Frontline Edition by Global Mission - 2nd Quarter 2008

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Building “Houses of Light”

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was filled to overflowing with worshippers. The Adventist Church’s seminary also was rebuilt just outside of Havana, the first religious education building to be built in Cuba since the 1950s.

But so much still needs to be done, and the Cuban people cannot do it by themselves. They can share their faith with others, but they need Bibles and Bible study guides to teach those who hunger for hope. And they need churches to house the new believers. In short, they need—everything. We need so little; they need so much.

What is God telling you to do for the believers south of our borders? You can pray. You can share. You can give.

uba is a land of historical contrasts. Once a thriving tourist destination, today Cubans struggle to survive in an economy that is no longer supported up by infusions of cash from Communist countries. Once beautiful buildings stand forlorn and in disrepair.

Many of Cuba’s 11 million people struggle to financially survive. Many Cubans must rely on charitable gifts from relatives and friends in other countries to pay for the bare necessities of life.

Since Adventists first arrived in Cuba in 1903, the church has grown well in the rich soil of spiritual hunger. During the first 50 years of Adventism in Cuba, hundreds of churches, 40 Adventist schools, and a seminary sprang up. Then in 1959 the Communist regime took power, and two years later the church’s schools were taken over by the government. The Cuban seminary

continued to operate, but with a significantly reduced enrollment. From 1950 until the 1990s Adventist congregations were forbidden to build new churches—or even repair their decaying ones. Some churches became too dangerous to enter.

But Adventist believers held onto their faith. In 1994 records show some 11,000 Adventist believers living in Cuba. As government restrictions on religious expression loosened, thousands more joined the church. By the year 2000, church membership had grown to 23,000. Today more than 26,000 believers worship in often crowded facilities or house churches, called “houses of light.”

In the 1990s God opened the door for Adventist churches to be renovated— and a few new churches to be built. As soon as a church was renovated and opened, it

MICHAEL L. RYAN –Chairperson, Global Mission GARY KRAUSE –General Field Secretary GANOUNE DIOP –Study Centers Director RICK KAJIURA –Communication Director NANCY KYTE –Marketing Director MARTI SCHNEIDER –Programs Director HOMER TRECARTIN –Planning Director RUTH DUNBEBIN –Secretary / Donor Services LAURIE FALVO –Communication Projects Manager CHARLOTTE ISHKANIAN –Mission Editor ANDREW KING –Video Producer/Editor HANS OLSON –Communication Projects Manager NIMFA SUMAGAYSAY–Donor Response Coordinator STELLA THOMAS –Administrative Secretary DANIEL WEBER –Video Producer/Editor

FRONT LINE EDITION

HINDU STUDY CENTER

is published quarterly by Global Mission, part of the Office of Adventist Mission, at the Seventh-day Adventist Church World Headquarters.

Tax- deductible gifts for Global Mission projects can be sent to Global Mission 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 209046600 800-648-5824 www.global-mission.org

G. R. Mohan Roy Southern Asia Division Post Box 2, HCF Hosur 635110 Tamil Nadu India Phone: 91 (4344) 22170 Fax: 91 (4344) 22090

GLOBAL CENTER FOR ADVENTIST-MUSLIM RELATIONS Jerald Whitehouse AMRNET PO Box 1223 Loma Linda CA 92354 USA Phone: (909) 824-4563 Fax: (909) 824-4845 102555.1163@compuserve.com

Mario Nino is the Adventist Mission director for the Inter-American Division

WORLD JEWISH FRIENDSHIP CENTER Richard Elofer P.O Box 592 94186 Jerusalem Israel Phone; 972 (2) 6251 547 Fax: 972 (2) 6251 391 rielofer@netvision.net.il

BUDDHIST STUDY CENTER Scott Griswold P.O. Box 234, Prakanong, Bangkok Thailand 10110 griswold@loxinfo.co.th

CENTRE FOR SECULAR AND POST-MODERN STUDIES c/o Miroslav Pujic 119 St. Peter’s Street; St. Albans, Herts AL1 3EY; ENGLAND Phone: 44 (1727) 860-331 Fax: 44 (1727) 866-312 ©Copyright 2008 Seventhday Adventist® Church.

