After a lengthy search for a new assistant treasurer, the Ohio Conference hired Roy Simpson. Simpson, son of a pastor, lived in five different countries while growing up in Central America.
Story by Heidi Shoemaker
He opted to study accounting because he “wanted to work for the church, and numbers have always been my strongest area in school," he shares. Simpson has a bachelor’s in business administration, and expects to complete an MBA in finance in about a year.
Although Seventh-day Adventists were unable to worship openly in Cuba until recently, members from Potomac Conference’s Seabrook church in Lanham, Md., have ministered there for more than three years. And this summer, Seabrook church members Gavin Simpson, Noah Simpson and Audrey Clarke traveled with Margaret Cancelliere, a member from Pennsylvania Conference’s Pottstown church, and Kenton Rawlins, a member from Connecticut, for a third mission trip to Gibara, a small seaside town where they have worked for the past two years.
Story by Dawna-gene Milton and V. Michelle Bernard
This summer the Mountain View Conference (MVC) kicked off a mission project that connected Seventh-day Adventists on two continents.
Story by Mountain View Conference Staff
The project was born in early 2015, when the staff and student body of the Peruvian Union University (PUU) in Lima, Peru, challenged students to serve as missionaries around the world. Many members of the student body accepted and committed to serve. School leaders say their motivation was founded on the blessings that came from the missionaries who brought the Three Angels’ Messages to their homeland. In turn, they wanted to bless others across the globe through what they deemed the “I Will Go” call.
A small group of members interested in reaching the more than 15,000 Liberians living in the Philadelphia area reached out to Pastor Matthew Kamara who was completing a doctorate of ministry at Andrews University (Mich.). Kamara previously served as the treasurer of the Liberian Conference in Africa and planted several churches there and in South Bend, Ind.
Story by Pennsylvania Conference Staff
Kamara agreed to help and started the journey to opening the Pilgrim church. In 2013 Kamara started commuting to Philadelphia on weekends. In 2014 he moved there and started working more intensely in the area. Now, after only two years, about 60 people attend each Sabbath.
When John and Janelle Rivera decided to work with the Laurelwood church youth again, they only planned to revive the Pathfinder club. However, they ended up leading a group of young people of varying ages, from juniors to young adults, many of whom did not grow up in Seventh-day Adventist homes or didn’t take their faith seriously.
Story by New Jersey Conference Staff
The Deptford church’s Laurelwood Lions Pathfinder Club sometimes functions more like a youth group, combining aspects of Pathfinders and Adventist Youth (AY) mixed with a dose of practical life lessons. Recently, the Riveras challenged members to create a $1,800 monthly budget for living on their own.
Highland View Academy’s STEM certificate program launched this year with approximately 30 students enrolled. These students benefit from an intensive but well-rounded education that especially prepares them to pursue STEM-related college majors. New STEM classes include integrated STEM, anatomy and physiology, project-based learning, robotics, iOS app development and a pilot of Maryland’s new advanced placement Computer Science Principles course.
Story by Lori Zerne
Do you believe in a literal, six-day creation? Why or why not? Read more about this topic in the September Underscore article, and read responses from some of our Facebook followers below—and add your own.
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Do you believe in a literal seven-day creation week? Why?
Posted by Columbia Union Visitor on Saturday, August 1, 2015
Posted by Columbia Union Visitor on Saturday, August 1, 2015
Read and share these stories from the September 2015 Visitor:
Learn more about how mentors at Allegheny East Conference’s (AEC) Calvary church in Newport News, Va., do their part to inspire and uplift young men in their church and community in our September Visitor cover story. Watch an AEC video spotlight of the group below.
CROP from AEC Media Center on Vimeo.
Read and share these stories from the September 2015 Visitor:
Is it possible to forgive your child’s murderer? In A Time to Forgive, Darold Bigger explores the closure only God could bring after the slaying of his daughter, Shannon Marie Bigger, a young intern at Washington Adventist Hospital in Silver Spring, Md. Bigger resides in Walla Walla, Washington where he attends Walla Walla University Church.
Interview by Dawna-gene Milton
Visitor: What made you want to share such a personal experience?
Dr. H. Jean Wright II has written Find Strength In Your Struggle: Discover The Miracle In You to help readers learn you can overcome any situation with power from God. Wright is a member of Pennsylvania Conference's Chestnut Hill church in Philadelphia.
Interview by Dawna-gene Milton
Visitor: What was the motivation behind writing Find Strength In Your Struggle: Discover The Miracle In You?
