February 2017 Letter by It Is Written, Inc

From the desk of

JOHN BRADSHAW

P.O. Box 6, Chattanooga, TN 37401-0006 • TEL 423.362.5800 • FAX 877.507.3239 • www.itiswritten.com

February 2017 Dear It Is Written Friend, I’m so glad to be able to tell you that, in spite of the challenging times in which we live, God is working with great power to bring millions around the world to an understanding of the gospel. What a time to be alive! What an opportunity to touch people for Jesus! People such as Oscar, a pastor of six Pentecostal churches, who has accepted the Bible Sabbath and is leading churches into Sabbath worship! I’ll tell you more about Oscar—and others like him—in just a moment. Let me share with you some incredible recent events that have been taking place with It Is Written’s Spanish program, Escrito Está. The Holy Spirit is working in remarkable ways!

Baptism during evangelistic series in Bog

otá, Colombia.

This past November, Pastor Robert Costa, speaker/director for Escrito Está, was invited to Bogotá, Colombia, for a satellite event comprised of two conferences and 236 churches working together. The nightly presentations were broadcast on TV and seen around the world. It was a time of celebration as 500 people gave their lives to Jesus and were baptized at the close of the series. A total of 2,811 people were baptized from the start of the event, and many more baptisms were reported in other parts of Colombia and in other countries!

What a time to be alive! What an opportunity... From there, Pastor Costa traveled to Concepción, Chile, the second largest city in the country. This was a unique opportunity as the evangelistic meetings were held in the newly dedicated church that replaced a church destroyed by a massive earthquake seven years ago. Miraculously, the members were able to rebuild a much larger church in a key location of the city. But there is another reason why this series was unique. Concepción has a highly educated population and is the headquarters of large financial companies. A city with European roots, it 1 of 4

is very secular and resistant to the gospel. Our church had never attempted a large-scale series in this city. Despite these challenges, the local church was eager to reach out to their city and their community. They felt God had given them a brand-new church for a purpose. They decided to ask It Is Written to participate as Escrito Está is a very well known and well-received program throughout Chile. Preparation began a year in advance with much prayer. Small Bible study groups were started, and the Adventist university sent 23 theology students to work in the local communities. Finally, the series began with 1,200 people packing the church. But despite putting out extra chairs and opening side rooms, more than 400 people had to be turned away for lack of space. This was unprecedented in Concepción! The problem was solved the following night by holding two meetings and both were filled to capacity! “The church experienced a true revival,” said Pastor Costa. “Every night we had live testimonies of what God is doing in the lives of His children.” Let me share with you some of the incredible highlights: Mario, the best known of the 33 miners rescued from a mine in Chile and portrayed in a movie by actor Antonio Banderas, attended the series. He gave his testimony of how God and the Bible helped him during the 69 days he was trapped below ground. He was overwhelmed by the love and support of the church.

Pr. Robert Costa interviewing Mario Sepúlveda, one of the 33 chilean miners who became famous after spending 69 days underground. He is next to Pr. Carlos Parra, an Adventist pastor who ministered to the miners and their families.

Manuel, a high-profile engineer in the country, was given hours to live after a failed liver transplant. The church learned of his plight and a group went to pray for him in the hospital. Miraculously, his body accepted the new liver and he recovered. He attended the evangelistic series and gave his testimony. “All I can remember in my time of agony is a group of people praying for me.” He is now continuing his study of Bible truth with another engineer from the church.

But the story doesn’t end there. One of the hospital volunteers, impressed by the love shown to Manuel, attended the series and was baptized on the last Sabbath! Ten of her friends from work attended her baptism and have now enrolled in Bible studies. Daniel, a teenager who attends one of our schools, was led to Christ and baptized thanks to the unceasing work of the campus chaplains. He became a missionary in his home, bringing his mother to Christ. As she exited the baptismal pool at the end of the series, Pastor Costa asked 2 of 4

Daniel, who stood next to her, “What’s next for you?” He replied without hesitation, “Now we go for our grandfather. He is next!” Javier, the young architect who designed the central church after the earthquake, as well as the Adventist college in Talcahuano, struggled each night with the biggest decision of his life. He finally surrendered his heart to Jesus and was baptized on the last Friday of the series. His testimony was, “I want the divine Architect to do His work in me.”

Daniel (right) stands proudly with his mother at her baptism.

Oscar, a pastor of six Pentecostal churches, attended the series every night. At the end of the series he made the decision to keep the Bible Sabbath. One of his churches, while still holding meetings on Sunday, has already started worshipping on the Sabbath. Nilse, a young saleswoman, stopped by the church to sell health products. The ladies from the Dorcas Society bought some of her products and invited her to study the Bible. She and her children were baptized at the end of the series.

Baptism of three young people including Javier, the young architect who designed and constructed the Seventh-day Adventist Central Church of Concepción, Chile.

Rosa, a businesswoman and leader in an area church for more than 30 years, attended every night and became convicted about the biblical Sabbath. It was the turning point in her decision to join the church that “keeps the commandments of God and has the faith of Jesus.”

“I have never seen anything like it... everywhere there is a new awakening!” The Holy Spirit is at work like never before, tearing down barriers. By the time the two-week series was over, 130 people were baptized, and 400 more had made decisions for a future baptism after further studies. “I have never seen anything like it,” said Pastor Costa. “And not just in Chile, but everywhere there is a new awakening! Evangelism is no longer the work of the pastor, but of the whole church and of each and every member.” Last year alone, Escrito Está has shared the Three Angels’ Messages with millions every day through television and online programming, reaching 138 countries on over 11,000 TV channels and radio stations. In 2016, Pastor Costa preached 13 evangelistic series and personally participated in more than 4,000 baptisms around the world where God’s distinctive truth was presented.

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All this is wonderful news but none of it would have been possible without your support. I want to thank you in a special way. God is using you to make a difference in Colombia, in Chile, and in millions of lives around the world! I want to ask you to partner with It Is Written to advance the work of Escrito Está. This year Pastor Costa is scheduled to share Jesus in live events in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Chile, as well as touching thousands of people daily through television and online programming. However, none of this happens without you. We need to continue this work and do more than we’ve ever done before to reach people with the best news ever. When you invest this month in It Is Written, your gift will be used by God to reach souls for eternity. Thank you for being willing to be the life-changing difference in the lives of so many of God’s children. Your investment in souls will see many more people come to faith in Christ. As we begin to see the Holy Spirit work with increasing power to change lives, I want to ask you to stand with me in saying, “Here I am; send me!” Even if you cannot accompany us on our evangelistic travels, your influence is unmistakable. It is only by working together that we can light up the world with the knowledge of truth. Thank you for making a difference and changing lives for eternity. Your brother in ministry,

Pastor John Bradshaw P.S. We are seeing an interest in Bible truth around the world like never before. This past November alone, our Spanish program, Escrito Está was used by God in a phenomenal way in two South American countries with astounding results. Thank you for your continued support and for remembering Escrito Está in your giving this month. God is gathering His people to stand for truth and your support is changing lives.

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