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Issue 3 | March 2013
Int’l Women’s Day of Prayer Is prayer important to you? March 2, 2013, has been designated as International Women’s Day of Prayer. This year’s theme is entitled, “Building Faith Through Prayer”. Since 1990, the Department of Women’s Ministries at the General Conference has promoted a special day when women have the opportunity to strengthen their spiritual bonds as they pray for and with each other. The International Women’s topics in this issue • International Women’s Day of Prayer • Disabilities Awareness Sabbath • Pastor’s Corner: Pregnant with Power • Adventist Youth • Fresh & Nutritious • Animal Encounters • Fun, Family, Faith • Calendar of Events • From the Editor: And the people were about to stone him ...
Day of Prayer is the first Sabbath of each March. There are many ways to celebrate this special day where women everywhere can pray for one another, reunite with God, strengthen spiritual bonds and so much more. This year, the Northern California Conference Women’s Ministries Department under the directorship of Mary Jo Lauderdale celebrated with the 2013 Women’s Ministry Leadership Training Conference in Chico, California on February 22 & 23. Women in leadership positions in churches throughout the conference had the privilege of coming together to learn and share methods of leadership roles and how to reach and minister to women in the
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A Test of Character
“I saw that it is in the providence of God that widows and orphans, the blind, the deaf, the lame, and persons afflicted in a variety of ways, have been placed in close Christian relationship to His church; it is to prove His people and develop their true character. Angels of God are watching to see how we treat these persons who need our sympathy, love, and disinterested benevolence. This is God’s test of our character. If we have the true religion of the Bible we shall feel that a debt of love, kindness, and interest is due to Christ in behalf of His brethren; and we can do no less than to show our gratitude for His immeasurable love to us while we were sinners unworthy of His grace, by having a deep interest and unselfish love for those who are our brethren and who are less fortunate than ourselves.” - Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church Volume 3 {3T 511.2}. The worst part of being disabled is often dealing with how others treat you. In my opinion, disabilities TC | Page 4
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Pastor’s Corner Pregnant with Power
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his month highlights the theme of women in the church. Women have always played a key role in the development and success of the church. It has been said that the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. Seventh-day Adventist to a large degree owe our existence to God having worked through a woman by the name Ellen Gould Harmon who would later marry and become Ellen Gould White. Here are some interesting facts about Ellen White. She was born to Robert and Eunice Harmon on November 26, 1827 in Gorham, Maine. She was the youngest in a family of eight children. Her schooling was limited to three years because of an accident suffered at the age of 9 when she was hit on the nose by a rock thrown by a schoolmate. Having been unconscious for three weeks she almost lost her life. Ellen’s father Robert was a hatter by trade and Ellen spent much of her time making crowns for the hats. At age 14 Ellen was baptized into the Methodist Church. She
was disfellowshipped the next year because of her Advent views. Ellen married James White on August 30, 1846 and lived with her parents for the first year. Soon after her marriage in the early fall of 1846 Ellen became a Sabbathkeeper. James and Ellen went on to have four boys; Henry, Edson, William, and John. Ellen was acquainted with tragedy, hardship and suffering; John her youngest died at three months old, Henry, the eldest died of pneumonia three years later at age 16. Edson and Willie became ministers. Willie was asked by the brethren to travel with his mother and to assist her in her work after James White died. During the seven decades of Ellen White’s public ministry she produced more than 100,000 pages of writing; a total of more than 25 million words. “She has written and published more books, and in more languages, which circulate to a greater extent than the written works of any woman of history.” -George Wharton James, in California, Romantic and Beautiful, pp. 319, 320.
