Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202225S
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00:49 >> Hello and welcome to It Is 00:51 Written Canada. 00:51 Thank you for joining us. 00:53 Our guests today are two highly 00:55 gifted, highly educated, and 00:57 highly motivated professionals, 00:59 Thando and Seth Amankuah. 01:02 >> Thando is a graduate of 01:04 Harvard University, majoring in 01:06 chemistry. 01:08 And along with being a mother 01:10 of three young boys, she's 01:12 currently doing her PhD in 01:15 Global Health and International 01:17 Development at the University 01:20 of Ottawa. 01:21 Thando also speaks six 01:23 languages, including English 01:26 and French. 01:28 >> Her husband, Seth, has a 01:30 masters degree in Renewable 01:31 Energy and Technologies as an 01:33 electrical engineer and is a 01:36 director in fibre engineering 01:38 at Xplornet. 01:40 >> They both come from very 01:42 humble beginnings in Africa, 01:45 a continent Mike and I 01:47 love deeply. 01:49 Thando and Seth, welcome to It 01:51 Is Written Canada. 01:53 [BOTH] Thank you for having us. 01:55 >> So, Seth, I wanna begin 01:56 with you. 01:57 You grew up in the western 01:59 African country of Ghana, the 02:03 youngest of five children and, 02:05 unfortunately, your father was 02:07 tragically-- tragically passed 02:09 away when you were young. 02:10 And so your mom, she had to 02:14 raise, on her own as a single 02:15 mom, she never got remarried, 02:18 five children and what was that 02:21 like for her? 02:23 >> So sad. 02:25 Obviously in an African country 02:27 in, like, Ghana, you don't 02:28 have the government support as 02:31 a single mother. 02:33 But she worked so hard to 02:35 really take care of all of us, 02:36 the five of us. 02:38 And one thing about her that, 02:40 you know, I am so blessed to 02:42 have her as a mother is that 02:44 she's a woman of faith, she's a 02:46 woman of prayer, and she has 02:48 deep faith in the Word of God. 02:51 Growing up I saw her kneeling 02:53 and praying every night, every 02:55 morning because every day was a 02:57 battle to survive. 03:00 And sometimes-- she was not 03:01 educated, she couldn't read the 03:02 Bible, but I saw her putting 03:04 the Bible under her pillow and 03:06 sleeping over it. 03:07 She could not read, but she 03:09 believed every single word that 03:12 is written in that book. 03:14 And, you know, so it became 03:15 clear to me growing up that my 03:18 only path to success was to 03:21 study a true education. 03:23 So I was really a straight-A 03:25 student and, you know, by the 03:27 grace of God, I got into a top 03:29 university in Ghana to study 03:31 electrical engineering, which 03:32 is, you know, one of the top 03:33 program in that school. 03:36 And I did so well there. 03:38 But when it come to my 03:40 Christian faith, you know, I 03:42 did the bare minimum. 03:44 You couldn't say I'm bad 03:46 because, you know, I followed 03:47 the rules, I'd go to church, I'd 03:49 return my tithe, but it was a 03:51 shallow faith. 03:52 It was just doing the bare 03:53 minimum in my Christian journey. 03:56 >> So your mom obviously took 03:58 her faith seriously, 04:00 but you didn't. 04:01 When did you start to take your 04:02 faith seriously? 04:04 >> So when I was in Kwame 04:06 Nkrumah University of Science 04:07 and Technology, reading 04:08 electrical engineering, and I 04:10 go to church, there's a 04:11 campus church, and within the 04:13 campus church there's this 04:14 small group called "Evangelism 04:16 Wing," and these are a bunch of 04:17 guys who meet, study the Word 04:20 of God, and go around Sabbath 04:22 afternoon knocking on doors on 04:24 campus to study the Word 04:26 with people. 04:27 So I was really impressed about 04:28 these guys and I started to 04:29 learn more about them and I 04:31 just discovered that these guys 04:33 were reading medicine, 04:35 pharmacy, electrical, the top 04:37 programs in the school and they 04:40 were top of their class. 