Participants:
Series Code: OTR
Program Code: OTR000924
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01:01 Welcome to ASI in Tampa, Florida.
01:04 We're so happy you're here with us this evening. 01:06 I had opportunity to meet several of you 01:09 who are here for the first time. 01:11 And I know that God is going to pour out 01:13 a very special blessing 01:14 for each one of us this evening. 01:17 I'm gonna invite you to stand 01:18 as we have our opening prayer this evening. 01:24 Father in heaven, we are so thankful to You 01:27 for this opportunity to come together into fellowship. 01:31 Lord, we want to know you better. 01:33 Our theme for this weekend 'By knowing Him...' 01:36 Lord, tonight we pray 01:38 for the presence of the Holy Spirit. 01:40 We ask for the power of the Holy Spirit 01:42 to be poured out upon each one who will bring us a message. 01:45 And each song we sing and each prayer that we offer, 01:48 may it be acceptable in Your sight. 01:50 And this evening, we pause here 01:53 and thank You for bringing us 01:54 together safely and we ask for traveling mercies 01:58 for those who are still on their way. 02:00 And we thank You this evening 02:02 for hearing and answering our prayers. 02:04 In Jesus name we pray, amen. 02:08 You may be seated. 02:19 Good evening and welcome to our wonderful time 02:23 of fellowship with Jesus. 02:26 I hope and it is my prayer that we will know Him better 02:31 by being here for these few days. 02:34 It's so good to see all of you. 02:35 We're excited about what God has in store for us here. 02:40 So thank you for coming to warm sunny Florida. 02:46 Donna, can you believe that ASI Convention is already here? 02:49 No, I can not. What a year it has been. 02:52 We've traveled around the world and we got exciting things 02:55 that we're gonna be sharing with you. 02:56 There's so many things to share this week 02:59 that we don't know 03:00 how we're gonna get everything in, 03:02 but we know that we are because God has promised 03:05 that He will give us the blessing 03:06 just that we have come for this week, won't He, Donna? 03:09 He absolutely will. 03:11 And we're just happy that you are here with us. 03:14 And, Ron, are you excited that we're here in Florida? 03:18 Exactly. I think Florida is a great place to live. 03:21 The Lord is good. 03:22 You know, when the world is falling apart, 03:24 we can yet see the blessings, really pouring out in a manner 03:29 that is seemingly more than ever before. 03:32 You know, Lord, I think, is blessing His people 03:34 because we have a work to do, 03:36 a job to share what he's all about. 03:39 That's right. We all have a work to do. 03:41 We've all been called to do something. 03:44 And we hope that you will find that calling 03:47 and that God will speak to you during our time here. 03:50 I know that we've got just a little bit of announcements 03:53 that we want to tell you about and that's why 03:55 Dwight is pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket. 03:58 So tell us, Dwight, what's on that list. 04:00 Well, I don't want to miss anything. 04:01 And you know I have a good memory, 04:03 but it's just short. 04:05 And so tonight, I want to review with you 04:08 just a little bit about our convention 04:11 and this beautiful convention center. 04:13 Don't you love it? Amen. 04:15 It's really a beautiful place, isn't it? 04:17 And it's so convenient for us. 04:18 And so I'm gonna tell you just a little bit about it 04:21 so that you will be apprised of what, 04:25 where you're going and what you're doing. 04:27 First of all, remember that 04:29 we have wonderful children's programs. 04:32 And those children's programs are all the way down 04:35 on the first level. 04:37 If you go out of here and down the steps 04:39 and down the escalators, 04:41 you will find the children's programs. 04:43 Our seminars, which will be tomorrow afternoon 04:47 or tomorrow morning, tomorrow afternoon 04:49 and then Friday morning and Friday afternoon 04:51 are also down on that first level. 04:54 And so remember those appointments, 04:57 look at your program, 04:58 and be able to be apprised of what those seminars are. 05:03 And then, of course, 05:05 one of the most important things is our meals. 05:08 How many of you want to go meals tomorrow? 05:11 I know all of us want to go to those meals. 05:15 When you go down to the first level, 05:18 I would advice you to go down the escalators 05:21 that are on this side of the center of the building, 05:25 right outside these doors 05:27 because you will need to start in the line 05:30 down at ballroom D, and you will see 05:34 ropes and stanchions along the way, 05:37 and you need to be against the wall 05:40 inside those ropes going down to ballroom A. 05:43 Where we're gonna be able to serve our wonderful meals. 05:46 So just be sure that you can find that way 05:50 and follow those directions in that. 05:53 Our general sessions, of course, are here. 05:56 Our exhibits are just down the hallway in west hall. 06:01 And I want to say that, tonight, 06:03 right after the program the exhibits will be opening. 06:07 They will be open till 10.30 tonight. 06:09 And we encourage you to go and see those exhibits. 06:12 Tomorrow from 11 to 5, 06:16 they will be open and then tomorrow night, 9 to 10.30, 06:19 and the same thing on Friday. 06:21 And then Sabbath afternoon, we'll have a couple of hours, 06:24 and then Saturday night after the program. 06:27 Please go and see those wonderful exhibits 06:30 because there are so many ministries 06:32 and so many neat things to do there. 06:34 Now when we're not having meals 06:38 there are some concessions out there 06:40 and they're going to have some good food for us. 06:43 But one of the things that we ask 06:44 is that you not bring any food into this auditorium 06:49 because it could get 06:51 a little bit messy, couldn't it? 06:53 So please don't bring the food and any kind of sticky drinks. 06:56 If you have a bottle of water, hey, that's okay. 07:01 The next thing that I'd like to see is, 07:05 those who are here for the very first time, 07:09 do we have any first timers? 07:11 I'm gonna ask you to stand. 07:12 We want to see who these first timers are. 07:15 Hey, look at this. 07:18 Give them a hand. Yes. 07:21 Yes. First timers. 07:23 We are so excited for you first timers. 07:26 So make this your last. Stay standing. 07:28 Yes, please stand. 