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In the book Desire of Ages p. 220 the inspired writer says this: “The prophet John was the connecting link between the two dispensations. As God’s representative he stood forth to show the relation of the law and the prophets to the Christian dispensation. He was the lesser light, which was to be followed by a greater. The mind of John was illuminated by the Holy Spirit, that he might shed light upon his people; but no other light ever has shone or ever will shine so clearly upon fallen man as that which emanated from the teaching and example of Jesus.” Here Ellen White refers to John the Baptist as the lesser light leading to the greater light. In the Book of Revelation the 12th chapter the bible highlights a woman that is described as being pregnant and clothed with the sun and having the moon under her feet. Clothing in the bible is highly significant and represents character (Zechariah 3:3-5; in the judgment we will be judged according to our characters). This woman happens to be dressed in clothing that
radiates with the sunlight. A woman is represented in the bible as the church. The sun represents Christ (Malachi 4:2). In essence this woman (the church) is radiating the character of Christ while pregnant with expectation of the coming King. How will this church be able to succeed in being able to reflect the full radiant glory of the coming king? Revelation 12:17 tells us how; “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” This church is described as having two characteristics; 1) It keeps the commandments of God and 2) It has the testimony of Jesus. The testimony of Jesus, according to Revelation 19:10 is the Spirit of Prophesy. The last day church shines with the imminent glory of God through the righteousness of Christ in obedience to the commandments of God. Furthermore, it shines with the radiant glory PC | Page 8
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Encouraging the youth to grow closer to the Lord By Keishia Sheffield Southgate AY Treasurer sheffieldka@hotmail.com
Jeremiah 29:11-13 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” (KJV) Here at Southgate SDA Church the AY (Adventist Youth) Leaders believe that God has mighty and wonderful plans for the youth of today. As the scripture says above our Lord knows the thoughts he has for us and those thoughts are of peace and an expected end. When we learn to seek God with all our heart through the process of searching, calling and praying He will hearken unto us and reveal himself. Many youth of our generation find it hard to find God due to a number of factors present in our lives. At times we feel as though we are disconnected to God because of our circumstances, and if that is not enough we find it hard to connect to others that we can relate to and are like minded in our spiritual journey. We long for connection, we long for relationships, and we long to be close to God. That is where AY steps in. We have created an environment where youth are free to connect to youth that are like minded and aspire for the same goal; to live and learn about God in an engaging and fun way. Truth be told God is not boring! Okay, just look at everything God created (Gen.1:20-26) and you will see that He has a Beautiful personality filled with color and humor. Our job as AY Leaders is to get youth involved in learning about God, our Creator, Jesus our Lord and Savior, and the Holy Spirit our Comforter. We do this through activities, various youth programs, and talks. So I have talked to you this much and you may be wondering who our AY Leaders are. So I am going to tell you who we are; Alex Hubbard, AY President, Angela Nwokike, AY Secretary, and Keishia Shef-
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field, AY Treasurer. We are the ones that put together these lively and interactive God-focused Programs called AY. We wouldn’t be where we are if it were not for Elder Mike Merriweather and Rose Briley, who decided to help us youth get going in the right direction. They have been lovingly and prayerfully guiding us throughout the way. With that said we are here to help encourage our peers and the youth’s growing relationship with God and others. In January 2013, the Hubbards, Malcolm, Victoria, Kandye, myself and a few of the AY members had the pleasure of attending Carmichael SDA Church’s Youth Rally. Let me tell you this, it was a blessing. It was a two day program which featured; worship, youth icebreakers, food, games and prizes, a few sermons from the Ghetto Preacher Willy Ramos (from Orlando Florida), Youth Speakers, Sabbath School and random acts of kindness activities. What I really enjoyed were the sermons from the Ghetto Preacher and the random acts of kindness. A few things we did for the Random Acts of Kindness; give away free gas cards to people at the gas station, gave away a sack of quarters and laundry detergent to random people at the laundry mat, gave flowers to an individual and gave them words of encouragement and prayer and gave away free water to random people we met, just to name a few things. It was really inspiring because people did not expect such kindness and were quite shocked! It made us want to do more things for people just because it felt so good to give. We had a blast that Sabbath as we went through Carmichael and Sacramento in the Southgate Church van with our friend Andy who we met from a fellow church in Lodi. This event inspired me to do AY’s first open ‘Random Act of Kindness’ at Southgate. A couple other activities that we have done just recently here at Southgate were focused on our first quarter theme of Health. One Sabbath we had an interactive parent and child salad making ac-
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tivity coupled with ‘smoothie fun’ to show parents/guardians and kids that cooking in the kitchen can be fun and healthy. This was a no cooking event in which everything was raw from our fruits to our vegetables except for the croutons. Let’s just say all of our participants were able to enjoy eating the fruits of their labor. Two of our other most recent AY activities were “Bible Charades”, inspired to encourage spiritual health by acting out scenes in the Bible and “Fruits, Veggies and Bible Trivia,” in which kids were tested on foods of the Bible. AY has expanded its borders to encourage our youth to step outside their comfort zone. One way we are doing that is encouraging them to use their talents. Now we know that using our talents can be a scary and unsure process and we may have the tendency to shy from that. One thing is certain, it’s that we are all here to support and encourage one another through our learning and growing process, and that is only possible with the help and support of the parents/guardians, peers and church family. One specific way that we are getting together and using our talents is by passing out Bible Pamphlets from Glow. What makes this process even easier is that we have Glow T-Shirts that complement the Glow pamphlets that we will be passing out to the public. This allows the individual to ask and receive from us without any pressure. This will help a
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kid that is shy by pairing him/her off with another who is not so shy about speaking to others. And it gives us the opportunity to relate to them in a more peaceful way due to their initiation. Last but not least I must say one last thing to the youth out there that are like me and are my nature and animal lovers. We will be having AY activities in the future that will focus on these areas. Some proposed activities will include; nature walks and hikes, Animal Time (maybe Equine aka horse activities, farm excursions at UC Davis to learn about farm animals, to see the cow with the whole in it, and/or petting and feeding farm animals), Monterey Bay Aquarium trip, Camping trip, Eco-Friendly activities, etc. We are also open to suggestions and ideas so please share. Besides our activity sessions we will be teaching the youth how to recite scriptures, sing songs in front of their peers, read Bible verses, collect offerings and eventually one day conduct an AY Program with the help of our leaders, peers and parents/guardians. We hope that God continues to make AY a blessing for the youth and their families because we have seen such a radical change in their attitude towards coming out and participating in our program. Therefore, we encourage you to tell a friend about AY and bring them along one of these Sabbaths, so that they too can be encouraged to have a genuine Love and awe for the Great God that we do serve.
