Adventist World English - May 2021

Perseverance

05/2021

Perseverance

On the Road Again Page 14 The Quest Page 20 God’s Presence Page 22

Perseverance

Perseverance

Perseverance

12 Building Resilience in Children and Youth Alina Baltazar

10 Perseverance Martin G. Klingbeil

14 On the Road Again 14 Randy Fishell On the Road Again

17 Spirit of Prophecy Despair for Nothing; Hope for Everything Ellen G. White 18 Global View Watching and Waiting Ted N. C. Wilson 20 Millennial Voices The Quest Beersheba Jacob 21 Faith in Action Maasai Ministry Cepha Angira 22 What We Believe God’s Presence Adelina Alexe 24 Looking Back Kenneth and Dorothy Gray Milton Hook 26 Bible Questions Answered Your Conscience 27 Health & Wellness Colon Cancer 28 May I Tell You a Story?

The Trucker 30 Growing Faith Sabbath, a Snake, and Some Wolves—Part 1

Waiting for the Beauty

BY BILL KNOTT

S

he plants the merest wisp of a vine beside the fencepost in her yard, her mind alight with glorious, magenta-colored flowers she has admired in the seed catalog.

She weeds the broken ground by hand, carefully removing stones, and culling cutworms who might obliterate her faith in blossoms she cannot forget. Each morning, just past 8:00, she fills her small green watering jug and carefully pours a half liter of water on the wispy vine that shows no promise. In odd moments she returns to the wellread catalog to reassure herself of what it says: Guaranteed to Grow.

Too late for blooming in this year, her plant will yield only leaves this summer, each of which she guards as though the destiny of the world rides on it. Rabbits will not snatch away her prize.

No moles or voles will chew the roots in search of winter fuel. A shield of plastic covering protects it from the snow.

It’s the second springtime she is waiting for, and with each bud her hopes rise ever higher. One flower is in the making, with promises of more. She watches each with all the love she might endow a grandchild, if she had one. And on some warm spring morning when she barely slept the night, the first of those magenta blossoms shows—more beautiful to her than all her neighbor’s roses or a field of lavender.

She has seen the travail of her soul, and she is satisfied.

Our special focus in this month’s issue of Adventist World celebrates a quality deeply central to our Adventist and Christian faith—perseverance. We wait for glorious, magenta-hued realities—the royal garments of our coming Lord, the sunrise of eternal morning. Twined within our perseverance is the expectation of things better—even glorious—that makes our waiting purposeful.

Tenacity alone is not the quality we want, for then all parasites and mosses might be virtuous. It is the hopeful, prayerful anticipation of realities far greater than we have yet experienced that makes our perseverance morally compelling. We wait with purpose; wait on purpose. We dedicate our waiting to a beauty yet to come.

Scripture describes the perseverance possible of us by citing our amazing forerunner—“Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). It was not, and it is not, the painful endurance of hard things alone that yields in beauty for the kingdom, but the purposeful overcoming of hard things to satisfy a joy that sometimes only faith can see. Of Jesus, Isaiah wrote 700 years before: “And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied” (Isa. 53:10, 11).

The vine will grow: the blossoms will yet show. God’s kingdom, now sometimes seeming vulnerable and fragile, will yet become “a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9).

Wait with purpose. Beauty will follow.

We believe in the power of prayer, and we welcome prayer requests that can be shared at our weekly staff worship every Wednesday morning. Send your requests to prayer@adventistworld.org, and pray for us as we work together to advance God’s kingdom.

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News Moment

Women laugh as they fill their containers with water in a village in Kenya. Millions of people around the world lack access to clean water, but the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is working to provide this necessity by sponsoring drilling projects in many countries.

Photo: Arjay Arellano/ADRA

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News in Brief

“Achieving your goal without a spiritual relationship with Christ is pointless. . . . You have to rely on God a hundred percent. No more, no less.”

—Vanda Charrise Costillas Dejolde, student at Adventist University of the Philippines College of Medicine, who passed the Physician Licensure Examination by the Board of Medicine of the Philippines. She placed sixth nationwide out of 1,927 people who took the examination.

Key Trusting Relationships As part of the 2017-2018 Global Church Member Survey, members around the world were asked about their relationships with their parents. Researchers asked if survey respondents were able to talk freely to one or both of their parents. Here is the response from 55,554 members.

30% Strongly Agree 41% Agree 9% Not sure 6% Disagree 3% Strongly Disagree 11% Not Applicable

Source: ASTR Research and Evaluation Team in collaboration with Andrews University Research Team, n = 55,554

17 The number of students that graduated in November 2020 from an adult literacy program in Papua New Guinea. The program is run by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and represents a collaboration between women’s ministries, Adventist education, and the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) office of the New Britain New Ireland Mission. The education program helps people who dropped out of primary school in grade 4 or lower to bridge the gap from informal to formal education.

“This is a marathon, not a sprint, and it’s important to keep that marathon pace. It’s also important to remember all the steps you’ve taken over the past year to stay healthy, and pat yourself on the back for sticking with them.

But keep your guard up for just a little longer, because we are moving closer to the finish line.”

—Luis Allen, a psychiatrist and medical director of AdventHealth’s Center for Behavioral Health, about the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. As more countries distribute the vaccine, the urge to return to normalcy has risks.

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News in Brief

“Every person needs food, no matter what faith he or she adheres to. . . . We believe that through [the store] many will learn about our loving Creator.”

—Church member and baker Anna Sheplyakova, about the Orange Tree Health Food Store in Lomonosov, Russia. The mission of the store is to be an outreach tool.

Resolution No. 4074 The Panama government voted Resolution No. 4074 on November 30, 2020, which states that US$2 million will go toward assistance to parents who have been unable to pay for their children’s schooling. Only schools that met the Ministry of Education documentation requirements were able to receive this benefit. All 36 Adventist schools in Panama qualified and met the government stipulations.

400

The number of attendees of the recent “Through My Zoom” congress organized by the Adventist Deaf Ministries International of the Inter-European Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Though typically an in-person event, the virtual congress still allowed participants to see each other and connect despite the pandemic.

103 The depth in meters (338 feet) that it took to drill for a well in the Kenyan village of Kwa’ Luma.

The well at Kwa’ Luma is one of 40 water wells in Maranatha Volunteers International’s 2021 plans. Maranatha has worked in Kenya since 2016 and has completed more than 650 structures. (->)

Photo: Maranatha Volunteers International AdventistWorld.org May 2021

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News in Depth

Adventist Church Released Bible Trivia Game

Heroes 2 engages users for a journey through Scripture.

By Adventist News Network, and Adventist World

A Bible trivia game that engages users for a journey through the pages of Scripture was launched on March 25. The Heroes 2 game, an updated version of the original game released in 2013, is a joint initiative by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and Hope Channel, its official TV network.

According to official church sources, the game provides the opportunity of learning about God’s greatest heroes of all time in a language gamers can understand and relate to. “The Seventh-day Adventist Church aims to use the game to help every player to further understand the Bible and find freedom, healing, and hope in Jesus,” leaders said.

INTEREST IN BIBLE THEMES

In 2017 a study commissioned

by Adventist communicators on the most searched terms on Google relating to the Bible showed that every 30 days individuals made more than 250,000 Google searches around the world for Bible trivia, Bible games, and Bible quizzes.

The study showed that people are

searching for Bible trivia more than any other kind of game genre.

“The Bible is the foundational document of Western civilization, but young people today know more about comics than the Bible stories,” said Sam Neves, associate director of communication for the Adventist Church. “Heroes is a project that speaks this new visual language through a trivia game that brings these ancient stories to life.”

ABOUT HEROES 2

The new Bible trivia game follows in the footsteps of Heroes the Game, which in 2013 generated more than 10 million minutes of interaction and opened the doors for other Adventist-produced games.

This revamped version offers a completely revised game, leaders explained. In Heroes 2, players start their journey with Adam and Eve, the first heroes of the Bible. As the heroes ask questions about their life, players begin accumulating “experience points.” The more experience points a player has, the more heroes are unlocked.

Each game consists of 12 ques-

The Heroes 2 Bible Trivia Game was launched on March 25, 2021.

Photo: Seventh-day Adventist Church 6

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tions, and the score is based on how quickly a player can answer them. At first the questions are easy, but as the game progresses, the questions get more challenging, leaders behind the initiative said.

“With Heroes 2, players will be able to challenge family and friends by sharing a simple link,” they explained. “They will have to play and answer the same 12 questions to try to get a better score.”

Heroes 2 is available in four languages—English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French—with the expectation that new languages will be added soon. The game can be downloaded on Google Play and the Apple App Store.

BIBLE STUDIES AND A TV SHOW

Along with the game, Hope Channel also plans to offer Bible studies.

“Every player will be inspired through the Heroes Bible Studies,” said Vyacheslav Demyan, vice president of Hope Channel International. “As they visit hopebiblestudy.org, Bible heroes will provide answers to such questions as ‘What happens when you die?’; ‘Is God real?’; and ‘If God is good, why do we suffer?’” he shared. “We are also planning a game show that encourages teams from any Christian church or school to test their Bible knowledge.”

Church leaders and the game creators hope Heroes 2 helps children, youth, and adults to become better acquainted with the Bible.

“We want everyone to realize they are called to be heroes today, just like these characters from the past,” Neves said. “We hope the game inspires every player to give their lives to Jesus.”

