Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY190045A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:10 - Hello, and welcome once again to [the] 3ABN Today program! 01:14 I'm Shelley Quinn. - I'm JD Quinn. - And we are 01:16 so glad that you're joining us. We have a very inspiring 01:21 interview today. But first, I want to take the opportunity 01:25 to thank you so much for your prayers and your love 01:29 and your financial support of 3ABN. This is the Mending 01:32 Broken People Network; and what a privilege it 01:37 is to work for God. Before we introduce our guest, 01:41 let me read a scripture that you will understand 01:44 better as we get in-why I've chosen this one as 01:48 we get into our program. But it is Micah 6:8-I love 01:53 this-"He has shown you, O man, what is good, and 01:57 what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to 02:02 love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" 02:08 And you know, humility, walking humbly, is learning 02:11 to depend totally on God- but to do justice, love, 02:16 mercy, and walk humbly. It's just our joy today 02:21 to introduce to you our special guest...and that 02:25 is Jonathan Duffy, a dear brother in the Lord who 02:29 is president of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency. 02:35 And we're glad you're here! - Lots of great 02:39 pleasure to be here, I can tell you. - Well, I 02:41 have to say, just speaking with you for a few moments 02:44 in the green room, I've already learned- you 02:46 have totally changed my vision and my understanding 02:52 of-we're going to call it- ADRA (Adventist Development 02:56 and Relief Agency)-also known as ADRA. But before 03:00 we get going, I know you love music, I know YOU 03:05 love music, and we know you love music. So JD, 03:08 who is singing for us today? - Well we're 03:10 very blessed today to have Wintley Phipps, 03:12 and he's going to be singing, "Glorious Church." 03:15 Beautiful. 03:34 The shining jewel of the ancient world 03:40 Babylon worshiped gods of stone 03:47 Power and pride were evil twins 03:53 That ruled her heart and throne 04:01 She was likened to a harlot 04:07 Fornication was in the wine 04:13 That filled the cup from which she drank 04:20 Sins of every kind 04:40 The golden head of Daniel's vision 04:47 Would topple given time 04:52 As would nations, kings, and merchants 04:58 Intoxicated by her wine 05:08 The prophets tried to warn her 05:13 Heed the writing on the wall 05:19 Turn from her wicked ways before the day 05:26 The wrath of God would fall 05:34 Oppressor of God's people 05:41 Babylon, so powerful and strong 05:46 She thought she was invincible 05:52 But God would prove her wrong 06:11 An angel filled with glory 06:16 Shall descend with a shout, proclaimed, 06:23 "Babylon the Great is fallen 06:28 She will die in sin and shame" 06:37 Another voice from heaven 06:43 Will be heard across the earth 06:49 To give a warning loud and clear to those 06:55 Who claim to be God's Church 07:04 "Come out of her, My people 07:11 Be not partakers of her sin 07:16 For I'm coming back for a glorious Church 07:22 Undefiled; impure within 07:28 To him who worships Me in spirit and truth 07:35 And is faithful to the end 07:39 I will say, 'Well done; 07:45 A crown of life you've won; 07:51 Come sit and reign with Me 07:57 Throughout eternity' 08:03 Thus saith the Lord" 08:11 "To him who worships Me in spirit and truth 08:17 And is faithful to the end 08:22 I will say, "Well done; 08:28 A crown of life you won; 08:34 Come sit and reign with Me 08:40 Throughout eternity 08:47 Thus saith the Lord 08:57 For thine is the kingdom 09:03 And the power 09:07 And the glory forever 09:19 God's glorious Church 09:28 Amen, amen" 09:43 - Whoo! That's a two-hander, for sure. [laughter] - There's 09:46 singing, and then there's singing. [laughter] - You know, 09:49 it's easy to see why he has been invited to sing 09:53 for, I don't know, the last six presidents of 09:56 the United States? - 6 to 7. - And what a blessing that 09:59 Wintley uses his gifts, his talents, for the Lord. 10:03 - Amen. - Amen. - Great preacher, too. - Yes, 10:06 he is. Well, if you are joining us just a little 10:09 late, our special guest today is Jonathan Duffy 10:13 who is the president of ADRA. And I have to 10:16 say, what a pleasure it is to get to know you 10:19 and to find how you are using YOUR gifts for the 10:24 Lord. Jonathan, you shared just a little with us earlier 10:27 in the green room. Tell us about your growing 10:29 up years, because I think the Lord has had His hand 10:32 on your life from early on. - [chuckles] He has. 10:37 I grew up in an Adventist home. And you know, that 10:41 can be a blessing and a curse, I guess. For some 10:44 people, they sort of grow up within the Lord without 10:46 ever really having an experience...but I was 10:50 very blessed. My father was a church school teacher, 10:53 a principal in some of the schools that he 10:55 worked in, my mother was a nurse, and I was blessed 10:59 with a fantastic home church. That home church 11:03 from a young age gave me a responsibility, they ignored 11:06 when I made mistakes, they just kept elevating the 11:09 responsibility... I remember I was on the church board 11:12 at 17 years of age, which some people thought was 11:15 young. But they just kept growing me and giving me 11:18 more experience