Though I was not brought up in a Christian family, the love of God followed me from the time I was young. As a youth, someone from our small village in Botswana let me know, “If you should die unsaved, you’ll go to Hell.” That bothered me, and I thank God that it did because that is what motivated me to seek God.

Our family was very poor, and I knew my parents would not be able to afford an education for all of their children. So, after finishing secondary school, I decided to quit school and start working. My best option was to move to the capital city of Gaborone and join the police force, and I moved there at age nineteen.

There were a number of different churches in the city, but their teachings were not clear to me. Eventually I joined a religious organization that was at least reading the Bible, but even there, some of the doctrines did not make sense to me. My soul was not satisfied, and I still felt in my heart, “If you should die unsaved, you’ll go to Hell.” That was the Spirit of God speaking to me through my conscience.

In my heart, there was always a desire to work for God. One day, I prayed and asked God to give me a job that I would be able to work for him. About a year later, my answer came. I saw an advertisement for plant operators in a mine located in a small town called Jwaneng, which is almost 200 km (125 miles) from Gaborone. That sounded like a job that would be good for me, so I applied and was soon hired. Within three months of arriving in Jwaneng, I was sent 750 km (466 miles) away for a training course. It was there that a friend invited me to attend an Apostolic Faith Church service. Finally, I heard the message of salvation and how to make it to Heaven.

Though I did not get saved that day, the message touched my heart. The church members told me how to find the Apostolic Faith branch closest to Jwaneng—I would have to travel by bus almost two hours to get there. It was far, but my desire for the truth urged me to make the effort and I began making the trip on weekends.

The Lord continued to work on my heart for almost a year. Then, during the Easter services of 1983, I surrendered my life to Him and experienced salvation. At last, I had peace in my heart and knew I was ready for Heaven. That day, God changed my life completely. Instead of the fear of Hell, I had a holy fear of God and wanted to do my best to live in His will. Sinful habits were gone and I became selective about the friends I spent time with. I even wrote letters to some, explaining that I had become a Christian and from that time onward, I would not live the way I had before. Truly, I did my best not to do anything condemned by the Word of God.

At church I learned about the experience of sanctification and began to seek for it. I still had an earnest desire to work for God and felt that to do that, I would need all God had for me. I consecrated my life to God in prayer, and in 1984 He sanctified me, removing all trace of the sin nature from my heart. That gave me additional strength to separate from the world and be dedicated unto God.

When I learned about the baptism of the Holy Ghost and fire, I knew I needed that experience as well. I knew of no other Christians in the mining town where I was working, and pastors were only able to visit occasionally. I needed God’s guidance and power in my life. After seeking for about a year, God filled me with the Holy Spirit, giving me new courage and zeal to be a witness for Him.

The church leaders arranged to hold outreach services in Jwaneng, and afterward we started holding Sunday school there regularly. After a time, I was asked to lead the group, and eventually it grew to become a church, which is still there today.

In the years since God saved me, He has been my Protector, my Counselor, my Provider—whatever I have needed, it has been there for me. God brought me a wife and then gave us four lovely children: three girls and one boy.

The job that God gave me at the mine supported our family for thirty-two years, until my retirement. Even though I had very little education, God advanced my position to the point that I was earning a salary that I was not academically qualified for. During my career, I never applied for a promotion—not once. I was always told, “You are being promoted.” By God’s grace, I stayed in a middle-management position. Our home was well taken care of, and all our children received a good education. That is what God did for me.

Though that job was from God and I did it as unto Him, in my heart I wanted to serve God in ministry full time. Most people in Botswana work until age sixty, but my hope was to be able to retire at age fifty and give ten of my working years to God. I owe God a lot, and I felt this was something I could do to give back to Him.

Though I did not make it at age fifty, when I was fifty-two years old God opened a way for me to retire from the mine and serve Him full time. What I did not expected was that several years later, in 2015, I would be asked to serve as the district superintendent of the Apostolic Faith work in Botswana. That was difficult for me because I did not feel qualified for the position. In fact, I gave excuses why I should not be chosen, but the church leadership assured me that God would be there for me. For sure, God has stood up for us in Botswana, and we are grateful to see how He is working here.

Recently, God showed mercy to my family again. In November and December of 2024, my wife was admitted to the hospital and had three major surgeries within thirty days. During that time, we saw the power of God healing her and today she is almost fully recovered.

I thank God for His love that found me in a small village and led me far away, to a place where I would find salvation. My desire to work for Him has not changed, and I am looking forward to seeing Him in Heaven one day.