News in Depth

Virtual Mission Trip Offers Hope in Guatemala

La Sierra University students fundraise and send dozens of care packages.

By Darla Martin Tucker, La Sierra University, and Adventist World

The task facing La Sierra University’s Pre-Medical Society last fall was daunting—take an annual mission trip to Guatemala that provides badly needed aid, spiritual connection, and compassionate outreach— and reproduce it all online.

For 16 years the society, a student club of La Sierra University in Riverside, California, United States, led by associate biology professor Eugene Joseph, has spread the love of Christ in Guatemala each Christmas break by distributing food and shoes to those in need, bringing toys and friendship to sick children, praying with families, and providing hands-on assistance, such as vaccinating farmers’ livestock and helping medical and dental professionals care for hundreds of patients in rural areas.

It was all upended this year.

With foreign travel suspended, the Pre-Medical Society decided to brainstorm ways of continuing their work in Central America, where the impact of COVID-19 has compounded suffering.

During an October 2020 conference call it was decided the club would forge ahead with a virtual mission activity, a feat that would require significant coordination and planning. Club leaders e-mailed an invitational application to the campus and ended up with a team of 25 students led by nine club officers.

The group held an online fundraiser in January 2021 and, together with funds from the club, brought in US$3,800. Their contacts in Guatemala used the money to purchase 48 pairs of children’s shoes and 950 kilograms (2,100 pounds) of

Volunteers in Guatemala shop for shoes for donating to local families and delivery to a children’s AIDS hospice.

Photo: La Sierra University News

food to provide 60 large food bags containing black beans, red beans, rice, sugar, corn flour, cooking oil, soups, and noodles. They also bought items for 40 gift packages for children at the Casa de San José AIDS hospice that included brightly colored blankets, baby wipes, baby shampoo, and soap. They also purchased other items for nursing home resident care packages.

Usually La Sierra students and faculty personally deliver food and shoes to families, play fun games with children at the hospice, and form friendships with Guatemalans in various communities. This year, students had to find a way to bring that experience home despite the 4,377-kilometer (2,720-mile) distance. They organized a three-session Sabbath virtual mission “trip” streamed online February 13 via Zoom videoconferencing, allowing audiences in the United States and Guatemala to witness members of three Adventist churches and missionary students receive bags of needed food and boxes of shoes under pandemic safety protocol.

The virtual donation event was

preceded by a morning church service. Online children’s activities followed in the afternoon. Activities included praise songs in Spanish, presentations about the students’ lives in California, children’s songs in Spanish, a science experiment, arts and crafts, and a short lesson with games in the evening.

Joseph has organized the annual mission trips to Guatemala since 2004. “As I compare the ‘in-person’ trips from past years to the virtual trip this year, I was able to sense the same spirit of gratitude,” he said. “The students were also impacted by the virtual reception we received, and by how we were able to truly be the hands and feet of Jesus even during the pandemic.”

For Pre-Medical Society president Kay Kim, the unique experience of carrying out an online mission trip proved impactful beyond expectation. “I got emotional after seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces while each one received their shoes,” she said.

“After the virtual trip was over, I realized how blessed I was to have this opportunity to help serve others.”

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News Focus Trans-European Division (TED)

88,583 Membership of the TransEuropean Division (TED) as of December 31, 2020.

“We need to feed the core and not default to entertaining the fringe.”

—Paul Tompkins, Scottish Mission president, during a TED webinar focused on well-being and the youth.

From his interactions and surveys of young people it is obvious to him that a meaningful church experience and a deep personal faith are reasons why young people remain engaged in the church.

“The biggest asset for our church is people—it is internal.

The biggest risk for our church is people—it is internal. We need the Holy Spirit to transform our hearts and minds daily, to be ambassadors of trust and goodwill in mind, words, and actions.”

—Raafat Kamal, president of the Trans-European Division, during a presentation at Generation Youth for Christ Europe in October 2020.

US$570,000 The amount raised during the pandemic for projects in developing countries during the annual Ingathering program in Norway. Churches and church members came up with creative plans for this year’s Ingathering. Church members used social media to engage in public fundraising activities, some used birthday fundraisers, and others advertised a service to install winter tires on cars. (^-)

“Seeing so many deaths around, I noticed that what counts is being close with people.

Many of them are very lonely.

If with my commitment I managed to protect at least some of them, this award is dedicated to them.”

—Tomasz Karauda, Adventist physician in Łódź, Poland, about receiving an award from the Polish minister of health. Karauda assisted the Dominika Kulczyk Foundation in purchasing and delivering almost 60 tons of personal protective equipment.

Photo: Tor Tjeransen/Adventist Media Exchange (CC BY 4.0) 8

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Perspective

By Kevin McGill, North Pacific Union Conference Gleaner

Photo: Mihajlo Maricic / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

The Price of Speaking Freely God has the perfect solution for false speech and its consequences.

The pillar of any great society is freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Not all religion is good, and not all speech is praiseworthy.

But the moment we decide to censure religious or political views that are different from our own, we go down a dangerous path. Freedom of speech protects all speech. That we may not share someone else’s perspective is beside the point.

True: If someone chooses to use their freedom of speech to say racist, bigoted, and harmful things, they need to understand that there may be consequences. Their employer may choose to fire them. They may be flagged by Twitter or Facebook and not be able to continue to post hateful things. That is not arbitrary censure; that is consequence.

LIMITS TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH

There are important limits to free speech. People who lie about others can be taken to court for either libel (if published) or slander (if spoken).

If it can be demonstrated that speech has a direct correlation to

violence, it can and should be prosecuted. Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequence.

Children should be taught from the earliest age that they cannot use their words to bully others. If they do not learn this lesson at home or in school, they will learn that their employer has every right to fire them for abusive speech. It is impossible and perhaps even unwise, however, to try to search out and stop every bully. The best antidote for bad speech is good speech.

In the age of social media, good speech is often drowned out by hate speech and conspiracy theories. But we must not give up on the belief that the best speech and ideas will win out. This freedom continues to be the path to a more perfect union. By protecting the speech we hate, we protect the speech we love.

MODERATING OURSELVES

In our interactions with social media, we should remember that it is best to moderate ourselves and to be committed to treating each other with respect within our differences.

Two things can help us in this regard. First, we could intentionally engage the humanity of others and treat people online as if they are friends, not trolls. Second, we could be curious about opinions different

from our own. We would do well to try to understand differing views in the best light possible. We could make space to allow people to hold different views. This is a confident and healthy pluralism.

GOD’S SOLUTION TO FALSE SPEECH

In his commentary on Revelation, Sigve Tonstad says, “The Bible begins with a case of ‘false speech’ (Gen. 3:1). It ends with a sustained showdown with the ancient serpent, also described as the deceiver of the whole world (Rev. 12:9).”* God could have silenced Satan immediately, but He chose not to.

He does not silence false speech by force; instead, He reveals His character. God’s remedy for “false speech” is “more speech.” God counteracts falsehood with revelation.

When the Bible speaks about the power of words, it gives sound advice. Consider the wisdom of the apostle Paul: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Eph. 4:31, 32, NIV).

The best speech is redemptive.

Instead of trying to silence people, it includes as many as possible under the banner of love. *Sigve Tonstad, Revelation (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2019).

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Feature

Focus

Perseverance /pərsə'v ı rəns/

I

enjoy endurance sports, especially triathlons: swimming, cycling, running. Honest confession: Swimming is not my favorite sport. In a triathlon, however, one needs to survive the swim in order to get to the other two.

Perseverance is an important part of this discipline. Imagine sweat-drenched athletes limping over the finish line after months of intense training that includes early morning runs in the darkness, cycling through bad weather, rigorous training schedules, aching muscles, and motivational thoughts while alone in a pool. It can get very lonely out there.

Why would anybody in their right mind put themselves through this?

There are, of course, some rewards: the incredible feeling of having persevered and crossed that finish line; the camaraderie along the way (no competitiveness at my level); the crowds cheering the weary athletes; my wife waiting enthusiastically for me to arrive at the finish line; and, oh yes, maybe receiving a commemorative medal that my youngest son likes to abduct and repurpose.

CHRISTIAN PERSEVERANCE

When there are no quick answers

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Perseverance is also part of our Christian vocabulary. We encourage one another to persevere in times of adversity: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12, NIV).

We rightly talk about holding steadfast, but I wonder if we might sometimes be focusing too much on our own efforts.

Could it be that we subscribe to the questionable concept of Christianity being a religious version of an endurance sport, something akin to the survival of the spiritually fittest? While Paul uses the analogy of a race that needs to be run with endurance (1 Cor. 9:24-27; Heb. 12:1), he balances this image by describing Christ as our forerunner, who has gone before us (Heb. 6:19, 20), and a

Photo: Paul Green

cloud of witnesses that surround us (Heb. 12:1). Maybe the spiritual race is not that lonely after all.

There is one book in the Bible that represents a cross-section of public and personal faith, spanning a period of approximately 1,000 years, expressed through hymns and prayers in response to God’s actions. The Psalms tell us the story of their authors’ perseverance in their walk with God in very intimate and personal ways as they struggled through joys and sorrows, experienced blessings and curses, and met with good fortune and adversity. No other book in the Bible opens for modern readers such a wide angle into ancient faith. Let’s take a look at three struggles for perseverance in the book of Psalms.

DON’T FRET

Psalm 37 focuses on perseverance in the context of the righteous being under attack from the wicked.