and had significant people around 11:21 me-Pathfinder leaders, youth leaders-just... 11:24 You know, some of the church people... I remember 11:27 a very staid couple in church-one of the most 11:30 prim and proper people that you know. I was 11:33 made a deacon at about 16 years of age, and that 11:37 meant I didn't have to sit with my parents. I 11:39 could sit in the crowd room and open the door when 11:41 someone came late. And Mr. Banks, who was one 11:44 of the staid members of the church, would tell me 11:46 jokes during church. And what he showed me was, 11:49 he showed me he's human; showed me that you can 11:51 appear to be a very poised, proper Christian, but 11:54 underneath it all, you are real and you're a 11:57 person. And the modeling that I got from all those 12:00 people really shaped me in terms of who I am 12:03 today. - And you know, you said earlier that 12:07 this loving church that- and, oh, please listen- 12:11 they gave him responsibility, and he grew up with a heart 12:14 for service for the Lord. And so as you were 12:18 propelled then into university, kind of tell us a little bit 12:22 more about how the Lord led. - Sure. So, you know, 12:25 I went to university. My goal was- one of my teachers 12:28 said to me- I was going to go to Avondale College, 12:31 the church's university- and they said, "You know 12:34 Jonathan, we have no one in our education system who 12:37 teaches physical education and health. Have you thought 12:40 about doing those things? You know you're a sportsman, 12:42 an athlete-why don't you think about doing that?" 12:44 So I entered into that with the thought that 12:47 I would enter into education; and I did end up teaching 12:50 for two years. But really, I was called into health 12:53 ministry. And so, my background is an exercise physiologist. 12:57 I did extra units in biology and physiology and so forth 13:00 and sort of grew me into the health industry. 13:03 I ended up at one stage running a residential 13:06 lifestyle center. It was running conjunction with 13:10 a hospital that specialized in drug and alcohol rehabilitation. 13:13 We had some of the wealthiest people in Australia come and 13:16 be our guests. They loved it because they could go 13:20 to flash (fancy) places, but it was a business card and 13:23 who they were. But here, they took off their masks 13:25 and they were just real, they were vulnerable, 13:27 and I just wanted to touch their lives in a 13:30 very special and a very real way of who they 13:32 are and what makes them tick and the challenges 13:34 and be vulnerable. And so I could fool many of them. 13:39 You know those times you're envious because you look at 13:42 wealth? And here I am at church, working not necessarily 13:45 on a corporate way to... - And they're arriving 13:48 with Ferraris... - Ferraris, and you know some of them 13:51 would take me for- we were in a mountain area, so we'd 13:55 go about setting a few records on some of the 13:57 mountain roads. [laughter] Eventually, sadly, through 14:01 a series of events, the church had to sell the 14:03 facility. I'd sort of grown in my responsibility; 14:07 I was the director. People come in 2-3 days and 14:11 one leave with hope. How to give them hope? Something 14:16 to go home to feel like, "I can go home and life's 14:18 going to be better." So it was tiring. God gives 14:22 us a ministry, He gives you a gift; and sometimes 14:24 you get so busy in the gift, you forget the Giver. 14:27 - Mmm. - And I was feeling quite burnt out. I hadn't 14:29 been able to take annual leave because I had no 14:32 one to fill in for the last three years. And then 14:34 they were selling it, and where was my life going 14:36 to go from here? I was getting job offers from 14:39 some of the corporate people I knew. The big 14:41 money that sometimes you dream about- and sometimes 14:44 you wonder, "Am I really worth that?" And it's 14:46 nice for your own self- value that somebody 14:48 would put a price on you. But was that really what 14:52 I wanted? So I took a family holiday, and we 14:54 went away just to reconnect as a family. I did all the 14:57 jobs I was supposed to do at home, and then I decided, 14:59 "This is my time to restore my relationship with God." 15:02 So I took a bike ride from Melbourne to Adelaide and back, 15:06 just because I knew when I was on my bike, I had no one to 15:09 talk to; I could talk to God. - That's what, 500 miles? 15:11 - It was 500 miles each way. [laughter] 15:15 Just a series of events happened along the way. 15:18 I was put in touch with lives of people. 15:20 I thought I was on a holiday, but I kept bumping into the 15:23 people in need and so forth. And at the end 15:26 of the ride, I realized that, really, what drives 15:29 me is I want to be an agent of hope and healing. 15:32 - Amen. - I could chase money, but what did that 15:35 really get me? A bigger house? A flasher car? 15:38 But at the end of your life, what's the legacy? 15:40 What do you leave behind? - Amen. - You know? How 15:43 have you lived your life? How have you touched 15:44 your life in a way that actually leads people 15:47 to the greater healing that God has for them? 15:49 - Amen. - And that became the basis of my ministry 15:52 from there forth. - Amen. - I hope that there's- 15:54 a lot of young people are listening to what 15:56 you're saying. The last 5 minutes is packed with 15:59 wisdom that could take a book of 500 pages to 16:03 explain what you just did. And you certainly... 