07:30 We want to... 07:32 First of all I want to, I want to give you an invitation. 07:36 When you registered, you should have received 07:38 a printed invitation to a reception tomorrow, did you? 07:41 Good. 07:43 Reminder, that, that's 2 o'clock tomorrow afternoon 07:47 down in ballroom A. 07:49 We encourage every first timer to be there. 07:53 Now those of us who are around them, 07:56 we want our ASI members to stand 07:59 and to greet these folks 08:00 just briefly here for our first timers. 08:03 Can we do that? 08:05 Everyone, give them just a brief greeting. 08:10 We want you to have a good warm Florida welcome. 08:13 You know this is thrilling because what ASI is all about. 08:17 That's right. Is seeing each other. 08:18 That's right. 08:20 And I've seen so many, just faces light up 08:22 like they've won a big prize, 08:24 as they've seen friends and acquaintances 08:27 and got an acquainted with new people. 08:28 That's wonderful. We're a family. 08:30 Thank you for joining our family 08:32 and we're happy to have you. 08:34 If we can do anything to make it even better for you, 08:37 let us know. 08:39 I see that I'm standing in between 08:41 two distinguished gentlemen, 08:44 and I enjoy being with these men very much. 08:48 They are a wonderful asset to ASI. 08:51 And I know some people have had some questions about 08:54 what's going on with ASI. 08:56 And I can truly tell you that God is in control of ASI. 09:00 Amen. 09:02 And I thank Him everyday for that. 09:04 This last year, Ron decided that he thought it was time. 09:09 And you know when you get that phone call and he says, 09:12 "Donna, I think it's time." 09:13 I went, "Oh, I don't want to hear this." 09:16 Anyway he said no goodbyes. 09:19 So, Dwight, first off, tell me what you're doing with ASI? 09:24 Well, you know, it was six years ago 09:25 just this week that I retired from ASI 09:29 and last month, they asked me 09:31 if I would serve as the interim secretary treasurer 09:34 for ASI, until we have 09:36 a permanent replacement for Ron. 09:38 And so it's my pleasure to serve you during this time. 09:43 And, Ron,... Yes. 09:46 Thank you, Dwight. 09:49 And Ron has been a big part of ASI for quite some time. 09:53 And so Debbie and my husband 09:55 who are two past presidents of ASI 09:58 are here celebrate Ron's ASI term. 10:02 And so I'm gonna turn it over to Debbie. 10:05 Ron, we just have something special 10:07 that we want to give to you. 10:09 And I would like to read the inscription on this world, 10:13 this beautiful globe because your touch has been felt 10:16 not just with ASI, but around the world. 10:19 And you'll recognize the text 10:23 because it's your favorite text. 10:26 "For God has not given us the spirit of fear, 10:29 but of power and of love and of a sound mind." 10:32 2 Timothy 1:7. 10:34 Thank you for your years of service to our ASI family. 10:39 God bless you and your family. 10:42 Well, thank you so much. You know it's easy to cry. 10:45 At my age, I cry very easily. 10:47 Thank you so much. 10:50 Thank you, Ron. 13:25 Amen. Wasn't that a beautiful song? 13:28 I don't know about you, but whenever I hear 13:30 a group of trumpets, 13:31 I used to play the trumpet, it makes me... 13:33 it stirs me to action. 13:35 And I really enjoyed that song. 13:38 We're at the time in our program 13:40 where we're going to be doing 13:41 our members in action interviews. 13:43 And this is one of the favorite parts 13:45 of the program for me personally 13:47 because we have the chance to hear what you, as members, 13:51 are actually doing in your businesses 13:53 to share Christ in your market place. 13:55 So I want to get right to it. 13:56 I want to invite Manuel and Esther Alva to come on out. 14:05 Good evening. Hi. Good evening. 14:06 Now Manuel and Esther, you are both physicians. 14:10 Esther, I believe that you are, 14:12 have a specialty of infectious disease. 14:14 Manuel, you are a gastroenterologist, correct? 14:17 Now you have a practice in Illinois, 14:21 I believe it's in Berwyn. 14:22 And just recently you decided that you wanted 14:25 to get more involved and use your, 14:27 your practice to share Christ in your market place. 14:30 Tell us a little bit about that. 14:31 Well, there's a group out of ASI called AMEN, 14:36 Adventist Medical Evangelism Network. 14:39 We became members of that because we were invited 14:42 and we saw our friends and colleagues 14:45 giving testimonies of how God was using them 14:47 to start churches. 14:49 There's a dentists, there's Dr. Wiley 14:50 who has had a church of his own for 10, 15 years. 14:54 So this inspired you? Right. 14:55 We didn't know where to start. 14:57 We say, well, I, I just have a scope, I scope people. 15:01 What a way to give the gospel, I guess... 15:02 That's a little tough, huh? It's a way. 15:05 You don't tend to make a lot of friends, but I ask God, 15:08 'God help me, please. I want to do your will. 15:11 I want to really be a in the market place. 15:14 And God really showed through because out of nothing, 15:20 out of the patients that we made friends with 15:22 and had trouble with 15:23 and we tried to give Bible studies. 15:26 A pastor, a fellow that has pastoral training, 15:30 but he's actually a substance, a drug abuse counselor 15:33 offered to come and help 15:34 with some of the alcoholics that are in the practice. 15:37 So the Lord brought some one into your life 15:39 that could help be a catalyst, 15:41 to help you use your business as a mission outpost. 15:45 There's several doctors, 15:46 I have partnership with pastors at AMEN 15:49 and they were taking about that last year. 15:51 So I said, "Where do I get a pastor? 15:54 God, send the pastor." 15:55 Well, this fellow showed in and I thought, 15:58 "I'm gonna give him a tough case." 16:00 This is a man that's now my personal friend, a patient, 16:02 a personal friend that has not been able 16:05 to stop using alcohol and drugs for years. 16:08 He had a good career and now he's not doing too well. 16:11 I said, "Why don't you get a hold of him?" 16:13 Actually we tried to give this fellow 16:15 Bible studies a while ago. 16:16 Okay. 16:17 But he thought that was too funny. 16:19 He has a great... 16:20 He has a great sense of humor according to him. 16:22 He always cut Bible studies short, 16:24 we couldn't finish one. 16:25 Sure. 16:27 So I told Roberto, the pastor, "Take care of him." 16:30 And we started praying, 16:31 and Roberto started praying and visited him at home. 16:34 Accompany, make him accompany to all churches 16:37 to see what happened in the churches. 