By Edison García-Creitoff | 15 July 2021 | Few will be surprised to hear me say that there is a tendency to inflexibility and rigidity in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The church “froze” in the 20th century, and is finding it difficult to adapt to the 21st. A false identity took hold: that what defines […] Source: https://atoday.org/leaving-behind-the-church-baggage-that-separates-us-from-jesus/
Inside Story: Mystery Bible ~ NAD
Mystery Bible
By Andrew McChesney
A Covid-19 lockdown left Sandile Khumalo on his knees in South Africa’s biggest city, Johannesburg. The national lockdown, among the most stringent in the world, shuttered the three churches where Sandile serves as pastor in the city of 5.5 million people. Tough regulations closed parks and banned jogging, dog-walking, and even the sale of cigarettes and alcohol.
Image © Pacific Press
Like many pastors, Sandile moved his ministry online and live-streamed sermons to members of his three churches: Johannesburg Central, Johannesburg CBD, and Johannesburg Innercity. Sometimes he received encouraging messages from people inspired by his preaching. But he longed to do more. He earnestly prayed to God to send an unbeliever who needed to meet Jesus during the pandemic. What happened next surprised him.
One day, Sandile received a WhatsApp text message from an unfamiliar number. The caller introduced himself as Hilton and sent a photo of a Bible that he had found in a minivan taxi while traveling to work. Minivan taxis, which carry multiple passengers, are a common sight in Johannesburg.
“I picked up your Bible in the taxi,” Hilton wrote.
He explained that he had opened the Bible and, finding Sandile’s name and contact information inside the cover, decided to write.
Sandile looked at the photo with interest. He owned several Bibles but did not recognize the one in the photo. The Bible looked new, and its burgundy-red leather cover indicated that it was not cheap. Furthermore, Sandile had not ridden in a minivan taxi in years. He checked with his wife and other family members, and they confirmed that he had never owned such a Bible.
Hilton was not bothered that Sandile did not recognize the Bible. He was more interested in finding out what the Bible said. He had never read a Bible, and he was eager to start. He asked Sandile whether he would be willing to help him read it. He wanted Bible studies.
Sandile knew at that moment that God had heard his prayers for an unbeliever who needed to meet Jesus during the pandemic. God had answered his prayers in a miraculous way. “I praise God for this unique opportunity for ministry of which I still cannot make sense,” Sandile said. “I hope our interactions will lead to Hilton accepting Jesus Christ as his personal Savior.”
This story illustrates a key component of the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s “I Will Go” strategic plan: “Demonstrable increase in total members and congregations in all urban areas of one million people or more” (KPI 2.3). Learn more about the strategic plan at IWillGo2020.org.
Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.
Find more mission stories at adventistmission[dot]org
Amen!
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Friday: Further Thought ~ The Roots of Restlessness
Further Thought:
“There can be no growth or fruitfulness in the life that is centered in self. If you have accepted Christ as a personal Saviour, you are to forget yourself, and try to help others. Talk of the love of Christ, tell of His goodness. Do every duty that presents itself.
Image @ Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
Carry the burden of souls upon your heart, and by every means in your power seek to save the lost. As you receive the Spirit of Christ — the Spirit of unselfish love and labor for others — you will grow and bring forth fruit. The graces of the Spirit will ripen in your character. Your faith will increase, your convictions deepen, your love be made perfect. More and more you will reflect the likeness of Christ in all that is pure, noble, and lovely.” — Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, pages 67, 68.
In dealing with issues between church members, “conversation has been protracted for hours between the parties concerned, and not only has their time been wasted, but the servants of God are held to listen to them, when the hearts of both parties are unsubdued by grace. If pride and selfishness were laid aside, five minutes would remove most difficulties.” — Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 119.
Discussion Questions:
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Amen!(0)
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If Two Shall Agree, It Shall Be Done
Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. Matthew 18:19.