This is a frequent topic in the Psalms and maybe also in our lives. Verses 1, 7, and 8 repeat the exhortation “Do not fret.” The Hebrew phrase translates as “don’t show yourself angry” or “don’t let your anger burn yourself up.” It carries reflexive connotations pointing to a self-consuming, inward-turned anger that eventually can become self-destructive. Perseverance amid pressing adversity or adversaries can lead to anger and frustration, and the reader is encouraged rather to “trust in the Lord” (verse 3), to “delight yourself also in the Lord” (verse 4), to “commit your way to the Lord” (verse 5), and to “rest in the Lord” (verse 7)—all good advice to replace the inward-turned frustrations with divinely directed positive actions.

HOW LONG?

What about our innermost struggles, when we doubt the very existence of God, let alone His interest and intervention in our lives? The psalmists know these moments when, for example, a life-threatening illness chokes our breath, and we can only whisper a hoarse “How long?” (Ps. 6:3). This question echoes 20 times through the Psalter and reflects the emotions of the psalmists’ as they try to hang on when God seems to be absent.1 Felt absence, however, is not necessarily real absence. As Jesus used the psalmist’s words (Ps. 42:5, 6; 43:5) in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matt. 26:38), during a pivotal moment of perseverance in adversity, His Father and angelic host were at His side even though Jesus felt sin’s utter separation: “But God suffered with His Son. Angels beheld the Saviour’s agony.”2 Our perseverance is met by God’s presence (Ps. 73:17).

WAIT ON THE LORD

Felt absence is not necessarily real absence.

One phrase that best illustrates the quest for perseverance in the psalms is the exhortation “Wait on the Lord,” which occurs together with similar expressions 15 times in the Psalms.3 The Hebrew verb means “to wait, look eagerly, hope for,” and is mostly connected to Yahweh as the object of our hope (e.g., Ps. 71:5). The national anthem of modern Israel is called “The Hope”, expressing an ancient hope for a modern nation. Thus, to “wait on the Lord” means to fix our hope on God, “leaving everything in Yahweh’s hands, expect everything from him, and trust in him alone.”4 Another insight into the Hebrew word qawah is its secondary meanings as “gather, bind” and, as a noun, “line, cord,” communicating the idea that to “wait on the Lord” is to bind ourselves to His promises as one would bind a weaker branch to a stronger one with a cord in order to strengthen the weaker. Psalm 27:14 expresses this tight connection: “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (NIV).

THE FINAL LEG

For the past nine years I have run the 7 Bridges Marathon in Chattanooga, a beautiful race over 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers) that crosses the Tennessee River seven times. My wife, Thandi, runs the half-marathon and finishes long before me. Normally my perseverance begins to get tested severely between miles 21 and 24, a lonely stretch along the Tennessee Riverwalk. Legs are aching and energy runs low, but I know that I just have to “wait for Thandi,” who has returned to the course and is waiting for me at mile 24.5. She runs with me all the way to the finish line, encouraging me at every step.

I have bound my waning strength to her still-existing one, and together we persevere. The psalmists found the secret of “waiting on the Lord” as they fixed their eyes on Him and bound their feebleness to His strength, leaning on the everlasting arms (Deut. 33:27).

Psalms 4:2; 6:3; 13:1, 2; 35:17; 62:3; 74:9, 10; 79:5; 80:4; 82:2; 89:46; 90:13; 94:3; 119:84.

Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898, 1940), p. 693.

Psalms 9:18; 25:3, 5, 21; 27:14; 37:9, 34; 39:7; 40:1; 52:9; 62:5; 69:6, 20; 71:5; 130:5.

4 G. Waschke, “qwh,” Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, ed. G. J. Botterweck et al. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), vol. 12, p. 571.

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Martin G. Klingbeil is professor of Old Testament and ancient Near Eastern studies at Southern Adventist University, and lives with his family in Ooltewah, Tennessee, United States.

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Focus

Building Resilience in Children and Youth Feature

We all play a role.

N

o one is immune to life’s challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic has made that clear to any doubters and raised the issue of “resilience” into the top tiers of popular news topics.

Resilience is the capacity to maintain competent functioning in the face of major life stressors. Since social problems are not going away, how do we create a culture in which children can do well in spite of adverse life experiences?

Resilience is not a personality trait that someone is born with, but rather a capacity that develops over time.

Think of resilience as a balance with negative life experiences on one end and endurance (or survival) factors on the other. The more factors a child has, the more resilient they will be, the better to cope with difficulties that will inevitably come their way.

Resilience happens at the individual, interpersonal, and community levels.

ACKNOWLEDGING LIMITS

Before we explore how to build resiliency, we need to acknowledge its limits. Adverse childhood experiences have a cumulative effect. The more childhood traumas a person experiences, the worse their emotional and physical outcomes.

That is why early intervention is key to limiting the negative impact. That doesn’t mean that what is discussed in this article can’t help a child who has been through severe adversity, but improvement may be limited.

At the individual level, children who are more resilient have certain personality characteristics. Children who have a perceived level of self-control are able to adapt to changes in life, are able to connect with others, have a sense of faith and hope, are outgoing, and have good stress-management skills to cope with life’s stressors effectively. Some children are more likely to be born with these strengths, but these strengths may also be built in the context of relationships.

BUILDING SELF-ESTEEM

Resilience begins with building self-esteem, but that doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It comes from feedback from others on what we do and who we are as a person. This occurs in relationships. Ideally, this starts in the home. Every child has their strengths. Be specific and honest in your encouragement so that a child will more likely believe and then internalize those

Photo: Conner Baker

positive statements. This helps to build a positive connection between parent and child. According to the U.S. National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health,1 regardless of race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status, children who reported feeling connected to a parent are protected against many different kinds of risks, including emotional distress; suicidal thoughts and attempts; cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use; violent behavior; and early sexual activity.

FAMILY MEALS

Another great way to build resiliency in the home is to have regular family dinners. In most cultures, sharing food is an important part of bonding. Research has found that the more family meals that occur in the home (up to five times a week), the more the child benefits. According to research, eating family meals together results in higher academic test scores, lower rates of obesity, fewer suicidal thoughts/attempts, less substance use, less early sexual activity, fewer school suspensions, less bullying, and an increased likelihood of wearing a seat belt and a bicycle helmet.2 Family meals can happen at any time of the day and should be pleasant and positive. They work by helping a parent be aware of what is going on in their child’s life, strengthening positive emotions through interaction, improving family communication, and providing an opportunity for positive role modeling.

CARING ADULTS

Unfortunately, not all children have a supportive parent or stability at home. Even youth with positive parental relationships benefit from another caring adult in their life. Researchers have consistently found that one factor that leads to resilience is a caring adult in a child’s life whom they can identify with and receive support from.

The most critical element to academic success within a school is a student developing a mentor relationship with a responsible, caring adult. According to a study by the California Mentor Foundation Research,3 98 percent of youth who were mentored stayed in school, 85 percent did not use drugs, 98 percent did not become a teen parent, and 98 percent did not join a gang.4 The church community provides a wonderful opportunity to build mentoring relationships in Sabbath School, Pathfinders, Adventist Youth, and other youth activities.

Sometimes these relationships are built through such extracurricular activities as educational trips, sports, music, and community programs such as “Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.”5 Of course, in any mentor relationship, there must be safe boundaries to prevent inappropriate behavior by mentors.

Some adults intentionally prey on vulnerable youth and/or inappropriate relationships develop over time with increased intimacy.

LIVING IN COMMUNITY

Although one-on-one relationships are important, we also live in communities. Church is beneficial in building mentoring relationships and also in providing our youth a community and a foundation of faith. Though much faith-building can happen individually, it can also grow in the context of a Christian community. What youth are struggling with today is a sense of loss of connection to a community.

Their increased reliance on social media can create higher levels of isolation and loneliness. Churches need to intentionally connect with their youth and encourage them to connect with one another.

Children spend more time in school than in any other community.

Schools must promote positive, cooperative behavior and a culture of education. This begins by helping students interact with one another. It

Resilience begins with building selfesteem, but that doesn’t happen in a vacuum. can happen in small-group discussions designed to encourage students to get to know one another better.

Teachers can help by calling their students by name, establishing clear boundaries in the classroom and then enforcing and modeling those boundaries. When students experience their school as a community, it helps to improve their learning, behavior, and even health outcomes.

Research in international contexts confirm the information shared here.6 Variations exist between cultures and the rituals used to aid in recovery. These traditions should be honored if at all possible by those who provide aid to youth at risk from a different culture.

Resilience is essential in this sinful world. Resilience is nurtured by proactive connections with parents, mentors, churches, and schools.

Within our sphere of influence we all play a role in developing positive relationships. https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/web/DSDR/studies/21600 See, for example, https://www.apa.org/pi/families/resources/ develop.pdf.

3 https://www.camentoringpartnership.org/research 4 https://www.atlantacaresmentors.org/become-a-mentor 5 https://www.bbbs.org 6 A. S. Masten, “Global perspectives on resilience in children and youth,” Child Development 85, no. 1 (2013): 6-20.

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Alina Baltazar, Ph.D., M.S.W., is director of the Master of Social Work program, associate professor of social work for the School of Social Work, and co-associate director for the Institute for the Prevention of Addictions (IPA) at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan, United States. Gary Hopkins, M.D., Dr. P.H., is a research professor at Andrews University, codirects the IPA, and directs the Center for Prevention Research.

