As a direct result of attending the ARISE Bible Boot Camp at Kingscliff Church in April last year, six young adults from Ipswich Church recently took up the challenge to run their very own Bible Boot Camp for their local congregation.

Joe Tyler, Alo Talafua, Sasha Shofay, Vanessa Woodman, Nina Ngau and Sandra Entermann all maintain, “None of us went in confidently. We all knew we were up for a big challenge, but we had each other, we had our notes, and we had Jesus”.

Despite a massive storm raging around him–having just been hit with the news that his mother has only months to live–novice presenter, Alo, took up the challenge of delivering the opening session, The Word of God & Daniel 2. When questioned at the end if he had been nervous, he admitted that yes he was, but quoted David Asscherick, saying, “when you kneel before God you can stand before kings”.

The youngest of the presenters, Vanessa, put her hand up to present the controversial topic The Antichrist. She said “it was quite challenging, yet rewarding, to reveal how the Bible interprets …
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If you are a Seventh-day Adventist student studying on a non-Adventist university campus, you have a unique opportunity. Far more than merely graduating with an expensive piece of paper in your hands, you can be used by God to impact a group of people that is often neglected, grossly underestimated, and hugely important to the cause of Christ. You are part of a missionary group of people where world missions come to you.

Here are five simple and proven–ways to be a successful missionary on your campus without adding much to your already busy schedule (BONDS–makes it easier to remember):

1. Be Involved

“In the story of the good Samaritan, Christ illustrates the nature of true religion. He shows that it consists not in systems, creeds, or rites, but in the performance of loving deeds, in bringing the greatest good to others, in genuine goodness” (Desire of Ages, 497).

Remember that a religion that is not active is not real religion. A religion that is not shared is a religion not worth taking up. A religion that does not impact life is a dead …
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The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse behind the scenes of the great controversy between good and evil:

“Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12)

God lifts the curtain and gives us the perspective of the other side. The devil has “great wrath.” It’s not that he’s a bit upset. The Greek word for wrath means “passion, as if breathing hard.” He’s in a state of panic, a state of passionate anger.

But why?

The answer is right in the text: “because he knows that he has a short time.” So there it is. It’s a time factor. Satan is well aware of the times in which we live. He’s familiar with the news. In fact, the effects of his work is what too often makes the news. He’s acquainted with the prophecies that are being fulfilled. So his reaction is appropriate. Is he more convinced …
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Over the years we have become associated with a number of talented musicians and songwriters. We’ve often daydreamed about a music tour that would be biblically grounded, of the highest musical quality, and evangelistically savvy. Those dreams have become reality. The first  Songs of Ascent Concert Tour took place last year from April through June 2011.

We traveled all over California and featured a themed approach that included original songs from several young, spirited Adventist musicians, most of them being former students of our ARISE evangelism training program.

We’re so thankful to Jesus for the blessings and success of the tour, which included more than 20 concerts and added 3000 miles to a very carefully and thoroughly packed mini-van. Christ was uplifted and hearts were moved by the gospel-centered music provided by the “musicianaries” (they are musicians and missionaries) that led those attending on the Eden to Eden journey through Scripture. We believe this creative project is just the beginning of a whole new way of “doing” ministry and evangelism.

This year’s tour will take place in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon, Washington, British Columbia), launching this weekend …
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A large part of Light Bearers’ history is publishing literature to send around the world. This video provides a small glimpse of how this work has impacted us and the lives of those abroad.

To learn more about the publishing work, visit our publishing page .

Sometimes we hear people say things like, “I need more of the Holy Spirit in my life” or “I want the fullness of the Spirit.” There is nothing direly wrong with this language, and yet it may evince a subtle danger in our thinking about the Holy Spirit. Sentiments like those above communicate, at some level, that we use the Spirit. If the Spirit were, as some suppose, merely a force, a power or some kind of divine energy, then perhaps this language and the underlying sentiments would be more acceptable, but this is not at all the case.

The Spirit is “the Third Person of the Godhead” (Desire of Ages, p. 671). This is manifestly clear language. Here is the statement in its larger context:

“The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the Third Person of the …
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It was my last night of cafeteria food. The next morning I would be leaving ICAP (ECAP) and saying “adios” to the hundreds of young people who had listened to me preach for the last 18 nights. A table of students motioned me over. I recognized two of the girls who had just given the special music. They shared their unsolicited testimonies about the impact of the meetings and when the tears began to fall I realized what God had wrought.

At first I wasn’t sold out for Guatemala. Some friends wanted me to go more than I did, but it seemed like a great opportunity for my wife and daughter to be with me in the mission field. They would be working with the dental team and handing out clothes and goodies in the villages. Kierra even ended up pulling a tooth.

In addition, this outreach gave Light Bearers an opportunity to send a container of newly translated Spanish literature to Guatemala through Water for Life . As it turns out, Guatemala is hungry for literature and before leaving we laid plans …
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God exists, and He loves you. How long will it take before we open our eyes and dare to answer His tender voice? In this world where we are living there is so much stress and pressure all around us every single day. The time seems to disappear before it has arrived, and so too, with life itself. With time crunches that make life feel a little too cramped, it is important to realize that the truths that make life richer are valuable and important truths. One of the most useful, beautiful, and dear truths life has to offer is found in Exodus 31:13-17 in a short, intimate paragraph. Here God Himself is speaking. Take a few minutes, and hear what He has to say to you:

“Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you” (Exodus 31:13).

God starts off by reminding us that the Sabbath that was instituted on the seventh and last day of the creation …
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Someone sent me a recent article by John Piper, Reformed Baptist preacher and best selling author, titled, Fierce Tornados and the Fingers of God . The opening sentence was as terrible to me as the tornados themselves: “Why would God reach down His hand and drag His fierce fingers across rural America killing at least 38 people with 90 tornadoes in 12 states, and leaving some small towns with scarcely a building standing, including churches?”

Do most people just assume that God is behind all natural disasters? Do you? No believer can deny God’s judgments without tossing the Bible. But do all natural disasters lead to God, like “all roads lead to Rome”? Insurance companies seem to think so—based on their famous (or infamous) insurance clause indicating they don’t cover, “acts of God.”

The Dead Don’t repent

One answer for these questions is found in Christ’s words to believers in the face of a tragedy that killed 18 persons:

“Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt …
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The world is filled with human beings, nearly seven billion of them. But we are not a nameless mass of humanity. We are, rather, a community of totally distinct individuals who are each one intimately by God. Each one has a name, a history, and a unique collection of sorrows and joys, traumas and triumphs. I want to introduce to you a man named Benzu and a women named Irene. While they did not know one another, I met each of them in Zambia on the same day. This is the simple story of how their lives were impacted by the literature of Light Bearers. Enjoy!

Video courtesy of Daniel A. Webber .