16:40 At the first instance that he had and ask him, 16:43 "Do you really, do you really want to stop drinking?" 16:46 And my friend said, "Yes." 16:47 I said, "Well, we're gonna ask God, and you're gonna go 16:49 to every church that we visited and you're gonna say, 16:52 'God is helping me. 16:53 This week God has helped me to stop drinking.' 16:55 "So after they visited three or four churches, 16:58 he accepted Bible studies. 17:00 He was silent enough to go through all the Bible studies. 17:03 Wow. 17:04 He has made a commitment to baptism now. 17:06 Just this week. Yeah. 17:08 Just this week he's made a decision for baptism. 17:10 That is a tremendous blessing. 17:12 Now I believe and Esther, I want to come to you 17:14 and ask you this question. 17:16 Your office is now open on Saturdays. 17:19 Tell me a little bit about that. 17:20 Yes. 17:22 God has blessed us in that, we got permission, 17:25 actually my husband got permission 17:27 from the administration and they said yes. 17:29 Since the office is not being used on Saturdays, 17:32 you have the entire waiting room 17:34 which holds about 40 to 60 chairs, 17:37 people can sit there 17:39 and listen to the word of the God 17:42 and also seminars on health. 17:44 So we have now a mini church. 17:48 So you are actually... 17:49 You founded a church that you're running out of 17:51 your waiting room, is that right? 17:54 In your business? Can you say amen to that? 17:56 Amen. What a blessing. What a blessing. 17:59 Let me ask you one last question. 18:01 There maybe other business professionals 18:02 that are out in our audience 18:04 that are thinking or considering using their, 18:07 their business as a mission platform. 18:09 What would you say to them? 18:11 I would say something very simple. 18:13 Get hold of Chuck Cleveland. 18:15 And what is his ministry, health of? 18:17 Her, H-E-R. 18:19 Yeah. It's... 18:21 Chuck Cleveland is probably here or he will be here 18:22 or he's in the exhibits. 18:24 He has wonderful posters, 18:25 the posters for the health expos 18:28 that are all over Europe. 18:29 You can buy those and you can put them in your waiting room. 18:32 Those are a mean... 18:34 Those are means, powerful means to give the message. 18:36 They have wonderful pictures, versus from the Bible, 18:39 quotes from the Script of Prophecy, 18:41 the eight natural remedies are there. 18:42 So we... 18:43 The first thing we did before all this started, 18:45 we put all these posters on the waiting room 18:48 that belongs to the hospital 18:49 and then in our own waiting room. 18:51 And we put up large screen, 18:53 we got these videos from Edgemon video, 18:56 who's also in the exhibits, 18:58 wonderful music and beautiful nature, 19:01 and everyone that sat there 19:04 had a probable effect in their hearts. 19:07 These people walk in the office and says, 19:09 "This is wonderful. I already feel well." 19:12 I say, "Well, you got a colonoscopy anyway, 19:14 but it's okay." 19:16 Well, that's cool. 19:18 It sounds like you both have really been blessed 19:20 by being able to use your practice 19:22 as a way to witness in your marketplace. 19:25 Thank you so very, very much. Thank you. 19:27 We'd like to go ahead and ask the Carneys to come out 19:30 if they would, Sean and Linda Carney. 19:34 The Carneys have a medical practice, 19:36 I believe in Buda, Texas, is that right? 19:39 Buda. Okay, Buda. 19:41 We're gonna get the name right here. 19:43 You just recently had something happen, 19:45 and I want to come to you, Sean, with the first question. 19:47 You recently had something happen 19:48 that made you decide that maybe you should consider 19:50 going on a medical mission trip. 19:52 Tell us about that. 19:54 Well, my wife, actually, made me decide 19:56 that I might want to go on a medical mission trip. 19:59 Okay. 20:02 We went to the AMEN Conference 20:05 which is Adventist Medical Evangelism Network. 20:08 And my wife has a very interesting story 20:10 how God made it very clear 20:12 that He had a plan for us to go on a medical mission trip. 20:16 What happened, Linda? 20:17 I was talking to a colleague who was encouraging me to go. 20:21 I had never been on a first mission trip before. 20:24 And I had all excuses why I couldn't go. 20:27 And he said, "Here's a $1,000, 20:30 this will help you with your expenses." 20:31 And I was just very touched by that. 20:34 And I was, later in the day, 20:35 telling another colleague about that 20:37 and he says, "Oh, $1,000. 20:39 Here's another $1,000." 20:40 Now you have the money 20:42 that you need to go on the mission trip. 20:44 So maybe the Lord was trying to prod you a little bit 20:46 and tell you, hey, you need to, you need to do this. 20:48 Very much so. 20:49 Now you've had some specific, kind of, 20:52 criteria for you to do this. 20:53 Tell us about that. 20:55 I wanted to have some construction as part of it. 20:59 I wanted to have evangelistic outreach as part of it. 21:03 I wanted to be able to serve indigent people who are needy. 21:07 I wanted to be able to practice my Spanish 21:09 and get better at that. 21:10 Cool. 21:12 Now was it just the two of you that went, Sean? 21:14 We actually took our three medical assistants 21:17 from our office who are not Seventh-day Adventists 21:20 and who had a wonderful experience. 21:23 Okay. So it wasn't just the two of you. 21:25 You decided to really commit 21:26 to this as part of your practice. 21:28 And you decided to take your employees along with you, okay. 21:30 Now what was it... 21:32 Once you got down, you had your employees as well. 21:33 How did you set up your clinic 21:35 and how did you handle treatments? 21:37 How did you help the people? What is it that you did? 21:39 We were very privileged to work with Peru Projects 21:42 which has recently come into the leadership 21:44 of Outpost Centers International. 21:46 And our staff... 21:50 There were makeshift, little clinics, dirt floors 21:53 and some with no walls 21:55 and our staff just swung into action 21:58 and they took vital signs and gathered chief complaints, 22:02 and then they went to me and then they went to Sean, 22:08 he was the last bit in our clinic. 