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Focus

On the Road Again Giving up may mean giving up God’s best for your life.

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I

gripped the steering wheel and gritted my teeth. If I can just drive a little farther than yesterday, eventually I’ll be able to drive anywhere I want to go, I told myself.

No, this wasn’t an unseasoned driver’s education student trying to master the art of driving. Sadly, this was me—a thirtysomething adult battling an anxiety disorder known as agoraphobia. I was trying to beat down agoraphobia through “systematic desensitization,” or “exposure therapy.” The idea was to face my fear, which in my case involved driving too far out of my “safety zone.” Especially problematic were freeways with few exits. After all, my first full-blown panic attack had happened on Chicago’s Dan Ryan Expressway in the United States. My brain had tricked me into thinking that if I avoided traveling under certain conditions, including driving alone on a freeway, I’d be “OK.” Now, after years of avoidance that had left me sometimes unable to drive alone even a few blocks away from Photo: Jackson David

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 3.6 percent of persons around the globe have an anxiety disorder.

That’s about 264 million people.

home, I was desperately trying to unlearn my avoidance behaviors.

Search agoraphobia on the Internet, and you’ll be informed that it’s a “fear of open spaces” or some such thing. That’s not a good definition.

For most people agoraphobia means avoiding a situation that triggers a panic attack. Believe me, I know. I struggled with agoraphobia, along with obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic disorder, for decades.

If you’ve never experienced a panic attack, you can be thankful indeed. The experience of sweating, shortness of breath, pounding heart,

and other physical manifestations makes most victims feel as if they’re dying. They’re not, but a brain convinced against its will is of the same opinion still. Even though panic attacks aren’t dangerous, they’re frightening beyond belief.

It all seemed logical at the time: simply face my fear and it would disappear, right? So I persevered, day after day, week after week— with little to show for my misery.

Oh, I made some progress, a few miles of hard-earned, panic-free driving. But as I thought back to those days of youthful hitchhiking, solo road trips, and airline flights, suddenly the “victory” of driving eight miles away from home seemed insignificant. I was trying; I really was. And I was praying too. In fact, I became a pastor, hiding my shame-filled dysfunction from the congregation as best I could. To say the least, visiting church members was not my strong suit. Eventually my mental health challenge was a big reason I chose to leave pastoral ministry. I tucked my Master of Divinity degree into a box and went back into retail sales. Strangely, I never lost hope; I never gave up my dream of being freed from the shackles of anxiety disorders.

It turns out that God shared my dream. My mental health challenges didn’t blindside Him. “Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Ps. 139:16, NIV).

My heavenly Father knew what I’d one day face. What I didn’t know then was how dramatically He’d come alongside me, empowering me in His time as I maintained my faith and trust in Him. In less than a year after I left pastoral ministry, I accepted an editorial position at the Review and Herald Publishing Association. I’d confided in my interviewer (and eventual boss) about my situation, including my travel challenges.

I’ll never forget her grace-filled response: “Randy, one thing I’ve learned through the years is that a person’s pain makes you much more sensitive to others’ struggles.”

Then she smiled and added, “I don’t see a problem here.” Eventually I filled her position as a senior editor.

I tried hard to pass along the tradition of understanding and grace.

Several years passed. I’d still made little progress with my ability to drive and travel, but hope was a constant companion. Oh, I flirted with giving up, but Someone wouldn’t let me. And it would be a sin of omission if I didn’t admit that desperation even made an occasional appearance. Oddly enough, it was during such a time when my breakthrough finally came along.

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When you think things are happening too slowly, it’s worth recalling these hope-filled words from Scripture: “He has made everything beautiful in its time” (Eccl. 3:11).

SOLUTION AHEAD

Until this time, I’d told myself I could desensitize or simply think my way out of the pit of anxiety disorders. The hard truth was that nothing had yet worked for me. So in desperation I called a psychiatrist. I should have done it much, much sooner. After carefully listening to my story, including my genetic history, Dr. Wagner spoke six words I’d longed to hear for more than 20 years: “I think I can help you.” His protocol involved medication—something I’d long resisted—and psychotherapy with a trained counselor.

Six months later I drove alone 65 miles from my home to Dulles International Airport. I then boarded a plane for Orlando, Florida. After a wonderful weekend in the Sunshine State, I flew back to Dulles and slipped behind the wheel of my car. On the way home I slowed down to savor the joy of driving once again. In His time God had used a compassionate psychiatrist to help solve my problem.

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Here’s something to remember about perseverance: even though we may sometimes feel like giving up, we must never forget that “our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us of which we know nothing.”* There’s a place for exposure therapy and many other solutions to anxiety disorders.

But if I hadn’t persevered despite my occasional discouragement, things might have turned out different—much different. With God in the picture, even in the darkest of times we can make these words of Scripture our own: “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor. 4:8, 9). Do I wish God would have “fixed things” sooner? No, I don’t. I trust that His ways and timing are best.

Back when anxiety disorders were first gaining a foothold in my life, there was an American TV show called Then Came Bronson. Bronson was a motorcycle rider who traveled

the country just for the experience.

At the beginning of each episode he would pull up to a stoplight next to an exhausted commuter in a station wagon. Through the rolled-down driver’s-side window the man would look wistfully at the motorcycle and then at its rider. “Man, I wish I was you,” the driver would say to Bronson. Every week Bronson would look sympathetically at the man and reply, “Well, hang in there.” With that the light would change, and both men would go on their way.

“Hang in there” is yesteryear’s way of saying “persevere.” With God by your side, you will make it through. *Ellen G. White, Our Father Cares (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1992, 2013), p. 76.

Randy Fishell is a former editor of Guide magazine. He has written about his experiences with anxiety disorders in An Anxious Kind of Mind, available at adventistbookcenter. com and amazon.com. Randy is a member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Photo: Marek Piwnicki

Spirit of Prophecy

Despair for Nothing; Hope for Everything Ellen White on perseverance “Perseverance in prayer has been made a condition of receiving. We must pray always if we would grow in faith and experience. We are to be ‘instant in prayer,’ to ‘continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving.’ ” Steps to Christ (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1956) p. 97.

“Courage, energy, and perseverance [God’s people] must possess. Though apparent impossibilities obstruct their way, by His grace they are to go forward. Instead of deploring difficulties, they are called upon to surmount them.

They are to despair of nothing, and to hope for everything.”

The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898, 1940), p. 679.

“Christian life is more than many take it to be. It does not consist wholly in gentleness, patience, meekness, and kindliness.

These graces are essential; but there is need also of courage, force, energy, and perseverance. The path that Christ marks out is a narrow, self-denying path.

To enter that path and press on through difficulties and discouragements requires men who are more than weaklings.”

“Integrity, firmness, and perseverance are qualities that all should seek earnestly to cultivate; for they clothe the possessor with a power which is irresistible—a power which makes him strong to do good, strong to resist evil, strong to bear adversity.”

Maranatha: The Lord Is Coming (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1976), p. 223.

“Edson, let the example of the persevering ant teach you a lesson of patience and perseverance. Without perseverance you may undertake a thousand projects and make a success of none. Bend all the energies of your mind to the branch of the work in which you are engaged. Let nothing induce you to turn aside.”

Letter 19, 1879, written by Ellen White to her son Edson.

“Christ knew that He must strengthen His humanity by prayer. In order to be a blessing to men, He must commune with God, pleading for energy, perseverance, and steadfastness. Thus He showed His disciples where His strength lay. Without this daily communion with God, no human being can gain power for service.”

Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1913), p. 323.

Seventh-day Adventist believe that Ellen G. White (1827-1915) exercised the biblical gift of prophecy during more than 70 years of public ministry.

These quotes were taken from a variety of her published works.

The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1905), p. 497.

Photo: John Towner

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Global View

Watching and Waiting “The Boss May Come Today!”

T

he plan was a daring one—be the first to cross the icy continent of Antarctica and live to tell about it. When Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew of 27 men, 69 dogs, 1 cat, and 1 stowaway set sail for the edge of Antarctica on December 5, 1914, no one knew just how harrowing their journey would be.1 Aboard their aptly named ship, the H.M.S. Endurance, progress was slow as they hit early ice in the arctic Weddell Sea. Conditions worsened, and on January 19, 1915, the ship was stuck fast in the ice, “frozen like an almond in the middle of a chocolate bar,” wrote crew member Thomas Orde-Lees.2 For eight months the crew huddled aboard the trapped Endurance, hoping that when the ice thawed, the ship would be freed. Unfortunately, when the ice began thawing the following September, pressure became so great that eventually the vessel was crushed, and it sank beneath the arctic water. The party was forced to set up camp on the ice, but as the ice continued melting, the group had to transfer their provisions and equipment to a larger ice floe, which eventually broke in two.

At that point, there was no choice but to take what they could in three lifeboats and head for the nearest land. After six horrific days on the freezing arctic sea, with no fresh water to drink and half of the crew suffering from seasickness and dysentery, the exhausted group finally landed on Elephant Island, 556 kilometers (346 miles) from where the Endurance sank. For the first time in more than a year they stood on solid ground.

Originally landing on the tip of the island, the group moved westward to a more suitable spot, set up camp using two of the lifeboats to construct makeshift huts, and named the site “Point Wild.”3 SEEKING HELP

Realizing the chances of being found on this small, uninhabited arctic island were slim, Shackleton determined that he, along with five other trusted men, would take a lifeboat and seek help from a whaling station on South Georgia island, more than 800 miles away.

