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Doing MORE for Jesus

Doing more for Jesus Dennis Fisher

by Bobby Davis

For some, the search for Jesus begins in childhood. A simple love turns into a relentless quest for a closer walk with Him. However, others get started down a different path—until a loving Savior intervenes.

“I was born in South Bend, Indiana, to good parents,” Dennis Fisher begins. “I was one of six kids, and my hard-working father usually held down two and three jobs at a time to provide for us. My mother had been through a lot in her life, but she read and quoted the Scriptures. And although we didn’t attend church regularly, we would visit the Methodist church with our friends sometimes.”

DOWN A WRONG PATH

Young Dennis loved to draw, and did very well at it, but when he was 15 or so he got off on the wrong path. “I began drinking and smoking with my buddies, and I was a little wild in high school,” he admits. “My dad tried his best to straighten me out, but I wouldn’t hear of it. Instead, I quit school during my junior year and joined the Air Force. Then I was sent to Italy—and that’s when I really learned to drink! Soon I began waking up in ditches and rooftops, wondering how I got there. I was even chased by the Italian carabinieri military police, and eventually drank my way out of the service. But when I came home, I brought my drinking problem with me.”

Back in the States, Dennis tended bar for a while, but when he met a fellow who “rode the rails,” he joined him, riding freight trains all over the country.

“Soon I was in bad shape,” he admits, “and I only worked so I could drink. I ended up in Reno, Nevada, tending bar again. They gave me a room and $10 a night—just enough to stay drunk. Eventually I landed in Las Vegas, and that was a whole different fantasy world! I lived to drink, and soon figured out how to get free tokens and coupons I could cash for money and food at the casinos. I didn’t have any living expenses, either, since I lived in an abandoned building. Then one hot July day, after stealing a quart of whiskey, I heard a voice asking me, ‘Denny, what are you doing? If you keep this up you won’t be around much longer!’

“I knew it was God’s voice, and that’s the last time I drank! I walked two miles to a halfway house, convinced that if I didn’t stop drinking I only had jails, institutions, and death to look forward to.”

Dennis sobered and eventually landed a job in the gaming industry where he became quite good at keno, a numbers game. He also met and married his wife Carol, whom he describes as a “very sweet Mormon girl.” But although his life and reputation seemed to be restored, he wasn’t content. “I had a void in my life I couldn’t seem to fill,” he says. “I read history books and painted portraits of the Old West outlaws. I even built a large telescope with a 10-inch mirror, but it wasn’t enough. I didn’t even want to do keno anymore—and that’s when I found 3ABN! I’d always been interested in archeology,” he continues, “and I was interested in both Noah’s ark and the Ark of the Covenant. So when I found 3ABN’s channel 43, I watched all the time.

“I’d watch Danny Shelton on my little black and white TV, and soon noticed that no matter the topic, they’d always go straight to the Bible! I learned what really happens when someone dies, I learned about the Sabbath, and soon my wife and I started attending the Living Waters Seventh-day Adventist Fellowship. We loved it there, but when Carol’s health began to decline, we moved back to Utah, where she was from. There isn’t a Seventh-day Adventist church anywhere near here, so I bought a Dish Network system and 3ABN became my church!”

“THIS IS THE TIME”

After completing Bible studies from Amazing Facts, Dennis received a call asking if he’d like a visit from a Seventh-day Adventist pastor. He said yes, and soon met Pastor Ruben Vincent of the Moab, Utah, church. “I couldn’t believe they would send him from so far away,” he says, “but he kept returning every month or so, and we became very good friends.”

Then tragedy struck. Carol had seemed to be getting better, but one day she complained of a headache and returned to the car. When Dennis returned minutes later, he found that she had passed away from an aneurism. “We never got a chance to grow old together,” Dennis says with deep sadness, “but I know I’ll see her when Jesus returns. I learned that from 3ABN. She is only sleeping in Jesus.”

Dennis says he’s learned most of what he knows about the Bible from 3ABN, and that after listening to Pastor Kenneth Cox talk about baptism, he had the strong impression that he should be baptized, too. “The Holy Spirit really worked on me saying, This is the time,” he says.

By now Pastor Vincent had moved away and Pastor Ryan Hablitzel had taken his place at the Price and Moab churches.

“After learning about Dennis, I drove to Richfield,” he says, “and when I arrived I knew I’d found the right place because the sign on his door read, ‘The Seventh Day is the Sabbath.’ I found a man who was well-prepared for baptism, and that amazed me, since his contact with the church had almost exclusively been through pastoral visits and 3ABN. Dennis knows as much or more about the Bible as the average church member—all because of 3ABN’s influence.”

“I FEEL CLEAN”

December 24, 2011, was an unforgettable day for Dennis and his pastor. “I could see the anticipation on his face as we traveled from Richfield to Price for his baptism,” Pastor Hablitzel says. “Dennis was so excited to worship and fellowship with like-minded believers.”

“Pastor Ryan drove all the way out here to pick me up, and when I got to the church it was a beautiful place,” Dennis recalls. “The people were so warm, and when they introduced themselves I felt like I was home. I remember a lot of their names because they made such an impression on me! After my testimony they all came up to touch me and pray for me. It was almost like being in Heaven! I only wish Carol could have been there and been baptized with me before she went to sleep in the Lord.”

Following his baptism, his pastor says that they met for a moment of private prayer. “That’s when Dennis turned to me and said, ‘Pastor, I feel clean….  I really do!’