ADVENTIST® and SEVENTHDAY ADVENTIST® are the registered trademarks of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists®.

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Tuning Into God

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lone voice speaks into a microphone.

The speaker doesn’t know who will hear his voice, but he knows that whoever is listening, the Holy Spirit is working on his or her heart. The messages of hope that are preached and the songs that are played, all work together to tell the story of Jesus.

In the Caribbean country of the Dominican Republic, the Seventh-day Adventist Church operates a small radio station in the capital city of Santo Domingo. The station is called Radio Amanacer and its signal reaches most of the more than three million people who live in Santo Domingo.

“We have received phone calls, letters, and e-mails from listeners, giving us thanks because the programs we have aired have helped them in their spiritual life,” says Miqueas Fortunato, Radio Amanacer’s station manager.

Just outside the city, among the banana groves in the mountains of central Dominican Republic, Gustavo Rosario lives and works his small plot of land. He grows produce that he sells in the local villages. One day as Gustavo was searching for his favorite radio station, he happened tto nd Radio Amanacer. liso fifind Radio A m nacer.r. He ma H lis tened for a mi minute himself minu nute te and found himse selfl eenjoying njoy nj oyin ing g the broadcast.

Gustavo himself casst. t Soon G ustavo found dh i self im dusting offf his old olld Bible and reading thee passages along with the radio.

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This continued for several years until one eral ye day, Gustavo decided to visit a Seventhday Adventist church. He put on his best clothes and hailed a motorcycle taxi for the 30-minute ride to the closest Adventist Church. Today Gustavo is a baptized member of the Adventist Church and he shares his faith with his family and friends.

Jeralina Toma, one of Radio Amanacer’s listeners says, “There was a song that they played on the radio that talked about small groups. I was curious, so I called and the station staff told me that there was a group that met near my house and from that moment I started to attend.”

By using media ministry, the Seventh-day Adventist Church is able to reach out to people they normally wouldn’t be able to reach. Your faithful prayers and support of the Adventist Church’s ongoing mission programs make such work possible, not only in the Dominican Republic, but all over the world. Thank you for helping to tell the world about Jesus.

The Dominican Republic is just one of the many countries of the Inter-American Division. Your 13th Sabbath Offering this quarter will support various projects throughout this division. To learn more please visit o le e www.AdventistMission.org. www.Adve entistt

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Cuba:

by Rick Kajiura

a Treasure Island J

ust off the Florida Keys, some 90 miles south of the United States, lies the island nation of Cuba. Christopher Columbus discovered the island during his epic journey to the new world in 1492. Today Cuba has a population of some 11 million people. The Seventh-day Adventist message arrived here more than 100 years ago. Today, there are some 27,000 Adventist believers.

In the 1700s, Spanish ships laden with treasure often stopped on the island.

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According to some experts, Cuba’s waters contain the richest concentration of sunken Spanish treasure in the world. But the richest concentration of treasure may be on land—treasure that will last beyond this earth, a treasure made up of people who love God and who share their faith with others.

Havana Once a popular tourist area for Americans, today Havana is a city clinging to the past. One morning we

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walked around the real old town Havana—not the tourist area—taking pictures of the streets and people. To me this is the real Havana, where the buildings look like they’ve been lifted out of the 1950s. But there’s a sadness here, a sense of crumbling facades and broken concrete.

This is where people live and work. The vibrant warmth of the sunlight gives the air and the light a richness that photographers love. Women hang laundry from balconies; old men sit on front stoops

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It’s refreshing to experience the energy and emotion of Cuban Adventists.