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that make communication with others more difficult are inconsistent with the Kingdom of God because loss of communication is a part of this fallen world. But those that are such that a person can still participate in the kingdom unhindered may survive. With that said, why did Jesus heal paralysis and blindness if he would keep them later? When I was a child, I didn’t think that being disabled was hard but as I grew older and went to school, I started having trouble with my disabilities. My friends and classmates would make fun of me and mocked me and some of them gave me a nickname “cripple boy”. Often times, I would cry when I got home from school because nobody wanted to be my friend. My mother always gave me encouragement and told me not to listen to those people. My mother often said, “You’re the child of God and God created you just like Him.” Then she would tell me that I would no longer have my disability in heaven when Jesus comes to take us home. But whatever my mother said, it didn’t stop my anger and my frustration. I often ask myself, “Why do I have to live with this disability? Why didn’t God give it to somebody else? What have I done to be crippled???” But my disability has taught me so much. It has taught me of who I am and who God is. I can’t imagine, what would it mean to be without having God or a mother CC | Page 6
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church and how to bring awareness to a loving Savior to those in their communities. Donna Jackson, leader of the NAD (North American Division) Ministerial Spouses Association was the weekend speaker under the theme, “The Indescribable Jesus and the Unique You.” The evening began with a wonderful soup supper, followed by a prayer path titled, “Intimate Moments with Jesus.” Thanks to Karen Nicolas, this wonderful experience allowed the women to spend time in prayer along the prayer path, using different ways in which to offer our petitions, ending with foot washing. Organized prayer groups were stationed throughout the sanctuary where sisters could share time with the Advisory Board Members pray-
ing for our country, churches, women’s ministries, our families, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and more. There was also a station where Naomi Parsons offered anointings. The praise team included our own sisters, Kathy Whiteside, and Sylvia Combs. Then we were spellbound with the beginning message from Sister Donna. Following a healthy Sabbath breakfast, the continuation of Sister Donna’s topic began and revealed how God surely has a plan for each woman; if she will heed to his calling. A short DVD of the Congo Project was shown, we enjoyed a delicious Mexican lunch offered by the Spanish Church, then disbursed into various breakout sessions. Topics included Abuse Prevention, WM (women’s ministry) in small and large churches, ideas for WM Emphasis and WM Day of Prayer, Journey of Joy WM Bible Study, Women of Wisdom, Marriage and Family, and Ministering to Women of Different Cultures. Ladies, remember we meet different women in the church, in stores, at
Raw Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo Ingredients 5 Zucchini, peeled, tops cut ½ Head Cauliflower 1 Lemon Basil - 5-6 leaves Thyme or Oregano - 5-6 leaves Sage - 5-6 leaves ½ Cup Pinenuts 1 Garlic Clove 15 Cherry Tomatoes , cut in half Instructions Step 1: Put the cauliflower in a food processor or blender and
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blend it well. This will be your cheese and used last. Step 2: Using a spiralizer turn 4 of your zucchini into thick fettuccine noodles. If you don’t have a spiralizer, use a peeler or mandolin slicer. Step 3: Chop your 5th zucchini in small chunks and place in a blender along with the pinenuts, basil, thyme/oregano, sage, and garlic clove. Blend well until creamy. Step 4: Mix the dressing with the
school, on our jobs, and many other places. So many are hurting or in distress. God has placed you in their path; you can make a difference. Will you be willing to reach down and lift someone up? “When you meet those that are careworn and oppressed, who know not which way to turn to find relief, put your hearts into the work of helping them. It’s not God’s purpose that His children shall shut themselves up to themselves, taking no interest in the welfare of those less fortunate than themselves. Remember that for them as well as for you Christ has died.” (WM)168.2 Southgate’s Women’s Ministries Department will not have a program on the designated day, but will celebrate on the fourth Sabbath of April. In the meantime, we would like every woman to set a time aside to pray for the women in our church, our conference, and those around the world. We can never pray enough. Please commit to this month’s time as well as next month when we will come together as a church body of women to pray together. Please visit this link for more tips on how to build faith through prayer: http://adventistwomensministries.org/ index.php?id=124 noodles using your hands. Then put the cauliflower cheese on the noodles. Top with the cherry tomoatoes. ... Enjoy! recipe taken from www.rawfullyorganic.com
