Media & Adventist Benefits- Merging of Religious Beliefs

“Can you believe in Jesus and in astrology? The answer is a resounding yes, according to a study that shows Americans’ beliefs to be more complex than might be expected…

For example, 25 percent of about 4,000 U.S. adults surveyed believe in reincarnation, the rebirth of the soul in another body. Among Christians, the number drops only slightly, to 22 percent.” Survey finds complexity in U.S. religious beliefs, Washington Post, Thursday, December 10, 2009.

For over a hundred years Seventh-day Adventists have been preaching (from Revelation 13 & 16)

Media & Adventist Benefits- White Collar Cults

Recently one of our northwest Seventh-day Adventist pastors went through a very difficult experience. He was encouraged by several friends to attend a weekend in Portland called “Foundations.” He paid the fee and attended but had such serious reservations about some of the process that he left early. He wrote down his experience and perspectives . Afterwards he started doing more research into “Foundations” and other related activities. He came across an article titled “White Collar Cults” and stated that even though the article was written over 15 years ago it described numerous parallels with what he had just experienced.

What becomes abundantly clear from these experiences is that many people are searching for answers to deep relationship and emotional challenges. The ultimate solution can only be found in a deeper relationship with Jesus and healthier relationships within the body of Christ, in spite of all its flaws. As Seventh-day Adventists we have the tremendous advantage of have inpired counsel to help us filter out false therapies and embrace those in harmony with the principles of the Bible. For those who have never read them I highly recommend the two-volume set of Mind, Character and Personality (read some chapters online at Google Books and see free online study guides here) which has inspired counsel and Chapters such as Heredity and Environment (Chap 17), Security in the Home (18), Christ deals with Minds (21), Selfishness and Self-centeredness (30), Infatuation and Blind Love (32), Guilt (48), Worry and Anxiety (50), Depression (52), Pain (55), Anger (56), Hatred and Revenge (57), Communication (62), Imagination (63), Emotional Needs (66), Rejection (69), Thought Habits (72), Mind Controlling Mind (78), Hypnotism and Its Dangers (79), Safe Mind Therapy (80), Dealing With Emotions (84) and Safe Mind Therapy (81). There is no need to be led astray in these last days.

Alaska- North America’s Last Frontier Mission Field

Here is a great article by Judy Thomsen from the September 2009 issue of Adventist World magazine that highlights the challenges, possibilities and people in God’s work–

North America’s Last Frontier: All Alaska is a mission field; conditions on St. Lawrence Island present their own set of challenges.

Alaska is rich with unmistakable beauty. Majestic Mount McKinley; the dynamic, glaciated landscape and diverse wildlife of Denali National Park; miles of dense, lush forests and mountain ranges; hundreds of clear blue lakes and rivers; rich stores of natural resources; desolate tundra and windswept coastlines—it’s all there, and given intriguing names such as Yakutat, Knik, Skwentna, North Pole (a town), and 197½ Mile Creek. (Read more)

Why Not Try This? … Thank God “All Scripture… is profitable…”

Have you ever wondered, perhaps not aloud, why God allowed some things into the Bible? Why was there a need for all those geneologies? Wouldn’t it be better if the Rich Man & Lazarus parable had been left out? Do we need the record of mass killings in the Old Testament? And why in the world was Colossians 2:16 included, especially when God knew that at the end of time there would be such vicious attacks against the seventh-day Sabbath?

Changed Lives: Can She Talk to Dead Spirits?

From the NPUC Changed Lives website.

I came in contact with a lady who, for sometime now, has been telling me that she can talk to the dead spirits. I listened and would just ask general questions like, “So where do you think those spirits are coming from?” and “Where do you think the voices are coming from?” I would gently try and let her know, as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, what our belief of the dead was. She would ask me if I thought she was weird, or crazy, (she felt they were coming from God). I would say, “No, not at all.” I would tell her that I was a little concerned for her and she would ask me why, because she found comfort with them. I told her that I didn’t believe they came from God

What Works For Me In… Helping Those Who Grieve

When one of your members or friends has a heartbreaking tragedy what can you do- or not do- to help?  Please share your 2-3 paragraph ideas by clicking “Comment” below. Ginny Allen and her husband Dave (who taught Bible at Columbia Adventist Academy for years before he retired) lost their son in a tragic accident a few years ago. Ginny shares eleven insights on how to help in this recently published article in the Adventist Review- Click here to read “From Mourning to Morning” in the Adventist Review online.

Changed Lives: Steve Castillo

Steve Castillo was sixteen and a half when he became a father, and now has eleven children living throughout the United States.