16:07 You're a gentle giant type of person. You 16:11 just are so likeable because you have paid 16:13 your dues. - It's God. - It is God. - And you 16:18 know, how wonderful that you were given this responsibility 16:23 in this loving community that obviously shaped you, 16:28 because being given the opportunity that you were 16:31 to go into the corporate world to make 3-4 times 16:34 what you were making... You know, a lot of people 16:37 would say, "Hey, I've paid my dues; I've done 16:41 my part. Now I'm going to let my family- we'll be 16:45 affluent like the rest of these people." But at the 16:48 end of the day, more money doesn't make you happy. 16:51 - It doesn't. - And so, you have a heart for 16:52 God, and... Oh, our time just went chk, chk, chk, 16:56 chk too quickly! Let's just kind of fast-forward. 16:59 We're not going to go through the story of 17:01 how you became president of ADRA, but we just wanted 17:06 to have a little of that personal flavor so people 17:09 can understand what you're doing with ADRA now. You 17:13 have taken many hospitals and other institutions and 17:17 revamped them, but let's talk about what you are 17:21 doing with ADRA to rebrand ADRA. - Can I say one thing 17:26 quickly, though? It's a worldwide ministry. - It 17:30 is. - So I mean, here you're going from Australia 17:32 now to a worldwide ministry, and you cover, say, 130 17:39 countries? - We have 131 registered countries, but 17:43 we're in 140 countries. - 140 coun... Now let's 17:46 pick up now. - Okay. - 'Cause this is a worldwide 17:49 stage that we're on right now. - It is! And ADRA 17:52 impacts between 15 and 20 million lives per year. So, 17:57 that's an enormous number of lives that you touch 17:59 in a very real, sustainable way: that you give them 18:03 food, you give them shelter; you give them something 18:05 which helps them, their immediate family, but 18:08 you've reset it so that then their children and 18:11 future generations have a future. - And let me hit 18:14 the pause button here, because when I was first- 18:17 I asked somebody, "Well, what is ADRA?" when I 18:19 was new in the church. They said it was Adventist 18:22 Disaster and Relief-but that's incorrect. It's 18:25 Adventist Development and Relief. And about 18:29 70% of their portfolio, the projects that they 18:32 do are all long-term sustainable development 18:37 projects. Most people think of you as disaster 18:41 relief. So, it's yours... - So, let me give you a 18:46 short story that maybe helps us understand that. 18:48 - Sure. - So, we went into a community in 18:50 Camp Bentiu? that had a scarcity of food. So, we worked 18:55 with them, we taught them cropping techniques, we 18:57 identified groundwater sources, we helped them 18:59 to develop food all year round so they had a 19:02 variety of food-'cause often in some countries, 19:06 it's only one type of food, the crop that they 19:08 grow-so, a variety of nutrition so their children 19:11 grow up healthy and strong, reach their potential... 19:14 We often talk about stunting, but often we associate it 19:17 with height-but it's also intellectual stunting. So 19:20 how do we help them reach their potential? So, we helped 19:24 them with cropping, and then they had excess food. 19:27 So we taught them literacy, numeracy, we helped them 19:30 to get a small co-op and get their goods to market, 19:33 which created income for the families and income 19:36 for the community. And then the community said, 19:39 "Well, you know"... At the peak of the season, they 19:41 had 12 truckloads of vegetables going out a week. So, they 19:45 said, "We need to improve the road and the bridge." 19:47 So they decided they needed to do some improvements 19:50 in their community, so they asked, "How do we 19:52 fundraise?" So, we worked with them and we helped 19:55 them to work out how to fundraise, how to save, 19:57 and they were able to achieve $100,000. - Wow! 20:01 - To improve some of their community. Then, basically- 20:04 and I'm jumping over a number of years-they 20:07 came back with another plan. They wanted a 20:09 clinic, they wanted a school, they wanted 20:11 to do improvements in their community. And 20:13 their plan now was around $500,000-$700,000, but they 20:18 didn't need us; they did it without us. We'd 20:20 moved to another community. - Praise the Lord! - That 20:22 was sustainable. And that's really what we aim to do, 20:26 even with emergencies. The idea is that you do 20:29 disaster risk reduction, you work with the local 20:32 churches so you've got local people who can respond 20:34 in the case of a disaster. You do your first immediate 20:37 response, you do the recovery, then you lead 20:39 to the long-term sustainable development, and you don't 20:43 leave that community until that community is fully 20:45 restored. And so, with the work that we try 20:49 to do, we try to be very present in the communities 20:53 in a very real way so that when we leave them, 20:55 what we have is something sustainable whether that's 20:58 transitioning from a disaster to development 21:00 or whether that's just going into issues that 21:02 are food-scarce... But the big challenge for 21:05 us is to say, "Well, so what?" You know? "There's 21:09 many agencies that do that, so why do we need 21:11 the Adventist Development and Relief Agency? What 21:15 makes you different because you're Adventist? What makes 21:17 you different because you're a faith-based organization?" 