22:10 We saw 50 to 80 patients a day. 22:12 Our staff loved it. 22:14 We were thrilled to be able to serve people so needy. 22:16 How many days were you down there? 22:18 Twelve. 22:19 Twelve days and you were seeing around 80 patients a day. 22:21 Fifty to eighty. Fifty to eighty patients. Wow. 22:24 Now you've had some special diet related advice 22:27 that you would give the people. 22:28 Tell us about that. 22:30 Well, we were seeing people Pucallpa, Peru, 22:33 in the Amazon jungles. 22:34 We were traveling on a mission boat 22:36 called the Launch, 22:38 up and down a tributary of the Amazon River. 22:40 And people there eat monkey, and have Elaenia, 22:44 and Egret, and other things. 22:46 And so I was able to tell the people 22:49 that there were better things 22:51 that they could eat from the diet 22:53 that they had available to them. 22:54 So you found some strange things 22:56 that they were eating and you were trying to, 22:57 to help them maybe chose a bit of a better diet. 23:00 Now, Sean, you had a special job 23:03 as part of what you did. 23:04 Tell us, tell us what your job was? 23:06 I was pharmacist. 23:08 And you've had a lot of training for this, 23:09 of course, right? 23:11 I've learned my ABC's and I could alphabetize 23:14 and read what was on the paper and hand it out. 23:17 So... 23:19 and there was something else that you gave them as well, 23:21 besides just the prescription that Linda would give you. 23:24 What else did you give them? 23:25 Well, as they were coming to my wife 23:28 and she was doing all of her work in Spanish 23:31 and she would ask them if they like to read and if they did, 23:34 she would ask them if they wanted a book about Christ 23:36 and they would take steps to Christ. 23:38 And so then I would, in Spanish, 23:40 know what had happened and so I would tell them 23:43 that this pill is once in the morning 23:45 and once at night 23:46 and this book is once in the morning 23:48 and once at night. 23:50 A great prescription, right? Amen. 23:53 Can you say amen? 23:55 Now let me ask you this, Linda. 23:57 How did the medical clinic 23:59 that you were doing compliment the evangelism 24:02 that was going on on the trip? 24:04 This was my favorite thing to see. 24:06 There was a pastor who is part of the mission launch, 24:09 and when I would draw the crowd, 24:11 they would come to see the North American doctor, 24:13 the pastor with his picture roll 24:15 was out there working the crowd 24:16 and, you know, it takes a long time 24:18 to get through 80 patients a day. 24:19 And so... 24:20 and the staff would talk with the children, 24:22 play with the children 24:24 and so we were making friends during the day. 24:25 In the evening, we had meetings in different villages 24:28 and I would give a little health talk 24:30 and we would be there among them. 24:32 And the rest of our team, there were 18 people total, 24:35 and the rest of them were building a church 24:37 in Nueva Era and that is completed 24:42 basically in about 12 days, they built a church. 24:46 Wow. 24:47 So as you look back on this experience that you've had. 24:51 What has the trip done for you spiritually? 24:54 And what would you say to others 24:55 that are considering a mission trip? 24:57 It was the trip of a lifetime. 24:59 My staff got to eat with new friends 25:03 who were Adventists. 25:05 They got to worship with them, 25:06 travel with them, bond with them 25:09 that in itself was a wonderful thing for my staff. 25:12 They described the trip as awesome. 25:14 And for me it was a faith building venture. 25:17 I had a criteria when I talked to Steven Grabner 25:22 who helped me to commit to this trip. 25:25 I said, "Okay, I don't want to be the only doctor." 25:27 Well, that didn't happen. 25:28 And then "I don't want to lead and organize. 25:30 This is my first mission trip." 25:31 Well, that didn't happen, but the Lord comes through. 25:33 You step out in faith and the Lord... 25:35 We can never out give Him. 25:37 This brought us so much joy. 25:39 We've got to go back next June. 25:40 And the patients, my patients want to come with me and I say, 25:45 "You want to eat vegetarian food? 25:46 You want to preach Christ in a place 25:50 where you're gonna be sweating 24/7, 25:52 you want to do that with me?" 25:53 And they say, "Doctor, please take us with you." 25:55 And so I'm thinking about it, and I'm also thinking about 25:59 a new scholarship fund, 26:01 I haven't talked to the leadership at AMEN, 26:03 so I need their permission, but I would like to put that 26:06 $2,000 into a scholarship fund 26:09 to lend out to other dentists and physicians 26:11 who are thinking about going on mission trips. 26:13 So we can have a revolving fund and I'd like to call it 26:16 the Becker Cat Memorial Scholarship Fund. 26:18 Wow. 26:20 Well, it sounds like you recommend it quite highly. 26:22 All right, thank you so very much. 26:24 I appreciate that. 26:25 I would like to call Denny and Mary Jo James out. 26:32 Now it's not very often 26:34 that you get to interview your cousins. 26:37 But these, these young people happened to be my cousins. 26:41 And I'm very happy that I'm able to do that today. 26:45 Denny, let me ask you the first question. 26:48 You're from Cleveland, Texas. You're in high school. 26:51 This is, I believe, 26:52 your third Youth for Jesus meeting, right? 26:55 Yes. 26:56 And why do you keep coming back? 26:59 Well, Youth for Jesus is just an awesome experience for me. 27:04 I just love how, in the program, 27:06 they teach us all these witnessing tools, 27:08 you know, they really equip us. 27:11 And then, not only that, they take us out 27:14 and give us an opportunity 27:15 to use all of these things that they've given us. 27:18 And every year I've just come into a closer relationship 27:22 with Jesus through witnessing. 27:24 So... Amen. 27:25 Tell me, Denny, what does a typical day 27:28 consist of in the Youth for Jesus program? 27:31 Well, about every day, we get up at 7 o'clock 27:35 and we have our devotions, we get our shower, 27:39 you know, all of our hygiene done. 27:43 At 8, we have breakfast, and then from 9 to 10, 27:48 we have a special worship service. 27:51 We've had a lot of big people come in. 27:54 We've had Shawn Boonstra. 27:56 Several years we had Mark and Teenie Finley come in. 28:00 And after the worship service, then we have classes 28:04 that train us on how to do evangelism. 