“While Dennis can only make the drive from Richfield to Price for church as weather and finances allow, he remains active, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with anyone who will listen,” his pastor adds. “He tells me that he’s the only Seventh-day Adventist in Richfield, and he’s probably right. But that doesn’t stop him from sharing his faith with the people of his community. He’s even offered his home for people to come and study the Bible—and watch 3ABN.”

WHERE GOD NEEDS HIM NEXT

“Watching 3ABN has changed my life in so many ways,” Dennis says. “I feel like you’re all my family, and I’ve noticed that I read my Bible more and understand it a lot better now. I feel closer to the Lord, and even learned to thank Him for my food before I eat!

“I’ve also felt impressed that maybe God wants me to return to Las Vegas,” he adds. “I know a lot of people down there, and I want to help them. Although I enjoy my painting now, I’m 71 and want to do more with my life than what I’m doing here. I’d also love to have a church family to work and worship with. I’m so grateful for 3ABN, and would feel lost without it, but I know God has something more for me to do.”

Dennis is busy planting seeds of truth in the minds of those around him, and we believe that wherever God takes him next, he’ll find new ways to share his love for Jesus.

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The Constant Seeker

The Constant Seeker

Georgie Livingston has always loved the Lord. However, Satan has never been happy about that, and has tried his very best to destroy her chances for happiness and eternal life. But praise God, for “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4. As we talked with her, we quickly realized that her heart has always remained truly in love with Jesus.

“I’ll be 80 years old on February 22,” Georgie begins, “and the only spanking I ever got from my mother was for talking during a sermon at the Church of God when I was four years old!

“Although my mother was a member there, when I was 12, I attended an evangelistic tent meeting, and soon was baptized into the Foursquare Church. They put me to work teaching Sunday School to five-year-olds, but later I became a youth leader, played guitar, and attended church camp. Then, I became very pale from an illness, and the preacher’s wife was concerned that I would scare the children, so she told me I must wear makeup. However, that was a problem, because I was raised not to wear makeup, so I wouldn’t do it! Finally, they told me I couldn’t teach Sunday School anymore, so I left.”

“Georgie is a very warm and gracious lady, and we are delighted to have her as part of our church family here in Amarillo,” says Pastor Richard Dye. (Photo: LaVonne Dye.)

A SHORT-LIVED JOY

After she married her first husband, Georgie attended another evangelistic tent meeting. This one was held by Seventh-day Adventist evangelist M. A. Wyman, in Lindsay, California. She attended the meetings faithfully with her mother-in-law and sister-in-law. “What joy I felt as I read Ellen White’s Steps to Christ,” she says. “That book made me decide I wanted to be baptized as a Seventh-day Adventist.

“I remember having lunch with Pastor H. M. S. Richards of The Voice of Prophecy radio ministry, and meeting The King’s Heralds Quartet and Del Delker, who provided music for his programs. Later I attended the Soquel, California, camp meeting, and it was an awesome time!”

But her joy was short-lived because when she arrived home her husband locked her in their apartment and refused to let her go to church anymore. “I even ran away,” she says, “but he found me, so I finally gave up. That was a mistake I paid for dearly, because the rest of my 13-year marriage was a living hell.”

Georgie was only 29 and the mother of little 5-year-old Laurie when her husband died suddenly. Alone and scared, she married her deceased husband’s boss. “He was the first reader in a Christian Science church—the highest position you can have,” she explains, “and I thought he was like a pastor, so I married him and shared some things in confidence that were very painful.” Sadly, instead of keeping her confidence, Georgie says he threatened that if she ever tried to leave, he would share those things with her daughter!

Feeling trapped, she joined his church and even trained as a practitioner. “But after seven years of him abusing my daughter and me, I had enough. So I took that chance and left him,” Georgie adds. “He did follow through with his threat and wrote to my daughter, but his handwriting was so bad she couldn’t read it! God protected us, and the judge ordered him never to see us again.”

ANOTHER ATTEMPT AT HAPPINESS

Georgie says she left that church as well, then was baptized again in the Adventist church, along with her daughter. “My heart was always in the Adventist Church,” she says.

“Soon I was appointed the Sabbath School secretary, even though I was scared to read the reports up front. I would talk all the air out of my lungs and could hardly get any back in! I was constantly going from one class to another, and never had time to sit and learn more about Jesus in Sabbath School. I had just left my second husband, and I was a basket case. I shook all the time, and would lock myself in my house, crying. I thought I’d find help in church, but I didn’t. Instead, after Sabbath School was over I’d just sit in my car and sob. I tried to step down from that job, but they kept telling me I was doing fine. It seemed like no one cared, so I handed in the books and told them they’d never see me again.”

Today Georgie is happy once more, and enjoys spending time with her daughters Laurie Kunert (left) and Nora Richardson (right). (Photo: Gordon Leigh/Photo Reflections.)

“MY JAY”

Georgie finally found some happiness when she married Jay Livingston. “He was a minister’s son, but had never seen the love of God at home,” she explains. He rebelled, and became an alcoholic—just like his father was before he entered the ministry.

“Although Jay was never baptized, he never betrayed my trust,” she says. “We had our wonderful daughter Nora together, and we both put God first as best we knew how. We didn’t go to church, but we prayed, sang, and read the Bible at home. We were not perfect, but we loved each other, and we also loved God.

