1 00:00:11,945 --> 00:00:14,180 The all inclusive church in Italy. 2 00:00:14,547 --> 00:00:19,853 Pioneers of hope in Brazil, and mission in the challenging area of Germany. 3 00:00:20,253 --> 00:00:23,356 All this and much more from the frontlines of mission 4 00:00:23,623 --> 00:00:24,958 Coming up next. 5 00:01:01,361 --> 00:01:03,530 Hello and welcome to Mission 360. 6 00:01:03,563 --> 00:01:04,964 I'm Gary Krause. 7 00:01:04,964 --> 00:01:08,701 Today's program is coming to you from Leipzig in Germany. 8 00:01:09,202 --> 00:01:12,939 And on today's program, as we always do, we're going to travel 9 00:01:12,939 --> 00:01:17,210 to various parts of the world to see Frontline mission in action. 10 00:01:17,644 --> 00:01:20,180 We're going to look at mission right here in Germany. 11 00:01:20,213 --> 00:01:22,382 We're going to travel to places such as Italy. 12 00:01:22,682 --> 00:01:25,785 But first up, pioneers of hope in Brazil. 13 00:01:33,159 --> 00:01:35,762 On February 22nd, 1895, 14 00:01:35,762 --> 00:01:39,799 pioneer missionary Frank H. Westphal arrived in Brazil. 15 00:01:40,233 --> 00:01:43,002 He found the Adventist message had already arrived 16 00:01:43,002 --> 00:01:46,306 some 15 years earlier as ink on paper 17 00:01:46,473 --> 00:01:49,876 in a seaside port in the state of Santa Catarina. 18 00:01:50,477 --> 00:01:54,380 Frank and Mary Westphal began their work in Wisconsin, USA, 19 00:01:54,647 --> 00:01:58,184 where Frank worked to reach the German-speaking population. 20 00:01:58,618 --> 00:02:02,055 He attended Battle Creek College and taught at Union College 21 00:02:02,055 --> 00:02:05,325 before answering God's call to serve as a missionary. 22 00:02:06,092 --> 00:02:11,064 In 1894, the General Conference decided to send him to South America 23 00:02:11,064 --> 00:02:13,066 as the first ordained minister. 24 00:02:13,566 --> 00:02:18,605 In August 1894, Frank, Mary, their son, and baby daughter 25 00:02:18,605 --> 00:02:21,007 arrived in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 26 00:02:21,774 --> 00:02:25,778 Frank was appointed president of the South America East Coast mission, 27 00:02:25,778 --> 00:02:28,948 which covered the territories of Argentina, Uruguay, 28 00:02:28,948 --> 00:02:30,683 Paraguay, and Brazil. 29 00:02:31,351 --> 00:02:33,019 Frank wasted no time 30 00:02:33,019 --> 00:02:35,822 and immediately traveled to Crespo, Argentina, 31 00:02:35,822 --> 00:02:38,558 where a group of Adventist believers were waiting. 32 00:02:39,192 --> 00:02:40,760 There, he helped establish 33 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:44,063 the first Adventist church in South America. 34 00:02:44,831 --> 00:02:47,500 Soon, Frank turned his attention to Brazil. 35 00:02:47,934 --> 00:02:50,637 On July 18th, 1894, 36 00:02:50,637 --> 00:02:54,207 Frank began visiting various places in the state of São Paulo, 37 00:02:54,774 --> 00:02:56,643 meeting with interested families 38 00:02:56,643 --> 00:02:58,978 and starting branch Sabbath schools. 39 00:02:59,479 --> 00:03:02,148 One of those stops was in Piracicaba 40 00:03:02,148 --> 00:03:04,784 where he baptized Guilherme Stein Jr., 41 00:03:04,784 --> 00:03:08,488 the first Brazilian believer to be baptized in the country. 42 00:03:09,088 --> 00:03:11,858 From there, Frank traveled to Gaspar Alto, 43 00:03:11,858 --> 00:03:14,561 to meet with another group of interested believers. 44 00:03:14,994 --> 00:03:18,631 When he arrived, he tried to find a place to hold meetings, 45 00:03:18,631 --> 00:03:21,935 but was met with opposition from the local religious leader. 46 00:03:22,468 --> 00:03:25,705 Finally, he decided to hold meetings by the river. 47 00:03:26,306 --> 00:03:29,742 On Sabbath, June 8th, after celebrating the Lord's supper, 48 00:03:29,909 --> 00:03:31,911 eight people were baptized. 49 00:03:32,212 --> 00:03:35,748 A few days later, 15 more people were baptized. 50 00:03:36,115 --> 00:03:39,586 On June 15th, the first Brazilian Adventist church 51 00:03:39,586 --> 00:03:42,355 was established in Gaspar Alto, 52 00:03:42,355 --> 00:03:45,658 less than 40 miles from where the Adventist message 53 00:03:45,658 --> 00:03:48,595 had first arrived 15 years earlier. 54 00:03:49,229 --> 00:03:52,232 After laboring in the mission field for five months, 55 00:03:52,232 --> 00:03:54,968 Frank returned to Buenos Aires to tragedy. 