Return to work at Strömberg in the summer of 1972
In the summer of 1972, I returned to work at the headquarters of Oy Strömberg Ab's Pitäjänmäki plant in Helsinki. I had already started there as a mechanical engineering technician in the electronics department's drawing room just before joining the army. There I designed mechanical structures for eg process computers in the woodworking industry. I also designed the mechanical structure of the lighting control panel for the Tampere Theater.
I got a rented apartment on Aleksanterinkatu, close to Stockmann. From there, the commuter train took only 12 minutes to the Valimo Strömberg stop. The apartment was owned by Erno and Brita Sirkkunen. They were already retired. Erno had served as a messenger of the Lutheran Church abroad and collected art treasures to his home.
I liked my new job because I was able to design new products. At that time, a drawing board was still used and drawn with ink cartridges of different sizes on the plastic. The departments had separate typists who transcribed the parts lists, which were archived, as well as the drawings after inspection and approval.
The workplace was located on a test field, where a hole had been left very high in the ceiling as to commemorate the accident and for warning, when the tested electric motor's speed of rotation had accelerated uncontrollably and therefore the motor flew through the roof out. As far as I know, fortunately it hadn't hit any man.
That summer, at the request of my boss, I worked as a foreman for one month at the Electronics Manufacture' Shields's Painting Department to gain work experience while also being a substitute for a supervisor's summer vacation. There I had about ten subordinates, more than half of whom were young, some of me younger.
The job was easy. I had to make sure that the subordinates came to work on time, did the scheduled work, and left work at the right time. The job was also a suitable variation for me.
My rental room at the corner of Aleksanterinkatu and Keskuskatu was only temporary. That is why I prayed such a prayer that I would get a longer term rental apartment and at the same time get some believing friends. I prayed that the apartment would be located in the center of the city, would be affordable and would be fully furnished.
Sixth, I prayed that I would get that home without a newspaper ad in a completely supernatural way. I was still praying for a seventh condition for the dwelling: It was to be obtained within the same month. It all came true! Halleluyah! It happened like this: One of my subordinates was an alias named Miko, a smart young man.
As we traveled daily by commuter train, he once suggested that we continue from the empty wagon to the next wagon full of passengers. We did so and sat down next to a young man, neatly dressed, about 30 years old, Miko opposite him and I next to him.
That man, alias Eero, was reading a blue-edged book. Miko asked him, "What are you reading?" He replied, "The guide for explaining Atheism." As he spoke, I saw that the book's opening page had a "for evaluation" stamp. I asked, "Since the book is stamped 'for evaluation', what is your profession? Are you a book critic?" The man replied: "No, I'm not, but I am a professing Christian and serving the Lord Jesus!"
I replied, "Great, here are now three professing Christians side by side. Tell us what company you work for and how you came to faith?" He was very inspired and said gladly, "I will be happy to tell you of how I have come to faith." That was a really wonderful story! I'll tell you in memory and repeat his speech. So I use the alias "Eero".
>>"I was still, just over 4 months ago, a drug user. I had used strong drugs for years and got stuck in a heroin hook. I was already taking so large a daily dose that someone else would immediately die. I was sure I would never get rid of those shackles.
Since I no longer enjoyed heroin, I finally decided to take such a large dose that I would certainly not wake up in this world anymore. Then I would get rid of lust. I had agreed with one of my friends that I would be at his apartment in Koivumankkaa, Espoo that weekend, and that he would be away there, staying with his relatives.
I locked the front door of the apartment double and then decided to leave for the last trip, confident that none of my relatives would miss me. I took a multiple dose of heroin with a spike directly into a vein. I turned off the lights and began to fall into unconsciousness. I fell to the floor lying on my back.
As I lay there for a while, I heard a voice above me saying, "Eero, get up!" I thought I was crazy because I was alone in the apartment. I continued to sleep until the same voice said even more, "Eero, get up!" I replied: "I can not, because I have taken too large a dose of heroin."
The third time I heard, "Eero, get up now!" Because the voice was commanding, I replied, "Okay, I'll try to get up." Oddly enough, when I tried, I was able to stand up because strange power was flowing into me. I told him who had spoken to me, "Here I stand now. What do you want me to do next?"