“I grew up in southern California in a godly family that went to church regularly and had family worship. I was baptized as a boy,” says Steve. “But when I hit my teen years I found out I was great at sports. This love gradually took me away from faithful Sabbath-keeping and spiritual interests.”

Advent Movements- NPUC Office Staff & The Great Controversy

Here is an email message circulated November 28, 2007 to the North Pacific Union Conference (NPUC) Staff from NPUC President Jere Patzer–

Dear Staff:

This evening we received word that Marcia Stanton, administrative assistant for the Trust Department, passed away at 7:37 p.m.  She was with us in worship Monday (which was her birthday) and then as a severe headache developed was rushed to the hospital where several hours of  unsuccessful surgery were performed in an attempt to stop a hemorrhage in her brain. Marcia is known and loved for her sweet spirit and dedicated service to the Lord and His Church. To say she will be missed is a great understatement. Additional information regarding a memorial service will be shared as it becomes available.

As I reflected on this latest tragedy I realized anew that we are living in the “land of the enemy”. We are indeed in a Great Cosmic Conflict.  As I told Bryce, we here at the NPUC seem to be particularly vulnerable almost as though the devil has painted a target around our office. During the last months we have been significantly impacted by:

Advent Movements- Terry Albrecht, Keith Waters, Erv Furne, Bruce Juhl, Karl Haffner, Hispanic Coordinators

• Terry Albrecht, son of NPUC Evangelists Lyle & Peggy Albrecht, died unexpectedly September 19 in the Boise area from what is thought to be a brain aneurism. Let’s pray for all the family and put our hope in the resurrection.
• Keith Waters to NPUC Associate Director, Education Department from Upper Columbia Conference Educational Superintendent
• Erv Furne to Idaho Conference Ministerial Director in addition to pastoring Nampa, ID district
• Bruce Juhl to hospital chaplaincy from Ministerial Director Idaho Conference and Caldwell, ID district

Why Not Try This? …Reflect on the incredible hope the Second Coming of Jesus offers during times of tragedy

If you have never experienced a tragedy up close you have lived a more privileged life than most. Peter indicates that there will be suffering among believers throughout the world (1 Peter 5:9). But when tragedy and suffering come our way we have a different response than those who have not internalized the hope of the resurrection at the second coming of Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:13f.)

In July there were two drowning deaths that impacted the families of Carl Cosaert (WWC Theology Professor) and Mark Witas (Cascade Christian Academy Principal- Wenatchee, WA in the UC Conf). Here’s how Carl Cosaert expressed it in an e-mail:

Dear Friends,

Many of you know that my sixteen-year-old daughter Mindy Cosaert was involved in an accident last Sabbath afternoon near Leavenworth, WA. Mindy and her friend were attempting to cross an apparently calm part of the Tumwater river and were caught by an unexpectedly strong current and got pulled down some rapids. Her friend emerged unscathed but Mindy was not.

She was submerged under water for some 10 minutes before being pulled from a place further down the river. Another twenty-one year old girl Meghan Collier jumped in an attempt to save the two girls, but sustained numerous head injuries and ended up drowning in the process. Mindy was kept on life support at the Wenatchee hospital, as I desperately raced back from the country of Turkey. I arrived Monday night at 5:30 pm, but all attempts at restoring her to consciousness were unsuccessful. We learned last night that she was declared brain dead. She apparently had sustained a broken right arm during the accident, and both her lungs had collapsed. The official cause of her death was drowning. Since her body was unable to sustain itself any longer, we had the difficult task of finally having to turn off the ventilation tube late this morning. 

We invite you to attend her memorial service scheduled for this Sabbath [July 22] at the College Church at 4:30 pm.

We thank you for all your prayers and ask that you continue to pray for us as our family struggles to deal with a pain like nothing we have ever known before.

Carl P. Cosaert, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity

Walla Walla College

At Mindy’s memorial service Carl shared his personal struggle while waiting in an airport in Turkey for five hours. God led him to the story of Jesus raising the daughter of Jairus back to life (Mark 5:22f. & Luke 8:41f.). Carl helped all of us relive the story in ways we never had before. We are all still waiting for the final verse to take place for Mindy when Jesus comes again and says “Little girl, I say to you, arise” (Mark 5:41).

Meghan Collier Doggett, age 21, the other young lady that drowned, lived with Mark Witas & family, principal at Cascade Christian Academy, our Adventist school in Wenatchee, WA. Her memorial service was the day before at the Wenatchee Seventh-day Adventist Church. Mark and others recounted how Meghan had experienced a difficult childhood but through the work of the Holy Spirit and the love and support of the school and church family she had become a spiritual leader among her peers.