On Sabbath mornings, churches are packed for Sabbath school and church

Sabbath mornings, churches are packed for Sabbath school and church as they praise God and study the Bible together.

And church members are eager to share their faith.

A Driving Mission

Bible studies with neighbors and friends.

Benecio doesn’t post flyers about his Bible studies. Instead he simply knocks on doors in his neighborhood and invites people to come and study the Bible.

One of these members is Benecio, a taxi driver. As a young boy, Benecio was raised as a Seventh-day Adventist but as he grew older and moved away from home,

as they praise God and study the Bible together. smoking cigars. Children play in the streets and, despite the sense of being in the past, three boys sit on a front step playing a handheld video game.

Wizened faces peer out windows and doorways as we pass.

On one doorway there’s the Seventh-day Adventist Church logo. Our Cuban host tells us this is a house church.

They call them “houses of light.” No one is there now, so we pass on. Over the next few days we’ll meet many Adventists.

It’s refreshing to experience the energy and emotion of Cuban Adventists. On

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Top: Seventh-day Adventist Church president Jan Paulsen preaches in Havana on Sabbath morning.

he drifted away from God. Now an adult, he recently came back to the church of his youth. During his working hours as a taxi driver he takes people where they want to go. But on his own time Benecio brings people to Jesus by giving Bible studies in his home.

Benecio takes us to his home, down a narrow, deadend alleyway. He shows us into his modestly furnished living room where he holds

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Left: Despite long hours as a taxi driver, Benecio still finds time to let his light shine in his neighborhood.

One neighbor, an older lady comes, but her husband watches from their home.

Benecio tells us he’s not well and can’t leave his house.

One of our Cuban hosts says there are signs and symbols of Santeria in the neighborhood. Santeria is

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described as a blend of West African animistic religions and worship of Christian saints.

Not long ago, American pastors came to hold evangelistic meetings. Benecio invited people from his Bible study group. He even drove some of them in his taxi so they could attend the meetings.

One woman proudly shows off the Bible an American pastor gave her before he left. Sometimes Bibles are given away during evangelistic meetings. But this isn’t one of those Bibles. This is a pastor’s well-worn and much loved Bible complete with underlining and handwritten notes in the margins. One look in her eyes, and you can see how much it means to her to have this sacred book.

After Benecio drove people home from the evening meetings, he would get back in his taxi and look for fares to meet his daily quota. As a taxi driver he has to earn a certain amount each day. On some days he works 17 or 18 hours and if he hasn’t earned his quota he keeps working all

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night to try and make enough.

I can’t help but wonder how he manages to find time to share his faith. And I think about the parable of the wedding feast and the guests who were invited but too busy to come. Benecio wouldn’t have been one of them. But he is one of the treasures God has on this island.

A House of Light At first we have trouble finding the house.

We’re in another Adventist members opened their home and made it a “house of light,” a house church in a neighborhood with no Adventist Church.

neighborhood now, waiting for an Adventist pastor who knows where to find the house church. He’s running a little late so we tried to find it on our own. We can’t find it so we wait for the pastor who w wh o shows up in his circa 1950s car with a Hyundaii motor inside. d da Wee follow him to a W small smal sm ma l house where tthe th hee fr ffront o t yard has on

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been turned into a meeting place—a patio with a covering roof. Under bare bulbs, the patio is crowded with people listening to a lay pastor speak.

This is another “house of light.” There are no Adventist churches in this neighborhood, and no new churches can be built, so the members hold meetings in their homes—in the “houses of light.“ Maria, the owner of the house, tells us that she’s glad to have the “house of light” in her home. Her husband used to go out at night to drink, but then he started listening to the sermons.

He couldn’t help but listen because the church met right in his own yard. She smiles when she says, “Today he’s an Adventist.”

Maria and Benecio and Adventists like them are God’s treasures on this island nation called Cuba. Every member is a jewel, a precious treasure to God on the this treasure island.