The voice said, "Take the bus to downtown Helsinki." I took a trip by bus as he was told and I thought while the traveling that I am probably completely out of my mind, because I heard the voices and obeyed them. However, it was an odd thing that I could move, even though I had taken many times over lethal dose of heroin. I wanted to know to where the voice tells me to go next?
A voice in downtown Helsinki said, "Take the tram to 3T, get off at the Ice Hall and go to the Ice Hall." I did so and on the way I wondered what on earth match was going on this Saturday? When I got there, I saw a huge crowd! There were people of all ages dressed neatly and one man spoke English and another man worked as an interpreter for him.
All I heard in the speech was an invitation to go to the altar: "He who wants to give his life to Jesus should come here immediately." Then I had an irresistible desire to give my life to Jesus and ran down the aisle among about 500 other youth, knelt there on the prayer altar, and began to cry for my sins.
I experienced how a wonderful spirit of love came upon me and inside me and filled me with forgiveness and love! After that American famous evangelist, David Wilkerson, had prayed for us and asked for blessing and mercy on us, I stood up and some older man came up to talk to me. He had a "Pastor" sign on his chest and asked me if I was homeless?
I told that I am homeless, penniless and unemployed, because I've been a long time strong drug user, but was discharged this evening in their shackles. He asked me to come to his home. I went there with him. He first took me to the sauna, gave me some food and clean clothes. Then he said, "You can live with me until we find you a job and an apartment."
The man, the pastor, was a member of the Pentecostal Church in Salem, Helsinki. He arranged for me to work as a Photographer in the Magazine of Cross Victory, after first knowing that I had sometimes been into photography. This is how I came to faith and I would be happy to share it with others. Thank you for asking me to tell you about it today."<<
He told us he hadn't been interested in religious matters before because nobody had told him what it really meant and now he knows what it really means! It means grace and eternal life! Everyone on the train listened in wonder to Eero's testimony, and no one said a word to him. After arriving at Helsinki railway station, we stepped out with Miko.
Miko stepped out first and as I stepped behind him, I felt a supernatural force field as if it were spinning around my head. I was wondering what it meant? Then I heard Miko ask, "Leif, Do you need an apartment?" I immediately replied, "Yes. I need it and I'll take it." Miko wondered, "How can you say that, even though you haven't even seen this apartment?"
I said to him, "Because I know it comes from the Lord." Having said that, I just realized what had happened and began to think, What's that like, and how can he offer me, almost to an unknown person, an apartment? Miko didn't know I needed an apartment. Miko was shy of his nature. I tend to keep such prayers a secret and only between my Heavenly Father and me without telling anyone about them.
I departed for the apartment suggested by Miko that evening and found that it was exactly what I had been praying for! All 7 points I requested were fulfilled! We truly have a Dad in heaven who hears and answers our prayers!
The apartment was located opposite the Tennis Palace, on Rautatienkatu 17. It was owned by the Free Church of Helsinki and reserved for Wycliffe Bible Translators with 3 rooms + kitchen + bathroom. There were a total of 7, I and 6 young men from 3 different churches living in it. I got my own furnished smaller room for only FIM 100 per month. I moved to live there at the beginning of next month and we were allowed to live there for 9 months.
During that time, in 1972, dozens of great miracles happened in my life. They were influenced by the Christian brotherhood of those beloved brothers who had been a little longer in faith. As I told you, there were 7 young believing men living in it, 5 of them from the Free Church in Helsinki, one from the Zion Church in Helsinki and myself from the Helsinki Jesus Movement.
At first there were 5 of us and later 2 more. I will not share their name without permission. I use aliases like most of the above. Light-haired and red-haired Kari was the oldest of us. Miko is also an alias. He was good at playing guitar. The youngest, Asko, was a wild boy cheater that we all particularly liked.
He did swim in the bathtub with diving glasses and snorkel while others queued to wc. Tuomo was a former drug user who was dating a British beauty. Risto was a Diblom Engineer who moved into the apartment only months later. He belonged to the Free Church. Ville studied at Otaniemi and graduated as a M.Sc. a little later. He belonged to the Pentecostal Church.
