Inside Story for Friday 25th of October 2024

By Andrew McChesney

An ambulance rushed 36-year-old Nigora to the hospital in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. She could barely talk. Her arms were numb. She was struggling to swallow. The doctor couldn’t diagnose her condition.

Nigora grew worse over the next month in the hospital. She couldn’t sleep for more than 15 minutes a day. X-rays showed activity in her brain.

Then a second doctor said Nigora had a terminal illness. He saw no hope.

Image © Pacific Press

Nigora didn’t believe in Jesus, but she had Seventh-day Adventist neighbors who did. They visited her in intensive care and asked for permission to invite their church pastor to come and pray with her. “No, no,” Nigora said. “I’m not well. I look terrible. Tell him to come when I feel better.”

But the neighbors insisted. “Let him come and pray for you,” they said.

Reluctantly, Nigora agreed. A day later, the pastor and his wife came to Nigora’s bed. The pastor read Psalms 23:1-6, anointed Nigora’s forehead with oil, and prayed, “Lord, give health to our sister. Give her healing so she can make a full recovery.” Nigora didn’t feel any different after the prayer.

The next day, the pastor and his wife returned. Again he read from the Bible, anointed her, and prayed. Again Nigora didn’t feel any different. But that night, she was able to sleep for several hours, not for 15 minutes.

The third day, the pastor and his wife returned. Again he read from the Bible, anointed her, and prayed. Again she didn’t feel any different. But that night, she slept the whole night. After that, she slept well every night.

The pastor and his wife continued to visit. Slowly, Nigora’s speech improved. Her arms and legs began to function. Hospital X-rays showed that her brain activity had returned to normal. The doctor was astonished.

“It’s impossible that you have recovered, and so quickly,” he said.

Four months after the pastor began praying, Nigora was driving her car and back at work.

The woman who hadn’t believed in God credited Him for her recovery.

“This is a miracle of God,” she said.

She is glad to have neighbors who cared for her. “I’m very grateful to God that He gave me these kind of friends, who are like family,” she said, speaking slowly but clearly in an interview with Adventist Mission.

Although Nigora believes in God, she has not given her heart to Him. A discouraging factor may be that many people in Uzbekistan view Seventh-day Adventists as members of a sect. Please pray for Nigora and others like her who have witnessed God’s power in their lives but have yet to make a decision for Him. Nigora is a pseudonym.

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-04-inside-story-power-of-prayer-in-uzbekistan/

Daily Lesson for Friday 25th of October 2024

Read Ellen G. White, “Nicodemus,” Pages 167–177, in The Desire of Ages.

Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com

Nicodemus “searched the Scriptures in a new way, not for the discussion of a theory, but in order to receive life for the soul. He began to see the kingdom of heaven as he submitted himself to the leading of the Holy Spirit. . . .

“Through faith we receive the grace of God; but faith is not our Saviour. It earns nothing. It is the hand by which we lay hold upon Christ, and appropriate His merits, the remedy for sin. . . . Repentance comes from Christ as truly as does pardon.

“How, then, are we to be saved? ‘As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,’ so the Son of man has been lifted up, and everyone who has been deceived and bitten by the serpent may look and live. ‘Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.’ John 1:29. The light shining from the cross reveals the love of God. His love is drawing us to Himself. If we do not resist this drawing, we shall be led to the foot of the cross in repentance for the sins that have crucified the Saviour. Then the Spirit of God through faith produces a new life in the soul. The thoughts and desires are brought into obedience to the will of Christ. The heart, the mind, are created anew in the image of Him who works in us to subdue all things to Himself. Then the law of God is written in the mind and heart, and we can say with Christ, ‘I delight to do Thy will, O my God.’ Psalms 40:8.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, Pages 175, 176.

Discussion Questions

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-04-further-thought-witnesses-of-christ-as-the-messiah/