“My Jay and I had 36 years together that got sweeter every day. But his many years of drinking beer and smoking cigarettes caught up with him. In the end, he came home from the hospital and was given hospice care. He told me he didn’t want Jesus to see his needle-bruised arms from all the medication they’d given him, but I told him that when Jesus comes he will get a new body, that he wouldn’t hurt anymore, and that it was okay to sleep until then. He died at age 78, singing and praising the Lord to his last breath.”

A NEW STATION, AND A NEW CHURCH

After Jay’s death, Georgie’s daughter Laurie, and her husband Richard, brought her to live with them in Amarillo, Texas, and that’s where she discovered 3ABN on channel 17. As she watched, she says she was so blessed by the truths she was learning. “3ABN showed me what the Bible teaches about tithing and offerings,” she says, “and I began looking for a Seventh-day Adventist church. I looked in the phone book and found a telephone number, but I couldn’t find an address. Worse yet, when I called the number, I would get so nervous and confused that I’m not sure I ever managed to successfully leave a message!

“So I saved up my tithes and offerings until I could go. I didn’t know how I could make it financially, but what the Bible says is true! God does supply all my needs. I have enough to pay my bills, and Laurie and Richard feed me, clothe me, give me a home, and take me where I need to go.

“One day, I finally told the Lord, ‘I can’t get through to them at the church,’ and He answered, ‘Today is Sabbath. Call now. They’re there.’

“And they were!” Georgie adds with a laugh.

WARM WELCOME

Her first visit to the Amarillo Seventh-day Adventist Church was wonderful. “They were so warm, and they greeted me with smiles and hugs. It’s been that way ever since, too!”

When she had to have a knee replacement, Georgie says she received an unexpected visit from Pastor Richard Dye. “He came in as I was reading the Bible to a hospital cleaning woman,” she says. “I’d been trying to tell her how to get to my church, but I couldn’t remember. So when Pastor Rick walked in, I knew it was God’s perfect timing!”

3ABN’s Pastoral Ministries Department has been a great help to Georgie, as well. “I’ve gotten to know J. D. Quinn,” she says. “He helped me find peace when my Jay passed away. I remember the first time I talked to him. He told me his name was J. D. and I was so shocked! I said, ‘J. D. Quinn? Shelley’s husband?’ He laughed, and said, ‘Yes!’

“Later, I called 3ABN to ask him whether I should be baptized a fourth time in my new church, and he told me I could join the church by profession of faith.”

“Georgie is a very warm and gracious lady, and we are delighted to have her as part of our church family here in Amarillo,” says Pastor Richard Dye. “Her story is interesting and moving, and I’m glad the Holy Spirit continues to work in spite of what kinds of things take place sometimes!

“A great many of our church members have adopted her and taken her under their wings,” he continues. “We rejoice with her and her walk with God.”

“3ABN is on my prayer list every day, and I thank God for all those who work there,” Georgie concludes. “I know that when I have a question, or need prayer, I can always go there.”

If you’re in the area, stop in and visit the Amarillo Seventh-day Adventist Church at 8425 South Bell Street! Pastor Rick Dye and the entire church family will love to meet you—and be sure to say hello to our friend, Georgie!

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Hitting Rock Bottom

Hitting Rock Bottom

by Hal Steenson

She was crying so hard I could barely make out what was being said over the phone, so I slowly calmed her down by telling her that no matter what had happened, everything would be all right. That was when I finally understood what she had been saying, “I need prayer; I’ve hit rock bottom.”

I really shocked her when I responded with a resounding “Praise God!”

“What did you say?” she asked. “Did I hear you say ‘Praise God’? I tell you that I’ve hit rock bottom, and you say, ‘Praise God’? What do you mean by that?”

I asked her if she understood what hitting rock bottom meant, and she replied it meant she was finished, ruined; it was all over, and her life was not worth living. Then I shared Matthew 7:24–25: “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.”

EVERYTHING YOU NEED

The phone was quiet, so I continued. “Everything has been cleared out of the way, and now you have a solid foundation to build upon. If what you say is true, then all you have left is Jesus, and He is all you need to start over again. Allow Him to stand in the middle of all the new construction and be the contractor of every new addition to your new life.”

Then I began to ask her some key questions. “Are you sick, or in good health?”

“I’m very healthy, but I just lost my job.”

“Do you have any children?”

“Yes,” she replied. “I have three lovely teenage boys.”

“Are you married?”

“Yes, I’m married to a wonderful man that I love dearly, but we can’t make it on his salary alone, so we may end up losing our home.”

“Yes ma’am. But do you have food to eat?”

“Of course we do; we have plenty of food. But if I can’t find a job, we’ll have to dip into our savings account before long.”

I asked her if she was a Christian, and she assured me that she and her entire family were living for God. Then she added that this is why she couldn’t understand why this was happening.

“Then let me see if I’ve heard you correctly: You are a healthy woman; you have a husband that loves you, and three wonderful teenage boys who are all serving God? Now that’s a miracle in itself! I also heard you say that you have food to eat, and you still have some money in the bank. Did I hear you right? Is this what you just told me?”

A few seconds of silence passed before I heard her whisper, “Praise God! Yes; yes, I do have all those things—and so much more. I am a blessed child of God!

“So now let me ask you this: When you first called, you said you had hit rock bottom and needed prayer. What is it you need prayer for today, ma’am?”

She responded boldly, “All I need prayer for is a job; everything else is okay.”