04:42 So I was like, "How are they 04:46 doing it?" 04:47 Because there's a stereotype 04:49 conception during my time that, 04:51 you know, it's a trade-off. 04:54 Either you're academically 04:56 solid and you don't show up for 04:59 church or you show up for 05:01 church all the time, but you 05:03 are not good academically. 05:05 And here are a bunch of guys, 05:07 extremely intelligent, on top 05:09 of their class, but fully 05:11 devoted to the cause of God. 05:14 That was attractive, that was 05:16 beautiful, and that is where, 05:19 you know, I started joining 05:20 them, attending their meeting, 05:23 you know, going with them and 05:25 knocking on doors. 05:26 And guess what happened. 05:28 When I started studying with 05:30 people on campus, they 05:32 challenged my faith, they asked 05:35 tough questions about my faith. 05:38 Some of them I couldn't even 05:39 answer them and I need to come 05:41 back and research and learn and 05:44 that is where I was able to 05:47 have that solid faith because 05:51 now my faith is challenged, but 05:53 the more I learn and search for 05:55 the answers, the more I saw how 05:58 beautiful what we believe and 06:00 how coherent what we believe is. 06:04 >> You were very blessed to 06:06 have friends who were so 06:09 intelligent, but also so 06:11 faithful and strong in their 06:13 faith and they were challenging 06:14 your faith and that made your 06:15 faith grow. 06:16 So how did that influence grow 06:18 from that group to the rest of 06:20 the campus? 06:21 >> So by, you know, divine 06:23 orchestrated plan, majority of 06:26 those who were in Evangelism 06:28 Wing became the leaders of the 06:30 campus church and through 06:32 prayer, planning, and bringing 06:35 that passion of studying the 06:38 Word of God and sharing the 06:40 Word of God, there was a 06:41 revival that happened on our 06:43 campus. 06:44 We were having a Bible lecture 06:46 series where we were presenting 06:49 the Bible in academic hall in 06:52 a circle at university campus. 06:54 You know, inviting people, you 06:56 know, like, people to come in, 06:58 to lecture. 07:01 And the wave, that revival 07:03 wave, you know, happened 07:04 outside the boundary of our 07:06 university. 07:07 So it started spreading to the 07:09 other university. 07:10 And guess what, there were 07:11 foreign students within our 07:14 university who were Seventh-day 07:15 Adventists studying who came 07:17 from Liberia and Eritrea and 07:20 other countries to study who 07:22 were part of this revival and 07:24 when they left to their home 07:25 country, they took that power, 07:29 that fire that was burning in 07:30 their heart, to those country. 07:33 And I was invited to preach in 07:34 Liberia in evangelistic series 07:37 at the very time of my 07:38 graduation. 07:39 So during my graduation, you 07:40 know, people having finals in 07:42 Liberia, you know, spreading 07:43 the Word of God. 07:46 Then we discovered that God is 07:49 working something because 07:52 at the same time that what is 07:54 happened on campus in the 07:55 United States, there were other 07:58 group who were also passionate 08:00 about the Word of God and the 08:02 young people who are hungry to 08:04 learn and to share, you know. 08:06 And it was during that 08:07 encounter and connection that I 08:09 met this beautiful woman... 08:11 [laughter] ...during that. 08:13 So that is how God divinely 08:15 orchestrated all of this and 08:17 I'm so thankful that I was part 08:19 of that. 08:19 [MIKE] So you were very focused 08:21 on ministry, what did you 08:24 notice about Thando? 08:26 >> So I got connected over 08:27 there, I met her at the airport 08:29 the first time and I knew we 08:32 were radical, I knew we were 08:33 passionate, but when I heard 08:35 her story, it was on another 08:38 level because, you know, she 08:40 was in Harvard and, of course, 08:42 the best university in the 08:44 world, and, you know, I heard 08:46 that she took a year off 08:49 to be trained as an evangelist 08:51 and that was really the next 08:54 level, right? 