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Photo: IBG/Royal Geographical Society

Assuring the remaining crew he would return, Shackleton put his second-in-command, Frank Wild, in charge of the group, and set off on another horrendous open-sea journey, battling monstrous waves, howling winds, and blowing ice for 16 long days.

When at last the little group arrived on South Georgia Island, they learned the wind had blown them to the other side of the island, and to reach the whaling station they would either have to once again brave the sea, at the risk of being dashed against the rocks, or climb over icy mountains and slide down glaciers. Shackleton chose the latter, and “after 36 hours of desperate hiking they staggered into the [whaling] station.”4 It would be more than four months before a rescue ship would finally reach the stranded group back on Elephant Island.

“THE BOSS MAY COME TODAY”

At Point Wild, while some were watching for their captain’s return, others were losing heart. Living in the perpetual darkness of an arctic winter, they “made lamps out of sardine tins, used surgical bandages for wicks, and burned seal blubber oil.”5 “Eagerly on the lookout for the relief ship,” recorded one person.

“Some of the party have quite given up hope of her [the relief ship] coming,” wrote another.

“There is no good in deceiving ourselves any longer.”6 Nevertheless, every morning Frank Wild, whom Shackleton had left in charge, issued the command for everyone to “lash up and stow” their belongings, because “the Boss may come today!”7 At last, on August 30, 1916, just as the men were sitting down to eat a lunch of boiled seal’s backbone, a small ship was spotted on the

horizon. It was Shackleton, coming to take them home. Every member of the Endurance crew was saved.

WAIT WITH PERSEVERANCE

Friends, have you grown weary in waiting for the Lord’s return? Have the storms of life beaten you down?

Are you tempted to give up hope because the waiting seems so long?

You are not alone! The Bible tells us in Romans 8: “The whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. . . . Even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance” (verses 22-25).

Furthermore, we are not asked to wait in darkness! “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty,” writes the apostle Peter in 2 Peter 1:16. But even more than this, he continues, is that “we have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts” (verse 19, KJV).

Friends, today, as the world gets darker the light of prophecy is shining even brighter than before!

Signs are taking place; prophecy is fulfilling rapidly. Jesus is coming very soon!

“DO NOT CAST AWAY YOUR CONFIDENCE”

Imagine what it was like on that dark, frigid island as the men watched and waited for their captain’s return. Each day must have seemed like an eternity, and

yet, hope was kept alive as every morning they were told to pack up because “the Boss may come today!”

And on one of those “todays” he did!

Jesus invites us to prepare each day for His coming. We are told, “By the exercise of living faith today, we are to conquer the enemy. We must today seek God, and be determined that we will not rest satisfied without His presence. We should watch and work and pray as though this were the last day that would be granted us.”8 “If you are right with God today, you are ready if Christ should come today.”9 Friends, I believe that one of these days very soon will be the day. Watch and pray. Ask the Holy Spirit to keep the fire burning within your own heart and to share that light with others!

“Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward.

For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: ‘For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry’ ” (Heb. 10:35-37).

Maranatha! He is coming soon!

Much of the historical information in this article comes from Kieran Mulvaney, “The Stunning Survival Story of Ernest Shackleton and His Endurance Crew,” The History Channel, online at https:// www.history.com/news/shackleton-endurance-survival.

2 Ibid.

3 “Elephant Island,” Earth Observatory, NASA, online at https:// earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/147696/elephant-island.

4 Mulvaney.

5 “Elephant Island.”

6 Mulvaney.

7 Ibid.

8 Ellen G. White, The Faith I Live By (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1958), p. 249.

9 Ibid.

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Ted N. C. Wilson is president of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church. Additional articles and commentaries are available from the president’s office on Twitter: @pastortedwilson and on Facebook: @Pastor Ted Wilson.

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Millennial Voices

The Quest

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believe the most rewarding experience as a Christian is to witness, firsthand, a person choosing to follow Jesus Christ. When we see an individual take those baby steps with God and then eventually grow into a fuller understanding of who God is, we are reassured of God’s plan of salvation. Nothing renews our spiritual walk with God like sharing the gospel.

Each of us at some point of our lives embarks on a quest to find meaning, purpose, and love. Most often this quest leads to a desire to know God and His Word. My husband, Andrew, and I had the privilege to accompany two special people in their quest for God in the midst of a pandemic.

Nathan, my youngest sibling, began his quest for God at a very young age. His passion for God has no limits. During the past four years Nathan has spent much time in prayer and in the study of God’s Word. Often he would be the first to wake up in the morning to spend some extra time with God before beginning his daily routine. His commitment to prioritize his time with God was inspiring. Whether it was around the table or on our way to church, he always asked us questions from the Bible and shared his concern of applying it in our lives.

Nathan had the desire to be baptized when he turned 15, but because of the pandemic it was delayed. This did not deter his passion to keep learning. He asked Andrew and me to study with him Seventh-day Adventist beliefs and doctrines when we were at home during the lockdown. Andrew then continued to study the Scriptures and learned some homiletical skills from our father and a pastor.

Nathan’s unwavering desire to experience God continues and has resulted in a closer walk with Him. Sometimes his unrelenting questions can be exhausting, but they remind me to persevere with passion in my quest of God. Lalnunthari, a friend from Myanmar, recently developed a passion for God’s Word. We sang together in the Spicer Memorial College choir

This quest for God, this hunger for Him, this thirst for a deeper understanding of Him, results in a deeper love for Him.

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and graduated together in 2016. We met again in Bangalore in 2019. While we were remembering our college days, she shared her passionate desire to study the Bible. She wished to know more about God and the Seventh-day Adventist faith.

We began to study the Bible together.

Lalnunthari had been raised as a Methodist and attended church with her family. But she wanted more. She studied the Bible and compared it to the beliefs she had been taught. Lalnunthari had many questions and was excited to share with us the truths she was discovering in her Bible reading. We were moved as she expressed her thoughts on deep theological concepts in simple terms and realized that this was possible through the Holy Spirit’s working. God kept helping her to grow through many conversations.

There is so much energy and joy in discovering truth. The smile on her face said it all as she connected the dots and made sense of it all. We saw her being transformed before our very eyes. This is nothing short of a miracle. Her quest for God and truth was real and moving.

This quest for God, this hunger for Him, this thirst for a deeper understanding of Him, results in a deeper love for Him. Nathan and Lalnunthari decided to give their lives to Jesus and were baptized last year. These were joyous moments. We are told that heaven rejoices each time someone decides to give their life to God. God desires that we develop a deep passion for Him and persevere in faith. For some the quest has just begun; for others it’s set to continue.

Beersheba Jacob serves as the human resources coordinator and assistant to the vice president at Lowry Memorial College, Bangalore, India.

Faith In Action

Maasai Ministry Strength in collaboration

W

hen Lemareka Kibasisi, a Tanzanian Maasai student at Friedensau Adventist University in Germany, walked into Professor László Szabó’s office one morning in 2009, he had an urgent request. “Dr. Szabó, please go back to Tanzania and help my people.”

Szabó, the vice dean of theology at Friedensau and a former missionary to Tanzania, was struck

by Kibasisi’s passion to share the gospel message with the Maasai people and to help meet their physical and societal needs.

“So I also determined to do what I could to help,” Szabó says.

The Maasai are traditionally a nomadic and pastoralist, or livestock-raising, people, occupying large territories in Kenya and Tanzania. They tend to have sizeable families with several children.

Parents often marry off their young daughters to elderly men, who pay the father many cows as a dowry.

When the older men die, they leave behind young widows with small children, who struggle with poverty.

A lack of adequate medical facilities, rampant infantile infections, and a high infant mortality rate are other difficulties families face.

CHANGING CIRCUMSTANCES

Political, environmental, and societal challenges have been gradually Photo: Courtesy of László Szabó

transforming the lives of the Maasai. The lack of available water for their families and livestock, frequent droughts, and rampant disease are making it difficult to earn a living in agriculture; and their nomadic lifestyle is becoming more sedentary. Other options to earn a sustainable income are few, and education is not readily available.

Kibasisi’s plea to his professor that day in László Szabó’s office led to Friedensau Adventist University organizing evangelistic and development projects in northern Tanzania. The university partners with Restore a Child, an Adventist-run organization that provides protection, nutrition, education, and health care for orphans and underprivileged children. The combined efforts focus on the Maasailand areas of Longido and Karao. They envision and develop programs to address water, education, medical, and spiritual growth needs. The university and Restore a Child both provide funding, personnel, and other resources for the projects.

COLLABORATIVE PROGRESS

The collaboration has so far resulted in the establishment of the Adventist Maasai Primary School in Karao and eight nursery schools in Karao and Longido. More than 700 students attend the schools. In 2020 the school ranked in the top

15 percent in national exams of primary schools in Tanzania.

The Maasai program includes providing daily meals for the schoolchildren. In Karao, with support from international partners such as the World Bank, the team built a water pipe to furnish a water source for the community.

They also give goats to widows so families will have a supply of milk as well as a way to generate income.

Meeting the people’s physical needs offers opportunities to share the gospel message. Hundreds of Adventists currently worship in 13 Adventist churches in Karao and Longido.