We prayed, we praised, and we laughed together. She called me back a couple of weeks later, and guess what? She got a better job, better hours, and more money!

“The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let God be exalted, the Rock of my salvation!” 2 Samuel 22:47.

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Captive No More

Captive no more

by Grace Yost

Who is a captive? Perhaps you’re thinking of the one who’s behind bars of steel—but that’s not all. Satan holds billions of people captive—and only a fraction of them are in literal prisons.

Such are the lives of a young woman and a young man in this story. They both had a similar background, having grown up in less-than-ideal circumstances, which made them easy targets for the evil one. But the truth is that we’re all targets of his cunning ways.

How can we guard against his relentless attacks when he leads us down a path we didn’t intend to travel, and the dangers are not readily discernible? First, we must daily submit our lives to Jesus, who made the ultimate sacrifice for us by humbly leaving His throne in glory, His royal crown, and His robe, to come to this world. Here He ministered through love and humility, stooping down to touch the life of a perishing soul without ever sacrificing His principles.

This young woman had been in multiple foster homes, and when she turned 18 the state declared her an adult and dropped her off at a city park with her meager belongings! Now homeless, and experiencing what she describes as pure hell, she made a disastrous choice by mistaking a man’s attention in a local bar for love. After years of abuse, loneliness, and misery, she paired up with him, and ultimately they were both arrested.

LIFE IN PRISON

Have you ever considered what it might be like to be 21 and facing life in prison with no possibility of parole? Here are a few excerpts from a letter she wrote us after being convicted of murder:

“In the beginning, I didn’t really know what to think of my predicament. I was in shock, but slowly I began to grow bitter. Then one day I just broke down and cried in my bed, and for some reason I began to argue with God—I probably sounded crazy to the other inmates around me. I grew up fighting Him all my life, and you could say I had an enormous chip on my shoulder. Throughout my life I was taught the Scriptures and at 17 I accepted Him into my life and was baptized. I truly believed I was heading in the right direction and felt a touch of happiness. But that feeling was very short-lived, and soon I allowed Satan to take control of me.

“What an argument I had that night with God! When completely exhausted, I began to feel something I hadn’t felt in a long time: peace and comfort. I began to see what people were talking about when they said God knows how much you’re capable of handling.

“At first I fought the reins, believing that life had put me through too much, and this was too much for me to bear. But, I am still alive. I am here and going through this for a reason. And even though I don’t have a clue what that reason is, there is one. We’ll have different trials and tribulations, but it’s what we do with them that matters: who we meet, how we act—it all shows our true strength. I now see this life as a challenge and I want to finish it well. I don’t really understand what happens after I die, but I would really like to learn.

“Thank you again for all you’ve done, and please keep up the good work of ministering to everyone. God bless.”

This young woman’s journey with God has just begun, but let me tell you about a young man who has steadily climbed the spiritual ladder since he began corresponding with us over six years ago. His bad choice of friends led him to become a member of a gang, and after a murder happened he went to trial and was sentenced to life in prison, too. At the time he was first being charged, his girlfriend gave birth to a precious daughter whom he has not been able to see grow up. But look at these excerpts from the letters we’ve received:

“I lost my state court appeal, so prison is looking permanent unless the federal courts (God really) says otherwise. But I’ve come this far, and I’m mature enough to see the reality of the situation; I see more of others’ needs than mine. I’m right where God can use me, and I pray for those I can’t heal (those I’ve hurt), or apologize to.

“I’ve repented of my old sinful ways and genuinely acted out my salvation in spreading the doctrine of the Most High.”

These young inmates have sat at the feet of Jesus, but they’re on different rungs on the spiritual ladder.

NOT AN OPTION

Is Jesus calling you to reach out and touch someone who may be less than desirable in your sight? If so, you may need to sit at His feet and study His character more fully.

Complaints, criticism, and a judgmental spirit are tools of Satan. The tools of Jesus are a meek and quiet spirit. Pride and self-importance must not reside in the heart of a child of God. The Scripture tell us in Psalm 52:2, “Your tongue devises destruction,
like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.”

There have been times in my own spiritual journey when I took the words of Jesus too lightly, but those words have become the stepping stones that today allow me to minister to inmates too numerous to count. In my younger years I would likely have turned down such an opportunity, but God uses life circumstances to change us.

We are called by Jesus in John 13:34 to love one another, as He has loved us. This is not to be taken lightly; this is not an option if we’re seeking eternal life. In Isaiah 61:1 the prophet Isaiah calls on us to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. Jesus himself spoke similar words while speaking in the synagogue in His hometown of Nazareth (see Luke 4:18).

THROUGH THE EYES OF JESUS

As I’ve prayed earnestly to see others through the eyes of Jesus, my eyes have been opened to my own shortcomings, and I earnestly desire to have the mind and character of Jesus. If we could truly discern the circumstances that surround each individual’s life, we would be far less likely to speak hasty, judgmental words, and would be possessed of a much greater love! Jesus, the Redeemer and Mender of broken people, willingly came to free all men and women burdened down by the ravages of sin.

Are we guilty of shunning the captives? Oh yes, it can easily happen when we’re in our comfort zone and see no need to step out of it. Our precious Savior had a marked love for the captives and less fortunate. Can we do any less

P.S. 3ABN’s pastoral ministries department did send this young woman information on what happens when we die. Please join us in prayer for her, and all the others we seek to help.