56 00:03:55,335 --> 00:03:59,405 His daughter, Helen, had taken ill and died on June 15th, 57 00:04:00,073 --> 00:04:02,008 two weeks before his return 58 00:04:02,008 --> 00:04:04,510 and on the same day he had helped establish 59 00:04:04,510 --> 00:04:06,746 the church in Gaspar Alto. 60 00:04:07,180 --> 00:04:12,185 Despite tragedy and hardships, the Westphals continued on 61 00:04:12,185 --> 00:04:17,190 and gave a total of 27 years of service in South America. 62 00:04:17,724 --> 00:04:23,529 Today, there are more than 1.7 million Seventh-day Adventists in Brazil, 63 00:04:23,796 --> 00:04:27,500 and more than 18,000 churches and companies. 64 00:04:27,967 --> 00:04:31,871 There is one Adventist for every 122 people. 65 00:04:32,338 --> 00:04:35,942 To pioneer missionaries like Frank and Mary Westphal, 66 00:04:36,509 --> 00:04:37,710 we say "obrigado." 67 00:04:39,012 --> 00:04:41,014 My guest today is Pastor Andreas. 68 00:04:41,014 --> 00:04:43,349 And thank you so much for joining us. 69 00:04:43,716 --> 00:04:46,653 I'm fascinated by the School of Life program. 70 00:04:46,853 --> 00:04:50,223 Give me some some background to this and why you started it. 71 00:04:50,556 --> 00:04:53,626 Well, east Germans are the world champions of Atheism, 72 00:04:53,626 --> 00:04:55,595 that's something to be proud of, isn’t it? 73 00:04:55,962 --> 00:04:57,297 it goes along the 74 00:04:57,297 --> 00:05:00,800 coast Goes a long time, a long, long, long way. 75 00:05:00,833 --> 00:05:04,437 You know, Atheism is deeply rooted in society. 76 00:05:04,470 --> 00:05:09,242 There's a huge gap between Christians of any sort and normal people. 77 00:05:09,876 --> 00:05:12,979 Yes. And so this atheism is kind of like inbred. 78 00:05:12,979 --> 00:05:15,148 It's part of the DNA of of East Germans. 79 00:05:15,181 --> 00:05:15,481 Surely. 80 00:05:15,481 --> 00:05:17,717 Surely it's it's not. It's not. 81 00:05:18,017 --> 00:05:19,652 They don't fight church. 82 00:05:19,652 --> 00:05:21,854 They don't judge us. Don't mind. They just ignore it. 83 00:05:21,921 --> 00:05:22,989 Yeah, yeah, yeah. 84 00:05:22,989 --> 00:05:26,326 So you as a pastor, of course, you look at this challenge. 85 00:05:26,492 --> 00:05:28,895 How do you respond? Well, I suffer from. 86 00:05:28,961 --> 00:05:31,030 Yeah. Yeah, it makes me sad. 87 00:05:31,097 --> 00:05:34,334 Yes, because I love my church. I'm. 88 00:05:35,068 --> 00:05:36,936 I enjoy being a Seventh Day Adventist. 89 00:05:36,936 --> 00:05:40,139 I'm enjoying being a Christian. It makes me. 90 00:05:40,139 --> 00:05:41,074 It makes me happy. 91 00:05:41,074 --> 00:05:43,509 And I feel God. I think Jesus very close to me. 92 00:05:43,876 --> 00:05:45,812 But people don't do don't mind. 93 00:05:45,812 --> 00:05:47,680 So what can I do? 94 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:50,850 But are other things that also part of my life is 95 00:05:51,417 --> 00:05:54,721 how that how I develop as a person, how I talk to my problems. 96 00:05:55,254 --> 00:05:58,725 And I found out if I speak to people about these things, 97 00:05:59,792 --> 00:06:01,527 suddenly they connect. 98 00:06:01,527 --> 00:06:03,196 We feel a kind of wonders. 99 00:06:03,196 --> 00:06:05,398 It's kind of a human oneness. 100 00:06:05,398 --> 00:06:08,801 And that's what School of Life, School of Living is all about. 101 00:06:09,302 --> 00:06:11,371 Okay, so how do you how did you started? 102 00:06:11,371 --> 00:06:12,605 What did you do? 103 00:06:12,605 --> 00:06:16,743 Well, we had a actually a net evangelical 104 00:06:17,643 --> 00:06:20,079 evangelist that soon we call it evangelist swing. 105 00:06:20,079 --> 00:06:22,749 It's kind of a campaign with Dwight Nelson, Yes. 106 00:06:22,782 --> 00:06:27,887 In 98 by satellite and I talked I talk with my church 107 00:06:27,887 --> 00:06:31,391 members about what what what can we do after this is over? 108 00:06:31,691 --> 00:06:34,093 And I said, you know, I have a suggestion. 