News | Seventh-day Adventist Church

Editorial: A Time to Trust God

Editorial by Dave Weigley

Recently our world has been overtaken by the coronavirus pandemic. Fear and uncertainty abound, people are suffering and many lives have been lost. Social distancing measures have left many people working from home or seeking unemployment benefits. Health care workers and frontline responders are risking their lives to save others. Many people are wondering if this is the beginning of the end. And, at the writing of this editorial, our churches are meeting virtually, students are distance learning, and camp meetings, summer camps, graduations and special events have been postponed or canceled.

2019 Annual Report Highlights

1.The Columbia Union Conference partnered with the General Conference and North American Division to help fund $900,000 to support local conference outreach ministries, such as the community center at Pennsylvania Conference’s Grace Outlet church in Reading.

2.The Office of Ministries Development organized our first unionwide evangelism conference where we challenged pastors to employ the best methods for reaching today’s culture.

Highland View Academy Students Lead Online Week of Prayer

Gabriel Orellana, Stephanie Jaqua, Urna Uuganbayar, Angel Hernandez share week of prayer messages.

Story by Jacklyn Ruth

Last week, five Highland View Academy (HVA) students led out in a virtual Week of Prayer experience. With school buildings closed across the region due to the coronavirus pandemic, students were unable to meet together in person for this special week of spiritual emphasis.

ASI Columbia Union to Host Business Owners Meet Up

Story by Celeste Ryan Blyden

Members of the Columbia Union Conference’s Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries (ASI) Chapter will host a virtual meet up Monday, April 27, 2020, from 8-9 p.m. via Zoom. “This event will provide an opportunity for small business owners and nonprofit ministry leaders to join us for prayer, encouragement, networking and support,” says Mark Brown, chapter president. “We believe that connection and interaction will spiritually uplift those who are struggling during this time of quarantine and social distancing.”

To register for the event, please click here.

Maryland Nurse Shares How Frontline Workers Provide More Than Medical Care

Story by Visitor Staff

Besides taking care of the physical needs of COVID-19 patients, nurse Crystal Lubis has the privilege of virtually connecting patients to family members during some of their most intimate moments.

Lubis, who frequently attends Potomac Conference’s Capital Chinese church in Silver Spring, Md., is a bedside nurse in the adult intensive care unit at a hospital in suburban Maryland. A nurse for 12 years, she’s frequently on the dedicated COVID-19 ICU section.

Drive-By 'Parade of Compassion' Connects Community

Story by Tiffany Doss

During a "parade of compassion" in Richmond, Va., eight cars, donned with brightly-colored ribbons, children waving out of windows and drivers honking their horns, circled around several retirement communities to bring joy and a sense of belonging to the residents inside.

This is just one way members of Potomac Conference's Courthouse Road church in North Chesterfield, Va., continue to build bridges to God during these uncertain times.

Lake Nelson Adventist Academy's Music Department Plays a New Tune

Story by Samantha Rivera

The New Jersey Conference Lake Nelson Adventist Academy's (LNAA) Music Department is reaching new heights this acadmic year. The head of the department, Henoc Morrobel, a talented musician, leads the orchestra and band; the high school choir director, Mahaleth Forbes, uses her tremendous capabilities in music; and the middle school choir director, Kimberly Francis, exercises her gifts of leadership and creativity to conduct the Harmony choir.

Hybrid Lab Brings Faster Recovery for Hearts

Story by Christina Keresoma

One out of every three people is affected by heart disease, making it the number one killer in the nation. Kettering Adventist HealthCare has been teaming up with physicians and investing in top-of-the-line medical technology to improve heart care.

Maryland Adventists Share Literature While Driving for Uber

Story by Dan Galusha/ Pacific Press

Like many these days, Alex and Janeth Partyka, Baltimore residents and members of Chesapeake Conference's Triadelpia church in Clarksville, Md., have been driving for Lyft and Uber part-time to earn some extra income. Alex and Janeth also wanted to witness to others about Jesus and the Adventist message. If they felt a passenger might be receptive, and especially when the conversation turned to religious topics, they would offer the person a small piece of literature. However, sometimes riders would refuse a tract when it was offered to them.

Where God Wants Me to Be

Where God Wants Me to Be

Karen Garay, a member of Potomac Conference’s Rockville (Md.) church works in Customer Service and bookkeeping at a Weis Markets in Gaithersburg, Md., and says she can feel an undercurrent of fear when people visit the store and would have a difficult time coping without her faith.