28:09 One day, we had Shawn Boonstra teach a class on door knocking, 28:12 that was really awesome. 28:15 And after our classes, 28:17 we do some work around our school 28:20 that we're staying at. 28:22 And after that, we have our lunch 28:24 and then we separate 28:26 and go to our different churches to do outreach. 28:28 Now you had told me a specific story about 28:30 the church you were... 28:31 I believe it was Carrollton, right? 28:33 Is that the church you're gonna... 28:34 Carolwood. Carolwood, I'm sorry. 28:35 Carolwood. 28:37 And there was, 28:38 there was someone that had a dream there. 28:39 Tell me that story quickly. 28:41 All right, well, we have these two contacts, 28:44 their name is John and Sherry. 28:46 And Sherry actually had a dream given to her by God 28:49 to help her understand some things from the Bible. 28:52 And my good friend Byron 28:55 is one of the speakers at our site 28:57 and he has this book 101 Questions Answered. 29:01 It's put out by associated press. 29:04 And, you know, he used that to help answer 29:06 some of the questions 29:08 from the audience for the sermons. 29:10 And she was, she had a dream 29:12 where she saw this book, is that right? 29:15 Yeah. One night she had a dream. 29:18 She had never seen this book before, 29:20 but in this dream she saw some plants 29:23 and after these plants, 29:24 she saw Byron reading this book, 29:27 101 Questions Answered put out by associated press. 29:31 And somehow in this dream she had this feeling 29:34 that this book would help her understand 29:37 some of the questions that she had. 29:40 So what did she do when she saw Byron? 29:42 She saw Byron and she said, 29:43 "Wow, I had this dream about you. It was weird." 29:47 And Byron said, "Oh, really? 29:49 You know, what happened in your dream?" 29:52 And she explained what had happened 29:54 and he said, "No way, I have that book. 29:57 So he went and showed it to her, 29:59 he says, "Is this the book?" 30:01 She said, "That is the exact book 30:03 I saw in my dream." 30:05 And he said, "Well, here, let me give it to you." 30:08 And she said, "Well, in my dream 30:10 I saw you writing in the book." 30:12 He said, "Well, here, just a second, 30:13 let me write in it for you." 30:16 So he wrote her a little message in there 30:19 and then gave her the book and she was just so happy. 30:22 So it's amazing to see how the Lord would give her 30:24 a dream and a direction for this book that he had, 30:27 that he was able to give her 30:28 that might help answer some of the questions. 30:29 Isn't that an amazing story? 30:31 Mary Jo, let me come to you. 30:32 I think, your role was a little bit different 30:34 than Denny's in Youth for Jesus. 30:37 Tell me what you would do in a typical day quickly. 30:40 Okay. 30:41 My role in Youth for Jesus was a little bit different. 30:44 I was a Bible worker at one of the sites. 30:48 I arrived at the beginning of June 30:50 and we would go and we would make contacts 30:53 with the people and give Bible studies 30:55 and kind of, prepare the area 30:57 for the Youth for Jesus program. 30:59 And once the youth actually got here, 31:01 we would take them door to door, 31:02 and we would take them and teach them 31:04 how to give Bible studies and how to knock on doors, 31:07 basically how to do evangelism. 31:08 And our day would consist of, we would do 31:10 what we needed to do in the morning. 31:12 We would go and visit contacts and then in the afternoon 31:15 we would take the youth out and we would do it with them. 31:18 Now I attended the Youth for Jesus baptism last night 31:21 and I watched as the entire Youth for Jesus group 31:25 kind of clustered close to the baptismal tank 31:28 and watched as each one of the people 31:29 was lowered in the water and committed their lives 31:32 publicly to Christ. 31:33 As you were watching that, how did it make you feel? 31:35 There is nothing like it. It is absolutely amazing. 31:38 Especially for people that you've been working with 31:41 and for, for all these months, all these weeks 31:45 to see the final result of that, 31:47 there is nothing like that feeling. 31:48 Just to see them make that full commitment to Jesus. 31:51 There's nothing like it. 31:52 It's so amazing. Amen. 31:54 How has Youth for Jesus 31:55 changed the direction of your life, Mary Jo? 31:58 Wow. 31:59 I went to Youth for Jesus, my first time in Dallas, Texas, 32:03 and since then just God has opened 32:05 so many doors in my life. 32:06 It's just completely altered where it was going, 32:10 and where I even wanted it to go. 32:13 I had no interest in God whatsoever 32:16 before I went my first year. 32:19 And it just really turned things around for me 32:21 and now, like, 32:23 I have a relationship with Jesus, it's amazing. 32:25 Can you say amen to that? Amen. 32:27 Thank you so much, guys. 32:29 We've got a crew coming up for our next group. 32:32 It's the, the L.I.F.E group with Ken Norton. 32:34 So I would like to invite them to come on up. 32:41 Ken, welcome. Thank you. 32:44 We'll get the whole crew on here. 32:46 While we're all waiting for them to come on, let me... 32:48 Ken, you just returned recently 32:49 from the mission field, isn't that right? 32:51 That's correct. 32:52 And you have decided to throw your time 32:56 and energy into L.I.F.E. 32:57 Tell me, if you can in, kind of, one sentence, 33:00 what it is that L.I.F.E does? 33:02 I was just thinking that L.I.F.E is one year old 33:05 this week because it was launched last ASI. 33:07 And it's an ASI operated lay training school 33:10 that has started in Orlando, Florida. 33:13 And L.I.F.E. stands for the Lay Institute for Evangelism. 33:16 For evangelism. 33:17 Now you have a curriculum called Operation Mission LIFE. 33:20 Tell me a little bit about that. 33:23 We've tried to put together a program 33:25 that allows lay members 33:27 to spend four months in the states 33:29 learning how to reach secular, western culture, 33:34 and then if they want to, there's an option 33:36 that they can go overseas for five months 33:39 and learn how to disciple someone cross culturally, 33:41 actually do church planting. 33:42 So that program starts August 25, 33:45 and we've got 35 church members 33:47 from all of the United States, some from South America 33:50 that are coming and are ready to go, 33:52 tear up the world for Jesus. 33:54 Yeah. Amen. Amen. 33:55 Now I understand that you are supporting 33:57 a major evangelistic initiative here in Florida. 