At Strömberg, I had met two nice ladies called Heli and Seija. They were burning in their faith. Heli took care of the telegraph and Seija also worked in the office. Heli was a member of Saalem and Seija in the Helsinki Philadelphia Church. I got Seija borrowed all 5 books of Mc Intosh's explanations for the books of Moses.
At that time, I came to know a young man named alias Karl, who had attended the Strömberg Engineering School a year later and had graduated as an electrician. He had come to faith and suggested that I go with him to the Zion Church in Helsinki.
That summer, at the request of my boss, I worked as a foreman for one month at the Electronics Manufacture' Shields's Painting Department to gain work experience while also being a substitute for a supervisor's summer vacation. There I had about ten subordinates, more than half of whom were young, some of me younger.
The job was easy. I had to make sure that the subordinates came to work on time, did the scheduled work, and left work at the right time. The job was also a suitable variation for me.
Coming to faith from the gates of hell
My rental room at the corner of Aleksanterinkatu and Keskuskatu was only temporary. That is why I prayed such a prayer that I would get a longer term rental apartment and at the same time get some believing friends. I prayed that the apartment would be located in the center of the city, would be affordable and would be fully furnished.
Sixth, I prayed that I would get that home without a newspaper ad in a completely supernatural way. I was still praying for a seventh condition for the dwelling: It was to be obtained within the same month. It all came true! Halleluyah! It happened like this: One of my subordinates was an alias named Miko, a smart young man.
As we traveled daily by commuter train, he once suggested that we continue from the empty wagon to the next wagon full of passengers. We did so and sat down next to a young man, neatly dressed, about 30 years old, Miko opposite him and I next to him.
That man, alias Eero, was reading a blue-edged book. Miko asked him, "What are you reading?" He replied, "The guide for explaining Atheism." As he spoke, I saw that the book's opening page had a "for evaluation" stamp. I asked, "Since the book is stamped 'for evaluation', what is your profession? Are you a book critic?" The man replied: "No, I'm not, but I am a professing Christian and serving the Lord Jesus!"
I replied, "Great, here are now three professing Christians side by side. Tell us what company you work for and how you came to faith?" He was very inspired and said gladly, "I will be happy to tell you of how I have come to faith." That was a really wonderful story! I'll tell you in memory and repeat his speech. So I use the alias "Eero".
Eero's story
>>"I was still, just over 4 months ago, a drug user. I had used strong drugs for years and got stuck in a heroin hook. I was already taking so large a daily dose that someone else would immediately die. I was sure I would never get rid of those shackles.
Since I no longer enjoyed heroin, I finally decided to take such a large dose that I would certainly not wake up in this world anymore. Then I would get rid of lust. I had agreed with one of my friends that I would be at his apartment in Koivumankkaa, Espoo that weekend, and that he would be away there, staying with his relatives.
I locked the front door of the apartment double and then decided to leave for the last trip, confident that none of my relatives would miss me. I took a multiple dose of heroin with a spike directly into a vein. I turned off the lights and began to fall into unconsciousness. I fell to the floor lying on my back.
As I lay there for a while, I heard a voice above me saying, "Eero, get up!" I thought I was crazy because I was alone in the apartment. I continued to sleep until the same voice said even more, "Eero, get up!" I replied: "I can not, because I have taken too large a dose of heroin."
The third time I heard, "Eero, get up now!" Because the voice was commanding, I replied, "Okay, I'll try to get up." Oddly enough, when I tried, I was able to stand up because strange power was flowing into me. I told him who had spoken to me, "Here I stand now. What do you want me to do next?"
The end of Eero's journey was the Ice Hall!
The voice said, "Take the bus to downtown Helsinki." I took a trip by bus as he was told and I thought while the traveling that I am probably completely out of my mind, because I heard the voices and obeyed them. However, it was an odd thing that I could move, even though I had taken many times over lethal dose of heroin. I wanted to know to where the voice tells me to go next?
A voice in downtown Helsinki said, "Take the tram to 3T, get off at the Ice Hall and go to the Ice Hall." I did so and on the way I wondered what on earth match was going on this Saturday? When I got there, I saw a huge crowd! There were people of all ages dressed neatly and one man spoke English and another man worked as an interpreter for him.