The earnest prayers of this faithful few will not be in vain. When the Lord comes forth as an avenger, He will also come as a protector of all those who have preserved the faith in its purity, and kept themselves unspotted from the world. It is at this time that God has promised to avenge His own elect which cry day and night unto Him, though He bear long with them.—Testimonies for the Church 5:210.
Strive earnestly for unity. Pray for it, work for it. It will bring spiritual health, elevation of thought, nobility of character, heavenly-mindedness, enabling you to overcome selfishness and evil-surmisings, and to be more than conquerors through Him that loved you, and gave Himself for you. Crucify self; esteem others better than yourselves. Thus you will be brought into oneness with Christ. Before the heavenly universe, and before the church and the world, you will bear unmistakable evidence that you are God’s sons and daughters. God will be glorified in the example that you set.
The world needs to see worked out before it the miracle that binds the hearts of God’s people together in Christian love. It needs to see the Lord’s people sitting together in heavenly places in Christ.—Testimonies for the Church 9:188.
God calls upon His faithful ones, who believe in Him, to talk courage to those who are unbelieving and hopeless. May the Lord help us to help one another, and to prove Him by living faith.—Testimonies for the Church 8:12.
With God at Dawn p. 197
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Prayer Requests
—-My husband may have a leak in his small intestines. Please pray that he does not have to have another surgery. Rachelle
—-Please pray for Jake, Emily, Easton, Trevor, Aubrey and Aspen. M
—-Prayers please for one of my favorite students and his family, as he has started having seizures this spring. We need a miracle! Tanya
—-Please pray for my daughter Jennifer and family. They just got 48 hour eviction notice. She lost her section 8 because miscommunication because of covid and losing her ss for 6 months so now being evicted. She has nowhere to go. Except my camper. Please pray for a miracle. Debra
—-I have an unspoken prayer request. Buck
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Dear Friends,
I have a love/hate relationship with the cell phone! It’s comforting to have one if I have any car trouble because I can call for help. Yet, that is not the primary use for my little device. No matter where I am, by just a press of a button, I can speak with those who are dear to me. Through the cell phone I can find answers to questions as they come to mind. Yet, it can become such a time-waster. It can become a distraction from the important things of life. Still, if I forget my cell phone, I go back and get it whenever possible. Without it, I feel very disconnected and lonely.
So it is with prayer and Bible study. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we can breathe a prayer to our Loving Saviour. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we can meditate upon His Holy Word. Do we feel as disconnected and lonely when we get so busy that we forget to pray or study the Scriptures as I do when I have forgotten my link to hearing my children’s voice? Do we stop whatever we are doing when we realize that we have not kept in contact with the Great King of the Universe?
Think of it! He, who is worshiped and adored by all the beings in His vast universe, longs to hear our voice raised to Him in thanksgiving. He, Who is the ruler of all, is so very near to us that He walks beside us joining us in the joys the sorrows that come our way. He, Who is Omniscient, speaks to us through the Holy Word He inspired holy men to write long years ago. (2 Tim 3:16, 17; 2 Peter 1:21) He, alone, can help us in our trials, yet, how often we get so busy with our daily life that we forget to study His Word and to “pray without ceasing.” 1 Thes 5:17
Just as David, when he watched over his father’s sheep, lifted his voice in prayer and thanksgiving to his Good Shepherd, so will our hearts be united with God’s Great Heart of Love as we keep our mind focused upon Him throughout the day. Just as he was filled with love and gratitude when he meditated upon our Great Creator’s tender watchcare over us, so will we. He declared, “My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.” “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.” “The LORD hath heard the voice of my weeping. The LORD hath heard my supplication; the LORD will receive my prayer.” Ps 5:3; 55:17; 6:8,9
May we daily hear God’s voice speaking to us as we meditate upon His Holy Word. May we bring to Him all of our sorrows, all of our joys, all of our cares, all of our heartaches, (we cannot weary Him) knowing that if we allow Him to, He will untangle the tangled up mess that we have made of our life. May we, like David, exclaim, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” Ps 42:1
Rose
Source: Psalm 92:15
“The LORD is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”
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