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Should We Block His Calls?

Should We Block His Calls?

by Joe O’Brien

In October 2001 Brian called 3ABN’s Pastoral Ministries Department to complain about God. As I listened, Brian shared with me why he thought God was a very poor and unfair manager of human affairs. He had lost a relationship with a lady friend; he had lost his brother to an untimely death; and now a young lady he admired for her talent had met an untimely death in an airplane accident. In fact, his subsequent phone calls seemed to be his way of filing complaints against God.

For a number of years he’d called several other ministry prayer lines, as well as ours, and unfortunately, the guidance he received from some of the other prayer warriors only added to the confusion. On one occasion, someone at another ministry prayed that an individual who angered Brian would die!

As Brian pointed out the error in their beliefs, these ministry workers became disenchanted with him and blocked his phone number, refusing his calls. This resulted in him calling us even more often, using excessive time, and honestly forcing us to consider blocking his calls, as well.

QUESTIONS

Eventually he was restricted to speaking only with me, and I was glad I was picked, because Brian’s anger with God was usually expressed in the form of a question. Why does God allow this or that? Why doesn’t God do what I would do?

Questions allow for answers, and answers produce understanding. Understanding produces transformation, and transformation is just what God wants! “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Romans 12:2. Brian was walking the very path God was calling him to walk.

As Brian would ask his often-brilliant questions, we would go to God’s Word for the answers. Why do evil people get away with doing evil? Why do good people suffer and die young? Why has God allowed Satan to run rampant for thousands of years? On and on it went, but God’s Word gave Brian the answers he needed.

NEVER GIVE UP

This continued for nine years! Nine years of transformation by the Word of God. That’s where Brian found wisdom. That’s also where he found power—power to rise above anger by forgiving his enemies. It also provided him with the peace that God promises in Philippians 4:7, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Brian found that he can trust God and His Word, and that’s where he met his best friend, Jesus.

By our tenth year of conversation, the man who had started out as what seemed like a sparring partner in 2001, had become my friend and brother in Christ by 2011. Brian dedicated his life to our Lord on March 23, and was baptized on July 9, 2011, by Pastor William Webb.

I congratulate and welcome my new brother, Brian Hofacker, one of the newest members of the New Port Richey Seventh-day Adventist Church in Florida! To God be the glory!

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The Little Things

The Little Things

by Teresa Bonilla

At times we don’t realize the impact of the little things we do. However, they often have an impact for eternity. Not too long ago I received what seemed to be a normal phone call. A lady thanked us for our programming and gave me her prayer request, but as the conversation developed things started to change.

For the past four years, 77-year-old María Ramírez has been watching the 3ABN Latino network. When she moved into her new apartment she brought along her satellite dish and installed it, but soon one of her neighbors complained because it was against the housing policy.

María prayed, and when the administrator came to speak with her she said, “If you take away my satellite dish, I will die.”

“Die?” he asked.

“Yes, I will die spiritually, because this is my spiritual food,” she explained. (Amazingly, the administrator allowed her to keep her dish!)

DOING MORE

Although María is a monthly donor to 3ABN Latino, one day she questioned whether she was giving enough to God’s work. As she asked Him what more she could do, the thought came to her to collect aluminum cans, recycle them, and send the money to 3ABN.

Soon María was going through the dumpster every day looking for cans, and it wasn’t long before her neighbors began approaching her, worrying she might be in need of food. Each time she would tell them about her plan, and many of them began helping her!

“But the enemy tried to harm me,” she adds. One of her neighbors became so angry they denounced her again to the administrator and threatened to kill her if she continued to collect cans!

Once again he spoke with María, asking why she was collecting cans. She showed him all the receipts she’d received from her donations to 3ABN Latino and other ministries, and he congratulated her—he even gave her an offering to send to 3ABN!

Next, María began encouraging her aunt to collect cans, and, just as before, her aunt was threatened with eviction as she began to help! María assured her by saying that if they kicked her out of the building, she should be at peace, because God was in control. “For us who love the Lord, all things work out for good,” she said. “He who gives, receives.”

(Not surprisingly, her aunt was never evicted.)

AMAZED

These aren’t the only ways God has used María to testify about His power and love. When she went in for her regular checkup, her doctor was deeply impressed by her health improvement. He asked her what she’d been doing to keep herself healthy and she told him that she’d been watching 3ABN Latino’s health programs and learning about natural remedies. Impressed, her doctor told her he would try them for himself and share the information with all his patients.

“I know why you are improving,” he said. “You take care of your health, and you always have a smile on your face. When you come here you’re always sharing literature with other people in the lobby, you get your exercise gathering cans, and you donate that money for God’s work.”

María asked us to pray for the owner of the apartment building where she lives. He has health problems, and noticing her good health habits, he asked her to cook for him every other week. He was even willing to pay her, but she refused.

Truly, María’s life of service to others, and to her Lord, is a testimony to those around her. Faithfulness in the “little things” are having an impact for eternity!

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Where We Want to Be

Where We Want to Be

We’re so grateful for all those who have volunteered their services to this ministry over the years. But what motivates someone to sell their business, donate the proceeds to 3ABN, and move here to volunteer? We sat down with Don and Grace Yost recently to find out.

“I first heard about 3ABN from my mother,” Don begins. “She discovered it just as they were getting started, and she spoke of it often. My sister bought a satellite dish and I watched whenever we visited. Later we purchased a dish for our home, too.

