This week on ANN. Thousands of Venezuelans have migrated to Colombia because of the economic and political situation. Many in Venezuela have no safe place to live and no money to buy food or health care. The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Colombia and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have partnered since 2018 to offer services to migrant families. Its latest partnership project, coined as SHAWA, which stands for Actividades Optimizas de Salud y Wash (Optimized Health and Wash Activities), for migrants in Colombia, has been offering primary health services. More than 114,000 persons have benefitted from the ADRA Colombia and USAID partnership through health services. Two people from East Taraka Seventh-day Adventist Church in Papua New Guinea have been confirmed dead. Others are in ICU after being involved in two separate motor vehicle accidents on the way to a Pathfinder Camp in Lae, Morobe Province. According to a Facebook post, the first accident involved a Pathfinder director driving a group of young Pathfinders to a camp organized by the Morobe Mission youth department. Sadly, the Pathfinder director died, and many of the Pathfinders are currently in ICU at Lae’s Angau Memorial Hospital. After the accident occurred, a parent was notified and decided to travel to the accident site but was killed in a separate accident along the journey. Adventist Record will provide updates. Loma Linda University (LLU) Children’s Hospital has been recognized as a recipient of the Gold Level ELSO Award for Excellence in Life Support from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization for 2021. The Excellence in Life Support Award recognizes centers that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to evidence-based processes, quality measures, staff training, continuing education, patient satisfaction, and ongoing clinical care. LLU Children’s Hospital was selected as a Center of Excellence for demonstrating extraordinary achievement in the following three categories: (a) Excellence in promoting the mission activities and vision of ELSO, (b) Excellence in patient care by using the highest quality measures, processes, and structures based upon evidence, and (c) Excellence in training, education, collaboration, and communication supporting ELSO guidelines that contribute to a healing environment for families, patients, and staff. The La Soufiére volcano erupted for the first time after 40 years, sending an ash plume 6.2 miles high into the sky and reaching as far as to affect Barbados, Grenada, and Saint Lucia. The resulting ashfall was very heavy in the surrounding areas, reaching nearby islands and halting air traffic. An estimated 23,400 people were displaced to the southern end of St. Vincent Island and some neighboring countries. According to its global emergency response mechanisms, ADRA declared an emergency category two response and rapidly provided food assistance to displaced people at nine shelters. ADRA has already distributed more than 87,000 hot meals. In Panama, a small congregation of Seventh-day Adventists recently launched a community-wide impact initiative across the financial district of Panama City, a metropolitan area still dealing with the challenges brought on by the pandemic. The activity, coined as “Be a Hero, Save Lives,” was organized by the Bella Vista Adventist Church and featured a blood drive and free medical check-ups. Dozens of persons in the community were assisted when preventive health care can make a difference in their lives. ADRA in Bulgaria is responding to the continued COVID-19 crisis through a series of projects that will target thousands of Roma, homeless, and socially vulnerable persons in Bulgaria. Health indicators show Bulgaria falls behind most countries in the European Union in economics and life expectancy. The rate of adult smoking and alcohol consumption is also the highest in the EU, with more than one in four adults smoking daily. Local reports indicate the general population opposes being vaccinated and dismisses federal mandates to keep safe, such as wearing a mask and keeping six feet apart. According to official findings published in February, only 10 percent of Bulgarians are willing to be vaccinated compared to 52 percent who have refused. Adventist HealthCare recently earned a spot on the Washington Post’s Top Workplaces 2021 in the Washington, D.C., United States. Advent Healthcare was the only provider of medical services on the list of 200 employers from public and private industries, non-profits, and government agencies. Adventist HealthCare was one of only 12 organizations that The Post honored in the “Largest Companies” category. For more Adventist news and current events, go to Adventist News Network. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbk1fYr4CJo