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Animal Encounters! And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth ... and God saw that it was good. -Gen 1:21
Have you ever seen a creature that sleeps during the day and that’s wideawake at night? If you were guessing the Crested Gecko you are right. The Crested Gecko lives in New Caledonia where they spend there time in the trees. Crested Geckos are known to eat fruits, crickets, and there very own shed. Some people may wonder how is it that geckos can stick everywhere, well the reason why is because they have microscopic clinging hairs. There are many types of geckos such as Crested Geckos, Leopard Geckos, Tokay Geckos, Giant Day Geckos, Leaf-Tailed Geckos, and Banded Geckos. Crested Geckos are pray to many animals such as Hawks, Snakes, Lizards, and other animals. Some people may think Crested Geckos are not known to glide, well they are wrong. They are known to jump as far as three feet. Some people may wonder how long do they live up to and how big they can get up to. Well, they can live up to 10-15 years and be up to 8-10 inches long. This is just another example of God’s amazing creation, and shows how day or night, God is watching over us. And if you ever visit New Caledonia, maybe one of God’s creatures will be watching over you! TC
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to tell me and to remind me that Jesus loves me. Of all the things I long for in the new heaven and earth, the deepest is this; to see myself running up to Jesus and to see my family there with me. That’s what keeps me connected with Jesus Christ. And one thing that I always remember is this … we should not forget that our resurrected bodies will be quite different from the ones we have now. I am strengthened by the following scriptures: 1 Corinthians 15:3558, 2 Corinthians 5:1-5, and especially, Isaiah 35:3-6. After reading these passages, www.facebook.com/southgate.church.1
I was both encouraged and uplifted by what it must be like to be in God’s presence. Surely words cannot do such an experience justice, but even a small glimpse of heaven seen “through a glass, darkly” is enough to encourage believing Christians regarding the majesty of heaven that we will one day experience firsthand. Like the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 15:57-58 “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
Disability Awareness Sabbath is March 16. Meet someone who will be honoring this day ...
Mary Grace; She is a SDA, a pianist, psychology major, missionary, and has a disability. In addition to her arm, her right leg is small and 8” shorter than the left with three toes. “I’ve promised myself that I will never ever take this disability of mine as a hindrance.”
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fun, family, faith!
What was Queen Esther’s birth name? ________________________.
Have fun and color in the picture!
Match the Answers.
Match the answers from the word list below. 1. Who asked God to spare Sodom? _________________________ Genesis 18:23-33 2. Who wrote first & second Corinthians? _________________________ 1 Cor 1:1, 2 Cor 1:1 3. Who did Jesus say will inherit the earth? _________________________ Matthew 5:5 4. What is the name given to Jesus that means “God is with us”? _____________________ Matthew 1:23 Paul Abraham
Peter Money
Emmanuel The Meek
Hosanna Wisdom
Multiple Choice ... Circle the correct answer. 1. What was Sarah’s name before God changed it? Genesis 17:15 a. Sally b. Hagar c. Sarai
4. What did Jacob wear to trick his father? Genesis 27:15-24 a. Sheepskin b. Bearskin c. Goatskin
2. Who did Paul call his own son? 1 Timothy 1:1-2 a. Peter b. Timothy c. John
5. How many plagues did God bring on Egypt? Exodus 7-11 a. Seven b. Ten c. Twelve
3. Who preached on the day of Pentecost? Acts 2:14 a. John b. Paul c. Peter
6. What was the name of the well that the Samaritan woman drew water from? John 4:6-7 a. Samaria Well b. Joseph’s Well c. Jacob’s Well
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through the gift of prophecy, pregnant with expectation - expecting the return of the King of Kings. Its interesting to see how Ellen White describes her ministry in the Review & Herald January 20, 1903; “The Lord has sent his people much instruction, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, and there a little. Little heed is given to the Bible, and the Lord has given a lesser light to lead men and women to the greater light. O, how much good would be accomplished if the
books containing this light were read with a determination to carry out the principles they contain!” The greater light is none other than Jesus Christ, and the ministry of Ellen White was/is the lesser light. The goal and mission of this great woman of God was to lead us to deeper relationship with the person of Jesus Christ. What a privilege we have in being a part of the last day church; the woman represented in Revelation 12:1-4. Would to God we begin to let our light so shine. Why? Because the woman is PREGNANT!!!