MONIKA’S STORY

Monika, a student at the Maasai school, had to walk a long distance through the jungle to attend school. She was fearful of the wild animals, so she memorized Bible texts and repeated them on her daily trek. She says they gave her comfort, and she learned from this experience to trust God. Instead of getting married at an early age, Monika now studies at an Adventist secondary school in Arusha and hopes to train as a medical doctor.

FUTURE GROWTH

Friedensau Adventist University and Restore a Child continue to plan for the Maasai’s growing needs. The organizations are now raising funds to build a school dormitory in Karao, open a medical clinic, and cultivate structured agribusinesses for the community.

To learn more about these projects, go to https://www.thh-friedensau.de/ en/ or https://restoreachild.org.

Cepha Angira is an Adventist pastor serving in Kenya.

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E

ach beginning is unique, yet all beginnings share in the past, offering unfolding newness. Life is full of beginnings: taking the first steps; uttering the first words; anticipating the first school days; a first boyfriend or girlfriend; a first graduation; marriage; the birth of a child; relocation; a new job; a new church.

Our lives are like a pendulum, moving back and forth between endings and beginnings, for one cannot exist without the other.

TWO CONNECTED BEGINNINGS

What We Believe

The Father

God’s Presence A beginning without end

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The Bible mentions many beginnings. But within the biblical array of newness, two beginnings connect in a special way as they mark a vital feature of our existence, namely God’s presence.

Consider the inauguration of the Sabbath, as described in Genesis 1:31-2:3, and the beginning of the sanctuary service, as depicted in Exodus 39:32-42 and 40:9.

Both of these beginnings follow the completion of a work of creation. This is evident in the use of similar terminology, indicating in both episodes (1) an evaluation of the creative work, (2) a declaration of completion, and (3) a blessing and hallowing. A closer look makes it even clearer: “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made” (Gen. 1:31-2:3).

Photo: Isaac Sloman

“Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished. And the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; so they did. . . .

According to all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did all the work. Then Moses looked over all the work, and indeed they had done it; as the Lord had commanded, just so they had done it. And Moses blessed them” (Ex. 39:32-43). “And you shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it; and you shall hallow it and all its utensils, and it shall be holy” (Ex. 40:9).

In Genesis God beholds His creation, pronounces it very good and complete, and institutes the Sabbath. In Exodus Moses beholds the tabernacle, pronounces it completed and done well (that is, according to God’s instructions), blesses the people, and anoints the tabernacle.1 Just as the creation of the world is a creative act, the building of the tabernacle is a creative work. Interestingly, the first time the concept of artistic knowledge appears in the Bible is in the context of building the sanctuary.2 God created a beautiful world for us to inhabit, and in turn, humanity’s artistic knowledge was to be used to build a place for the Creator to inhabit.

GOD IS PRESENT AS CREATOR AND SAVIOR

The Sabbath is God’s special presence with us in time. The sanctuary is God’s special presence with us in space. Together, the Sabbath and the sanctuary portray God as one who is constantly present with humanity: first as Creator, before sin entered the world; and after sin began its destructive work in us, as Savior as well.

As a memorial of Creation, the Sabbath points us to God as our Creator and is a constant reminder of our origin: we are children of God, made in God’s image and meant to reflect His character in all our relationships (Gen. 1:27; Ex. 20:8; 31:13-17). The sanctuary service became necessary after the Fall and pointed to Christ’s future sacrifice by which He would atone for the sins of the world. This sacrifice offers us a way to reconcile with God and to connect with our Creator in a face-to-face relationship.

The Sabbath is God’s special presence with us in time. The sanctuary is God’s special presence with us in space.

GOD’S CONTINUED PRESENCE

Being created before sin, the Sabbath was to be a permanent service. Isaiah hints at its continuity in eternity: “ ‘And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,’ says the Lord” (Isa. 66:23).

While the earthly sanctuary service found its fulfillment at the cross, the heavenly tabernacle will descend on the earth at God’s third coming to inaugurate His residence in our midst. “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God’ ” (Rev. 21:1-3).

A BEGINNING WITHOUT END

Beginnings and endings are a normal part of our lives. While we cherish newness, in our sinful

context it always comes accompanied by gains and losses. Yet there is one beginning anticipated in the Bible that brings no loss, for it has no end. It’s the beginning of an eternity in God’s unmediated presence where God is forever in our midst as Creator and Savior.

Most amazingly, we can already live this presence confidently and with gratitude that even now we may have a foretaste of God’s goodness and intimate interest in each of us.

That the sanctuary service marks a new beginning is also suggestive in God’s instructions to raise it on the first day of the first month (see Ex. 40:2, 17).

2 In Exodus 35 Moses tells Israel that God “called by name Bezalel . . . and He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom and understanding, in knowledge, and all manner of workmanship” (verses 30, 31) to lead in the construction of the sanctuary.

Likewise, God endowed Aholiab and other skillful people with “wisdom and understanding, to know how to do all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, . . . according to all that the Lord has commanded” (Ex. 36:1).

1

Adelina Alexe, a native of Romania, is a doctoral candidate in systematic theology at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, Andrews University, Michigan, United States.

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Looking Back

Kenneth and Dorothy Gray K

enneth Gray was born in Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex, England, on July 7, 1912. His father, John, was a master tailor and operated his business from a shop in front of their home. When John vanished in 1922, Kenneth’s mother, Mary, was left in dire circumstances and poor health.

Kenneth and his brother, Thomas, were reluctantly handed over to the care of Dr. Barnardo’s Orphanage in London. When offered passage to Australia, they eagerly accepted, believing that they could live with their older brother Leslie, who had left home years before. They landed at Sydney instead, far from Leslie and South Australia.

LIVING WITH SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS

Thomas and Kenneth were placed with the Tempest family, Seventh-day Adventists living in Cooranbong, New South Wales (NSW). Thomas lived with them for two years before joining Leslie in South Australia. Kenneth stayed on and attended high school at Australasian Missionary College (AMC). He was baptized in 1926.

While obtaining his teaching degree, Kenneth worked in the blacksmithing and engineering department of the Sanitarium Health Food Company (SHF) on the AMC campus. When he graduated in 1933, he had the choice between teaching or an engineering career with the SHF, which would have been more lucrative. He chose education, accepting an appointment at the AMC Elementary School.

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Missionaries to the South Pacific*

Kenneth began teaching grades 3 and 4. The following year he taught grades 5 and 6. During this time he formed a close friendship with fellow teacher Dorothy Smith. Their romance blossomed, and on New Year’s Eve 1937 they were married in Newcastle, NSW. OVERSEAS MISSION SERVICE

When Kenneth was teaching at the AMC Elementary School in 1935, he met William Lock, a missionary in Papua New Guinea, who was on furlough and looking for candidates to join him. Lock spoke glowingly of the Mirigeda (meaning “sand mat”) Training School he was establishing.

Kenneth’s fascination was piqued. Perhaps one day he could be a missionary like Lock! His dream of mission service came true when he and Dorothy were appointed to Mirigeda just before their marriage. Their preembarkation leave and honeymoon included a rushed trip to Adelaide to bid farewell to Kenneth’s mother and siblings, and a crash course in tropical medicine at the Sydney Sanitarium and Hospital. They boarded the ship Macdhui, bound for Papua, on February 4, 1937.

The Papua Mission, with headquarters at Mirigeda, was in its infancy. Almost 30 years had passed since it was first established, and there were only 144 baptized members. Lock had purchased some derelict homes abandoned by a mining company close by at Bootless Bay and transported them piece by piece to Mirigeda in order to reconstruct them.

Photo: The Gray Family

The school facilities were primitive, with only one large room for both Kenneth and Dorothy to teach all ages, including the mothers who brought their babies and hung them in string bags from the ceiling. To erase their slates, they would simply rub them with their hair.

For five years they taught under these circumstances, with Dorothy receiving no remuneration. In addition to the usual subjects, the girls received instruction in sewing and breadmaking, and the boys were taught house painting, motor mechanics, and agriculture. The Grays began learning Hiri Motu, the language of the Papuan coast.

Kenneth devised a method of soapmaking from coconut oil by adding citronella as a mosquito repellent. This little industry earned cash for the mission. For the first two years Kenneth served as secretary/treasurer of the Papua Mission in addition to his teaching responsibilities.

WARTIME INTERRUPTION

The only real communication that Mirigeda had with the outside world was a private telephone line made of fencing wire strung from tree to tree. One day in December 1941 it carried the news that Japanese troops were advancing over the mountains toward Port Moresby.

The order was given for all expatriate women and children to congregate at Port Moresby wharf, where a boat was waiting to take them to Australia.

Dorothy and their infant daughter, Josephine, joined 1,100 other passengers on the S.S. Katoomba—a vessel designed to carry only 300—arriving safely in Sydney. A few weeks later, as Japanese troops advanced, Kenneth was advised to flee to Australia by whatever means he could find. He joined a small group of fellow missionaries and made a dash to Cairns in the little mission boat Diari.

RETURN TO OVERSEAS MISSION SERVICE

Naval battles in the South Pacific during 1942 gave the Allies the advantage, so it was considered reasonably safe for some missionaries to venture back to service.

Kenneth was appointed to Fulton Missionary School, Fiji, in 1943. He sailed ahead of his family while the ship took every precaution against attack by operating under a blackout while traveling. Dorothy and Josephine followed later. They spent four years in Fiji. A second child, Anthony Jon Lamont, was born in Suva, March 1945.

