If there was ever an Earth-bound person, I think it was me before I was saved. This was a result of my personality and the way I was raised. Before I turned nine, my father took me along when doing business with livestock traders, and I quickly learned to assess the value of young cattle. Later, I studied commerce and was able to independently run a business at the age of 18. I knew all about buying, selling, bookkeeping, and business correspondence.
When the Lord Jesus entered my life, something wonderful happened: the Lord freed me of the old, dishonest character and gave me a sincere heart. I was no longer able to do or say anything that was not right. In the years immediately following my conversion, the enemy once tricked me into speaking an untruth. I was sincerely sorry, and I would have loved to ask the person in question for forgiveness. I became so careful in my speech that, out of an excess of scrupulousness, I was reluctant to speak at all for some time. That was a step too far, and God showed me how to achieve a healthy balance. I lived in the presence of God, as described in Psalm 139:4, “Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely” (NIV).
I can say before God that I did not knowingly speak any untruth: not to my wife during our marriage, not to my children, not to the congregation, not to an unbeliever, and not when buying or selling or with regard to money entrusted to me. God gave me grace to achieve this.
The wonderful thing is that the strong, Earth-bound aspect of my character took a step back as the first place in my heart now belonged to Jesus—to my love for Him, His Word, His children, and for prayer. This change was so strong that I paid hardly any attention to money or to my job here on Earth. All of my energy went towards the kingdom of God and towards making progress in the grace of God.
Seeking fellowship with children of God, I moved to the city of Essen, where I quickly found a factory job at the internationally renowned company Krupp. I worked there from 1905 to early 1907, during which time I worked in an ore mine in Niederscheiden in the Rhineland and a coal mine in Katernberg near Essen. Earthly considerations had become minor to me because love towards God, regardless of where He led, had become my priority.
Years later, I clearly saw God’s wonderful leading in His wise guidance of my life. When I became a preacher in Essen in 1919, I truly understood why the Lord had put me through such a hard school and why I had to take these humbling paths of working in the mines. The congregation at the time was made up of miners, factory workers, and white-collar workers. Because I had personal experience in each of these fields, I was able to understand the circumstances and challenges they faced.
People are so quick to think that their pastor could not possibly understand their situation, saying that if he were in their shoes, his tune would soon change. But the Lord led my life down a path that taught me empathy, to better serve my brothers in the Lord and properly represent them as a priest in service to God. This is the same reason our Savior had to come to Earth and experience life through human eyes (Hebrews 2:17-18).
When I turned to God in 1904, and in the following years, I never imagined that God would call me to be a preacher. Later, several pastors asked me to enter the ministry. However, I had to overcome intense inner conflict before truly joining the work. I was simply unable to say, with full personal conviction, that God had called me to be a pastor.
In 1912, I already had several years of spiritual work behind me when one of the old pioneers wanted to ordain me. Lacking clarity over my calling, I declined. It was a matter of conscience for me. Only when Brother H. M. Riggle from the United States visited Essen as a missionary in 1924 did I relent and let him ordain me. I did not want to take any step without being convinced that it was the Lord’s will. This is still my attitude today.
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