Fortunately both girls had given lots of evidence of a whole-hearted commitment to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Liza Vargas, the other girl who was miraculously spared, says that when she finally came to rest on a rock at the end of ¾ mile of rapids she rededicated her life to Jesus right there.

In times of tragedy the comfort of the Holy Spirit, the counsel of the Bible and the confidence in the resurrection and reunion that will take place with those who have died in Christ at the second coming of Jesus carry us through the pains of emptiness and loss.

Here are some reflections on tragedy and the hope we have in Jesus-

1. Life is uncertain & fragile. 1 Peter 1:24-25- For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall,  ²⁵ but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.

2. Death was not a part of God’s plan. When Lazarus died, Jesus cried. John 11:35- Jesus wept.

3. Walk with Jesus every day. 1 Thessalonians 5:15-19- Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.  ¹⁶ Be joyful always;  ¹⁷ pray continually;  ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  ¹⁹ Do not put out the Spirit’s fire

4. Believers don’t have the same kind of sorrow as others. 1 Thessalonians 4:13- Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.

5. Those who die in Christ will live again at the first resurrection when Jesus comes again. 1 Thessalonians 4:16- For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

6. When Jesus comes again there will be rejoicing & a great reunion of all those who love Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18- After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.  ¹⁸ Therefore encourage each other with these words.

• We have this hope that burns within our hearts, hope in the coming of the Lord
• We have this faith that Christ alone imparts, faith in the promise of His word
• We believe the time is here when the nations far and near
• Shall awaken, shout and sing, Halleluiah, Christ is King!
• We have this hope that burns within our hearts, hope in the coming of the Lord

7. When we are tempted to blame ourselves or others or ask “What if…” questions, Jesus reminds us that He has power to resurrect and give life. John 11:21- ”Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. John 11:32- When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:25- Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies

8. Wherever you are at spiritually you can come to Jesus with your burdens & He will give you peace. Matthew 11:28-30- ”Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Nahum 1:7- The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him. 1 Peter 5:7- Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

9. In God’s master plan, someday soon there will be no more sorrow. Revelation 21:3-4- And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

10. We have only one life and it will soon be gone… Revelation 14:13- Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

• Only one life, it will soon be passed.
• Only what’s done for Christ will last.

This tragedy is another reminder of why we must be bold in carrying out our mission- to let people know of a Crucified, Risen & Soon-coming Savior who will reunite family and friends at the resurrection when He returns! Maranatha- Even so, come Lord Jesus.

Blessings to you,
Dan Serns

Related link (added latter) “My Journey With Jairus” by Carl Cosaert, published in Adventist Review November 23, 2006

WHAT WORKS FOR ME… in Helping Those Who are Grieving

i)        Matt Lombard, Pastor of Sandpoint, ID church in the Upper Columbia Conference: When I get that call informing me of a death I realize that every situation is unique so I PRAY “Lord, be with ___ right now and help me to best know how to minister to them”.  If I am not able, for some reason, to go to the loved one(s) immediately, I call to pray with them and set up an appointment to visit them.  Nothing is more powerful than the words that bring hope and comfort in the Bible.  Therefore I always try to share a passage or two such as I Thessalonians 4.

ii)       Matthew Gamble, Assoc. Pastor of 24/Seven Ministry Center, Seattle, WA – Washington Conference:  Have you ever had a strong impression to call someone?  A few weeks ago I could not get away from the thought that I had to call a particular family from our church.  After several attempts I finally got through.  “Hi this is Pastor Matthew calling just to see how you and your family are doing.  Over the last two days your family has been laid on my heart and I thought I would see how everything was going.” Even though I know that God works in mysterious ways, I was floored when the lady at the other end of the line replied, “My brother was the pilot flying the plane that went down in Tennessee.  We have just returned from the funeral for him and the memorial service for all those in the plane.”  I had no idea that there was any connection between this lady and the recently deceased pilot.  Immediately “Super Pastor” came to the rescue with words of  condolence flying out of my mouth.  After a few moments passed I stopped to listen and it was then that ministry truly began to happen.  You see not only did the voice on the other end have the opportunity to share her experience, but she also began to speak a language of faith that was a testimony to me.  As I listened to the tragedy that this young lady had endured with such strong faith I realized it was I who had been ministered to.  Maybe it’s time for “Super Pastor” to be willing to listen more often.