08:55 So I was, immediately I was 08:56 like, I really want to know 08:58 more about this young lady who 09:00 is so passionate. 09:01 But one thing that also make me 09:05 more interested and in order 09:07 to, like, work with her, was 09:09 her passion for Africa, you 09:12 know, her passion to really 09:14 change the thinking of our 09:17 young people, empower them, and 09:19 help them not only to succeed 09:23 spiritually, but also 09:25 academically and professionally. 09:28 Yeah, so it was really, you 09:30 know, divine ordained that we 09:33 met amid all these, you know, 09:35 revival wave that was going on 09:38 and I thank God that it ended 09:39 that way. 09:41 >> And so, Thando, your 09:44 education was also-- top-notch 09:46 education was also very 09:47 important for you and Seth had 09:49 mentioned that you were blessed 09:53 to be a student at Harvard 09:55 University. 09:56 Can you give us a snapshot of 09:58 how you ended up there? 10:01 >> You know, I guess like him, 10:02 too, I owe a lot to my parents, 10:05 especially my mom, you know, 10:07 she really instilled a love of 10:08 learning in my sister and I. 10:11 She worked really, really hard 10:14 to put us into the best schools 10:16 and really pushed us to study, 10:18 study, study, and by God's 10:20 grace, I did very well in 10:21 school, you know, ended up 10:23 getting the best grades in the 10:24 country multiple times at 10:26 national exams and earned 10:28 myself a scholarship to the 10:30 United World College which was 10:32 the only-- I guess at the time, 10:35 maybe still, the only 10:36 international baccalaureate 10:37 school in southern Africa. 10:39 So I got to do the IB diploma 10:41 which, at the time, and still 10:43 is very highly regarded as-- for 10:45 access to universities across 10:47 the world. 10:48 And so it was there while I was 10:50 doing my IB diploma that my 10:52 guidance counsellor-- I had 10:53 never thought about applying to 10:54 Harvard actually at all even 10:56 though I was gifted in school 10:57 and done well, but he really 10:59 encouraged me, "Give it a shot, 11:00 just try, you've got the 11:01 grades, you've got the story, 11:02 just try and apply." 11:03 So I did and God opened those 11:06 doors, I guess, with the full 11:07 scholarship to Harvard. 11:10 [RENÉ] Thando, you came from a 11:12 very conservative Christian 11:13 home, how did going to Harvard 11:16 affect your faith? 11:18 [THANDO] Honestly, it was a 11:19 little like being thrown into 11:20 the deep end. 11:23 Sort of growing up in Swaziland 11:25 where I grew up with my 11:27 parents, it was, you know, back 11:28 home in Swaziland there is 11:30 everyone, there is an assumed 11:32 belief in God, you never 11:33 challenge or question that, 11:34 everyone believes there is 11:36 a God. 11:36 We disagree in what we think 11:38 about that God or how we 11:39 worship Him, but we all believe 11:40 that there is a God. 11:41 And getting to Harvard, it was, 11:44 quite honestly, like I said, 11:46 being thrown into the deep end 11:47 because I was on a secular 11:49 campus, in one of the most 11:51 secular cities in the world, 11:52 Boston, right, where it's sort 11:54 of like, the culture there, 11:56 well, at least when I was 11:57 there, is, you know, this is a 11:58 place where intellectuals 12:00 thrive and there is no place 12:02 for Biblical faith in such an 12:03 environment so it's almost as 12:05 if you-- "You're here, you're 12:06 smart, you're too smart to 12:08 believe in God." 12:09 So it really challenged me, it 12:11 definitely ripped the Band-Aid 12:13 off and I think God used that 12:15 experience to really move me 12:17 from leaning on my parents' 12:18 faith to, I think, owning my 12:20 faith for myself. 12:22 >> So, Thando, did God provide 12:24 you with support for your faith 12:26 while you were in the midst of 12:28 all the secularism at Harvard? 