I
t had been a while since I had witnessed for God or helped someone in a meaningful way. It seemed as though I was becoming useless as a Christian; I wasn’t making a positive difference in anyone’s life. That changed recently, however, because of an outing with a group of teenagers. IT BEGAN WITH A FAVOR
Early one Sabbath morning a neighbor, Nyamka, who’s also the pastor of the Seventh-day Adventist church I attend, texted to ask if my husband, Deegii, and I would drive his kids to a location on the outskirts of the city for a teens’
church gathering. He couldn’t take them because he had to lead out with the online church service. We agreed, and Deegii and I ended up spending the day with the group. A similar outing was scheduled for the following Sabbath, and Deegii and I again attended. Shortly after we arrived, though, it began to rain, and we all rushed to find shelter. A woman who introduced herself as the manager of the parklike area soon showed up and talked with Deegii and Solongo, a 19-year-old youth leader. The woman said we were on private property and needed to leave. We were surprised, but with her permission, and after Deegii paid a rental fee, we
Faith in Action
A Worldwide Army of Youth More are out there than we may think.
headed to a nearby ger, a traditional Mongolian yurt. There were about 15 of us. We found refuge from the rain there, and we all introduced ourselves to one another. Solongo then thanked Deegii and me for paying the rental cost for the ger. Even though it was Sabbath and no business would usually be done by my family, Deegii had paid the fee as an offering to God so these young people wouldn’t miss the opportunity to draw closer to Jesus, nature, and one another. Later Solongo shared much of her life story with me. Until just a few years ago, she was one of the 51.7 percent of Mongolians who are Buddhists,1 the predominant religion in the country. But her life began changing when she was in ninth grade. Boloroo, an Adventist church leader who used to live in Zamiin-Uud and is now my neighbor, visited Solongo’s school and invited the girls to a craft session at her home. Here’s part of my conversation with Solongo, who obviously loves God and longs to share His love with others.
Young people from the Adventist church in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, pose for a picture. Milena Mendes is kneeling, front center, in red jacket. Solongo is kneeling, far right, black T-shirt.