34:00 Tell us a little about that and how you're helping 34:02 plough some ground in advance. 34:04 Well, this group you see here has actually been part of that. 34:07 Mark Finley is having his discoveries away. 34:10 His evangelistic series in Orlando, 34:12 beginning October 24. 34:14 And this group is actually our first onsite program 34:18 that we've had since we began. 34:21 And it's a group of young people, ages 15 to 22. 34:24 And they have come in, 34:26 they have been with us for five weeks 34:28 and we chose a large geographic area 34:30 right around our headquarters at L.I.F.E there. 34:33 And they've been door knocking, getting Bible studies, 34:35 having incredible experiences, 34:37 and all to do with Mark Finley series. 34:39 Amen. Can you say amen? 34:41 I want to come to you, Resline, is that right? 34:44 Racelyn. I got to get this right. 34:46 Racelyn, in talking with you before, before we came up, 34:49 you were sharing with me that you were having 34:50 a bit of a rough time in life. 34:52 There were some things that were not going quite right. 34:55 And that you were really seeking God's guidance. 34:58 And you saw an ad on the back of the Southern Tidings. 35:00 What was it and what happened? 35:02 Well, I had just gotten over losing a wife, and a house, 35:08 and a car, and a job, and everything else, 35:11 except for my clothes. 35:12 But, yeah, she let me keep those. 35:15 But... 35:17 That's a good thing. Yeah. 35:20 But... 35:22 You saw an ad. 35:23 Yeah I saw an ad and it was actually my pastor 35:26 and he had shown the ad on a Southern Tidings magazine 35:30 for the Lay Institute for Evangelism. 35:32 And I prayed that if that was the place 35:36 that the Lord wanted me to go for answers, 35:38 that He would make a way. 35:40 And they had a maximum capacity of 15 students. 35:44 And so... 35:46 then this was June and it started on July 7th. 35:49 And so I was like there's no way, they already got there. 35:51 They are full. They are full. 35:52 And so I just, kind of, like, let it go for a little bit 35:56 and it was actually a few days later 35:58 that I was just like, you know, I'm gonna go ahead and call. 36:00 And I called and they said that they were full, 36:04 but if I still wanted to come they would accept me. 36:07 And so I was, I guess, the blessed number 16. 36:11 So you were the blessed number 16. 36:12 Now as soon as you got to... 36:15 As soon as you got to life 36:16 you were impressed by something, 36:18 what was that? 36:19 I was... 36:20 I got there and there were 16 people 36:23 from different backgrounds. 36:24 I mean you know younger people and everybody just, kind of, 36:28 you could feel the Holy Spirit just click with the group. 36:32 And through out the whole experience, really, 36:35 it was amazing to see 16 people from different backgrounds. 36:39 I mean, some raised in the church, 36:42 some, like, so far from the church, it's pathetic, 36:44 you know and we didn't fight, not one argument, you know. 36:48 And we just became family instantly. 36:51 So you felt that the Holy Spirit 36:53 was really leading in that entire process 36:55 and it gave you a sense of belonging. 36:58 How did that affect your future plans as you're moving forward? 37:02 What, you know, how are you 37:04 gonna be ordering your life now? 37:06 Well, I mean, before that I had never felt anything like that. 37:09 I never had, really, a feeling of family like that. 37:13 And it really just showed me what Christianity is all about. 37:18 Amen. 37:19 And just showed me to be accepting of others 37:23 and to reach out to others is what it's all about. 37:28 And so with... 37:29 now the only thing I can possible imagine 37:31 myself doing is, you know, evangelism. 37:35 And so I'm actually gonna be going through 37:37 the nine month course Mission Life 37:39 and then after that hopefully off to Southern 37:42 and into the ministry. 37:43 Amen. Amen. 37:47 I want to come to you, Sabiana. 37:50 Now, I want to make sure I understand this correctly. 37:53 Now you are actually not an official member 37:55 of the Seventh-day Adventist church, is that right? 37:57 No, that's correct. 37:58 But yet, you are here and you are training in LIFE. 38:01 What led you to come to LIFE? 38:05 It was actually very interesting. 38:07 I live in Jacksonville and my youth pastor there 38:10 heard about the program from Camp Kulaqua. 38:13 And then he's like, "Oh, you know, 38:14 God is telling me that you need to go." 38:16 And I'm like, "God needs to tell me 38:18 that I need to go 'cause I'm not getting anything." 38:21 And so weeks went by and I prayed about it 38:24 and then I asked God, you know, 38:25 if you want me to go to this program 38:28 then I want You to lead someone to call me 38:30 so that I can pray with them. 38:32 And after I said amen, Pastor Ken called me. 38:35 I don't know how he got my phone number or anything, 38:37 but he called. 38:38 And so he didn't ask me to pray with him or anything, 38:41 he just gave me more information about 38:42 the program and kind of encouraged me to come. 38:44 And I took that as, well, he didn't ask me to pray, 38:47 so I guess You don't want me to come. 38:48 But, come on, two seconds after you prayed for a sign 38:53 and he calls, so... 38:54 It was a divine appointment? 38:55 It was. Okay. 38:57 Now you had told me something specific about a video 38:59 that you watched as part of the course. 39:00 Tell me what happened with that? 39:02 Oh, each week we have different speakers. 39:05 The first week we had Ron Halverson 39:08 and then we had a young lady Chelsea 39:10 with the prayer walking, 39:12 and then we had Derek Morris on preaching 39:16 and then, the third week 39:18 we have our own local pastor Milton, right there. 39:22 And he spoke to us about small groups 39:25 and then that, kind of, led off into, 39:27 you know, purity videos and things like that. 39:30 So we watched a video on Purity by Joshua Harris. 39:33 And then after the video Mr. Milton gave us an exercise, 39:38 as to write down everything that we wanted to confess, 39:42 things that we didn't feel that we're forgiven for 39:44 and things like that. 39:45 And then we put them in a pan, in a baking pan, 39:48 then we went to the backyard of LIFE 39:50 and we burned them 39:51 and then we buried them and then... 39:53 What did that do for you? How did that make you feel? 39:55 That to me was a big, you know, release off my shoulders. 