Members of Seventh-day Adventist churches in the Santa Efigênia district in Curitiba, Brazil, were surprised at the end of April with a unique contest. Each of them could submit a child-sized homemade mask to be given to a young member of the community. Each design would be judged as a creative art piece, and winners would be chosen at the church level to compete with others at the district level.
The idea came up in a meeting with the district youth board. In discussion about the next youth…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/wAlmwx3T-sk/

The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) New Zealand is working with a network of Seventh-day Adventist churches throughout the country to provide essentials to over 1000 Kiwi families in need.
During the level 4 lockdown in New Zealand, many non-essential workers lost either all or a percentage of their income. Many families have struggled throughout this time, but it has been especially difficult for families already living in poverty.
In response, ADRA NZ launched the “Love Thy…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/3KmDYFs_ljc/

With the social distance caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, families now spend more time together at home. As coexistence increases, conflicts can arise. That’s what happened in Xi’an, in central China, where the city registered a record number of divorce requests right after the lockdown attributed to the illness.
To help families with their issues, both now and after the pandemic, the Family of Peace Portuguese-language podcast channel was launched on Spotify. Pastor Geraldo Magela, who has…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/1KA9TkfiFHw/

Jacky Barry, a member of the Philipsburg Seventh-day Adventist Church on the island of Sint Maarten, chose to use the stay-at-home mandate during the coronavirus pandemic to start a vegetable garden ministry. It’s a ministry that has blossomed into more than 776 members.
“It was God who gave me this ministry,” said Barry. “I was only thinking of a way to use gardening as a tool to spread the message of healthful living.”
Barry, who serves as the Pathfinder Club area coordinator on the island,…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/O8zjy6t3Nts/

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began to change our daily habits, we had to let go of many activities and ordinary pleasures, at least for the time being. Other doors that seemed closed, however, now are open and look inviting, if we dare to cross them with discipline, curiosity, and imagination.
Such is what happens with poetry, something which suddenly has gone through a resurgence and acquired newfound resonance outside close academic circles. It has become again “the voice of the people,” a…Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ann-en/~3/3j_ouf6CSrc/