In early June, Willie and Elaine Oliver, directors for the department of family ministries at the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, hosted a live online event focused on the intersection of marriage, families, and prayer as a part of the World Covid-19 Marriage and Family Day of Prayer. 
“We were concerned about the rising accounts of distress and abuse in marriages and families due to the COVID-19 quarantine,” Elaine states. “Even in previously stable homes, people were feeling…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/BwCQDOOw16g/

One word that has been bouncing around in my mind for the past few weeks is hope.
While 2020 has certainly brought its fair share of uncertainty, doubt and fear, I come back to the calming power of hope.
Jesus often spoke about hope and His words hold a special kind of meaning right now: “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:3, ESV).
I truly believe it is because of His overcoming that we can have hope, despite our current circumstances.
…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/MRdaUJWCvmM/

A generous donation from ENGIE Brasil means 150 families in the northern region of Bahia will have food and protective masks, highly necessary supplies during the current coronavirus pandemic.
The donated goods—purchased with a $1,200 (US) gift to the Adventist Solidarity Action unit—were distributed at the Umburanas Seventh-day Adventist Church, an outpost in a city of 17,000. 
ASA turned the money into the food baskets and supplies, which were distributed to vulnerable families in the area….Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/TIR-xErPtww/

Seventh-day Adventist leaders, staff and their families at the Inter-American Division headquarter office concluded a week of special emphasis on prayer on Sabbath, June 13, 2020. The more than 70 workers employed by the IAD in Miami, Florida, and their families spent time in prayer and fellowship—all from the comfort of their homes.
This is the first time that the annual week of spiritual emphasis was held via Zoom, due to the current quarantine regulations, but one that proved to be filled…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/6_SsxmbZ7HI/

Seventh-day Adventists in the Santa Catarina state of Brazil won’t let a mere global pandemic stop their quest to help people live free of smoking: the University Adventist Church in Florianópolis, the state capital, recently produced a five-day stop smoking clinic online, and the impact was life-changing. 
Here’s an example: 57-year-old Zelene has been smoking for about 40 years, and now smokes about 12 cigarettes a day. She prayed for an answer, and through a neighbor, she learned of the…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/HWmb-sATaHM/