When I was a kid, there were only two things I knew with absolute certainty: pain and love.
Suffering defined my existence. Horrors haunted our little home—the horrors of…
I had a couple of big fears as a kid: 1) boa constrictors and 2) quicksand. As I’ve gotten older, though, I’ve happily realized that neither quicksand nor boa constrictors are the everyday struggles of adulthood that I…
Ishmael was a Pioneer Bible Worker for Riverside Farm Institute in Zambia. Justin (Ishmael’s brother-in-law) and Steven (a seasonal worker from Tanzania) were studying Truth Link together with Ishmael. Using the…
“Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (Romans 5:20).
Every human being is, by nature, obsessed with self. This includes you and me. Self-centeredness is…
“This is so dry,” Ellen thought to herself as she looked at her Bible, feeling shame for thinking such a thought about the Bible and the simultaneous urge to let her eyes glaze over the words. Though raised in a loving…
“You can do this. You have a good reason to be here,” I assured myself as I walked over to our new neighbor’s house. My family was new in town and my brother Nick, who has the social anxiety of Spongebob, had already…
In May, we celebrated our 10-year anniversary of running the ARISE discipleship program in Australia. The impact has been nothing short of astounding. Much of that impact is measurable.
…
“Do you really think you can do this work?” His brother-in-law began peppering him—the venom in his words was nearly visible as he spoke. “Do you think you are some kind of pastor? Are you really able to do…
There’s a joke that says if you speak two languages, you’re bilingual. If you speak three, you’re trilingual. If you speak one, you’re American.
During a recent…
We used to have a neighbor, Richard, whom we adopted as our “grandfather.” We’d have him over for dinner, bake him cookies, take him to dialysis, and help him maneuver around his house when he was bed-ridden. He joined…
Bridging the Gap: Reconnecting Youth with the Gospel
by Anneliese Wahlman
“Ty, your presentation made me angry,” the young woman said, her brow furrowed. The large beams of the auditorium towered over them as they talked, like a mini cathedral.
…
If you had the opportunity to share the gospel with the president or prime minister of your country, would you have something to say? What about a governor or mayor? Most Christians are aware that Jesus wants us to share the…
From Skeptic to Believer: My Instantaneous Conversion Story
by Ty Gibson
When I was 18 years old, my mom and my girlfriend conspired against me on my behalf. They sent this goofy looking pastor dude, in a suit and tie, with a big smile to knock on my bedroom door and witness to me.
…
“Hi, Ty! My name is Rob. I know you’re busy, but I’ve seen the goodness of God through your preaching in a way I’ve never seen before and I was wondering if I could get your perspective on something.”
…
"Mykolaiv...Mykolaiv...There, I found it." One year ago, I was zooming in on Google Maps to locate the city where Karina last told us she lived. It was in southeastern Ukraine. A port city. My shoulders sank. This was an…
“But why?”
If you’ve raised children, you’re familiar with this innocent, yet sometimes dreadful, question. Before becoming a parent, I thought I would always have…
Most people are thrilled when they’re told that they’ve been accepted into medical school. Jared was disappointed. He tried to be excited as he shared the news with friends and family, but he felt like…
Normally, if you’re just meeting someone, it’s awkward if they cry in front of you. Maybe extra awkward if they’re crying over a Zoom call and you can’t hand them a tissue and mumble, “Sorry.” But when I spoke…
If there were Olympic Games for the person with the saddest story in all the Bible, obviously Job would take the gold medal, but do you know who I think would take silver? Jacob. His story has always fascinated and attracted…
In the eastern province of Zambia, in the Chadiza district, Thomas Mule was riding his bicycle. His smooth, dark skin was glistening from the heat of the sun. You would not know it by his looks, but he had been pedaling for…
A few months ago, my boyfriend told me he hated me. Well, actually, he said we should go hiking, but it’s the same thing.
After work, we drove to the Manitou Incline in…
Anxiety levels are rising worldwide. Surely you have noticed, while, no doubt, trying not to notice. Jesus described the final chapters of human history as involving “men’s hearts failing them from fear and the…
“Father Steve” was a fixture of my childhood. He was the longtime minister of the local Episcopalian church my parents attended. I remember him being kind and funny. I remember the strange robes he would wear on Sunday.…
I want to tell you about a 17-year-old girl named Alycia whose life you’ve changed. She sent me the following text: “I’ve been to countless retreats, revivals, and conferences, but never before have I experienced such…
My mom is one of those off-the-grid, homesteading types. She has a garden, a root cellar, and even a composting toilet that utilizes sawdust, which actually isn’t as weird as you’d think. Unless, of course, you get…
It was a hot, muggy day in the Kenge territory of the southwestern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) when Yanvu Joseph saw a tent flapping in the breeze. Maybe he overheard people talking about the tent in one of the six…
What if I said this to you?
