the least in Manasseh, and I am the most insignificant in my father’s house.” (Judg. 6:15) He was feeling that he was not able to do this assignment but Jehovah knew that he able to do it. With the help of Jehovah, Gideon was successful and he finish his assignment.

5. Mɛni-ŋa kɛɛ leŋ ɓe a pɔri korai-toli-kpɔŋ ­laa-tuɛ-nuu ŋɔmaa-yeŋ-laai sukɔɔni?

⁵ The elder them can try their best to be modest and humble in everything they do. (Mic. 6:8; Acts 20:​18, 19) They can’t boast about the thing them they can do or the thing them they finish doing. And they can’t be feeling too bad because they made some mistakes. But sometime it can be hard for the elder them to be humble or modest. For example, maybe one elder will agree to do plenty assignments. Then time come he not able to do all of them. Or it can be hard for him to be modest and humble when people praise him or criticize him for the way he can do his assignment. Wetin elders can learn from Gideon that will help them in situation them like this?

6. Le ɓe korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri maa-kɔrii Gidiɔŋ ŋɔmaa-yeŋ-laai su? (Ya pɔri ŋɔnɔ votooi kaai.)

⁶ Ask for help. Somebody who modest know that they not able to do everything. Because Gideon was modest he ask other people to help him. (Judg. 6:​27, 35;  7:24) Elder them that wise can do the same thing. Tony, who we talk about before, say: “Because of the training I got when I was small, it made me to accept more work that I not able to do. So I decided for us to talk about modesty in our family worship and I ask my wife if I modest. I also watch this video on jw.org with the title Train, Trust, and Empower Others, as Jesus Does.” Tony started to ask other people to help him with the work. What was the result? Tony say: “Other people was helping me to do the work in the congregation, and I was having more time to make my friendship with Jehovah strong.”

7. Korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri Gidiɔŋ pɔɔkɔɔni leŋ nua da dilaa kara? (Zĩi 3:​13)

⁷ Don’t get vex when somebody criticize you. Another thing that can make it hard for elder them to be humble and modest that when somebody criticize them. Again, Gideon example can help the elder them. Gideon knew that he was not perfect. So when the Ephraimites criticize him, he not get vex with them. (Judg. 8:​1-3) He not talk to them rough way. He show that he was humble by listening to what they were telling him, and the way he talk to them made the people heart to lay down. Elder them that wise can follow Gideon example by taking their time to listen good-good and by not talking rough way when people criticize them. (Read James 3:13.) When they do this one, it can make peace to be in the congregation.

8. Maa nɛ̃ɛi korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai di tua leŋ nua da dilaa maa tɛ? Gɔɔŋ-maa lɛ.

⁸ Give all praise to Jehovah. When the people praise Gideon after he win the war against Midian, he gave the praise to Jehovah. (Judg. 8:​22, 23) How the elder them can follow Gideon example? They must give the praise to Jehovah for anything they do. (1 Cor. 4:​6, 7) For example, if they praise one elder because of the way he can teach, he must say that the instruction coming from the Bible and that Jehovah organization training all of us. The Elder them must think about the way they can teach to see whether it honoring Jehovah or they want other people to praise them. Let look at the experience about one elder name Timothy. When Timothy started serving as elder, he use to love giving public talks. He say: “When I giving talk, my introduction and example them use to be long. People use to praise me because of that. But the people use to focus on me instead of the Bible or Jehovah.” After some time, Timothy got to know that he needed to change the way he can give talks so that people can’t focus on him too much. (Prov. 27:21) What was the result? He say: “Different-different brother and sister them tell me how my talk help them to get close to Jehovah, to bear or overcome the problem them they were going through. I can be more happy when I hear the brother them saying thing them like this more than when they praising me.”

9. Mɛni-ŋa kɛɛ leŋ ɓe Gidiɔŋ ŋɔwoo-mɛnii da ŋɔlii-kpelei sukɔɔŋ? (Ya pɔri votooi Watchtower tuɛ-laa mai kaai.)

⁹ After Jehovah gave Gideon the assignment to lead his people, some thing them make it hard for him to obey and show courage. Jehovah gave him the assignment to destroy his pa Baal altar and that assignment was dangerous. (Judg. 6:​25, 26) Later on, after Gideon put his soldier them together, Jehovah told him two times that they too plenty, so he must reduce them. (Judg. 7:​2-7) Then, Jehovah  told him to attack the enemy them in the middle of the night.​—Judg. 7:​9-11.

10. Le ɓe a pɔri korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-nuu ŋɔwoo-mɛnii sukɔɔni?

¹⁰ The elder them must be “ready to obey.” (Jas. 3:17) The elder that can obey can be ready to follow what the Bible say and the direction from the organization. Like that, he will be setting good example for other people. But sometime, it will be hard for him to obey. For example, maybe he get plenty instructions or the instruction them can change quick-quick, so it can be hard for him to apply them. Sometime, he can be thinking whether some direction them really make sense. Or maybe they give him one assignment that make it easy for the police to arrest him. How the elder them can follow Gideon example to obey in situation them like this?

11. Le ɓe a pɔri kpɔŋ maa tɛɛi korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai pɔ a gɛɛ dikɛ a woo-mɛni-ɓela?

¹¹ Listen good-good to direction and apply it. God told Gideon how to destroy his pa altar, where he must build new altar to sacrifice to Jehovah, and which animal to sacrifice. Gideon not criticize the instruction. He just follow it and do what Jehovah tell him. Today, Jehovah organization can send letters, announcements and other guidelines to the elder them that can help us to be safe and be close to Jehovah. We love our elder them because they can do their best to follow all the direction them. The whole congregation can benefit.​—Ps. 119:112.