109 00:06:34,093 --> 00:06:36,295 Let's start a school of life. 110 00:06:36,295 --> 00:06:37,997 And I simply started, 111 00:06:37,997 --> 00:06:42,969 Dwight Nelson was was all over and then I started the School of Life. 112 00:06:43,403 --> 00:06:46,105 And describe for us what the School of Life is. 113 00:06:46,472 --> 00:06:51,210 Well, people come and they you give a lecture on on issues 114 00:06:51,210 --> 00:06:57,283 like relationships or depression or wisdom or how to cope with 115 00:06:57,817 --> 00:07:01,020 in a family about how to solve problems 116 00:07:01,020 --> 00:07:03,656 when you come from a dysfunctional past, something like that. 117 00:07:04,257 --> 00:07:06,659 And after this, you can sit together 118 00:07:06,692 --> 00:07:10,563 with people and simply listen and they talk with each other about these things. 119 00:07:11,063 --> 00:07:15,368 So it's you with a group of people from the community talking about life issues. 120 00:07:15,401 --> 00:07:16,969 Yes, that's exactly. 121 00:07:16,969 --> 00:07:20,640 And and people aren't threatened because you're not preaching at them. 122 00:07:20,640 --> 00:07:21,307 No, no. 123 00:07:21,307 --> 00:07:23,676 You don't start with prayer. You don't enforce prayer. 124 00:07:23,943 --> 00:07:25,211 They know you are Christian. 125 00:07:25,211 --> 00:07:27,847 They know you are Seventh-day Adventist pastor. 126 00:07:27,847 --> 00:07:31,350 But in this in this time, during this time, 127 00:07:31,350 --> 00:07:34,587 you simply try to be on their level. 128 00:07:35,021 --> 00:07:37,290 You come down to that level like Jesus did. 129 00:07:37,290 --> 00:07:40,426 You know, he got became human and he 130 00:07:41,060 --> 00:07:44,130 he wanted to feel how it is to be like us, you know, 131 00:07:44,130 --> 00:07:47,900 walk with feet and get dirty and something like that. 132 00:07:47,900 --> 00:07:49,502 And you do the same thing. 133 00:07:49,502 --> 00:07:51,504 You go on the level of the people. 134 00:07:51,504 --> 00:07:53,606 That's wonderful. Now you. So you started a group? 135 00:07:53,639 --> 00:07:54,640 Yes. At your church? 136 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:57,109 Yes. Now, how has it grown now? 137 00:07:57,477 --> 00:08:00,980 I started to convince other people that this is a good thing to do. 138 00:08:01,481 --> 00:08:02,949 But first they didn't believe me. 139 00:08:02,949 --> 00:08:05,251 They they said, you are a psychologist. 140 00:08:05,251 --> 00:08:07,453 You're a trained psychologist at Andrews. 141 00:08:07,453 --> 00:08:09,755 I did my Ph.D. in counseling psych. 142 00:08:09,755 --> 00:08:11,524 And you can do that, but not us. 143 00:08:11,524 --> 00:08:14,160 But I said, no, you you can do that also. 144 00:08:14,827 --> 00:08:17,196 And it took a quite a number of years. 145 00:08:17,196 --> 00:08:21,000 And then I sat down with two pastors and we went through 146 00:08:21,033 --> 00:08:24,871 a series of presentations and we worked on them together. 147 00:08:25,171 --> 00:08:27,440 And then I said, Now you start. 148 00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:28,241 And they began. 149 00:08:28,241 --> 00:08:31,744 And one guy, you know, he he did a presentation, 150 00:08:31,744 --> 00:08:34,213 started giving a presentation on depression, 151 00:08:34,780 --> 00:08:37,617 and he had much more attendance 152 00:08:37,950 --> 00:08:41,087 than I had when I started years ago. 153 00:08:41,220 --> 00:08:43,890 Well, so how many groups are there now? 154 00:08:44,290 --> 00:08:49,328 Well, before the pandemic, we had between 50 or 60 groups in entire Germany. 155 00:08:49,395 --> 00:08:51,364 That's wonderful. Yes. 156 00:08:51,364 --> 00:08:55,234 Tell me an experience of someone whose life was touched through this. 157 00:08:55,501 --> 00:08:58,471 Well, there was one person I didn't know about her a lot, but 158 00:08:59,038 --> 00:09:01,574 she came to 159 00:09:01,574 --> 00:09:05,211 to our community, so to speak. And 160 00:09:06,712 --> 00:09:09,181 then I ask how. 161 00:09:09,181 --> 00:09:11,417 Then I had a list 162 00:09:11,617 --> 00:09:14,186 and people could write their names down 163 00:09:14,186 --> 00:09:18,691 if they wanted to have some introduction on spirituality. 164 00:09:19,325 --> 00:09:23,162 And she wrote her name down and a couple of years went by. 165 00:09:23,829 --> 00:09:27,099 And then I asked her, you know, how about you? 166 00:09:27,099 --> 00:09:31,203 You said, you know, you wanted to come and what happened? 