39:59 I, I, kind of, felt like, you know, it's finally done 40:02 'cause, you know, sometimes I would hear, 40:04 "Oh, you can't possibly be a Christian 40:07 because you know did this, 40:08 and maybe you're not really forgiven for that." 40:11 And that, kind of, always, you know... 40:14 But after that, that was like 40:15 my faith put in action, that burial kind of 40:19 helped me realize that I am forgiven and I don't... 40:22 Don't have to worry about God to bringing those back up. 40:25 Now you, I think from I sensed there is a lot of action, 40:29 there is a lot of activity that happens in life. 40:31 Let me ask you this. 40:32 Once you're done with this program, 40:34 how is it gonna affect 40:35 how you live when you go back to Jacksonville? 40:37 Well, at LIFE I mean, one of the main things 40:41 that we did was reach people, like not even you know, 40:45 hey, you know, you should be a Christian 40:47 and this and that, but we, kind of, 40:48 just build relationships with people and then, 40:52 you know, be of service with them. 40:53 And then win their confidence 40:54 and then offer them Bible study and things like that. 40:57 So going back home, I'm gonna, 40:59 you know, look for opportunities. 41:00 You know someone needs you in lawn mowed, you know, 41:02 help them out and then see where that leads. 41:04 Use that as a witnessing contact point perhaps. 41:07 Yes. Amen. 41:09 Ken, I want to come to you with the last question. 41:11 Let's say that I live somewhere in North Dakota 41:14 and I don't live in the Orlando area. 41:15 And I might not be able to come to LIFE in person. 41:19 Can I still be involved? Yes, you can. 41:23 Part of our passion that we've... 41:26 As we've gotten into the program, 41:27 as we try to start advertising for onsite program. 41:30 We had so many people that called and said, 41:32 "I can't come and spend four months, 41:34 I can't even come for a week, I'm so busy." 41:36 So from last August up until this first group, 41:40 we've been working on putting online training videos 41:44 so that anybody around the world can access for free. 41:48 We've got Mark Finley up there 41:49 for reclaiming former Adventist. 41:50 Milton put together an incredible... 41:53 How to start your own small groups, 41:55 it's called growth groups. 41:56 Six hours with the manual. 41:58 I mean you can get trained online on how to do 42:01 all these things in your own community. 42:03 We've had people write us from around the world, 42:05 India, England, New Zealand, 42:06 "Thank you so much for these videos. 42:08 They have helped me get involved in my community." 42:10 So we invite anybody to access our website. 42:13 And they don't cost a dime? Doesn't cost a dime. 42:15 Now where can we find that? It is at thelayinstitute.com. 42:19 Give to us one more time. thelayinstitute.com. 42:23 Will you check that website out? 42:25 Amen. Thank you so very much. 42:26 Thank you. God bless. 42:28 Our last set of interviews... 42:31 Please, give them a hand. 42:35 Our last members in action are actually from 42:39 Adventist Frontier Missions. 42:40 How many of you familiar with Adventist Frontier Missions? 42:43 Okay, a lot of you are. 42:44 That makes Dale here quite happy. 42:47 Now Dale you're just... You're a new president, AFM. 42:50 My understanding of AFM is that it's a ministry 42:52 that supports missionaries around the world, 42:55 who actually integrate into the culture 42:57 of a local country to minister 42:58 and witness to people, is that right? 43:00 We have about 66 different missionaries around the world, 43:04 and these missionaries going to creative access areas. 43:09 What is a creative access area? That's a good question. 43:14 It's an area where we have to find some reason 43:18 to have the person there, 43:19 other than just to do evangelism. 43:22 It was William Carey who said, 43:24 "I cobble shoes to pay expenses, 43:28 but evangelism is my mission." 43:31 That's what AFM is all about. 43:34 We want to take and go into areas where 43:37 traditional evangelism is not allowed 43:40 and often forbidden by the government. 43:43 And we find other means, whether it's a school, 43:46 whether it's a clinic, whether or not 43:50 it's a publishing house or travel agency, 43:54 we find some reason to have these missionaries 43:57 find employment in these countries. 43:59 So you work the tougher ground, 44:01 maybe where you can't have public evangelism. 44:04 That's correct. Okay. 44:05 Paul, I want to come to you. 44:07 We have a missionary family with us here. 44:10 Tell us a little bit about the history of our work 44:12 in Albania and introduce us to this family. 44:15 Thank you, Danny. 44:17 Yes, the corporate church sent the first missionary 44:19 to Albania near the end of the great depression 44:23 and the beginning of the World War II. 44:25 Daniel Lewis was that missionary 44:28 and he taught a nucleus of people 44:32 some essential lessons, but, of course, 44:34 the iron curtain fell on Albania is one of those 44:37 eastern block countries and it fell pretty heavily 44:42 because the emperor tried to, to get rid of all religion. 44:45 It was the only declared atheistic state on earth. 44:49 One of the lessons that is often lost 44:53 on the North American Church is that great faith 44:56 comes out of great tribulation. 44:59 And 50 years after communism 45:02 took over Albania, it collapsed. 45:04 And the Trans-European Division sent representatives 45:07 to see what had happened to Daniel Lewis's efforts. 45:11 He died in a prison camp. 45:14 Meropi Gjika is the great story of the Book of Acts 45:18 in the modern church. 45:20 She was the woman who was not baptized, 45:22 Danny, into church. 45:23 She waited for baptism all through those years. 45:26 For how many years? Fifty years. 45:28 So she's waiting, she's waiting for someone to comeback. 45:31 To comeback to Albania. 45:33 But she read three chapters of her Bible everyday 45:36 and five chapters on Sabbath. 45:39 And when the Trans-European Division representative 45:42 arrived at Meropi's home, she had three wishes. 45:46 She wanted to be baptized. 45:48 She wanted a church build in Tirana, the capital. 45:51 And then she drew out of hiding, 45:53 a little chest in which she had placed her tithe for 50 years. 