“When 3ABN held a rally at Forest Lake Academy in Apopka, Florida, we made a point of attending, and that’s when I told my wife that I wanted to meet Danny. You see, I had my own automotive transmission repair business, but I was tired of it, and wanted to retire. Now I felt impressed to sell it and donate the money to 3ABN—but I hadn’t told Grace about it, yet!

“We talked to Danny for a few minutes before I told him what I wanted to do. He urged us to come up and look the place over first. Then he asked, ‘Is your wife in agreement with you?’

“Without hesitation, she said, ‘Yes!’ ”

A DIFFERENT WORLD

Soon Don and Grace were on their way to Illinois with the idea of moving here to volunteer. But while they were impressed by 3ABN, they weren’t so sure about the move. “We’d just built our dream home in Florida,” Grace says, “and it was nicer than I could’ve dreamed for!”

“We were planning to stay there until Jesus came,” Don adds, noting that southern Illinois was just so different from anything they’d ever experienced.

“Then there was the very real fact that we wouldn’t have any family close by!” Grace recalls. “I remember thinking, No Lord, we can’t do this. But the Holy Spirit hadn’t spoken to me; He spoke to Don, and something kept drawing us here.”

THE SALE

While Don and Grace struggled with the idea of moving, over the next year God continued sending them affirmations. Finally they contacted a real estate agent and put their house in Florida up for sale.

“I was retired and I was bored,” Don admits. “I kept thinking, I am sitting here while 3ABN needs so much help! If the Lord wants us there, He’ll sell this house for us! I felt it was the right move and that the Lord would take care of us.”

Then, during their volunteer third trip to 3ABN, they received an offer on their house. “I’d always wanted to work for the Lord,” Grace says, “but my life hadn’t worked out that way. Earlier we’d considered volunteering with another ministry, but we would’ve had to buy a motor home, so we didn’t pursue it. But now we began looking in earnest, and when we found a house, we made an offer—contingent on the sale of our Florida home, of course.”

The sale went through, and Don and Grace began volunteering full-time. However, not long after this they felt they should move closer. After a year and a half they finally found and bought some property, and since their first Illinois house was almost paid for, they used the equity to build their new one.

TOTAL DEPENDENCE

But building a home on a volunteer’s salary while still paying for the first one soon became a financial burden. “We cut our expenses to a bare minimum, but we still struggled,” Don admits. “We got rid of my truck, our satellite dish, our Internet—even our newspaper subscription. For the first time in our marriage we wondered if we were going to make it, but the Lord was faithful, and we were never late on our payments.”

Grace struggled, too. “I’d been taught to work hard, save money, and pay off my home by the time I retired. But our life wasn’t working out that way. One morning I sat and thought, Lord, I don’t understand this journey. But then the Holy Spirit impressed me with the thought, Grace, it doesn’t make any difference. Jesus is coming soon. That message was so clear in my mind!”

Three years later their first home sold. Then, after finishing their new house, Don returned to manage 3ABN’s grounds and maintenance departments.

Their experience left a lasting impression, however. “I have a peace about it all today,” Don says. “Now I know I could walk away from everything I own, while before, I was tied to some of it. I don’t know what would’ve happened if we’d stayed in Florida, but our relationship with the Lord has become a lot stronger since we’ve been here!

THROUGH THE EYES OF JESUS

Grace says she was surprised when 3ABN asked her to assist in pastoral ministries’ correspondence, since her experience was in management and accounting. But when she began working with inmate letters, the correspondence volume increased dramatically.

“I never dreamed I’d have a passion for this, but today I see inmates through very different eyes,” she says. “In fact, I’m trusting that I see them through the eyes of Jesus! They’ve been through so much. Almost all of them have been abused, abandoned, or have grown up in the streets. I really have to depend on the Holy Spirit for my words. People talk about ‘jailhouse conversions,’ but many of our inmates are in for life. They recognize they now have a better life with Jesus, and many of them tell me that prison was the best thing that ever happened to them. I write to tell them what God can do for them. I try to focus on the joy they can have—and my joy increases!”

RETIREMENT?

“A friend was talking about retiring, and I told him it wasn’t biblical!” Don chuckles. “Can you think of any situation in life where you can work for the One who’s taken care of you all of your life? Now that you’re in a position to turn all your time over to Him, can you think of anything better? And if you want to know the Lord, get out of your comfort zone! You’ll find Him!

“I’ve learned to trust Him more than I ever thought I could. Grace has had some very hard blows in the past few years,” he continues. “She suffered three car accidents in two years—and none of them were her fault. Then she had a stroke and was partially paralyzed on one side, but by God’s grace she recovered completely!”

He pauses, then shakes his head. “I have no regrets.”

“Me either,” Grace whispers. “We are where God wants us to be, and that’s where we want to be!”

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No Coincidence

No Coincidence

by John Dinzey

Recently, Pastor Armando Miranda, vice president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, related a remarkable story to us. While traveling in Texas for an event earlier this year, he met a fascinating couple who had told him of an amazing “coincidence.”

Gabriel and Minerva Hernandez live in what they call “The Valley” in south Texas, an area close to the U.S. border with Mexico. They have seven TV sets in their home, but six of them couldn’t receive any TV channels, and the seventh one could only receive two channels: a Mexican sports channel and 3ABN Latino. However, the sports channel came in so poorly that it wasn’t too appealing to watch.