167 00:09:31,203 --> 00:09:33,706 And she said, Yes, I will come this time. 168 00:09:33,706 --> 00:09:38,311 And she came and she made friends with a couple from the church. 169 00:09:38,311 --> 00:09:41,347 They also came to this place and she became a Seventh Day Adventist. 170 00:09:41,581 --> 00:09:44,317 Hmm. Yes. So the connection had been made. 171 00:09:44,750 --> 00:09:48,187 So she initially came to one of the groups discussing one topic. 172 00:09:48,254 --> 00:09:48,921 That's right. 173 00:09:48,921 --> 00:09:52,291 And then she was prepared to go to the spirituality class. 174 00:09:52,291 --> 00:09:54,360 That's that's exactly how it happened. Okay. 175 00:09:54,360 --> 00:09:56,996 And then she got to know she made friends in the church 176 00:09:57,930 --> 00:10:01,834 and then she said, I want to become a Seventh Day Adventist. 177 00:10:01,834 --> 00:10:03,603 And she got baptized. Yes. 178 00:10:03,603 --> 00:10:05,638 So it seems to me what you're talking about here 179 00:10:05,638 --> 00:10:09,575 is something that you are connecting with the community in a way 180 00:10:09,575 --> 00:10:14,480 they would never connect if you said come and come to our church. Yes. 181 00:10:14,480 --> 00:10:16,983 Because the gap is so huge. Right. 182 00:10:17,283 --> 00:10:18,117 That's the problem. 183 00:10:18,117 --> 00:10:18,884 Yeah. Yeah. 184 00:10:18,884 --> 00:10:21,721 So most of the time we are assuming people know the Bible. 185 00:10:21,754 --> 00:10:24,256 These people never opened it in their lives. 186 00:10:24,523 --> 00:10:30,363 Basically, you have to some sort of become an atheist for atheists. 187 00:10:31,063 --> 00:10:33,966 So you need to make your shrink 188 00:10:33,966 --> 00:10:36,969 yourself on the on the level. 189 00:10:37,003 --> 00:10:38,337 An atheist that 190 00:10:39,305 --> 00:10:40,206 lives, you know, 191 00:10:40,206 --> 00:10:43,843 and try to be kind of become one of them. 192 00:10:44,010 --> 00:10:46,979 Like Christ did. Right, and the apostle Paul said, 193 00:10:46,979 --> 00:10:49,682 I've become all things to all people so that I can win one. 194 00:10:49,982 --> 00:10:51,283 Exactly. Exactly. 195 00:10:51,283 --> 00:10:53,819 Thank you so much for sharing your work today. 196 00:10:53,819 --> 00:10:56,088 And friends, this is an exciting thing. 197 00:10:56,088 --> 00:10:59,659 And this is, you know, when you're dealing with people 198 00:10:59,659 --> 00:11:02,695 who don't have the same world view, who don't have the same assumptions 199 00:11:02,695 --> 00:11:05,898 about the Bible, do not believe in God, it is difficult. 200 00:11:06,232 --> 00:11:08,367 It is challenging. It is a mission field. 201 00:11:08,834 --> 00:11:11,437 So please pray for these groups 202 00:11:11,871 --> 00:11:14,040 that they will encounter through this 203 00:11:15,141 --> 00:11:17,843 Christians who love God and that they will come to know 204 00:11:17,843 --> 00:11:20,713 that following Jesus is the best way to be. 205 00:11:37,563 --> 00:11:38,898 Welcome back to Leipzig. 206 00:11:38,898 --> 00:11:41,100 And behind me you can see the Thomas Church. 207 00:11:41,701 --> 00:11:44,904 And in front of it is a statue to Johann 208 00:11:44,904 --> 00:11:50,342 Sebastian Bach, a remarkable virtuoso, musician and composer, 209 00:11:50,910 --> 00:11:53,479 perhaps the greatest the world has ever seen. 210 00:11:54,146 --> 00:11:58,217 He was also a deeply religious man and also a humble man. 211 00:11:58,784 --> 00:12:03,289 And at the bottom of every music manuscript that he wrote, 212 00:12:03,289 --> 00:12:08,160 every religious work at the bottom, he had the initials SDG, 213 00:12:08,828 --> 00:12:13,833 Soli Deo Gloria, which was to the glory of God alone. 214 00:12:15,301 --> 00:12:16,202 Hello. 215 00:12:16,202 --> 00:12:17,737 Welcome to India here. 216 00:12:17,737 --> 00:12:21,373 I'm with a special guest, Pastor Biswajit. 217 00:12:22,074 --> 00:12:23,609 I know him as Bobby. 218 00:12:23,609 --> 00:12:26,879 We've met many years ago, maybe almost eight years ago. 219 00:12:27,213 --> 00:12:28,581 And now we meet again. 220 00:12:28,581 --> 00:12:31,317 Oh, I'm so glad to see you, brother Caleb. 221 00:12:31,317 --> 00:12:32,251 Thank you. 222 00:12:32,551 --> 00:12:33,352 Can you tell me? 223 00:12:33,352 --> 00:12:34,487 Introduce yourself. 