All I heard in the speech was an invitation to go to the altar: "He who wants to give his life to Jesus should come here immediately." Then I had an irresistible desire to give my life to Jesus and ran down the aisle among about 500 other youth, knelt there on the prayer altar, and began to cry for my sins.
I experienced how a wonderful spirit of love came upon me and inside me and filled me with forgiveness and love! After that American famous evangelist, David Wilkerson, had prayed for us and asked for blessing and mercy on us, I stood up and some older man came up to talk to me. He had a "Pastor" sign on his chest and asked me if I was homeless?
Eero was given a room and a job
I told that I am homeless, penniless and unemployed, because I've been a long time strong drug user, but was discharged this evening in their shackles. He asked me to come to his home. I went there with him. He first took me to the sauna, gave me some food and clean clothes. Then he said, "You can live with me until we find you a job and an apartment."
The man, the pastor, was a member of the Pentecostal Church in Salem, Helsinki. He arranged for me to work as a Photographer in the Magazine of Cross Victory, after first knowing that I had sometimes been into photography. This is how I came to faith and I would be happy to share it with others. Thank you for asking me to tell you about it today."<<
He told us he hadn't been interested in religious matters before because nobody had told him what it really meant and now he knows what it really means! It means grace and eternal life! Everyone on the train listened in wonder to Eero's testimony, and no one said a word to him. After arriving at Helsinki railway station, we stepped out with Miko.
The answer to my 7-point prayer came
Miko stepped out first and as I stepped behind him, I felt a supernatural force field as if it were spinning around my head. I was wondering what it meant? Then I heard Miko ask, "Leif, Do you need an apartment?" I immediately replied, "Yes. I need it and I'll take it." Miko wondered, "How can you say that, even though you haven't even seen this apartment?"
I said to him, "Because I know it comes from the Lord." Having said that, I just realized what had happened and began to think, What's that like, and how can he offer me, almost to an unknown person, an apartment? Miko didn't know I needed an apartment. Miko was shy of his nature. I tend to keep such prayers a secret and only between my Heavenly Father and me without telling anyone about them.
I departed for the apartment suggested by Miko that evening and found that it was exactly what I had been praying for! All 7 points I requested were fulfilled! We truly have a Dad in heaven who hears and answers our prayers!
The apartment was located opposite the Tennis Palace, on Rautatienkatu 17. It was owned by the Free Church of Helsinki and reserved for Wycliffe Bible Translators with 3 rooms + kitchen + bathroom. There were a total of 7, I and 6 young men from 3 different churches living in it. I got my own furnished smaller room for only FIM 100 per month. I moved to live there at the beginning of next month and we were allowed to live there for 9 months.
During that time, in 1972, dozens of great miracles happened in my life. They were influenced by the Christian brotherhood of those beloved brothers who had been a little longer in faith. As I told you, there were 7 young believing men living in it, 5 of them from the Free Church in Helsinki, one from the Zion Church in Helsinki and myself from the Helsinki Jesus Movement.
At first there were 5 of us and later 2 more. I will not share their name without permission. I use aliases like most of the above. Light-haired and red-haired Kari was the oldest of us. Miko is also an alias. He was good at playing guitar. The youngest, Asko, was a wild boy cheater that we all particularly liked.
He did swim in the bathtub with diving glasses and snorkel while others queued to wc. Tuomo was a former drug user who was dating a British beauty. Risto was a Diblom Engineer who moved into the apartment only months later. He belonged to the Free Church. Ville studied at Otaniemi and graduated as a M.Sc. a little later. He belonged to the Pentecostal Church.
At Strömberg, I had met two nice ladies called Heli and Seija. They were burning in their faith. Heli took care of the telegraph and Seija also worked in the office. Heli was a member of Saalem and Seija in the Helsinki Philadelphia Church. I got Seija borrowed all 5 books of Mc Intosh's explanations for the books of Moses.
At that time, I came to know a young man named alias Karl, who had attended the Strömberg Engineering School a year later and had graduated as an electrician. He had come to faith and suggested that I go with him to the Zion Church in Helsinki.
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