21:21 And that's where we wanted to push a reset button. So, 21:25 the corporate sort of look at their mission statements 21:29 and their vision statements, but a lot of people never 21:31 remember them. So the trend now is to have one 21:34 statement: a purpose statement. So we said, 21:36 "What is the purpose of ADRA?" So we looked 21:38 at that, we came up- "To serve humanity so all may 21:43 live as God intended. - That's incredible. - Say 21:47 that again, now. - To serve humanity so all 21:50 may live as God intended. - Amen. - So I can go in 21:53 and I can provide what we call "food security," 21:56 agriculture, I can provide livelihoods, I can provide 22:00 shelter... I can provide all those physical needs. 22:04 But how does that affect the whole person? Every 22:06 person is a spiritual being. Now, they may have their 22:09 own definitions of what spirituality means or 22:12 their own definitions of who God is; but for me, 22:15 as ADRA, the Adventist Development Relief Agency, 22:18 I understand who God is, and I'm driven by the fact 22:21 that I want everyone to reach the potential that 22:23 God has for them. [Amen.] And I allow them the scope 22:28 of what that means to them...but I'm there to 22:30 serve them more. So in times of disaster, for 22:33 example, I can rebuild your house, but you're 22:36 broken! Physically, emotionally... You've 22:39 lost family members. If you're a spiritual person, 22:42 you'd say, "Well where was God in all of this? 22:44 Why am I being punished?" How do I restore the whole 22:47 person? What is the special source that we offer as 22:52 part of being a faith-based organization that makes 22:56 a difference? And that's really the challenge for 22:58 us to be able to define that, to be able to know 23:01 how to program that, to be able to know how to 23:03 measure that, to demonstrate the difference. - And that's 23:05 an amazing impact... I mean, your statement, 23:09 your purpose statement, has an impact that I would imagine 23:13 even if I were Muslim or Buddhist, I have 23:16 some kind of sense- what percentage of the 23:22 world population has a religious affiliation? - So, 23:26 the world's population is 84.9%. - 84.9% has some 23:33 type of religious affiliation. Now, they may not know 23:37 God is the God of love we do, but they all 23:40 believe that there is a god, perhaps, that is 23:44 directing them. And the statement that you are 23:48 there to fulfill- say it again!-your purpose. 23:53 - To serve humanity so all may live as God intended. 23:56 - To live as God intended. So, that is open whether 24:00 I am Muslim or Buddhist. And then when I get to 24:07 know you, I'm going to see your God is different. 24:09 - Yes; exactly. - So, you've also changed 24:12 your logo. - We have. So, just as you read 24:16 in Micah chapter 6 verse 8, we wanted to found 24:19 ourselves in Scripture, and so we looked at it. 24:22 And in Micah 6:8, what does God ask of us? 24:26 He asks us to act justly, to love mercy, and to 24:30 walk humbly with our God. And so, we chose justice, 24:34 mercy, love. - Amen. - So what can we stand on? 24:37 Because the Adventist Development Relief Agency 24:40 is not separate to the church; it IS the church. 24:43 It is part of the Adventist church. So as a church, 24:46 when we make a public statement, our engagement 24:48 with community at large, when we want ourselves 24:52 to be agents of hope and healing in a brokenness 24:54 that exists within this world, then what statement 24:57 do we want to make other than the fact that we stand 25:01 for God's justice? - Amen. - That our hearts are broken 25:04 by the things that break His heart? And we respond 25:08 out of love. Not because we're better people, but 25:11 because God first loved us. - Amen and amen! 25:14 I think that you brought a short video on this. 25:17 So, what we're going to do right now is look at 25:21 this justice, mercy, and love. 26:29 - Amen and amen. I love that this is Scripture-based. 26:33 Now, you are taking- let's say that you are 26:37 beginning- you are someone who thinks outside the box. 26:41 And Jonathan, you have actually sat with the 26:47 church and have come up with this, finally gained 26:51 approval to launch an advocacy program... 26:56 Explain what ADRA is going to be doing there. 26:59 - Well, you know, often I'm challenged by the 27:02 thought that ADRA is the church-the church is ADRA. 27:06 How do I get people to understand their responsibility 27:10 to their community-to the neighbors at large? We live 27:13 in a broken world! How do we change that? How 27:16 do we become agents of hope and healing? For me, 27:19 my desire is not that I have 22 million Adventists 27:23 around the world cheering for me, but I have 22 million 27:26 Adventists who see themselves as agents of hope and healing. 27:30 - Amen. - And so how do I engage them? And we 27:33 often, we're very comfortable in talking about being the 27:35 hands and feet of Jesus, but we rarely talk about 27:38 being the hands and feet and voice of Jesus. And 27:41 yet, Jesus was a spokesperson. He spoke up on issues of 27:45 injustice. He spoke against the ways that were injust 27:49 in His time. And in fact, He was persecuted because 27:52 He spoke out. I'm grateful for His death, that He died 27:56 that I might have life, but these are some of 27:59 the issues that led there. So I thought, "As a world 28:01 church, how do we actually give waste to injustice? 