224 00:12:34,487 --> 00:12:37,089 Tell us who you are and what you do here. 225 00:12:37,423 --> 00:12:37,690 Okay. 226 00:12:37,690 --> 00:12:40,726 Well, um, my name is Biswajit Bhoumick. 227 00:12:42,361 --> 00:12:45,598 I am a circle leader working for Hope for Calcutta project. 228 00:12:46,198 --> 00:12:49,401 And here I am also taking care 229 00:12:49,401 --> 00:12:53,472 of this UCI - Urban Center of Influence. 230 00:12:53,472 --> 00:12:58,410 Uh, it's a health care, uh, facilities we provide, 231 00:12:58,711 --> 00:13:02,148 and we provide community service from this center. 232 00:13:02,281 --> 00:13:03,349 Excellent. 233 00:13:03,349 --> 00:13:04,617 Now, you mentioned it. 234 00:13:04,617 --> 00:13:07,653 Right behind us is your Urban Center of Influence. 235 00:13:07,653 --> 00:13:09,388 Yes. What? 236 00:13:09,388 --> 00:13:10,556 Why is it here? 237 00:13:10,556 --> 00:13:12,792 And what do you do at the center? 238 00:13:12,792 --> 00:13:15,828 Okay, well, uh, we have a doctor. 239 00:13:16,262 --> 00:13:17,263 We have a health team. 240 00:13:17,263 --> 00:13:19,565 We have doctor, we have nurses. 241 00:13:19,565 --> 00:13:24,770 Now we have the male therapist, and we have female therapist. 242 00:13:25,037 --> 00:13:26,705 And we are here. 243 00:13:26,705 --> 00:13:30,476 We serve the community if they require 244 00:13:30,476 --> 00:13:33,679 any needs. 245 00:13:33,779 --> 00:13:35,314 They are needed. We are. 246 00:13:35,314 --> 00:13:36,949 We are here to help them. 247 00:13:36,949 --> 00:13:40,519 Especially, uh, we provide the health care also, 248 00:13:40,853 --> 00:13:44,256 uh, when people get sick and they come here 249 00:13:44,490 --> 00:13:49,562 and through these natural therapy, the hydro treatment, we have the therapist. 250 00:13:49,862 --> 00:13:53,132 We touched many lives in this community. 251 00:13:53,265 --> 00:13:54,967 That's excellent. 252 00:13:54,967 --> 00:13:58,237 So what are some of the most common things that you help with here? 253 00:13:58,270 --> 00:13:58,470 What? 254 00:13:58,470 --> 00:14:02,374 When people come to your center, what are the reasons that they're coming? 255 00:14:03,075 --> 00:14:05,077 Okay, well, um, 256 00:14:06,078 --> 00:14:08,581 when they are sick, they come to the center. 257 00:14:08,914 --> 00:14:12,384 And not only that, the health issue we conduct the 258 00:14:13,085 --> 00:14:16,388 healthy cooking class that is completely free. 259 00:14:16,622 --> 00:14:22,261 And, uh, through this healthy cooking class, we also attracted many people 260 00:14:22,428 --> 00:14:26,465 and many of them are coming, are learning how to cook oil free cooking. 261 00:14:28,133 --> 00:14:29,301 So, Yeah. 262 00:14:29,301 --> 00:14:31,170 Healthy cooking class. We do. 263 00:14:31,170 --> 00:14:33,939 We conduct, uh, Christmas, Christmastime. 264 00:14:33,939 --> 00:14:37,743 We have conducted programs and around 32 people have come 265 00:14:38,244 --> 00:14:40,646 and we projected Jesus film. 266 00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:43,716 And after the program, I see people literally 267 00:14:43,716 --> 00:14:47,720 they cried. It touched their lives and we appeal them. 268 00:14:48,120 --> 00:14:52,591 Would you like to come here if we conduct this type of meeting? 269 00:14:52,591 --> 00:14:55,561 And they said yes, and they are keep on coming. 270 00:14:55,761 --> 00:14:59,231 They still come and that is shown. 271 00:14:59,598 --> 00:15:02,902 Then we also interested on children. 272 00:15:03,335 --> 00:15:05,938 So we tell children the story. 273 00:15:06,505 --> 00:15:10,309 And, uh, many children, they come and tell Uncle, 274 00:15:10,309 --> 00:15:13,445 why don't you conduct, uh, drawing class for us? 275 00:15:13,779 --> 00:15:16,448 I said, okay, One of the sun will have horns in a month. 276 00:15:16,448 --> 00:15:17,750 So you're an artist? 277 00:15:17,750 --> 00:15:22,021 Uh, yeah, I noticed The children, they come in the request 278 00:15:23,122 --> 00:15:26,792 and many other issues, like elderly people. 279 00:15:26,792 --> 00:15:29,395 They come and 280 00:15:29,395 --> 00:15:32,064 tell their problems, and we go and try to help them. 281 00:15:32,064 --> 00:15:36,902 And whatever the needs, the and need from us, we can help them like that. 282 00:15:36,902 --> 00:15:39,672 We are reaching to these people. Yes. 283 00:15:40,172 --> 00:15:42,841 So it sounds like you're in the business of health care, 284 00:15:43,208 --> 00:15:46,745 but also in the business of making religious welfare. 