12:31 [THANDO] He did and God is good 12:33 in that He always has a 12:35 thousand ways to provide for us 12:37 that we really don't even know 12:38 because I got to Harvard on my 12:40 first day feeling completely 12:42 lost, you know, first time in 12:43 the United States, first time 12:45 in Boston on this big campus, 12:47 got into my room only to find 12:49 that my roommate was Adventist, 12:51 you know, so talk about 12:52 providence, right? 12:53 And she, funny story, so she 12:55 had asked for an Adventist 12:57 roommate. 12:58 So here I was, you know, met 12:59 her, discovered we're both 13:00 Adventist and she took me to 13:01 church that first Sabbath so 13:03 talk about what a blessing it 13:04 was, you know, to just have 13:05 that connection right away. 13:07 And so, you know, it really was 13:09 through her and the church I 13:10 attended and campus ministries 13:12 that God provided me with a 13:14 shelter and an anchor. 13:17 >> And, Thando, at one stage 13:20 you almost lost your 13:21 scholarship to continue 13:23 studying at Harvard University. 13:26 Can you tell us how that 13:27 happened? 13:29 >> From being inspired by the 13:31 students that I met who were 13:33 doing campus ministries, I got 13:34 involved myself and I think 13:37 getting involved also forced me 13:38 to study, you know, my Bible 13:40 more and to have more answers 13:43 for the questions that I had 13:45 and I ended up, you know, by 13:47 God's grace, leading the 13:49 founding of our Adventist 13:50 Christian Fellowship at Harvard 13:52 and so I was its first 13:53 president. 13:54 And so at the time, there was a 13:57 campus training program in 13:58 Michigan that was running out 14:00 of the Michigan Conference and 14:02 God impressed upon my heart to 14:03 apply and take a year off from 14:06 my studies, but the challenge 14:08 was that I was on a student 14:10 scholarship and a student visa 14:12 and there was just 14:13 complications with leaving 14:14 school and getting a different 14:16 visa to do this training which 14:19 put my scholarship in jeopardy. 14:22 And long story short, you know, 14:23 God worked a miracle, I got the 14:27 visa that I needed, my 14:28 scholarship was put on hold and 14:30 reserved for me, I didn't lose 14:31 it, so I was able to come back 14:33 and continue and when I came 14:35 back, I came back with so much 14:36 more experience and knowledge 14:38 and training and really fired 14:40 up to do so much more on 14:41 campus, you know, so God really 14:43 led with that as well. 14:46 >> That was a miracle that God 14:48 allowed all of that to happen. 14:50 >> It really was, it really was. 14:51 [RENÉ] So you graduated from 14:53 Harvard with your degree and 14:55 you had countless opportunities, 14:59 but then you did the 15:01 unthinkable. 15:03 [THANDO] God really impressed 15:04 upon my heart when I was 15:05 graduating to spend some time 15:07 in full-time ministry to 15:09 university campuses. 15:11 You know, when you look at the 15:12 universe and I think Seth 15:13 mentioned this earlier, that 15:14 reaching the university is such 15:16 an opportunity to reach the 15:17 world because you have students 15:20 from all over the world that 15:21 are coming to study there, you 15:22 know, so Harvard, for example, 15:23 was a microcosm of the world. 15:26 We had students from everywhere. 15:28 And God put on my heart to 15:30 take-- to spend some time in 15:32 full-time ministry, you know, 15:34 so instead of taking jobs that 15:36 I could have had that my 15:37 friends were walking into with 15:40 their Harvard degrees, I chose 15:41 to work full-time in campus 15:45 ministry as a missionary in 15:46 Boston with the Michigan 15:48 Conference as well. 15:49 I could talk for hours about 15:52 the miracles and the Bible 15:53 studies and the students who 15:54 were inspired to come to God 15:56 through that, but God...God 15:58 really blessed. 