28:07 So we looked at it, and we had a conversation 28:09 with Elder Wilson, the president of the Adventist 28:11 church, and said, "What are the issues that we 28:14 can do?" We decided that we didn't want to be 28:16 combative, that we're not here to sort of be 28:19 combative; but what are the issues that we believe 28:22 we could make a just change in the world around? And 28:26 we looked at the issue of children out of school. 28:28 At the moment, there are 262 million children in the 28:32 world who should be in school today that are 28:34 not in school. - Wow. 262 million. - You think of the 28:37 potential loss there of just incredible things. 28:42 I won't mention it, but there was a country in 28:45 Africa whose current president was a refugee. 28:49 He met an Adventist young person there, and they 28:54 introduce him to ADRA. He had no clothes; just 28:56 the clothes on his back. So they took him and 28:59 they got him a container full of donated goods, 29:01 and he walked away with his clothes. Those shoes 29:04 lasted him for 7 years. - Oh, my. - And we gave 29:07 him a bag of washing detergent, and he had 29:11 no future, because he was just a refugee, displaced 29:14 within his own country. So, we paid for education. 29:19 Now, with that opportunity, he's now become the president 29:22 of that African country. You know, you think of 29:27 the potential for each of those 262 million 29:30 children's lives who are lost. I look at some girls being 29:34 sold into marriages as early as 9 years of age. - 29:38 Oh... That breaks my heart. 29:41 - Some of those girls die in childbirth, some of them 29:44 can't carry their children before birth... Some of them 29:47 who DO carry- I was in Sedan, and I was talking 29:50 to our project manager. I said to her, "Look, if you 29:54 had free money, untagged money that wasn't directed"... 29:58 'Cause often, their money is tagged by government 30:00 that says, "You do this here, we'll do this here." 30:02 And I said, "What would you choose?" And she 30:06 said, "I would treat prolapsed uterus." 30:10 I thought, "That's a strange thing to say." 30:12 But she said, "We have thousands of girls in this 30:16 country who were forced into childhood marriage 30:17 who had children when their bodies were too young. 30:20 And in their teens, by the time they've had 30:22 two full-term births, they're suffering from 30:25 this condition of a prolapsed uterus. 30:27 They're now seen to be unclean, they're divorced, 30:29 they're cast away from their families, they've 30:32 got nowhere to live, they've got no hope, 30:34 no future because they were sold into childhood 30:39 marriage just so the rest of the family could survive. 30:41 So, what if I created a different future for them?" 30:44 - Amen. - We know that for every year that a 30:47 girl was in school, we see a reduction in infant 30:50 mortality. We know that when girls receive education 30:53 and enter into the workforce that 70% of their income 30:56 goes to their family and their community. But for 31:00 miles, only 30% of their income goes to the family 31:03 and to the community. [simultaneous chatter] 31:06 - What are males doing with the other 70%? 31:08 - Well, I hate to say it, but alcohol, gambling, 31:12 and women seem to be the top three things. So, 31:16 investing in girls' education... So in talking with Elder Wilson, 31:21 we decided that education would be the focus of our 31:25 campaign. If we go back to our purpose statement, 31:30 "Serve humanity so all may live as God intended"... 31:32 If we can give children a proper starting life 31:35 through good nutrition, through a proper foundation, 31:38 if we can give them the opportunity for education, 31:40 provide livelihoods for their families so they'll 31:42 release them for education, then education is the key 31:46 that unlocks it: the poverty that breaks the cycle, that 31:50 creates the opportunity, that doesn't just benefit 31:52 them but it benefits the future generations. 31:55 - Absolutely. - And so, if we're looking for 31:57 sustainable change, then I think as a global church, 32:00 as people who are not necessarily members of 32:04 our church but just have a sense of justice and a 32:07 desire for compassion in the world, you think of 32:10 these 262 million children and the impact that we can 32:14 have just through giving our voice. Many of the 32:18 countries have policies about education, many 32:21 of them have policies that require a certain 32:24 spend on education, but they're not meeting it- 32:28 and all we have to do is ask them and create 32:31 the right voice in a positive, constructive 32:34 way. Then, I believe that we can change this world 32:37 and we can give children the opportunity of a future. 32:40 - Amen. And Jonathan, obviously-what did they 32:42 say?-the way to eat an elephant is one bite at 32:45 a time. How - I mean, 262 million children - what would 32:52 your vision be to get people involved? - Well, I think 32:57 they can start by signing onto our website that 33:01 we have to give voice, to sign the petition. 