285 00:15:46,779 --> 00:15:48,213 Yes. Yes. 286 00:15:48,213 --> 00:15:51,817 So you also aim to have relationships and care for people's 287 00:15:51,917 --> 00:15:53,118 emotional needs as well. 288 00:15:53,118 --> 00:15:54,853 Yes, emotional needs. Yeah. 289 00:15:54,853 --> 00:15:56,555 We are friendly with all these people. 290 00:15:56,555 --> 00:15:59,124 They are very good friend of us. 291 00:15:59,124 --> 00:16:02,895 Beside our building there is an aunty from an upper class 292 00:16:03,162 --> 00:16:06,065 and they become friendly to us now. 293 00:16:06,098 --> 00:16:08,300 She started coming to our center, you know. 294 00:16:08,300 --> 00:16:09,335 Very nice. 295 00:16:09,335 --> 00:16:12,771 That's the beauty and she involved other also. 296 00:16:14,173 --> 00:16:15,808 And yeah 297 00:16:15,808 --> 00:16:19,678 all this locality that side also we are friendly with them. 298 00:16:19,745 --> 00:16:22,281 So with that you're building community, right? 299 00:16:22,281 --> 00:16:23,882 Yeah, we are building the community. 300 00:16:23,882 --> 00:16:27,619 So, Pastor, can you tell me maybe a story of how this center 301 00:16:27,619 --> 00:16:29,788 has been impacting people's lives? 302 00:16:29,788 --> 00:16:30,789 Okay. 303 00:16:32,157 --> 00:16:33,325 After right after 304 00:16:33,325 --> 00:16:36,362 inauguration, this UCI. 305 00:16:36,528 --> 00:16:40,132 We have a neighbor, the aunty, who lives beside our residence. 306 00:16:40,499 --> 00:16:43,202 So I noticed 307 00:16:43,202 --> 00:16:46,405 very late night also around 11:30 - 12:00 o’clock, her light is on. 308 00:16:46,705 --> 00:16:49,742 So as we talk, we became very friendly with her 309 00:16:50,042 --> 00:16:52,711 and see it all by tension. 310 00:16:52,711 --> 00:16:54,680 I cannot sleep all over the night. 311 00:16:54,680 --> 00:16:56,048 I am, I was a wake till 312 00:16:56,048 --> 00:16:57,950 1:00 o’clock also some time. 313 00:16:57,950 --> 00:16:59,385 So Saturdays. 314 00:16:59,385 --> 00:17:02,321 Then I told; “Aunty, why not come to our center?” 315 00:17:03,489 --> 00:17:07,693 “Why don’t you see our doctor?” as so she came down and, you know, 316 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:10,429 she didn't have any medical problem 317 00:17:10,796 --> 00:17:15,367 and see thinking so much because her husband 318 00:17:15,601 --> 00:17:18,737 died due to this COVID 19, which is very said. 319 00:17:19,171 --> 00:17:20,639 We said it was sad to hear that. 320 00:17:20,639 --> 00:17:24,576 And as she talked with the doctor and literally I could see 321 00:17:24,777 --> 00:17:30,449 she feels a little bit relaxed and doctor gave nice counseling to her. And 322 00:17:31,517 --> 00:17:33,519 we we also go and visit her. 323 00:17:34,219 --> 00:17:36,555 And she is, you know, more feeling lonely. 324 00:17:36,555 --> 00:17:39,992 She is happy by our visit 325 00:17:40,059 --> 00:17:41,360 impact her life. 326 00:17:41,360 --> 00:17:42,428 Very nice. 327 00:17:42,428 --> 00:17:43,662 So you still have a relationship? 328 00:17:43,662 --> 00:17:47,566 Yes, still we have relationship and we are good neighbour. 329 00:17:47,566 --> 00:17:49,668 And we have good relationship with her. 330 00:17:50,002 --> 00:17:53,105 And she comes to center now and then. Very nice. 331 00:17:53,105 --> 00:17:56,041 and her anxiety level also comes down. 332 00:17:56,542 --> 00:17:59,278 Now medication also reduced. Good. 333 00:17:59,611 --> 00:18:02,414 So you're treating her emotional needs as well. 334 00:18:02,614 --> 00:18:06,618 It sounds very much like you're following what Jesus did, not just attending 335 00:18:06,618 --> 00:18:10,389 physical needs, but mingling with people, caring for them, 336 00:18:10,589 --> 00:18:13,759 showing them that they have someone that that cares for them 337 00:18:14,193 --> 00:18:17,296 and knows that they are special and that they matter to other people. 338 00:18:17,296 --> 00:18:19,565 Yes, that's very excellent. 