Please pray for the Adventists in Cuba who are sharing their faith and for those who are seeking hope in Jesus.

Rick Kajiura is Adventist Mission’s communication director

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Cuba’s colorful culture attracts the curiosity

WHAT’S COOKING IN CUBA

of people around the world. This island nation has a reputation for friendly, outgoing

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people who love art, music, and good food.

ON THE MENU:

Eating out often is not an option for most

• Cuban Black Bean Soup • Havana Salad • Steamed Rice

people in Cuba, but they are known for their hospitality and gladly share whatever is cooking in the kitchen.

CUBAN BLACK BEAN SOUP— Serves 4–6 This thick and savory soup is delicious by any standard.

Serve alone or over steamed rice.

In a large stockpot, cover the beans with 2 inches of

HAVANA SALAD—Serves 6 The unexpected combination of avocado and pineapple offers a refreshing surprise in this simple Cuban-style salad.

water. Add spices and simmer until the beans are tender, about 45 minutes.

Mix the following ingredients together.

1 pound black beans

1 head iceberg lettuce, shredded

1 bay leaf

2 cups of pineapple chunks, fresh or canned

1 tablespoon cumin

1 large avocado, peeled and cut in slices

1 tablespoon oregano

1 small onion, sliced thin 1 tablespoon olive oil

Saute the following ingredients until translucent. Puree in a

1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice, fresh

blender. This is the sofrito, the essential step that creates the

1 teaspoon salt

authentic Cuban flavor.

Serve chilled.

1 white onion, diced into chunks 1 red pepper, diced into chunks 1 green pepper, diced into chunks

STEAMED RICE—Serves 6

4 garlic cloves

1 cup long grain rice 1 3/4 cup water

Combine

1 tablespoon olive oil or butter

cooked black beans

1 teaspoon salt

sofrito puree (sautéed mixture above) ¼ cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1 tablespoon sugar 2 tablespoons fresh lemon or lime juice Salt

Use 1 1/2 quart pot with good fitting lid. Put 1 3/4 cups of water in pot with rice, salt, and oil. Bring to a boil, barely. Stir well and immediately turn burner to lowest heat and cover.

Cook at lowest heat for 25 minutes. Turn off heat and let sit

INSTRUCTIONS Cook until very thick, about 45 minutes. Garnish with finely

for 5 minutes.

chopped red onion.

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WORLD NEWS

O8 United States

© Rosmizan Abu Seman | Dreamstime.com

Michael Cauley is living his dream. Not long ago he arrived in the Fort Worth, Texas, suburb of Keller to plant a church for “echo boomers”—today’s teens and young adults. What started as a small group meeting in his home quickly grew to some 100 people meeting in a rented facility.

Called “Come and See,” this church plant invites Adventist church members to share their life experiences with young adults and teenagers. “We don’t want to simply begin a church, but a movement, a movement of teens who understand what it is to be loved by God and are now telling their friends about Him,” says Michael.

Each Sunday the core group’s skateboard ministry called, Skate Disciples, hosts an open skate at an area skate park. Few of the 25-or-so teenagers who come each week are Adventists.

Last spring they held a skatea-thon to raise money for Operation Smile, a non-profit organization that provides facial surgeries for children whose parents can’t afford them.

“What amazes me the most is that God is blessing us by helping us to meet our target audience—teenagers,” says Michael. “Our goal is not to entertain our teens but to involve them in leadership so that the church is theirs.”

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Burundi When Daphrose became a Seventh-day Adventist as a young girl she didn’t plan to be a church planter one day. Years later she and her husband, Genitus, both primary schoolteachers, found themselves in an area of Burundi were they were the only Seventh-day Adventists.

For two years they traveled every Friday some 20 miles to Bujumbura to spend Sabbath with other Adventists.

Then one Friday afternoon while traveling, Daphrose asked her husband, “How will we witness to our neighbors and family members when we don’t worship there? And how can we worship there if we don’t have a place of worship?” The next week they asked the headmaster of their school for permission to use a classroom on Sabbath morning to hold church services.