One morning Gabriel watched 3ABN Latino for a couple of hours and was blessed by the programming, but when he turned it on later that evening, his wife asked, “Why are you watching that channel again?”

“Oh this is a Christian channel, and it’s very good,” he told her. Then he added, “You should watch it, too.”

“Oh really?” she asked as she stood there for a moment.

Before long Minerva was sitting down. As she was a much-sought-after speaker, pastor, and evangelist, 3ABN’s programming was very appealing to her. They began watching together whenever there was an opportunity. Having a theological background, Minerva ordered some Bible studies offered in one of the programs and began to dig deeper.

Eventually their interest prompted them to contact Amado Sanchez, a local Seventh-day Adventist pastor,  and he invited them to an evangelistic series scheduled for the next two weeks.

“I would love to be able to come every night,” Minerva said, “but the only night I can come is Monday, since I have to preach all the other nights.”

“What a shame,” Pastor Sanchez said. “I think you would really appreciate these presentations.”

“PLEASE DO SOMETHING”

Gabriel and Minerva came on Monday and they were blessed. Again she expressed her wish to attend every night.

Later that night she prayed, “Lord, I would really like to go to these meetings, but I’m booked every night to preach. If You really want me to go, please do something to make that possible.”

I believe God heard her prayer, because the very next morning she received an apologetic call, explaining that an unforeseen situation had developed and asking her if she was willing to postpone her preaching for two weeks.

“No need to apologize,” she said. “God is in control, I don’t have a problem postponing for two weeks!”

The Lord had worked it out, and they didn’t miss a single night. Soon after, Gabriel and Minerva were baptized, and today they are happy members of the McAllen Spanish Valley Central Seventh-day Adventist Church. What seemed a strange coincidence was really a blessing to them!

Once again, we praise the Lord for using 3ABN Latino to help people “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:18.

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More Precious Than Gold

More Precious Than Gold

Leroy and Colleen Sharp (center) were befriended by Martin Klein (left) and his wife Janelle (right). “It’s so important to have people walk with you from the time you begin attending church, through baptism, and beyond,” Colleen says. (Photo: Bob Charbonneau.)

Republic, Washington, is nestled among the mountains on the northeastern side of the state. Originally dubbed Eureka, the settlement’s first name aptly described the excitement created by the discovery of gold in the late 1890s.

There are many things that make Republic special, but perhaps nothing is more precious to Leroy and Colleen Sharp than a little radio station that broadcasts 3ABN Radio.

BACK STORY

Everything about KETL-LP, 100.5 FM, is miraculous. In 2001, a small group of church members decided to try for a construction permit after receiving notice that the Federal Communications Commission was accepting applications. But the challenges were steep. “We would need to find a broadcasting site, do some preliminary engineering work, form a nonprofit corporation, and submit an application—in four weeks!” says Dr. Bill Pellow, a Seventh-day Adventist optometrist who led the team. With faith and determination, they obtained their permit, which gave them 18 months to put the station on the air.

One problem, however, seemed insurmountable. No one wanted a radio tower in their backyard!

“We talked to a half-dozen landowners, but received a negative response from each one. Things began to look pretty bleak for a while,” Bill admits, “and my faith wavered a little.”

Finally only one location was left—Gold Hill, the best location of all. One of the team members knew the owner from high school, but he didn’t hold out much hope the man would be sympathetic to their cause.

“We had earnest prayer and continued to pray as our friend Reed Heckly called the landowner,” Bill says. “As he tried to describe the purpose of the station, the owner cut him off! ‘I don’t care what you broadcast,’ he said. ‘I believe in freedom of speech!’ ”

That problem was solved, but another one quickly replaced it. They had to obtain permission to pull electricity from one man’s property, and permission from two other families to bury heavy electrical cable across 2,000 feet of land to the tower site. As they called each one, they obtained permission without problems, and no one was more surprised! “After receiving half a dozen noes in a row, we had just received four critical yeses,” Bill says. “We knew we were watching a miracle!”

There were many more stories—finding a sturdy tower for a miracle price, how church members hauled it there and assembled it, how they raised $12,000 in yard sales, and the logger who just happened to be building a logging road through that area. Finally, KETL-LP went on the air—just four days before the FCC deadline!

“Our signal reaches much farther than we ever expected,” Bill says. “You can actually receive a pretty fair signal all the way in Grand Forks, Canada!”

PREPARING THEIR HEARTS

Meanwhile, many miles away, the Holy Spirit had spent years preparing the hearts of Leroy and Colleen Sharp for new truth.

“I was born in Dixon, Missouri,” Leroy says. “My dad’s dad was a Pentecostal preacher, and my mom’s dad was a deacon in the Baptist church. But my parents weren’t much for going to church. Sometimes I’d go to Sunday School with an aunt, or I might attend Vacation Bible School, but when I was 12 or so, I got saved in the Baptist church. Well, that caused an uproar in the family because of their Pentecostal background! ‘Wait until your grandpa learns about this!’ they said, and I was left feeling like I’d done something wrong, rather than something right.

“After that I went to church a few times, but never felt like I belonged,” he continues, “and by the time I was 16 or 17, I was already drinking and doing drugs. By the time I was 27, I was already in a messed-up relationship, and one day we got into a fight and I got shot point blank through the chest. I was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital but when we got there, I woke up. The attendant said, ‘Hey, you’re dead!’ and I said, ‘No, I’m not!’