339 00:18:19,565 --> 00:18:23,335 Thank you so much, Pastor, for telling us a little bit about your center here. 340 00:18:23,368 --> 00:18:23,936 Okay. 341 00:18:24,470 --> 00:18:28,474 We hope that you have more success and get to know even more of the community. 342 00:18:28,907 --> 00:18:31,810 And we appreciate the model that you're laying here. 343 00:18:32,010 --> 00:18:33,912 Thank you very much. Welcome. Thank you so much. 344 00:18:33,912 --> 00:18:34,980 Thank you. 345 00:18:34,980 --> 00:18:38,283 And viewers at home, we hope that you can be motivated 346 00:18:38,283 --> 00:18:41,820 by stories like this, seeing how much just checking up on someone. 347 00:18:42,254 --> 00:18:44,590 How much of that made a difference for that lady? 348 00:18:44,590 --> 00:18:49,061 And now they know that there are people that care for her just like Jesus does. 349 00:18:49,561 --> 00:18:52,197 Thank you, and I hope you enjoy the next mission stories. 350 00:19:04,843 --> 00:19:05,511 Behind me is 351 00:19:05,511 --> 00:19:08,881 the Nicholas Church, and it played a vital role 352 00:19:09,314 --> 00:19:13,152 back in the 1980s for the fall of communism here in the GDR. 353 00:19:13,685 --> 00:19:16,455 In the early 1980s, the pastor of this church 354 00:19:16,455 --> 00:19:18,891 started holding weekly prayer meetings. 355 00:19:18,891 --> 00:19:21,360 The numbers started to grow, and they started holding 356 00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:23,595 candlelight vigils for peace. 357 00:19:24,329 --> 00:19:27,266 In 1989, On October 9th, 358 00:19:27,533 --> 00:19:31,670 hundreds of people gathered here, and then they came out onto the streets 359 00:19:32,371 --> 00:19:34,673 and some 70 to 100,000 360 00:19:34,673 --> 00:19:37,409 people joined them in a peaceful protest. 361 00:19:37,943 --> 00:19:39,811 It laid the groundwork work. 362 00:19:39,811 --> 00:19:43,815 It started the machinations for the fall of communism in this area. 363 00:19:44,483 --> 00:19:46,919 Well, next up, we're going to travel to Italy to learn 364 00:19:46,919 --> 00:19:49,188 about the all inclusive church. 365 00:19:56,094 --> 00:19:57,796 When Stefania was younger, 366 00:19:57,796 --> 00:20:00,632 her family owned a house by the sea in Sicily, Italy. 367 00:20:01,433 --> 00:20:02,901 She noticed that every morning, 368 00:20:02,901 --> 00:20:05,604 a neighboring family with five children met outside 369 00:20:05,604 --> 00:20:07,439 to read the Bible and pray together. 370 00:20:07,906 --> 00:20:10,209 One morning, they invited her over to join them. 371 00:20:13,579 --> 00:20:16,782 One of the brothers, Andrea, was particularly wise, 372 00:20:17,516 --> 00:20:19,017 and also made me laugh. 373 00:20:19,718 --> 00:20:23,088 He was kind and totally different from other guys our age. 374 00:20:23,088 --> 00:20:24,623 So we started to date, 375 00:20:25,357 --> 00:20:27,192 and eventually he became my husband. 376 00:20:31,830 --> 00:20:36,201 As they dated, Andrea taught Stefania about Adventist principles. 377 00:20:36,735 --> 00:20:39,838 She started attending the Adventist church and felt welcomed. 378 00:20:40,405 --> 00:20:43,141 After studying and praying, she was baptized. 379 00:20:44,109 --> 00:20:48,513 In 2016, Stefania's congregation in Ragusa, Italy, 380 00:20:48,513 --> 00:20:50,983 appealed to Adventist members around the world 381 00:20:50,983 --> 00:20:52,584 to help them build a new church. 382 00:20:54,720 --> 00:20:58,624 Another church member, Marco, remembers how difficult it was 383 00:20:58,624 --> 00:21:00,125 to worship in their old space. 384 00:21:00,659 --> 00:21:03,195 They occupied the bottom level of a large building. 385 00:21:03,829 --> 00:21:06,098 The neighbor upstairs was constantly complaining 386 00:21:06,098 --> 00:21:07,399 that they were disturbing him. 387 00:21:08,100 --> 00:21:12,070 He would often hit his floor with a stick to let us know he wasn't happy. 388 00:21:12,504 --> 00:21:14,506 But one time, he came downstairs 389 00:21:14,506 --> 00:21:17,042 and shattered the front glass door with the stick. 390 00:21:22,481 --> 00:21:25,651 Thanks to your 13th Sabbath Offering contribution, 391 00:21:25,651 --> 00:21:28,687 this congregation was able to build a stunning new church. 392 00:21:31,523 --> 00:21:34,192 It's absolutely beautiful to be here, 393 00:21:34,192 --> 00:21:36,795 in a place where we can be free to worship God 394 00:21:36,795 --> 00:21:40,098 without the anxiety and fear that we will upset others. 