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October 10, 2021: Moving Experience

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13, NKJV).

When I got the news that I was moving to Ohio, I was so mad at God. It was so unfair that I had to move again. I felt like I was just getting used to living in Tennessee, but now I had to pack everything up. It was so hard for me to let go of all the friends I had met.

Moving to Ohio was hard at first, but then things got easier. I started to realize that God sent me here for a purpose. If I had only trusted Him from the start, then things would’ve been a lot easier.

October 9, 2021: The Big Picture

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Prov. 3:5–6, NIV).

This verse reminds me to trust in the Lord, regardless of whatever is going on in my life or the world. It points out that, although I may not understand things and/or people at times, if I acknowledge Him and continue to believe that He knows what’s best for me, everything will turn out fine.

October 11, 2021: Let Me Tell You About Joseph

“Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you’” (Gen. 41:39, NIV).

I like Genesis 41:39 because it shows God’s power and what He can do, especially in this abbreviated version on the story of Joseph:

Joseph lived with his father, Jacob, and 11 brothers in Canaan. Jacob made Joseph a coat of many colors, and God gave Joseph two dreams. One day, Jacob asked Joseph to take food to his brothers who were taking care of the sheep. When Joseph arrived, his brothers, except for Reuben—the oldest, and who wasn’t present—sold Joseph into slavery. Later, Joseph’s slave master took him to Egypt and sold him again.

Donate Winter Coats to Afghan Refugees at Drive on October 10

Photo by Joshua Hanson on Unsplash

The thousands of Afghan refugees housed at the Quantico Marine Base in Virginia are in desperate need of winter coats for the upcoming winter months. To help meet this dire need, several Potomac Conference members are helping.

International recording artists and national talent winners Bernadette and Winston Charles, members of Potomac Conference’s Seabrook church in Lanham, Md.; Rocky Twyman, Founder of the Pandemic Comforters and member of the Rockville (Md.) congregation and Pastor Sifa Potauine of the Beltsville (Md.) church have united to help.

Blue Mountain Academy Class of 2021 Chooses Mission Over Entertainment

Class of 2021 BMA students serving on their class trip

Story by Esther Hernandez

“Our senior class didn’t want to do just any class trip; we wanted to serve,” shares Catarina Falcao, a Blue Mountain Academy (BMA) 2021 graduate. “Since we couldn’t go out of the country because of COVID-19, we decided to serve in Florida.”

October 7, 2021: The Law of Attraction

“And, behold, one came and said unto Him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? ... Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow Me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions” (Matt. 19:16, 21–22, KJV).

Letting go of his possessions and reaching his hand to grasp what Jesus offered was too high a cost for the rich young ruler to pay for the free gift of eternal life. And while Jesus didn’t tell the young man to go, He didn’t beg him to stay either.

October 6, 2021: No Need to Fear

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7, NKJV).

As I prepared for a final exam during my senior year of college, I became overwhelmed with worry about how I would do. My degree would be in Early Childhood Education, so I sought my grandmother Helen’s guidance, since she was a retired teacher. She comforted me with this Bible verse and spoke of the many times she turned to it in times of fear. It’s been more than 20 years since this conversation, and I still hide these words in my heart.

Referencing this verse, the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary (SDABC) says, “Genuine Christianity doesn’t produce cowards” (vol. 7, p. 329).

Potomac Conference Appoints First Female Lead Pastor

Story by Debra Anderson

Lola Moore-Johnston grew up in Newark, N.J., and at an early age felt God’s call on her life. Her leadership gifts were evident early in her spiritual development, as she led out in her local church and while attending college at La Sierra University (Calif.). In her youth, God was preparing her to be a change agent and a history maker.

Moore-Johnston joined the Potomac Conference in 2018 as the pastor of the Woodbridge (Va.) church. On July 1, she was installed as the lead pastor of the Restoration Praise Center in Bowie, Md. This is the first time in the history of the Potomac Conference that a female has been selected the lead pastor of a congregation.*

With Growing Numbers, Spring Valley Academy to Expand High School

A rendering of the new high school addition

Story by Vicki Swetnam

God has blessed Ohio Conference's Spring Valley Academy (SVA) with unprecedented growth over the past several years. With an enrollment nearing 500 this school year, the current facility is at maximum capacity. As SVA completed the first phase of the Fritzsche Center for Worship and Performing Arts in 2018, it became clear that the next project needed to address the need for more classroom space. Plans began for a new high school addition along the southwest corner of the existing facility.