At the end of each year in Fiji the Grays packed up their goods anticipating a transfer to Papua, but shipping was unreliable and they would unpack again. In 1947 Kenneth returned to Papua under instructions to revive the mission school. He discovered that bombing raids had destroyed all the buildings and their personal effects at Mirigeda. So a large acreage was purchased at Bautama, closer to Port Moresby. With the help of

George Johnson, a carpenter from Western Australia, materials were scrounged from wartime buildings to establish what became known as Bautama Training School (later Papuan Missionary School).

After establishing Bautama Training School, Kenneth acted as education and Missionary Volunteer secretary for the Coral Sea Union Mission in Lae. This involved traveling throughout the regions of Papua New Guinea for three years, reestablishing the mission schools that had suffered during wartime. A second son, Kenneth John, Jr., was born in November 1949.

Late in 1953 Kenneth was asked to establish a central training school for the Coral Sea Union Mission. A site was chosen at Kabiufa, in the cool highlands of Papua New Guinea. It was initially named the Coral Sea Union Training School.

During a furlough, Kenneth scouted among church members for unused and broken-down bicycles, and with donated spare parts he restored 30 bicycles at his former SHF engineering shop. The manager paid the freight to Kabiufa, and the delighted students used them to cycle to branch Sabbath Schools in the surrounding district.

From 1956 through 1961 Kenneth was education and Missionary Volunteer secretary for the Coral Sea Union Mission. Dorothy taught English literature in the government teacher-training college. They transferred in 1962 to Suva, Fiji, for Kenneth to serve in the Central Pacific Union Mission as education director, Missionary Volunteer, and health and temperance secretary. He held these positions until September 1970, when he was appointed as president of the Cook Islands Mission.

RETIREMENT

In 1972 Kenneth and Dorothy permanently returned to Australia so they could be closer to their children and grandchildren. Kenneth passed away on July 17, 1986, and was interred on the campus of Avondale College, where he had trained for his lengthy mission service.

Dorothy passed away on April 19, 1999, and was laid to rest in the same place. Together they devoted their lives to each other and the church educational program, training numerous South Pacific islanders to be school teachers and gospel workers. *This feature was adapted from an original entry in the Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists, available online at encyclopedia.adventist.org.

Milton Hook is a retired Seventh-day Adventist religion educator, author, and church historian.

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Bible Questions Answered

Your Conscience Q

What is the conscience, and what is its purpose?

A

The conscience is usually considered to be the human capacity to make personal moral judgments by distinguishing between what is right and wrong. I will examine some biblical passages that may help us gain a clearer understanding of the topic.

1. CONSCIENCE AND MORAL JUDGMENTS

The human capacity to make moral decisions is universal and assumes the existence of moral norms and principles that the individual, as part of a group, has accepted. The conscience does not formulate the moral principles, but uses them in making decisions.

The principles come from culture, religion, family, or many other sources. The universality of the phenomenon indicates that humans are by creation moral agents, and that traces of the law of God are found in all societies (cf. Rom. 2:14-16). Sin, however, has distorted the moral perceptions of humans, making it necessary to enlighten them on the moral life (2 Cor. 4:1-4; Titus 1:15; cf. 1 Cor. 10:25, 26). For Christians the highest moral values are found in God’s revealed will, His law and its expression in the life, teachings, and the love of Jesus (1 Tim. 1:5; cf. 1 Cor. 2:16; 1 Peter 2:18). These provide the moral and religious grounding needed by the conscience to make correct moral judgments that express themselves in living “honorably in every way” (Heb. 13:18, NIV; cf. 1 Tim. 3:9). The universal tendency of the conscience to choose what is right hints at the work of the Spirit in the human heart prompting it to procure what is good (Rom. 9:1).

2. THE GOOD/CLEAN AND BAD CONSCIENCE

The conscience has another function that takes place after the moral decision is made. It evaluates the decision and either disapproves of it or approves of it. When 26

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we act against it, the conscience is defiled (1 Cor. 8:7), creating a feeling of spiritual uncleanliness and guilt. To have a good or clean conscience means that, after the evaluation of the moral judgment, the conscience does not rebuke the person (Acts 23:1; 24:16; 1 Tim. 1:5). In such cases the conscience testifies, together with the Holy Spirit, that we have enunciated that which is true (Rom. 9:1). Such phrases as to serve God “with a clear conscience” (2 Tim. 1:3, NIV) and to hold to “the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience” (1 Tim. 3:9, NIV) means that the integrity of the religious and moral decisions that were made are afterward confirmed in the tribunal of the conscience; the conscience does not condemn them. Paul expresses the idea very clearly when he writes, “Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity” (2 Cor. 1:12, NIV).

3. THE CLEANSING OF THE CONSCIENCE

Knowing what is good and doing the opposite leaves the soul in a state of restlessness and inner pain that could be unbearable. In time, and as a mechanism of psychological defense, the conscience finally becomes indifferent and is silenced (2 Tim. 1:15; 1 Tim. 1:19).

The bright side is that the conscience that accuses us can be cleansed or purified. Certainly the sacrifice of animals could not cleanse sinners, otherwise they “would no longer have felt guilty for their sins” (Heb. 10:2, NIV); they were “not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper” (Heb. 9:9, NIV). Now the blood of Christ cleanses “our conscience from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God” (verse 14, NIV; 2 Cor. 10:29). This comes to full expression through baptism, and it is the gift of God’s forgiving grace (Heb. 10:22; 1 Peter 3:21).

Angel Manuel Rodríguez is a former director of the Biblical Research Institute of the General Conference.

Health & Wellness

Colon Cancer How can we prevent it?

I am 30 years of age. My 53-year-old uncle is battling stage 4 colon cancer. He has always been physically fit and a healthful eater—a vegetarian, in fact. Does colon cancer run in families? Can it be prevented?

I

t’s hard to deal with the brokenness we face and endure on this fallen planet. Yes, colorectal cancer (CRC) may occur in families.

We’ll briefly discuss changeable (reversible) and unchangeable risk factors, and touch on screening options.1 UNCHANGEABLE RISK FACTORS:

Age—risk of CRC increases with age, especially over the age of 50.

It’s worrying that CRC is increasing below the age of 50 for reasons that aren’t yet clear.

Polyps—a personal history of colorectal polyps (small outgrowths of the bowel) or diagnosis of CRC itself (recurrence), even if completely surgically removed.

Additional health issues—personal diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis.

Family history—first-degree family members with a history of CRC or adenomatous polyps (first-degree family members are parents, children, and siblings).

Genetics—some inherited (genetic) syndromes (approximately only 5 percent of CRC cases).

Race—racial and ethnic background may play a role in increased risk; for example, African Americans and Ashkenazi Jews (Jews of Eastern European descent) have increased risk.

REVERSIBLE RISK FACTORS:

Overweight—being overweight or obese raises the risk for CRC in both men and women, but especially in men.

Physical inactivity—about 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week can decrease the risk of CRC and other cancers.

Diet—consistent with the Adventist Health Study-2, other retrospective study analyses confirm the importance of eliminating red meat and Photo: National Cancer Institute

alcohol, as well as the positive benefits of dietary fiber and whole-grain foods.2 Tobacco—tobacco smokers are more likely to die from CRC than nonsmokers.

Alcohol—CRC has been linked to even light-to-moderate alcohol use. As a carcinogen (cancer-causing agent), the science is clear that there’s no safe level of alcohol intake regarding mouth, throat, voice box (larynx), esophagus, colorectal, and breast cancers.

Type 2 diabetes—a largely modifiable and even reversible risk factor.

Screening and early detection help prevent advanced and untreatable CRC. Testing kits for invisible (occult) blood in the stool are useful; these may be done at home. For individuals over 50 years of age, a flexible fiber optic colonoscopy (visualization) should be routine every five to 10 years. For younger patients with unchangeable risk factors, a colonoscopy should be done at appropriate time intervals determined by their physician.

As has happened in so many instances relating to the Adventist health message, science and epidemiology reach the peak of the mountain of inquiry and study, only to find that the Lord’s counsels as shared through His Word and highlighted by Ellen White’s writings were already there!

We’re privileged to have this knowledge.

Despite our brokenness, quality of life and even longevity may be powerfully and positively enhanced as we practice and live what we’ve learned!

“Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful” (2 Chron. 20:20, NIV).

Information provided in this column is based on the following resource: Sajesh K. Veettil, Tse Yee Wong, Yee Shen Loo, et al., “Role of Diet in Colorectal Cancer Incidence,” JAMA Network Open 4, no. 2 (2021): e2037341, doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.37341.

2 Ibid. See also https://adventisthealthstudy.org/studies/AHS-2.

1

Peter N. Landless, a board-certified nuclear cardiologist, is director of Adventist Health Ministries at the General Conference.

Zeno L. Charles-Marcel, a board-certified internist, is an associate director of Adventist Health Ministries at the General Conference.

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A “May I Tell You a Story?”

BY DICK DUERKSEN

s he listened to the request, he thumbed through his appointment calendar. The caller was a very good friend, and it would be good to spend a week with him at the school where he was principal. But the calendar was already full—too full for adding an entire week of sermons at a distant boarding academy.

“Ken, I know you’re busy, but God keeps bringing me back to you. I feel He wants you to accept speaking for our Week of Prayer this spring. Our kids need to hear about God straight from your heart.”

The appeal was compelling, and by moving three committee meetings he could accept the invitation. Though he knew other things would come up, he wrote the appointment in ink and told his friend to plan on it. Now he had to tell his wife and prepare 12 new sermons.