33:03 Initially, we will use the petition to make a 33:07 global statement, but we'll also work with 33:10 people to address different policy actions and funding 33:14 opportunities within their own country. So within 33:17 each country, we're working with the ADRA director, 33:20 the heads of Adventist education to identify 33:23 policy changes which are achievable. We just had 33:27 an advocacy working group in South Africa where we 33:31 had 10 parted countries come together. And 33:34 over a period of a week, we taught them how to do 33:36 advocacy, and we gave them the skills. And over 33:40 the week, they developed a strategy, and I was 33:43 just impressed with the quality of the work they've 33:47 done...but actually, I left there feeling this 33:49 is achievable. - Amen. - This is achievable! 33:52 We CAN make a difference! Our first instinct is to say, 33:56 "What can I do physically?" But the reality is physically, 33:59 262 million people?-but voice is often the most 34:04 powerful thing and yet the most underrated 34:06 thing. - Yes. - And at least it's a first step 34:09 of direction. I mean, I can't get the 70% 34:12 that's trickling down. That's just...that's 34:15 going to waste right now that just by default, 34:21 goodness would come out of this. - Yes. - I mean- 34:24 but it has to start someplace. And I mean, this makes all 34:27 the sense in the world! - But I imagine in some of these 34:31 underdeveloped countries that if a family is starving- 34:37 I mean, if they are struggling day to day-they're probably 34:40 not too keen on education. But when you go in and 34:43 teach them irrigation and crop development, once 34:48 they have some security, then they're more open 34:50 to having their children educated. - Exactly. 34:53 That's why for ADRA's program's... 34:57 ...primary focus, we've chosen to look at health, livelihoods, 35:02 and education. - Okay. - So health: give them 35:04 the proper foundation of physical, intellectual 35:08 development. Livelihoods: create the opportunity 35:11 for families to release their children for education. 35:14 - Amen. I believe, again, we have a short video 35:17 that we want to show you on ADRA's advocacy program. 37:41 - Well I don't know about you, but I had 37:42 a visceral reaction to the first part of that 37:44 video. And we want to encourage you to visit 37:49 their website so that you can sign this petition, 37:53 because as you said, we're used to talking about being 37:57 the hands and feet of Jesus, but we also want 38:00 to reflect the voice of Jesus. So how do we 38:03 do that? - So, we can go to ADRA.org/inSchool 38:08 and there, you will find the opportunity to sign 38:11 up. You will also find that once you sign up 38:14 that with the data that we've got, you'll be able 38:18 to track how many people sign on because of you. 38:20 You'll be able to track by country so that 38:24 when you sign on if you're from the US, then it will 38:27 add to the numbers in the US, and you'll be able to 38:29 go to the website and see how many people from 38:31 various countries are signing on. So, you can 38:34 get behind all your friends, and you'll see your numbers 38:36 grow, and you'll see your country become more dominant. 38:39 - Okay. So Jonathan, explain one more time, 38:42 'cause sometimes, people are like, "What am I signing 38:44 on for?" Explain when you do this what's happening. 38:48 - So, what you are signing on for is you're signing on 38:51 that you believe that every child everywhere 38:54 should have the opportunity to attend school. We are 38:58 using that petition to take it to old leaders 39:01 to argue for an increasing funding for education and 39:05 opportunity for children. - Amen. - And then we 39:08 will work with you to be able to make specific asks 39:12 of your own national governments. - Praise 39:15 the Lord, amen. - I think it's ingenious. - I do, too. 39:18 You know, I don't want to leave this- one of- 39:22 and you know this is kind of one of my hobbyhorses- 39:26 if we want to keep our youth in the church, we 39:31 have to get them involved. We have to do what Jonathan's 39:36 home church did when he was a teenager, and they 39:40 gave him responsibility. They got him invested in 39:45 community service, and he developed that heart 39:49 for that service and for the Lord. So, tell us about 39:53 ADRA's program, Connections. - Sure. So, as you rightly 39:57 point out, young people need a sense of purpose in their 40:00 lives. - Amen. - We've taught them how to be 40:02 consumers, but have we really given them a purpose? 40:05 As parents, we will work hard for the means for 40:09 their living, but do we work hard enough to give them 40:13 a meaning to their living? And a lot of research tells 40:16 us that actually, the strongest element that 40:19 prevents risk behaviors of drugs, alcohol, early 40:23 initiation of sex, and so forth, the issue 40:25 that keeps them strong in their faith is to find 40:28 a purpose to their lives. And so, we have initiated 40:32 the ADRA Connections program where young 40:34 people can sign up, they can go on mission trips 40:37 with ADRA, they can become involved in making a difference 40:40 in the world around about them... We work throughout 40:44 partners so they can link in to existing development 40:47 and emergency projects that are already happening 40:49 around the world. Last year, we did our first 40:52 mega ADRA Connections trip. So, we worked with 40:56 eight of the Adventist Universities in North 40:58 America. - I think you brought some pictures, 41:00 didn't you? Maybe we can go through those. - Yeah. 41:02 And we went to a community... - This is where? - We went to 41:07 a community which was in the middle of the Amazon 41:11 Jungle, and the children didn't have the opportunity 41:14 for education. And over two weeks, everyone went 41:18 in. It was a two-day trip on boats-14 boats to ship 41:22 all these students in there into the Amazon Jungle. 