395 00:21:41,066 --> 00:21:43,735 Sometimes I come into the church before everyone else, 396 00:21:43,735 --> 00:21:46,305 because I'm responsible for music and worship. 397 00:21:46,972 --> 00:21:49,274 I come to test microphones and prepare. 398 00:21:49,975 --> 00:21:53,545 Sometimes I just stop and gaze at this beautiful space, 399 00:21:54,012 --> 00:21:55,881 and tears come to my eyes. 400 00:21:57,282 --> 00:22:00,218 The Ragusa congregation hasn't wasted any time 401 00:22:00,218 --> 00:22:01,553 putting this space to use. 402 00:22:02,054 --> 00:22:04,489 They conduct a variety of activities and programs 403 00:22:04,489 --> 00:22:06,091 focused on serving others. 404 00:22:08,193 --> 00:22:11,330 One way the Adventist Church has impacted my life 405 00:22:11,330 --> 00:22:13,865 is by giving me the possibility to give back. 406 00:22:15,000 --> 00:22:17,636 To give back part of the blessing that God has given me. 407 00:22:18,437 --> 00:22:20,238 Not just in terms of money, 408 00:22:20,706 --> 00:22:24,042 but also in terms of time and service dedicated to people. 409 00:22:26,278 --> 00:22:28,213 An often underserved population 410 00:22:28,213 --> 00:22:30,549 is the immigrant and refugee community. 411 00:22:31,216 --> 00:22:33,418 Adventists in Ragusa use their new space 412 00:22:33,418 --> 00:22:35,921 to conduct Italian language courses 413 00:22:35,921 --> 00:22:38,156 that help new residents qualify for jobs. 414 00:22:38,857 --> 00:22:40,992 The church's support helps these individuals 415 00:22:40,992 --> 00:22:43,328 make friends in a social environment 416 00:22:43,328 --> 00:22:45,964 and gives them confidence to navigate their new home. 417 00:22:46,331 --> 00:22:48,166 At the end of the course, we have a party 418 00:22:48,166 --> 00:22:50,268 for everyone who passes the final test. 419 00:22:50,502 --> 00:22:52,471 We have the party here at the church. 420 00:22:52,471 --> 00:22:55,407 A lot of people have the opportunity to know the church, 421 00:22:55,407 --> 00:22:57,209 its members, and its message. 422 00:22:57,976 --> 00:23:00,746 Adventists in Ragusa want the love of Jesus 423 00:23:00,746 --> 00:23:02,214 to be felt by everyone. 424 00:23:02,581 --> 00:23:04,683 So they host events where the physically disabled 425 00:23:04,683 --> 00:23:06,785 can feel comfortable and have fun. 426 00:23:07,719 --> 00:23:11,923 My dream is that this church may become a totally inclusive church. 427 00:23:13,458 --> 00:23:17,229 That everyone who comes here knows that Christ died for them. 428 00:23:18,997 --> 00:23:20,899 Thank you for providing a safe place 429 00:23:20,899 --> 00:23:24,269 for church members in Ragusa to serve their community more. 430 00:23:24,770 --> 00:23:29,674 Your contribution to this 13th Sabbath Offering project in 2016 431 00:23:29,674 --> 00:23:31,576 has impacted countless lives. 432 00:23:48,660 --> 00:23:50,762 Well, that's about it for today's program. 433 00:23:50,762 --> 00:23:52,431 And I want to thank you for joining us. 434 00:23:52,431 --> 00:23:56,234 And I hope that you've been inspired and challenged by what you've seen 435 00:23:56,234 --> 00:24:00,272 and heard as we've seen frontline mission around the world. 436 00:24:00,772 --> 00:24:03,742 Please continue to pray for the mission field of Europe. 437 00:24:03,775 --> 00:24:06,244 What a amazing challenge we face here, 438 00:24:06,778 --> 00:24:10,382 as many people are now living their lives without reference to God. 439 00:24:11,583 --> 00:24:14,252 Many people who are rich and increase with goods and feel 440 00:24:14,252 --> 00:24:16,021 as if they have no need of nothing. 441 00:24:16,021 --> 00:24:19,124 Thank you for your continuing prayers for mission. 442 00:24:19,124 --> 00:24:23,228 Thank you for your continuing support of global mission with your donations 443 00:24:23,662 --> 00:24:26,064 and thank you also for your personal involvement. 444 00:24:26,431 --> 00:24:32,003 And remember that you can always tune in for more stories at m360.tv. 445 00:24:32,504 --> 00:24:35,073 Well, for Adventist Mission I’m Gary Kraus. 446 00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:40,111 And I hope that you can join me next time right here on Mission 360.