Stories & Commentaries

God has promised a special gift to His church and to His people living in the last days. This promise is illustrated in a very familiar passage found in Joel 2:28, 29: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit” (KJV). This promise is for us today. For all people.

I’ve been flying a lot lately and noticed something I never paid attention to before. No, it’s not about the safety features. I’ve accepted that the unlikely event of a water landing means we’re crashing, and if I have to blow through a tube to inflate a flimsy-looking vest, I’m doomed. C'est la vie. What’s caught my attention is that most of the planes I’ve flown on have 175 seats, also known as literature racks. Seriously, the seatback pockets often have a “Literature only” label on them. That’s basically an invitation for literature evangelism. I can’t fill them all, but I can share a few books and magazines in the racks near me.

Attending conventions within the North American Division is always an engaging experience. There is the promise of exceptional speakers, vibrant music, interesting breakout sessions, and an exhibit hall overflowing with new organizations to discover. But what makes conventions such as the 2024 Adventist Young Professionals Conference exciting is the whole person benefits of connection and community.

“Camporee is the zenith of experiences for every Pathfinder,” says Vernon Norman of Huntsville, Alabama. That’s why it was his dream for almost 40 years to attend an International Pathfinder Camporee. This past August in Gillette, Wyoming, his dream came true.

One of the prominent features of the International Pathfinder Camporee is dynamic biblical reenactment. The 2024 dramatic presentation that fueled the theme “Believe the Promise” was highlighted by a host skilled actors portraying the life experience of Moses. During the camporee, one-hour meet-and-greets were carved out of afternoon programming for the Moses cast to engage with attendees. Pathfinders, leaders, and parents were understandably eager to shake hands, take pictures, ask questions, and soak in the moment with the talented performers.

Escrito Está, the Spanish-language ministry of It Is Written, marks 30 years of ministry this year. Escrito Está is currently the most widely aired Spanish-language television program of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The ministry’s original focus was reaching the Latino population in North America, but that focus quickly expanded to the rest of the world. Today, Escrito Está has a prominent presence on national television stations in several Latin American countries.

The film department at Pacific Union College (PUC) had a lot to celebrate during the 2024 Sonscreen Film Festival in Loma Linda, California. From April 4-6, two faculty members, 16 film students, and roughly 10 alumni who either assisted with films while they were students or came to support the current film students attended the festival. PUC had nine films play in the festival, with three winning awards. Rajeev Sigamoney, PUC’s visual arts department chair, was presented with the Sonscreen Vision Award. He kindly shared about accepting the Vision Award and this year’s festival.

Pacific Union College business student Olivia Newman has been spending her junior year studying in Spain through Adventist College Abroad. The thought of traveling and appreciating a different culture excited her. From the beautiful architecture in Spain and her goal of improving in the Spanish language, Olivia chose to study at Campus Adventista de Sagunto.

This month of Ramadan, some Adventists accepted the “Ramadan Lantern Challenge,” and they visited their local mosque and neighbors to bless them, either with Aaron’s blessings and a box of dates, or simply to get to know them and pray for them. Here are three stories I am sharing with the hope that readers can see themselves in one of them, and move from curiosity and a bit of discomfort to engagement and blessing.

Whom do you feel called to reach with the love of God? Your cousin? Your neighbor? Your friend at school or work? According to Ellen G. White, “it is acquaintance that awakens sympathy, and sympathy is the spring of effective ministry.”1 This quote reminds us that the better we know someone, the more motivated we are to care about their needs, and the more effective we can be in reaching them with the love of God. But it also holds a less-obvious insight: It points to the possibility that there are people, or even people groups, God wants us to reach, but we do not yet feel His call to reach them just because we don’t happen to be acquainted with them, their language, their culture, and their needs.