16:01 >> So, Thando, now you're very 16:03 active full-time evangelist, 16:06 preaching and teaching and in 16:08 the course of your work you 16:10 meet Seth. 16:13 Did you think that you would 16:15 ever marry Seth? 16:16 >> No. 16:17 [laughter] 16:18 No, I mean at the time I was 16:21 very involved in youth 16:23 ministries like GYC and ALIVE 16:25 that, you know, all really 16:26 sought to inspired young people 16:27 to take their faith more 16:29 seriously and to serve Jesus 16:30 and so I was travelling quite a 16:32 bit as part of that. 16:33 I had did missions in so many 16:35 different countries in Africa, 16:37 one of which was Ghana and so I 16:39 met him on my first trip to 16:41 Ghana. [laughs] 16:43 And I'll say, the first time I 16:44 met him, he did not even shake 16:46 my hand and my first impression 16:48 was-- of him was he was very 16:50 stoic, I guess is the word, 16:52 just very proper, very-- so it 16:53 was the furthest thing from my 16:55 mind, but, you know, God works 16:58 in, I guess, yeah, incredible 17:00 ways. 17:00 So we became friends, obviously 17:02 we did several missions 17:03 together and the rest is 17:05 history, I guess, but no... 17:08 [laughter] 17:09 >> So Seth, Thando said it was 17:11 the furthest thing from her 17:13 mind that she was gonna marry 17:14 you, what about you? 17:15 >> Me, too. [laughs] 17:17 And, of course, the focus was 17:19 on mission, mission, mission, 17:21 but, of course, as we met, you 17:23 know, we inspired each other. 17:26 It seems that we were 17:27 interested in the same thing 17:30 and our mission, our work 17:33 together kind of augment each 17:34 other and the collaboration was 17:36 really excellent. 17:38 Twenty-sixth of August will be 17:40 our tenth anniversary and it's 17:43 been amazing journey together. 17:46 We have three boys, Matthias, 17:48 Nathan, and Gabriel, we say 17:50 that we have a disciple, 17:53 a prophet, and an angel 17:55 in our house. 17:56 And so I'm so happy the way 17:58 God made the whole thing come 18:00 together and it's been ten 18:02 years, an amazing journey, that 18:04 we've been together. 18:05 >> Amazing journey. 18:06 You came to Canada and Thando 18:10 was doing her masters degree at 18:11 the time and you ended up 18:14 getting work here, like, right 18:16 off the bat. 18:17 How did that happen? 18:19 >> I moved here and less than, 18:20 almost like 48 hours, I got a 18:24 job, you know, the process, you 18:25 know, I quite remember when I 18:27 hit the send button for that 18:28 resume, I prayed, within about 18:32 six hours I got a call, six 18:34 hours after submitting the 18:35 resume and the person says, 18:37 "Can you come for interview?" 18:38 I say, "Yeah, obviously I 18:40 can come, but not in the 18:41 morning because I just moved to 18:42 this country and I don't even 18:43 know my bearings, right? 18:45 So maybe in the afternoon I 18:46 will start out, get lost, you 18:48 know, in the afternoon I can 18:49 be there." 18:49 So I got job in my field within 18:52 48 hours arriving this country 18:55 and at that time AFL was so 18:57 good to me, they helped me, you 18:59 know, as an engineer, you need 19:00 to, you know, go through your 19:01 licensing process, they helped 19:03 me through all of that. 19:04 Securing a job in my field was 19:07 really, really a miracle. 19:10 >> You're married now, you're 19:12 doing missionary work together, 19:15 you're doing ministerial work 19:17 together, you're doing 19:18 evangelistic series, you're 19:20 doing revival series, and then 19:23 your first son, Matthias, is 19:25 born which means "gift of God." 19:28 So can you tell us a little bit 19:30 about that experience and how 19:33 that was part of your faith 19:34 journey? 19:36 >> The-- so, yeah, the 19:37 pregnancy was going well... 19:41 ...up until 32 weeks when I 19:44 developed pregnancy-induced 19:46 hypertension which rapidly 19:49 progressed to preeclampsia and 19:51 it was-- it came out of the 19:52 blue, you know, because I took 19:54 pretty good care of myself, 19:56 I mean, I eat healthy, I 19:57 exercise, I run, even during 19:59 pregnancy I was exercising and 20:01 even the week before I was 20:03 diagnosed, I was at the gym, 20:04 you know, so I kind of looked 20:06 at my doctor and I was like, 20:07 "Where is this coming from?" 20:08 and it's just, 20:10 it's just one of those things. 