He agreed.

It’s been a year since they established their branch Sabbath school. Today some 20 people have joined the baptismal class and six of them were baptized just a couple months ago. They have a plot of land for a church, and in the next few months Daphrose and Genitus plan to hold

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a full-scale evangelistic series.

They hope, with God’s blessing, to build a church in the near future.

INDIA Global Mission pioneers often work in places where people don’t know anything about Christians. Pioneers must find ways to break down walls of prejudice and build bridges of understanding. In Pundua, a village in the West Bengal State of India, Prabhat Mukharjee faces such a task.

When he arrived in Pundua a couple years ago he was the only Christian in the area. At first he went around the village meeting new friends. He rented a small house to serve as his church.

But he found that people wouldn’t come to his church services. He realized that if he wanted to share Jesus in this

community he’d have to find a creative way to draw people in.

Prabhat is a good storyteller. In fact he’s so good that children loved to come and sit in the shade of the trees and listen to him tell stories. Sometimes the children brought their parents along as well. Prabhat realized that this was his avenue to sharing the gospel. So along with telling stories, Prabhat taught the children Christian songs and Bible memory verses. He mixes parables of Jesus with stories that teach the children Christian morals.

Prabhat started a seminar on healthful living for parents. After each meeting he distributes tracts and pamphlets. In this way he’s been able to witness to the community without raising objections from the village leaders. Prabhat hopes that one day soon the seeds that he’s planted will grow into a formal congregation.

MADAGASCAR When Global Mission pioneer Germain Andrianirina and his wife accepted an assignment in Tsihombe, a hot and semi-desert area in southern Madagascar, they

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didn’t know what to expect.

“We felt lost, we knew nobody,” says Germain.

They were also worried.

They found many problems related to polygamy, worship of the dead, and witchcraft. To make things worse, neither Germain nor his wife could speak the local dialect fluently.

Germain remembers how homesick his wife felt. “She cried several times,” he says.

“We had no option other than to give our challenges over to God.” As the couple met people in the community they discovered friendly people who treated them kindly. Germain started giving Bible studies and continued visiting homes throughout Tsihombe. A carpenter by trade, Germain built a small chapel. Before long the weekly attendance at the chapel grew to more

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than 20. Today eight people have been baptized, and more are preparing by taking Bible studies.

Guatemala The Adventist Church is growing quickly in Guatemala, but many still need to be reached. In San Marcos, Global Mission pioneers José

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Ortiz and Ismael Roblero go door-to-door sharing the love of Jesus. Many people turn them away. When this happens they don’t give up.

They go to the next house until they find someone willing to listen.

The Bartolón family listened. After studying the Bible for three months, Jose

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and Ismael were the first to be baptized. Excited with their newfound faith they invited their neighbors to study with the pioneers as well. Now a group of 12 people worship together each week in San Marcos.

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FREE BOOK OFFER

Front Line Cuba Just 90 miles separates Cuba from the United States, but in many ways it seems a world away. If you enjoyed reading about Benecio in this quarter’s Front Line Edition, you’ll want to order your free copy of the classic Global Mission book Front Line Cuba. Author Fern Babcock packs this book with exciting stories about how Global Mission pioneers are reaching people in Cuba.

To order the book please visit www.AdventistMission.org/ Offer822, or call us at 1-800-648-5824. We’ll send your free copy right away.

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This summer millions of eyes will turn to China for the Olympic games. But how many eyes in China will be turned to Jesus?

Global Mission pioneers are trained and ready to go to big cities and rural areas to tell the world about God’s love, but they can’t do it alone. Your support will help give them the resources they need to take the good news of salvation to every part of the world. Please pray for these dedicated workers on the frontlines of mission. Thank you for making it possible for millions to see Jesus.

For more information, visit: www.global-mission.org.