The Seventh-day Adventist Church community brings you the following uplifting news: In Burundi, Pastor Lemack Barishinga was released on February 10 from more than a year of imprisonment. On October 24, 2019, he was arrested and jailed for his faith, mobilizing Adventists worldwide to pray for him and the whole church in Burundi. The East-Central Africa Division and the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists praise God and thank both the government and all prayer warriors. In Ecuador, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) provided food assistance to more than 16,500 vulnerable families in COVID-19 affected provinces. ADRA distributed redeemable food stamps to pregnant and lactating women and families with children under age five. The World Food Program and USAID allied with ADRA and funded this important project. In the North American Division, a new resource from the Adventist Information Ministry offers "A Picture of God" which seeks to offer an opportunity for those longing for fellowship and Bible study during the pandemic. It has 16 free easy-to-navigate online lessons that build on each other to reveal God's character to those in search of Him. The options could be either "self-guided" or "collaborative" (with the ability to connect with an online or in-person spiritual mentor) lesson plan. Currently, there are more than 300 people enrolled; 31 were connected with a local church, and eight have accepted Jesus as their Savior. Learn more at A Picture of God. In Mexico, an Adventist family has committed to tutoring children who are unable to continue online schooling. Noticing a great need in their community, Lili Pimentel, a third-year student at Montemorelos University, and her family came up with a project to tutor school-aged children in their home. They even set apart a special room to teach the children. In New York City, the Adventist Community Services (ACS) has expanded their avenues of partnership, connecting with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The continued food delivery positions ACS to reach communities during some of the region's most challenging times. In the Inter-America Division, more than 700 church leaders participated in the first-ever Adventist-Muslim Relations Training Symposium on a six-day virtual meeting from January 11 to February 1. The event sought to build bridges with Muslim friends by providing new knowledge, skills, and attitudes to the mission leaders. More intentional efforts are underway to connect with the nearly half a million Muslims in more than 20 countries and islands in the territory. Watch more of these news features here at ANN (adventist.news). Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WUZUp1t7-E