Southgate March
1 Lifestyle for Excellent Health: March 1-3 with guest speakers Danny & Charmaine Vierra 2 International Women’s Day of Pray 3 Adventist Youth Week of Prayer: March 3-9 6 Neighborhood Foodbank Ministry: 9a-11:30a Prayer Meeting @7p* 8 Bible Study @ 7:30p (Branner Home)** 9 Sabbath Service, Potluck, AY*** Special Service: 7p @ the Sam Pannell Meadowview Community Center: “Raising “G” Rated Children in an “X” Rated World.” 15 Countdown to Eternity: Evangelistic Series (15th-27th) 16 Disabilites Awareness Sabbath 29 Who DoYou Love Series (LTW Ministry): March 29-30 *Every Wednesday, **Every Friday Eve, ***Every Sabbath
that there is a God? Did I mention He leadership in my church or conference? parted the Red Sea?!! Yet … the people Our quarterly lesson on “The ‘Wisdom’ rdaviswest@gmail.com were still insolent and foolish. The other of the World” teaches us that we may I am constantly amazed that there is al- part to this story is in 1 Corinthians 10:6- have knowledge, but it is not the same as ways something new to learn in the com- 12 where Paul teaches us that we are to wisdom. The example of the exodus remon pages of the bible, and throughout. understand the exodus as our example. veals how a ticket to the Promised Land I’m not certain how many times I’ve read Therefore, I ask, have we learned not to was lost in spite of “personal knowledge”. the Book of Exodus, but it’s been many. murmur and complain? Not to “stone” the So if we are so much smarter than the And in my reading I know, like most, how leaders of our church? Or to remember Israelites, why don’t we obey God’s Word the children of Israel murmured and com- the grace and victory that God, not self, and pray for wisdom and learn from their mistakes? Why hasn’t Jesus returned? plained, yet God brought them through has gifted us with? great trials and revealed numerous and This lesson taught by Paul is so crucial Here is a challenge: 1) consecrate magnanimous miracles. I’ve learned how to our salvation. It is an ensample, or type, yourself to the Lord first thing every mornungrateful they were, how they grieved to the antitype experience of the Promised ing (read SC 70), 2) designate a time to Moses and Aaron, and more. Yet, I never Land. The exodus of the Israelites was to study His word (I suggest to study our realized that the people got to the point lead to an earthly heaven. Yet, the major- prayer meeting booklet), 3) resolve unwhere they wanted to stone Moses!! ity did not enter. They claimed to want it, resolved conflicts, and 4) do not murmur but, the bible says clearly that they com- and complain for an entire week; instead, What?!?! (Exodus 17:4, PP 297.3) In this true story, Moses is likened to plained about the bitter water in Marah, praise God for his awesomeness! the Pastor and Aaron the Head Elder. And they were tired of the manna from heaven, Bask in this marvelous example of these gentlemen were being lead by the they chose impatience and crafted an idol, God’s tremendous love for us. Know that King of Kings, Jehova-Jireh, The Begin- tempted the Lord, and wanted to crucify we are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, ning and The End, The Lord Almighty! His manservant. Therefore, we need to ask and naked. And yet, we have a wonderful Also, the people were lead spiritually by ourselves: Do I murmur and complain? Am Father who is ready to welcome us home. Truth, and physically by a pillar of cloud by I ungrateful and impatient? Do I have idols? day, fire by night. Isn’t this proof enough Do I harbor negative feelings towards the ••• the Southgate GOSPEL ••• www.southgatesda.com www.facebook.com/southgate.church.1
By Regina Davis-West Editor