12. Pere sii kɛɛ leŋ ɓe korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri tii kɛi la a Ibulu 13:​17 a kɛ da mɛni maa faleŋɔɔ ta kɛ gbɔŋ-gie-mai su?

¹² Be willing to follow new direction. Remember that Jehovah told Gideon to send almost all his soldier men them home. (Judg. 7:8) Maybe he was thinking, ‘It really important to send all this people back? It will really work?’ But still Gideon obey. Today, the elder them can follow Gideon example by obeying any new direction from the organization. (Read Hebrews 13:17.) For example, in 2014 the Governing Body change the way we use to contribute for the brother them to build Kingdom Hall and Assembly Hall. (2 Cor. 8:​12-14) Way back, the organization use to credit the congregation money to build Kingdom Hall, and later on the congregation use to pay it back. But now the organization can use contributions from all the congregation them around the world. They can use the contributions to build Kingdom Halls and Assembly Halls to where the brother them need it, even if the congregation can contribute small money. When José get to know about this new arrangement, he not believe that it was going to work. He was thinking that, ‘they will not build one Kingdom Hall self. That not how things can happen on this side.’ Wetin help José to support the direction? He say:  “Proverbs 3:​5, 6 help me to trust in Jehovah. And the results from this new arrangement was really wonderful! We not just building plenty Kingdom Halls but the new way the brother them using the contributions benefitting all the congregation them.”

13. (a) Le ɓe Gidiɔŋ e kɛ a naa lai? (b) Korai-­toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri Gidiɔŋ pɔɔkɔɔni leŋ? (Ya pɔri ŋɔnɔ votooi kaai.)

¹³ Show courage to do Jehovah will. Gideon obey Jehovah even when he was scary and the assignment was dangerous. (Judg. 9:17) Jehovah make it clear to Gideon that He will help him. After that Gideon was convince that Jehovah will help him to protect His people. Elder them who living in areas where they stop our work can follow Gideon example. They can show courage by taking the lead in the meetings and in the field service even if they will arrest them, question them, loose their job, or treat them bad. c During the great tribulation, the elder them will need courage to obey any instructions they get even when it dangerous to follow. For example, maybe we will get instruction on how to preach the strong Judgement message and wetin we must do to survive when the nation them attack us.​—Ezek. 38:18; Rev. 16:21.

14. Le ɓe Gidiɔŋ ŋɔlii-kpelei sukɔɔŋ?

¹⁴ Gideon assignment to be judge make him to work hard. When the Midianites run away in the night, Gideon run behind them from the Valley of Jezreel all the way to the Jordan River. And that whole place that was bush. (Judg. 7:22) You think Gideon stop to the Jordan river? No! Even though he and his 300 men them was tire, they continue to run behind them. In the end, they catch the Midianites and kill them.​—Judg. 8:​4-12.

15. Mɛni-ŋa kɛɛ leŋ ɓe a pɔri korai-toli-kpɔŋ ­laa-tuɛ-nuu ŋɔlii-kpelei sukɔɔni?

¹⁵ For example, maybe one elder can be  too tire because he taking care of the congregation and his family. In situation them like this, how the elder them can follow Gideon example?

16-17. Le ɓe kpɔŋ maa tɛɛ Gidiɔŋ pɔ a gɛɛ e tɔɔ a gbanaŋɔɔ, nyaŋ le ɓe korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri kɛi a di laa lai? (Azaya 40:​28-31) (Ya pɔri ŋɔnɔ votooi kaai.)

¹⁶ Trust that Jehovah will give you the strength. Gideon was sure that Jehovah will give him the strength, and Jehovah gave him the strength. (Judg. 6:​14, 34) One time, Gideon and his men them run behind the two Midianite kings even though this king them was riding on camels. (Judg. 8:​12, 21) But God help them to catch this king them and win the war. So the elder them can rely on Jehovah, the one who can’t get tire or get weak. He will give them strength the time they need it.​—Read Isaiah 40:​28-31.

¹⁷ Let look at the experience of Matthew, who serving on the Hospital Liaison Committee. Wetin help him to endure? Matthew say: “I na feel the strength from Jehovah that Philippians 4:13 talk about. Plenty time when I tire and feel that I can’t continue, I can really pray to Jehovah to give me the strength to support my brother them. During time them like this, I na feel that Jehovah use his spirit to help me to endure.” Like Gideon, our elder them can work very hard to take care of Jehovah people even though it can’t be easy. That true, the elder must know their limit and know that they will not always be able to do everything they want do. But they can trust that Jehovah will answer their prayers and give them the strength to endure.​—Ps. 116:1; Phil. 2:13.

18. Yɛɛ berei kwaa maa-kɔri lai, pere sii kɛɛ leŋ ɓe korai-toli-kpɔŋ laa-tuɛ-ɓelai da pɔri Gidiɔŋ pɔɔkɔɔni lai?

¹⁸ The elder them can learn plenty things from Gideon example. The elder them must show that they modest and humble by knowing the amount of work they agree to do. And also, they can show that they modest when other people criticize or praise them. They must show courage and be ready to obey especially the way this system going to the end. And they need to trust that Jehovah will give them the strength no matter what kind na problem them they will go through. Yes, we grateful for our hardworking elder them and we “keep holding men of that sort dear.”​—Phil. 2:29.