20:11 I had to be induced at 37 weeks 20:14 because my preeclampsia was 20:16 progressing to HELLP syndrome 20:18 which is life-threatening. 20:20 Basically my liver was starting 20:22 to shut down at the time and so 20:24 I just had to deliver the baby. 20:28 When he was born, he wasn't 20:30 breathing, you know, and so he 20:33 suffered a hypoxic injury 20:34 during birth. 20:35 It just felt like a spiral. 20:39 We had to be air-lifted from 20:41 the hospital where he was born, 20:42 we had to be air-lifted to 20:44 BC Children's Hospital where he 20:46 was in the NICU. 20:49 So many monitors connected to 20:50 him and there was so much going 20:52 on about possible brain injury 20:55 and just-- it was like my world 20:58 just spun out of control. 21:01 You're kind of like, "God, I 21:02 gave you my youth, I've served 21:04 You faithfully, what is this, 21:07 what is this all about?" 21:10 And, you know, it's that 21:13 initial phase was, you know, he 21:14 might have a brain injury and 21:16 then that came back clear, he 21:17 was perfectly fine and then 21:19 just when we thought we were 21:21 going to take him home, he 21:22 caught an infection in the 21:24 hospital and because he was so 21:26 little, that infection took 21:28 over his body, rapidly became 21:30 sepsis and so he was on the 21:32 verge of organ failure 21:35 basically and we were just 21:36 like, "Lord..." 21:41 You know, you.... 21:46 It was a crucible, honestly, 21:48 one of the most challenging 21:49 faith experiences in our 21:50 journey because, like I said, 21:52 you sort of live the faithful 21:54 life and then you go through 21:56 this experience and you wonder, 21:57 "What did I do wrong?" 21:59 But I think sometimes, you know, 22:01 we go through moments like 22:02 that, not because we've done 22:04 something wrong or we have 22:06 sinned or whatever, but we're 22:08 in a Great Controversy and 22:10 sometimes, you know, life 22:12 throws you a curve ball and I 22:14 think for me, I have a distinct 22:17 memory of God reminding me of a 22:19 sermon I had preached at GYC 22:21 five years back, about what 22:23 it meant to trust God when 22:26 you couldn't understand where 22:28 He was leading or what was 22:30 happening. 22:31 And I remember I was sitting by 22:33 my son's bedside in the NICU 22:35 and that sermon came to mind 22:37 and it was as if God was 22:38 saying, you know, "You've 22:40 preached that sermon so many 22:43 times, can you live it in this 22:46 moment?" 22:48 Because what it means to trust 22:49 God when you don't know what 22:52 the outcome might be, I 22:53 remember the doctors telling us 22:54 that he may not be able to 22:56 hear, that he could have 22:57 disabilities for life and it 22:59 was just all this swirling in 23:00 my brain. 23:02 How do you trust God when you 23:04 don't understand and you can't 23:06 see His hand and you're at the 23:09 end of your human strength? 23:12 It's easy to have faith when 23:15 everything's going well, but 23:16 it's not faith unless it's 23:18 faith in the darkest hour, you 23:20 know, it's when you're-- when 23:22 you've cried the last tear that 23:26 that's when God's strength 23:28 really matters. 23:30 Our son did recover 23:31 miraculously again because the 23:33 doctors looked at him and were 23:34 like, from how bad his numbers 23:37 were and they just couldn't 23:39 believe that he'd made a 23:40 complete turn-around, you know, 23:42 and so we were in the NICU for 23:44 almost three months, yeah? 23:46 >> Yeah, almost three months. 23:47 >> And-- but he made it-- it 23:49 was a miraculous recovery like 23:50 I'm saying because even the 23:51 doctors were just like, shocked, 23:53 you know, they couldn't believe, 23:55 but he was in perfect health. 23:57 And I remember, though, when 23:58 we're driving home, I know I'm 24:00 thanking God and praising God 24:01 for this-- for His healing and 24:03 the question came to mind of, 24:05 like, you know, "Thando, would 24:06 you still be praising God if he 24:09 hadn't recovered?" 