“I’ll never forget the surgeon’s words when I tried to thank him afterword. He said, ‘Son, you shouldn’t thank me. You just weren’t bad enough to go to hell, or good enough to go to Heaven!’ ”

Colleen, on the other hand, was raised in County Durham, England. “I was brought up by my grandparents, and my grandmother was Catholic. I know she gave me her love for Jesus, but my granddad gave me the things of the Spirit. I’ve always had those as my foundation, even though I never went to church.”

“I lived in a large farm house in the country—a retreat for my friends when they wanted time out. We’d talk about what was happening in the world, and although we had no knowledge of Bible prophecies, after 9/11 we just knew that something was going on. I began feeling a strong urge to give up everything I had and move to America with nothing but a suitcase. I finally did, and I can’t explain how I felt, except to say that it was very freeing. It’s as if I was going through my life and settling things within myself.”

However, Colleen says she missed those deep conversations with my friends. “By 2009 I was dying inside because I had nobody to connect with on a spiritual level,” she says.

Leroy and Colleen had moved several times, looking for land to settle and build on, and finally they came to Republic.

“While Leroy was at work I remember wanting to listen to something, but the only radio station was 3ABN! As I listened to David Asscherick, he got me! I kept thinking, This is exactly what I believe!

“I would turn it off before Leroy came home, and several months went by before I told him. Then I began switching it on tentatively and discovered that while he liked Doug Batchelor, he couldn’t handle David Asscherick’s pace!”

Colleen grins, “It’s sort of like a preference in herbal teas. In the morning I really like Red Zinger tea because it has a kick, but others like a more calm variety.”

THE INSISTENT MAN

After listening to 3ABN Radio for about a year, Colleen felt compelled to visit a Seventh-day Adventist church, but didn’t know when they met for worship. “I couldn’t get anyone on the telephone, so I called a church 50 miles away, and they told me the services were on Saturday mornings,” she says. “When I arrived I was greeted cordially and found a seat in the back of the church. Now you have to understand that I was raised Catholic, and mass was solemn and silent, but here people were drinking water, walking around, and greeting one another! They seemed genuinely good-hearted, though. After the service I met Martin Klein and his wife Janelle. She invited me to lunch, but I told her I couldn’t come because my husband was picking me up. As I was leaving, Martin kept up with me and said he wanted to invite my husband.

“ ‘Hello, Leroy, would you like to come to lunch?’ he asked as we approached the truck.

“ ‘No, I don’t think so,’ my husband answered. ‘Besides, I’m not dressed for lunch.’

“ ‘That’s okay, I invited someone who’s camping, so you’ll fit right in!’

“What a pushy guy! I thought, just as Leroy shot me a What’s going on? look. The truth is that he was so pushy we finally agreed to lunch out of courtesy! Later we found out that this was not his nature at all, but he’d felt the Holy Spirit compelling him that, no matter what, we were supposed to come home with them!”

They drove up to the house at the Klondike Mountain Health Retreat, founded by Martin’s father, Pastor Leonard, and his wife Aldine. Martin explained that they treated all sorts of lifestyle diseases and provided vegetarian cooking classes for the community. After lunch the two couples went for a walk, and the friendship they established brought Leroy and Colleen both back to church the following week.

Soon they began having Bible studies after lunch, and major changes began to take place. “We claimed the promises in Psalm 107, and the Lord took away the desire and broke the chains of our cigarette addiction,” Leroy says. “When God does something like that, He doesn’t mess around!”

On September 18, 2010, Leroy and Colleen were baptized in a lake, as their church family gathered around them. Church pastor Mel Pond, and retired pastor Leonard Klein (Martin’s father), baptized them together, welcoming them into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Today they are both active in their church, doing their part to spread the good news.

“It’s so important to have people walk with you from the time you begin attending church, through baptism, and beyond,” Colleen says. “It’s so important to never forget that our presence is important in church, too. Each of us gives the gift of our presence in church, and I think that ties in with what Jesus said in Matthew 18:20, ‘For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.’ It’s not just that we’re all there worshipping with the words—our hearts come out in worship, too. It’s a palpable thing, and when someone’s not there, I miss them.”

Leroy and Colleen (center) were baptized in a nearby lake. Since they had close friendships with both pastors, they asked Pastor Mel Pond (left) and Pastor Leonard Klein (right) to baptize them together.(Photo: Bob Charbonneau.)

MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD

Through God’s blessings, the Sharps have been able to purchase some land on a mountain and are now building a home that’s “off the grid.”

“We have no electricity,” Leroy says, “but we do have solar panels and batteries.”

“We also enjoy the light of lamps in the evening,” Colleen adds. “It’s so lovely. We have radios on our phones so we still listen to 3ABN Radio. I think it’s the best evangelist ever. It’s non-threatening, and different speakers appeal to different people. I think it would be great to have someone talk about the local church, though. I would have liked to hear what went on there, where it was, and what time they met.”

Her idea is not wasted on those who work there. “We have a tremendous need for someone willing to move here and volunteer to produce local programs,” says Bob Charbonneau, the personal ministries director for the Republic Seventh-day Adventist Church. “All the equipment is ready. They don’t even have to know how to run it. They just need to be willing to learn. This is a special place that Seventh-day Adventist founder, Ellen White, would have heartily endorsed,” he adds.

The little station on Gold Hill is working tirelessly to reach those who are seeking for the Lord. And with results like these, it’s proving to be more precious than gold!