Closer To Heaven
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by Jim Walters & Loren Seibold | 27 February 2025 | One of the new American presidential administration’s first actions was to fire 10,000 workers from the United States Agency for International Aid workers, leaving less than 400. Let’s be clear: the stripping of this agency will mean that millions in poor countries will go hungry, […] Source: https://atoday.org/the-killing-of-usaid-and-dei-where-is-the-moral-outrage/
A daughter’s dream of meeting Joseph Bates and Hiram Edson in an old barn brought her family to Hiram Edson’s historic farm. As they explored the site, sang hymns, and prayed, they felt a deep connection to God’s guidance. Discover how this dream and their visit to the farm strengthened their faith and reminded them of God’s work throughout history. #FamilyJourney #ChristianHeritage #AdventistLegacy #awr #adventistworldradio #short Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvXCFAWKDu0
27 février 2025 | Chère tante Louise, En tant qu’africaine, j’aime tresser mes cheveux. C’est pratique: je suis très occupée et cela me permet d’être jolie avec un minimum d’efforts. Pourtant, en s’appuyant sur 1 Timothée 2.9, certains pasteurs prêchent que c’est un péché pour les femmes de se tresser les cheveux. Qu’en penses-tu, ma […] Source: https://atoday.org/tante-louise-puis-je-tresser-mes-cheveux/
Inside Story for Friday 28th of February 2025
By Andrew McChesney
The Zoom call just wouldn’t go through.
“It’s not working!” Matrona exclaimed.
Over her phone, Colette could hear Matrona typing and retyping the Zoom password on a facility computer.
Image © Pacific Press
It was a call that they had attempted many times that week. Matrona was among many Alaska Native children living in facilities and foster homes in Alaska, and she was eager to get acquainted with Colette.
She tried the password again. “It’s not working!” she cried.
“It’s OK,” Colette said.
“It’s not OK! I want to try again,” Matrona said.
When it still didn’t work, Colette suggested they talk on the phone instead.
Colette Reahl, a Seventh-day Adventist pediatrician in Anchorage, was eager to get acquainted with Matrona, too. An Alaska Native girl, Matrona was eligible for adoption at a facility in Fairbanks, located 360 miles away.
Matrona reluctantly agreed to talk by phone. The first question she asked was, “What are your house rules?”
“That is something we can talk about more when you get to the house,” Colette said. “But respect is pretty big in my house.”
Matrona quizzed Colette for the next 30 minutes. At the end of the conversation, she said, “You know, my foster mom is going to adopt me, right?”
Colette, a Florida native who had lived with her husband in Alaska for eight years, had not known that. She thought, Matrona is so interesting, and she has such a huge personality. This is going to be an adventure!
From her side, Matrona knew that Colette was looking to adopt, but she didn’t want to get hurt. So, she made it difficult for Colette to get close.
Colette asked how often she could call, and Matrona proposed once a week on Tuesdays. But when Colette called, Matrona wasn’t available or didn’t answer. They changed the time to Thursdays and then to Saturdays.
Colette sensed that Matrona was annoyed, but she couldn’t understand why. She decided to keep calling every week whether Matrona wanted to talk or not. As she kept calling with unconditional love, Matrona’s heart began to thaw.
This mission story offers an inside look at a previous Thirteenth Sabbath project. Pediatrician Colette Reahl is also coleader of Bethel (Alaska) Seventh-day Adventist Church, which received part of a 2024 Thirteenth Sabbath Offering. Thank you for helping spread the gospel with this quarter’s Thirteenth Sabbath Offering on March 29. Read more about Colette and Matrona next week.
(0)Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25a-09-inside-story-the-persistent-caller-part-1/
Daily Lesson for Friday 28th of February 2025
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
“Nothing is more plainly taught in Scripture than that God was in no wise responsible for the entrance of sin; that there was no arbitrary withdrawal of divine grace, no deficiency in the divine government, that gave occasion for the uprising of rebellion. Sin is an intruder, for whose presence no reason can be given. It is mysterious, unaccountable; to excuse it is to defend it. . . . Had he [Satan] been immediately blotted from existence, they [the inhabitants of heaven and of other worlds] would have served God from fear rather than from love. The influence of the deceiver would not have been fully destroyed, nor would the spirit of rebellion have been utterly eradicated. Evil must be permitted to come to maturity. For the good of the entire universe through ceaseless ages Satan must more fully develop his principles, that his charges against the divine government might be seen in their true light by all created beings, that the justice and mercy of God and the immutability of His law might forever be placed beyond all question.”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, Pages 492, 493, 499.
Discussion Questions
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(0)Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25a-09-further-thought-the-cosmic-conflict/
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