24:12 We named him Matthias which 24:14 means "gift of God" and at the 24:16 time I don't think we even knew 24:18 that-- what a gift it would be 24:20 and I think about it now and, 24:26 you know, it's been almost 24:28 seven years and it's still hard 24:29 to talk about, but... 24:32 ...we don't... 24:33 ...we don't often think about 24:36 these painful experiences as a 24:38 gift, but that's kind of the 24:39 other thought that comes to me 24:41 every time I look at him still, 24:43 you know, he's almost seven and 24:44 it's like all of these 24:46 experiences we go through, even 24:48 the really, really trying ones, 24:50 the ones that break our hearts 24:53 and make us weep in our closets 24:56 and bang our fists at heaven, 24:58 all these experiences are a 24:59 gift, you know, and they're a 25:02 gift because they do bring us 25:04 closer to God because when you-- 25:06 when your faith is tested that 25:08 deeply, there's really nowhere 25:10 else to turn except God and 25:11 it's in those darkest moments 25:15 when God shows up that we 25:16 really learn to trust Him. 25:18 So his name was fitting, we 25:19 didn't know at the time, but 25:21 God gave us him and gave us 25:23 this experience as a gift, 25:25 really. 25:26 We don't think of it that way, 25:27 but it is. 25:29 And so he's a living reminder 25:31 of God's grace to us every day. 25:35 >> Thank you so much, Thando 25:37 and Seth. 25:38 We've come to the end of our 25:39 time, unfortunately, together. 25:42 But before we end, I wonder if 25:43 I could ask you, Seth, to pray 25:45 for our viewers. 25:46 There may be someone right now 25:47 who's struggling to trust in 25:49 God, they may be going through 25:51 something and they need to put 25:53 their faith in Him right now, 25:55 so... 25:56 >> Yes, let's pray. 25:58 Father in heaven, we are so 26:00 thankful for the opportunity 26:02 that you've given us to kind of 26:05 reflect on our life. 26:08 We have seen Your hand, Your 26:10 love, Your protection, and Your 26:12 providence in our life and we 26:15 are so thankful, Lord, that You 26:17 have helped us to keep the 26:20 hope alive. 26:21 So we want to take this 26:22 opportunity to pray for those 26:24 who are listening that if there 26:26 is anybody who is struggling 26:29 and not sure whether the person 26:33 can trust You, we pray, Lord, 26:36 that You will touch that person 26:38 in a very special way and that 26:42 we will come to the 26:43 understanding that there are 26:44 times we cannot see the path, 26:49 but there's one thing that we 26:50 can understand and that is Your 26:52 heart, Your heart of love. 26:55 Let us hold onto You 26:58 in our darkest hours. 27:00 In Jesus' name we pray, amen. 27:03 [MIKE & RENÉ] Amen. 27:05 >> Thando and Seth, thank you 27:06 so much for joining us on It Is 27:08 Written Canada. 27:10 [THANDO & SETH] Thank you 27:10 for having us. 27:13 >> Friends, we want to help you 27:14 understand the Bible better and 27:17 become knowledgeable in your 27:18 walk with God. 27:20 Our free offer is our Bible 27:22 Study Guides. 27:23 >> Our Bible Study Guides will 27:25 help you to learn what the 27:26 Bible teaches and how the Bible 27:29 has verifiable answers to 27:31 life's existential question, 27:33 practical answers that makes 27:35 sense and will give you 27:37 assurance for the present and 27:40 for the future. 27:42 [RENÉ] Before you go, we would 27:43 also like to invite you to 27:44 follow us on Instagram and 27:47 Facebook and subscribe to our 27:49 YouTube channel and also listen 27:51 to our Podcasts. 27:53 And if you go to our website, 27:55 you can see our latest programs. 27:58 >> You, too, can experience the 28:00 fullness of life found in the 28:01 words of Jesus when He said, 28:03 "It is written, 'Man shall not 28:05 live by bread alone, but by 28:07 every word that proceeds out of 28:09 the mouth of God.'" 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Revised 2023-04-18