A single mother named Desicar wanted to expand her ministry by becoming a regular pioneer. She lives in a country that faces many economic troubles—Venezuela. Yet, she was determined to start pioneering, and she did. She was happy about that, but then the COVID-19 pandemic began.

 At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Desicar had trouble adapting her ministry to the new circumstances. Writing letters was challenging for her. Also, she could not use videoconferencing in her ministry because Internet service is very expensive in her area. “I was disheartened,” she says. “My ministry became limited overnight. I thought I wasn’t being effective as a regular pioneer.”

 Then, in January 2021, the branch office of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Venezuela approved a special preaching campaign. Arrangements were made for some 60 radio stations and 7 television channels to broadcast selected public Bible talks during all five weekends of that month. Witnesses were encouraged to invite interested people to tune in. The branch also provided questions and scriptures related to each talk, which our brothers and sisters could use in their letters and phone conversations. In addition, the branch highlighted the use of text messaging in the ministry—a new method of preaching for many Witnesses in Venezuela.

 Desicar was excited to share in the campaign. Although she had never used text messaging to give a witness, she decided to give it a try. Yet, she needed help. “I’m not good with technology,” admits Desicar. So she asked her daughter to teach her, and with just a few lessons, Desicar was ready to share in the campaign.

 By using the texting feature on her phone, Desicar invited many of her acquaintances to listen to the prerecorded talks. She was amazed at the results. A good number of her contacts listened to the talks and asked questions. Others could not tune in but asked Desicar what had been discussed in the talks. “I prepared a summary of my notes and shared it with them,” says Desicar. “I’ve never made more than 5 return visits in a month, but at the end of the campaign, I had made 112!” a

 Desicar also invited her unbelieving sister—who lives next door to her—to listen to the talks on the radio. “To my surprise, my sister agreed,” says Desicar. “Each Sunday at 8:00 a.m., I went to her apartment, and we listened together. She had many questions, both during and after the program.” Desicar’s sister also attended the Memorial of Jesus’ death via videoconferencing, and she allowed Desicar to use her Internet connection in the ministry.

 “I am so grateful to Jehovah,” says Desicar. “I also thank my congregation elders for being so encouraging to me. They helped me regain my joy in the ministry.” (Jeremiah 15:16) Desicar continues pioneering and following up on the interest she found through text messaging.