Have you ever experienced God asking you to do more than what you can? Have you felt unworthy or inadequate? It might have been the exact sentiment of Jesus’ disciples when He commissioned them for the gospel. In this episode, Pastor Ted Wilson tackles reaching the world through church planting. In Matthew 10:5-8, Jesus sent His disciples out on a mission. “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand,’ heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.” It must have overwhelmed the disciples, knowing it was far beyond what they could do with their limited strength. Fortunately, Jesus knew it. Hence, He provided everything they would need. In Matthew 10, “He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.” As the disciples claimed Jesus’ power, they were more than able to do all He asked them. In our time now, reaching the world may be overwhelming. More so that its population is nearly 8 billion, the mission seems impossible, especially in areas with limited or no religious freedom. Besides, secularism has taken control of most countries. Meanwhile, church planting is not something new. As a fact, it is evident in the early Christian church. For instance, Apostle Paul was one of the earliest church planters. He started small groups of believers in Turkey. He took good care of them, making sure they obtained enough nurturing. Everywhere Paul went, he always had a message of hope from God. It was so urgent that he couldn’t keep it to himself. Significantly, this is how the early church grew and multiplied. Eventually, his legacy continued, paving the way for Adventism to reach the world. Yet, despite this tremendous growth, many people still haven’t heard the Advent message. For instance, two-thirds of the world’s population don’t know Jesus. As such, the Lord is calling us today to go and preach. To reach the world is not an impossible calling. Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 333, says, “As the will of man cooperates with the will of God, it becomes omnipotent. Whatever is to be done at His command may be accomplished in His strength.” The question is, are you willing to answer God’s call? Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br9_h67kc9I

Did you know that God made the earth in just six days? In this video, meet a Japanese artist who paints designs on silk fabric, about 10 to 12 yards large. The paintings are beautiful, intricate, and colorful. The painter takes her time crafting all the details through her magnifying glass. She does it slowly and carefully, inch by inch, making sure everything is good. The process takes almost six months. And yes, the resulting finish is good! You can see a smile of satisfaction on her face. Similarly, God created the earth and all living creatures in it in six days. Then, He rested on the seventh day because He saw that everything was good. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_VZJwIcDSc

When will the end of the world take place? The Bible says that one of the signs of Jesus’ impending return is the whole world hearing about Him. Our job is to share the message of Jesus with people all over the globe in a sensitive, culturally relevant way. What can you do to share the Kingdom of God with the people around you today? Blog: https://www.ibelievebible.com/when-the-end-will-come/ ___
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This week on ANN. In the Philippines, the Taal Volcano Network has recorded more than 800 volcanic earthquakes, including volcanic tremor events, low-frequency volcanic earthquakes, and low-level background tremors. The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) has communicated with the Adventist Community Services director of the South Central Luzon Conference. Assessment tools have been shared to allow for immediate need assessments for the alert levels of the volcano. In Cavite, Philippines, ADRA Philippines’ Emergency Response Team has conducted an initial assessment in the municipalities of Agoncillo and Laurel. They are also planning to implement an initial response to help protect the affected families from the adverse effects of the daily high levels of sulfur dioxide emissions and prevent COVID-19 transmission through the provision of N95 masks. The North American Division Adventist Media Ministries Board voted to accept Debleaire Snell for the position of Speaker/Director of Breath of Life Ministries. Snell is set to replace Carlton P. Byrd, who accepted a call to serve as president of the Southwest Region Conference. Since 2010, Snell has served as senior pastor of three campuses of the First Church Seventh-day Adventist Church in Huntsville, Alabama. In Brazil, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) has collected 5,000 items of clothing and shoes in Maringá, Paraná. The action was carried out in partnership with Rede Massa, an organization that manages radio and TV stations, and helped publicize the campaign and collect donations. Families from the community visited the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Vila Sete, where they could choose the items they wanted to take home. With ongoing COVID-19 restrictions across Greater Sydney, Australia, “Women of Hope,” comprised of more than 80 women from six Samoan women’s groups, joined forces to prepare 305 care packs delivered to local charities and distributed to people in need. Led by Sesepasara Tangatauli, Women of Hope president and member of the Punchbowl Samoan Church, the packs were filled with essential items, including hand sanitizers, personal hygiene packages, toothbrushes, and toothpaste. The packages were then distributed to Street Buffet Sydney, Helping Hearts Sydney, and Helping Hands Canley Vale. Encouraging Bible verses were included in the packs, sharing the love of God with recipients and highlighting the reason for the outreach. After facing rough tides, mosquitoes, and extreme heat, Hearly Mayr and his 13-year-old son, Andreas, finally reached the last stop of their 200-mile kayaking journey down the Chesapeake Bay. The duo started their adventure at Elk River in Elkton, Maryland, USA. ADRA surpassed its fundraising goal on July 31, 2021, with a total of 9.9 million dollars with the help of the Mayrs’ Bay 200 Challenge supporters and ADRA’s pandemic hunger relief campaign. Proceeds will help families worldwide access food and other essentials which have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. For more news and inspiring stories that are taking place in the Adventist Community, visit Adventist News Network. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKp4_8RyjxM