41:26 And in two weeks, we built an entire school complex. 41:28 - How nice. - So there were 12 buildings, there 41:32 were classrooms, laboratories, there was housing for the 41:35 teachers, and we were able to construct an entire 41:39 school community for those children in the 41:43 Amazon Jungle. - That is amazing. So some of these 41:46 pictures that we are seeing ARE these young people. 41:49 - And we've worked in other areas. There's 41:52 videos there with Honduras and other projects that 41:56 we've had-African projects and so forth-but we really 41:59 want to give young people that opportunity to find 42:02 that meaning in their lives- to realize that you can 42:06 live for yourself, and you live in a very small community 42:09 in a very narrow way, or you can live for others. 42:12 And suddenly, you see a greater purpose for 42:14 yourself and the impact that you can have. I think 42:17 that- for me personally, along my journey, what 42:21 has really meant the most to me is being able to be 42:25 an agent of hope and healing to other people's 42:27 lives who are broken. I think if we can give young 42:30 people that opportunity, then through that service 42:33 I actually find the meaning to their own lives, as well. 42:37 It resets them for a life of service as they move 42:40 forward. And so, I think young people are looking 42:44 for, "Who am I in the world? Where do I belong?" 42:47 - Absolutely! - "Would the world be different 42:49 if I wasn't in it?" And I think if we can help 42:52 them to connect with that meaning, then I think that 42:56 it's great. Often, we talk about issues of people 43:00 in poverty; we think of starving children, we 43:02 think of people in distress with famines or with major 43:07 storms or earthquakes or other things...but we 43:10 have a crisis in our own young people, in our own 43:13 communities, in our own church communities! 43:16 - Absolutely. We have seen repeatedly where people 43:23 will send their children on a mission trip, and 43:26 children are completely changed by it! We have 43:30 seen this happen so many times. And one thing that 43:33 I love about our local church here, Thompsonville 43:37 Adventist Church, is that even though we don't have 43:42 any wealthy members, I think that our church has 43:45 sent more kids, funded more kids, to go on mission 43:49 trips, and we see children who come back and love 43:54 the Lord and are anxious to make a difference in the 43:57 world...and that's exciting. - There's a lot of people 44:00 probably who're questioning what is their purpose in life- 44:04 and I hope that they will allow some of your insights, 44:08 as being a mature servant, and that if you'll take a 44:14 step of faith and allow Jesus to work the plan 44:18 that He has for your life that it will be very fruitful 44:21 and make a difference for thousands and thousands 44:24 of people. When you're young, you do get caught 44:30 up on this, "I want, I want, I want"; but the older you 44:34 get, you find out that, really, "I would just like 44:36 to make a positive difference in people's lives." - Exactly. 44:40 - You know, I developed research when I was in 44:43 public health, when I was the health director for the 44:46 Adventist church for the South Pacific. And people 44:50 say to me, "Jonathan, it used to be called, 44:52 'Health and Temperance.' So what are you actually 44:54 doing to protect young people from risk 44:57 behaviors?" So, it actually drove me into research. 45:00 I met a man, Dr. Gary Hopkins, who was one 45:03 of the professors at Loma Linda University; came out 45:06 to Australia. We became close friends, and we were 45:09 with others: Dr. Dwayne McBride from Andrews and other 45:12 researchers from Andrews and Loma Linda... All up, 45:15 we've published around 700 papers on youth 45:19 resilience, and the common elements are children need 45:23 a sense of longing, they need a sense of community, 45:26 they need to feel there's some way. Now sadly, 45:28 some children can grow up in dysfunctional homes; but 45:32 if they have an adult who is loving, who's 45:36 accepting of them, then they can cast a different 45:38 vision for those children. - Amen. - Yes, amen. 45:40 - And to me, it's like, I've been blessed by 45:43 adults in my life who shaped me as a child, 45:46 who gave me a vision for service. So as an 45:48 adult, what am I doing to give back to other 45:51 young people who are seeking that sense of 45:54 community? Children are chameleons. They take 45:57 on the shapes and the colors that they need 45:59 to of the community to where they feel acceptance. 46:03 How can we, as Christian adults, create those 46:07 communities of safety to give them that sense of 46:10 longing?