46:00 Can you say amen to that? That's faithfulness, isn't it? 46:03 She went to Utrecht as a representative 46:06 to that general conference session from her country. 46:09 Now she also gave something else, did she not? 46:11 Was there not a translation of something? 46:14 Wasn't there a Bible translation 46:16 from Greek into Albanian? 46:17 Yes. She had translated the scriptures during that time. 46:20 Okay. Yes. 46:22 Now, now you folks are actually working 46:23 in Albania, is that right? 46:24 Can you introduce us, Paul? Yes. 46:26 We're happy to have a couple of families in Albania. 46:29 And one is on furlough. 46:30 This is Sean and Brenda Mays and their daughters. 46:33 Okay. Now, Sean, let me ask you a question. 46:36 Now I understand that you're living in Albania, 46:39 you're trying to learn the language, 46:40 you're translating some Bible lessons into Albanian 46:43 and you're trying to make contacts, 46:45 make friends with people first. 46:46 You met somebody, 46:48 I believe you said his name Kazu. 46:50 Zaku. Zaku. 46:51 I keep getting these names mixed up. 46:52 Tell me about Zaku? 46:54 Well, Zaku is a friend of mine that I met probably 46:57 about 18 months ago. 46:59 And I spend six days a week with this man. 47:02 I helped him set up his shop in the morning 47:04 and after we get done with his shop 47:07 we go and we have a cup of camel milk tea together, 47:09 a lot of time that we spend together 47:12 between our families and myself. 47:14 Now this has led to Zaku requesting that 47:17 we begin to read the Bible together, to study. 47:20 Now Zaku comes from a Muslim background. 47:22 His father was a Imam and for him to come and ask me, 47:26 can we study the Bible together, 47:28 and can we pray together is just, 47:32 God has really opened the doors for us to be there. 47:35 We prayed that we would meet people with open hearts, 47:40 people that were influential in the community. 47:43 And that is what God has done with Zaku. 47:47 He is just a very well respected man in the city. 47:50 We have many other friends that we're working with. 47:54 We've been spending the last 28 months to 3 years 47:57 learning the culture of Albania, 47:59 learning the language of Albania. 48:02 And now we're in a process of having our Bible studies 48:06 translated and we hope to begin 48:08 with those soon after we get back. 48:11 It's tough work, but it's rewarding 48:13 when you have something like that happened, isn't it? 48:14 Yes, it is. 48:15 We've been back on furlough since the 5th of May 48:17 and after the third day we were here in States, 48:19 I told my wife, I said, "We don't belong here. 48:22 We need to get back to Albania. We have a work to do." 48:24 Amen. I want to talk to the girls for just a minute. 48:27 Megan and Mariah, now when I was talking to you 48:30 a little bit earlier, you were telling me that 48:31 you weren't so sold on going to Albania at first. 48:34 But the Lord laid something on your heart 48:36 that you have your own unique ministry 48:38 that you do in Albania. 48:39 Tell us a little bit about that. 48:40 Well, when we first came to Albania, 48:43 I felt like God had called me personally to come, 48:46 not just to be in their missionary kit, 48:47 use my parents, 48:49 but that He has something for me to do in particular. 48:52 And, but I didn't know what that was. 48:54 But shortly after we got in Albania, 48:56 I met the Roma Gypsy people and fell in love with them 48:59 right away and realized that 49:00 this was the mission that God had for me to do. 49:02 Now the Roma Gypsy people, 49:04 tell me how they kind of fit in the society? 49:07 Not very well. Not very well. Okay. 49:08 There's been prejudice against the Romas 49:10 in most of the world, but especially in Europe. 49:12 So what did you decide to do for these people that you saw? 49:15 Well, I started talking to the families 49:18 and talking to mothers and asking what they thought 49:19 their biggest needs were. 49:21 And the thing that kept coming up is that 49:23 they wanted a school for their girls. 49:25 And because the Romas aren't allowed into public schools. 49:28 And so, I mean, I wanted to do it, 49:30 but I said, you know, I don't speak your language. 49:32 I was 15, I didn't have any money. 49:33 I said, "I'd like to do it, 49:35 but I don't think that's possible." 49:36 But I just told a couple of friends, 49:38 like 12, 13 year old kids in the States, 49:40 about this idea and they went out and started raising money. 49:43 And how much money have you raised? 49:45 They raised, before I came back, like $12,000. 49:48 Twelve thousand dollars. Amen. 49:51 Can you say amen to that? 49:52 So let me just make sure I get this straight. 49:54 So you have started your own school for the native Gypsy. 49:58 Now, what... 49:59 Let me ask you, Maria, 50:00 what happens in a typical day at your school? 50:06 Go ahead. Well... 50:09 Because you, kind of, go to school with them, don't you? 50:11 Didn't you tell me that? Yeah. 50:12 Okay. So what happens? What do you teach them? 50:16 Well, we teach them reading, and writing, 50:20 and basic math, and they like to read 50:23 the little Bible story books, and hygiene. 50:29 This is a good thing. 50:31 Learning how to brush their teeth for the first time. 50:33 Well, I'm sorry. What did you say? 50:34 They are learning how to brush their teeth 50:36 for the first time, never done that before. 50:37 Brushing your teeth is important, 50:39 won't you say, the dentists out there? 50:41 Amen. Now one other question for you, Maria. 50:44 I believe that you have a Bible study contact, don't you? 50:47 Tell me a little bit about that. 50:49 Yeah. His name is Toddy. 50:51 And he has been in American for a while. 50:56 So... He's Albanian? 50:58 Yeah. He's Albanian. Okay. 51:00 And, but he speaks English really good 51:01 because he's been in America, 51:03 like, his whole life and he's 11. 51:06 And one day we're just sitting outside 51:08 and he was talking to me about stuff from the Bible. 51:14 And he's talking about his views on evolution and creation 51:19 and I talked to him a little bit and he asked 51:22 if you could Bible studies with me. 51:23 So you're going to be following up 51:25 and sharing with him from the Bible, 51:27 what the record of the Bible says. 51:28 Can you say amen to that? 51:30 How many of you will pray for them 51:31 as they go back to Albania? 51:33 Would you raise your hand? Amen. |
Revised 2016-01-11