Alexander & Michelle
Where are you from?
Somos Canadiense y Estadounidense. (Or, in English, Alexander is from Canada and Michelle is from the United States.)
Why did you choose to be a need greater?
Simply because we wanted to serve Jehovah the best that we could, and we had the circumstances to do it. Ever since I was a child I wanted to be a missionary and serving where the need was greater just seemed like a definite right step towards that goal!
Why Nicaragua?
Alexander: Originally I wanted to move further north in Canada and help where there is a need there, but a friend of mine invited me to go with him to Nicaragua to see if we would like to go back and serve there longer in the future. We went, and as soon as we went back to Canada I knew that I had to go back and serve in Nicaragua – there was just a great need!
Michelle: I had served in another place before, and there was a need but it wasn’t as physically challenging as Nicaragua. I wanted to serve Jehovah with everything I had, including my physical abilities that I have in my youth.
Have you served anywhere else?
Alexander: In Canada I served in Grande Prairie, Alberta. I have also worked seldom worked territory several times in Alberta and the Northwest Territories, plus helped on dozen of Kingdom Hall construction projects across Canada and even one in Nicaragua – which was where I happened to first meet Michelle!
Michelle: Crescent City, Florida; Mazatlan Mexico, and some unassigned territory in Kentucky!
How long are you here for?
Life! We will continue to leave the matter in Jehovah’s hands, but currently we can afford to live here for several years more, and we have no plans or reasons to go back home. Granada is home now.
How did you prepare to come?
In order to move here permanently we both had to sell our vehicles, quit our jobs, and get rid of unnecessary material things. Within the time it took to make all the preparations to move here we were dating, and then engaged, and then we got married. Our focus was on serving where the need was greater and not so much on our wedding day. Thus we kept our wedding very small and simple. This enabled us to have our special day without all the complications and debt that many people experience. As a result Jehovah blessed our efforts and we were able to successfully save enough to move here and share our life of serving where the need is greater together!
Were you worried about anything before coming?
Alexander: Bring it on I say! Well, I was a little worried about learning Spanish. However that isn’t much of a concern serving in the Granada English Congregation, and the Spanish slowly coming along quite well.
Michelle: I was worried about safety, people always make comments about 3rd world countries being extremely dangerous right? Not any more dangerous than where I came from in the states. I was also worried about leaving my family. Many times I asked myself ‘is this really the right thing to do?’ My mother told me ‘there will be plenty of time for that later’. What did she mean? Think farsighted, not shortsighted. This is the biggest campaign to never again be repeated, and we will live forever in paradise with our families. Now is the time to preach!
Have you had to overcome any challenges to get here or while serving here?
We arrived here after being married for less than a month, so moving to a foreign land and adapting to married life has been somewhat of a challenge. However, serving Jehovah with your best friend is a true blessing. We’ve also had to learn balance and good organization since we are so busy with Bible studies and the congregation. However Jehovah has blessed us very much for all our hard work! (See next question!)
Do you have any highlights or good experiences from being here?
We met each other here, so that is a big highlight! Seeing Bible students come to the meeting for the first time and seeing how much we encourage our family and friends back home is great. We received a letter from my aunt’s study back in Florida saying how much she appreciates the work that we do and how impressed she is that we would move here to do it full time in a foreign land. How encouraging! Alexander just had a Bible study join the Theocratic Ministry School, and he has his first talk in a few weeks!
How has being here brought you closer to Jehovah?
We are fully relying on Jehovah now since we are not working secularly. It has been very faith strengthening to see how Jehovah has provided us the means to serve him here. Since we are talking to people about the Bible all the time it has really impressed even deeper into our minds that this is the truth, and that this is the best work we can be doing!
What do you do in your free time?
We like to sit around the campfire with our brothers and sisters, sharing experiences and getting to know each other better while we cook hotdogs and roast corn. Lately we’ve also enjoyed doing a little yard work and gardening, and sometimes watching an episode or two of old black and white TV shows together. Stovetop popcorn is the best!
What advice do you have for others thinking of coming?
What are you waiting for? Do it! Seriously pray to Jehovah about your desire to serve where the need is greater and ask him to bless your desire. Don’t make excuses – there are people from all over the world of all different ages and different circumstances all here serving where the need is greater. Don’t get caught up in the shortsighted dreams of this world – see farsightedly that this really is the best thing you can do with your life and that you can do it. Act along with your prayers by doing some research about where you want to serve. Talk to people who’ve done it, and I’m sure that they would be more than happy to help you get right at home here. You can do it!