Academy Weeks of Prayer were his most difficult assignments. It was like riding a bucking bronco for the first time. Anything could happen. He chose to talk about God’s character. “God loves you,” he scribbled on the first page.

“Everything else is secondary.”

The sermons came together slowly, mostly retelling Bible stories as ways to get to know God. Some stories about girls and women, others about men.

Priests, soldiers, judges, winners, and losers. Real people who stumbled and fell. Failures who felt God’s loving arms embracing them. Sinners who heard God speak forgiveness. Examples of what God would like to do for the students who would be listening from their assigned chapel seats.

He prayed much about the week.

During committee meetings; at lunch; with his wife; often. *** The first meeting was the hardest. It’s good to be a friend of the principal, but not too close of a friend if he wanted the students to trust him. He was too old to play sports with the kids, so he would have to trust conversations over meals, around campus, in the dorm lobbies, and after classes.

He prayed constantly and spoke carefully. They listened, relaxed, and responded warmly.

The Trucker Photo: Nick Brookenheimer

Thursday evening he made a call, an invitation for each student to “give your heart to Jesus, accept His love, and rejoice in His forgiveness.” Conversations after the service consumed a whole box of tissues.

He was in the lobby of the boys dormitory, about ready to retreat to his guest room, when Mike asked for a minute of his time. The principal had told him about this fellow. “Mike’s a senior this year. A troublemaker. We’re sure he’s into something bad, but we’ve never been able to catch him.”

“Sure,” he said to Mike, praying for God to clear his exhausted mind.

“Tonight, when you asked if I wanted to give my heart to God, I really felt uncomfortable.”

There was a long pause as Mike searched for the right words.

“I want to do that, but before I can, there are some things I need to get fixed.

I mean, I’ve done some things that are really bad and will be tough to fix.”

He continued to listen, silently, unwilling to break the tension that was building in Mike’s heart.

“Can I tell you a story?” Mike asked.

“Sure,” Pastor Ken responded.

“I live on a big ranch where we’ve got lots of heavy equipment, big trucks, tractors, harvesters, and stuff. Dad has let me drive for years. Most of them I can drive as well as Dad and the hired men. I miss that here at school.”

Mike leaned forward in the large lobby chair, wringing his hands like he was roping a steer.

“There’s a guy, a couple miles from the academy. This man has a gravel pit and tons of heavy equipment. Huge dump trucks, graders, haulers, excavators, bucket loaders. You know, all the trucks you’d need to run a gravel company.”

The memories were flooding Mike’s eyes.

“Well, one night I got out of the dorm and went to his business, broke through the fence, and hot-wired one of his big trucks. I drove that thing up and down through the pit and up over all the tall piles. On one of the tallest gravel hills I lost it. Not a lot, you know, but just enough that before I could shift gears,

the tractor sideslipped, lost balance, tipped on its side, and skidded down the pile.”

Mike looked deeply into the pastor’s horrified face.

“I know. I was terrified too. I wasn’t hurt, so I slid out and found another tractor, one that had a winch, and I used that one to pull the first truck back up onto its wheels. Then I cleaned both of ’em up as best I could and parked ’em back where they’d been.”

“Then back to the dorm?”

“Yes. And I’ve never said anything to anyone about it. Never. Not at all. But now I know I need to go over to the gravel pit and tell the owner what I did and pay for the damage. Will you go with me tomorrow?” *** Friday morning Pastor Ken listened as Mike told the story to the owner of the gravel business, praying quietly as the man grew angrier and angrier, finally erupting in a flow of fury.

“You stole one of my trucks and then wrecked it! Now you’re coming over here expecting that everything will be all good because you’re suddenly sorry?”

The owner took a long noisy breath.

“Why are you doing this, anyway?”

“Last night when I decided to give my life to Jesus Christ and ask Him to be my personal Savior, I knew I had to come over here and make things right with you as part of accepting Jesus. I am very sorry, sir, and I’ll care for all the costs.”

The owner sank slowly back into his chair, eyes fixed on Mike.

“Really,” he said, carefully considering his next words. “You know that I never would have figured out what happened to that truck. But you’re here to confess and to pay damages. How about that. An honest man. Tell you what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna offer you a job as one of my drivers. I could really use an honest Christian trucker.”

Publisher The Adventist World, an international periodical of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The General Conference, Northern Asia-Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists®, is the publisher.

Executive Editor/Director of Adventist Review Ministries Bill Knott International Publishing Manager Hong, Myung Kwan Adventist World Coordinating Committee Si Young Kim, chair; Joel Tompkins; Hong, Myung Kwan; Han, Suk Hee; Lyu, Dong Jin Associate Editors/Directors, Adventist Review Ministries Lael Caesar, Gerald A. Klingbeil, Greg Scott Editors based in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA Sandra Blackmer, Wilona Karimabadi, Enno Müller, Dixil Rodríguez Editors based in Seoul, Korea Hong, Myung Kwan; Park, Jae Man; Kim, Hyo-Jun Digital Platforms Director Gabriel Begle Operations Manager Merle Poirier Editorial Assessment Coordinator Marvene Thorpe-Baptiste Editors-at-Large/Advisors Mark A. Finley, John M. Fowler, E. Edward Zinke Financial Manager Kimberly Brown Distribution Coordinator Sharon Tennyson Management Board Si Young Kim, chair; Bill Knott, secretary; Hong, Myung Kwan; Karnik Doukmetzian; Han, Suk Hee; Gerald A. Klingbeil; Joel Tompkins; Ray Wahlen; Ex-officio: Juan Prestol-Puesán; G. T. Ng; Ted N. C. Wilson Art Direction and Design Types & Symbols To Writers: We welcome unsolicited manuscripts. Address all editorial correspondence to 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904-6600, U.S.A. Editorial office fax number: (301) 680-6638 E-mail: worldeditor@gc.adventist.org Web site: www.adventistworld.org Unless otherwise indicated, all Bible references are taken from the New King James Version®.

Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Texts credited to NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission.

All rights reserved worldwide.

Adventist World is published monthly and printed simultaneously in Korea, Brazil, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Austria, Argentina, Mexico, South Africa, and the United States.

Vol. 17, No. 5

Dick Duerksen, a pastor and storyteller, lives in Portland, Oregon, United States.

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Growing Faith

Fun-filled pages for younger ages

Sabbath, a Snake, and Some Wolves—Part 1 The following story was published in KidsView, Summer 2011. You’ll have to wait until June’s Growing Faith to find out how the story ends.

In the meantime, if you have a guess as to the ending, you can write to kidsview@adventistreview.org. We just might give you a hint about what happens next.—Editor.

M

erritt Kellogg reached his arms into the air and had a good stretch. It certainly was peaceful here. The water in the creek was just a few feet deep and gurgled happily. The sun was shining, and a cool breeze rustled the tall grasses nearby. Placing his Bible on the ground for a pillow, Merritt lay back and closed his eyes. It was a perfect Sabbath— 30

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just right for some quiet thoughts, Bible reading, and a good nap. It wasn’t long before Merritt was fast asleep.

Ssssss. The noise penetrated his sleepy head. Ssssss. Foggy with sleep, Merritt tried to remember where he was.

Sssssss. Irritated from being awakened from such a nice rest, he reluctantly opened his eyes. As his eyes focused, he

realized that just 7 centimeters (3 inches) from his face, staring right at him, was the largest snake he’d ever laid eyes on.

The head was 7 centimeters (3 inches) wide and 12 centimeters (5 inches) long, and it was the scariest thing he’d ever seen!

His heart pounding, Merritt jumped five feet straight up in the air. Grabbing a stick, he quickly put an end to the snake.

With shaky legs he steadied himself as he examined the nowdead snake. It was 1.8 meters (6 feet) long and 7 centimeters (3 inches) thick. Merritt took no more naps that Sabbath.

Illustration: Xuan Le

BY MERLE POIRIER

Bible Treasure “I am the Lord your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God” (Ezekiel 20:19, 20).

It was 1859, and Merritt was 27 years old. He’d lived in Michigan, United States, all his life, but times were hard, and there weren’t many jobs around. So he sold his house and all his belongings—except for two horses; a wagon; and a few pots, pans, and tools—and headed West with his wife and three children.

The gold rush had begun in California in 1849, and many people were traveling to the new frontier to make their fortunes.

Merritt met Captain Parks, a man who had also decided to go West for gold. Captain Parks needed to hire a wagon to carry all his

supplies, and Merritt took the job with one condition. Merritt, who had accepted the Adventist faith seven years before, was determined never to work on the Sabbath. He wrote a contract and asked Captain Parks and the rest of the people in the wagon train to sign it. They did, agreeing never to travel on Sabbath.

But Captain Parks soon forgot the agreement. When Sabbath came, he still wanted to continue traveling. Merritt reminded him of the agreement, but Captain Parks wouldn’t listen.

Captain Parks told Merritt’s wife about how wagons were not

safe left alone. Merritt’s wife was so scared that she didn’t want to stay. She begged Merritt to go with the wagon train, but he refused. The Sabbath was more important. So the wagon train left him behind with a lunch, a gun, and his Bible. Here he was now, alone, with a dead snake at his feet and his heart beating like a drum in his chest.

To be continued!

[Or scan the code with your smartphone to visit www.adventist world.org/sabbathsnake-wolves].

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Read inspired writings.

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