-but then to move just beyond not just a loving 46:13 community, but a community which engages with them 46:16 and gives them the opportunity to serve and to find meaning 46:19 and purpose in their lives. And if we can combine 46:21 those two things, then we can change the world. 46:24 - That's right; amen! And that's what God 46:26 wants us to do. Now, if someone is interested 46:30 in going on one of these trips, I'm assuming they 46:33 just go to ADRA.org and click on your Connections. 46:36 - Yes, and click on the Connections, and they 46:38 can join up for the next trip. - Our time is just... 46:41 schwip! Let me ask you this question, because 46:44 I know you wrote a book called The Least of These. 46:47 Tell us about this book, and hey-it's a free book!- 46:50 a book that you can get at no cost. I believe you 46:53 pay for, perhaps, the postage...but listen to 46:56 this. - Sure. So in 2019 in the third quarter, 47:01 the Adventist church has its lesson study series, 47:05 and I wrote a series on biblical justice. What does 47:10 it mean to be a Christian? Because I have a great 47:12 passion to connect churches with their communities... 47:15 you know? - Now say that again? - I have a great 47:18 passion to connect church to their communities. - Yes. 47:23 - God's changed my life; what do I do to change 47:25 the lives of those around about? We live in a broken 47:28 world. How are we going to become agents of hope 47:31 and healing? And we have a great theology around 47:34 preparing for His coming, but what is our theology 47:37 of how do we occupy until He comes? How do we become 47:40 salt and light? And so, Nathan Brown wrote 47:45 a companion book to the lesson study series (which 47:48 will remain relevant forever), just challenging 47:52 us as Christians. So as we grow in Christ, how 47:55 does that engage with me in being salt and light? 47:59 And so the book is entitled The Least of These, and 48:02 we're happy to send you a copy of the book. I think 48:06 it's around $3 in postage to post it anywhere within 48:09 the U.S., and you can gain a copy of that book 48:12 by just going to ADRA.org/LeastBook. 48:18 So, The Least of These, LeastBook; can't put it 48:21 all in a title. So ADRA.org/LeastBook, 48:26 and we're happy to give you a copy of that book. 48:28 The book is really just about your own personal 48:31 Christian development of understanding what it 48:34 means to be salt and light in a dark and 48:36 broken world. - Amen. Let me ask you a personal 48:39 question. How long have you been the president, 48:42 or what year did you become president of 48:44 ADRA? - So, I was appointed in 2012-October-and 48:49 I arrived in the U.S. with my visa on January 48:52 2013. - All right. So, how has being on this 48:59 world stage and accepting this responsibility from the 49:04 Lord...how has it changed your life? - It's made me 49:08 more humble. Often, I think sometimes people think 49:11 because you're the president, everyone gives you accolades; 49:15 they all talk about you, they all treat you different... 49:17 But the reality is my success is the success 49:20 of the person who's actually on the ground, making a 49:24 difference in those lives. And any kudos that I have 49:27 comes from them, and I realize I'm dependent 49:30 upon the success: my success is only the success of others, 49:35 and our success collectively is only the success that 49:39 God gives us in blessing us. - Amen. - And as an 49:41 agency, the more that we focus, the more we 49:45 change our purpose statement, the more we 49:47 come connected through Scripture-through justice, 49:49 mercy, love-the more that we become focused in the 49:53 very reason of why we exist, then God blesses 49:56 the agency. - Amen and amen. - Because there is 49:59 constant change. - Constant change. - Yes. - There's 50:03 huge amount of change that we've got to 50:05 professionalize ourselves as an agency, we've got 50:07 to learn how to not just be service providers, but 50:10 to be influencers (such as an advocacy campaign)... 50:14 So, we're constantly having to reinvent ourselves. 50:18 - It would be wonderful- there is the change, 50:21 there is the growth and everything, but it'd be 50:23 wonderful that if we came back five years from now and 50:26 there was 100,000 people that still need to be educated 50:30 where we've gone from a 262 million...so. - Exactly. 50:37 - So, wow. - I believe that we can... We're aiming for 2030... 50:41 - Amen. - ...to have every child in school...by 2030. 50:44 - Wow. That is-... You know what, nothing is 50:48 impossible with the Lord, right? - That's true. 50:51 - Wouldn't that be something? So, we do want to once again 50:53 encourage you to go to Adventist.org/inSchool 51:00 and sign that petition, because these petitions 51:03 will be going before world leaders and letting them 51:08 know that, "Hey, people are watching, and we 51:10 believe in education of the youth." Well, right 51:13 now, what we want to do is give you the address 51:17 for ADRA, and I believe that many people are 51:20 being touched by the Holy Spirit right now to say, 51:23 "I want to support the Adventist Development 51:28 and Relief Agency," and maybe you would like to 51:32 get in touch with Jonathan personally. Here's how you 51:36 can get in touch with him, and we'll be right back 51:38 in a moment for a final word. |
Revised 2019-08-29