“You should dead drift an olive wooly bugger, with just a touch of swing, right through the gut and watch for a flashy, butter-colored…
Can you think of a friend who seems to stand out from the rest? Perhaps it’s because he or she does things a little bit differently from others, or has experienced life uniquely, and because of this, offers unique…
“I’d been drinking and I was involved in an accident where a life was lost,” Edgar’s voice is somber but clear.
It’s hard to picture Edgar and his wife, Nicole,…
Words are the building blocks with which we construct sentences in order to convey ideas, form perceptions, ascribe meaning, and tell stories. We are linguistic creatures because we are creatures made in the divine image.…
Have you ever seen something almost every day of your life, hardly noticing it until you see it in a new light and start appreciating it more? This seems to happen to me more now that I have kids—they have a way of…
“Tuli pa Nkondo ya Yesu. Pioneer, tigwile nchito. Yesu commander watu, Bible chipolopolo.”
Translated from Zambian Chichewa: “We are in a battle for Jesus. Pioneers,…
“When I first arrived, I thought, ‘This is the worst decision I’ve ever made!’” At 23, my oldest sister, Becky, enlisted in the army and soon found herself in hot, sticky Fort Jackson, South Carolina, for basic…
In his excellent book, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, Eugene Peterson writes, “All the wisdom and strength of the ancient world were in Mesopotamia and Egypt…Mesopotamian power and Egyptian wisdom were…
“My addictions are my comfort zones and, if I leave them, well, I'm scared I won't know how to handle myself.”
You might not do cocaine or meth, but, on some level, we…
“I. Want. To. Go. Home,” the pastor exclaimed to the auditorium. He wasn’t talking about returning to his bungalow in the suburbs. He was preaching about Jesus taking us to heaven. He used his pauses dramatically,…
“I was in a really deep hole and Jared pulled me out.”
Those are the words of an 18-year-old young man named Noah, a current ARISE student, who testified to me and his…
You probably don’t know many four-year-old children with depression, but when my grandma was that age, she was depressed—so depressed, in fact, she stopped eating, laid in bed, and only spoke when necessary. She should…
When you think of Saint Patrick’s Day, you likely think of shamrocks or sporting green, but Patrick’s life was full of drama and adventure rather than luck and leprechauns.
…
Molly Bwalya is a student at the University of Lusaka, Zambia. We all know why people go to universities: to get an education, in order to get a job, in order to get money, in order to provide one’s material…
Words carry meaning. I say “cat” and immediately an image pops into your head. I say “dog” and the image changes. Some words mean little some mean a lot. And some words mean so much that reality itself would implode…
Back in 1992, IBM launched an ad campaign with a single word: think. It was brilliant because who doesn't want to be regarded as a thinker? But then, in 1997, along came Steve Jobs and Apple who launched what is regarded as…
The prophet Isaiah foretold the first advent of Christ with the words, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder” (Isaiah 9:6).
…
As a species, we’re kind of obsessed with love stories. They’re in everything we read, write, watch, and talk about. We can’t help but root for the guy to get the girl or for the girl to finally be noticed and for them…
“Gratitude exclaims, very properly, ‘How good of God to give me this.’” —C.S. Lewis
Twelve years ago, I lost my wife to breast cancer. It was by far the most…
“Look! I drew you something!”
If you’re friends with any little kids, you know how special it is when they draw you something. Whether it’s a lopsided heart,…
Am I a Bad Christian if I Don’t Feel Like Praising God?
by Anneliese Wahlman
“You’re obsessed!” My friend Elise laughed at me as she sat down on my bed. The month before, my mom, step-dad, and I went to watch a movie called JoJo Rabbit for my twenty-eighth birthday, and I fell in love…
How Literature And a Prayer Changed the Future of a Prostitute
by Anneliese Wahlman
There were no child services to take care of Margret and her brother when they lost their parents. Two of the hundreds of thousands of orphans in Tanzania, they grew up along the shores of Lake Victoria. Margret managed to…
One Thursday evening this past February, I gathered up a can of tomato paste, old newspaper, dry coconut husk, sewing scissors, and a grocery bag of bright-colored envelopes. Squatting on the ground, I wrapped the can of…
TikTok, the Gospel, and the Future of Light Bearers
by Anneliese Wahlman
YouTube was founded in 2005. Today, 16 years later, 82 years worth of video content is uploaded to YouTube every day (or 500 hours every minute). To put that in perspective, you could grow up, go to school, get married,…
“You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.” –Psalm 51:6
Would you rather have the ability to fly or to…
“So, what do you think is going to happen in the future?” The guy sitting next to Maria in one of her classes at the University of California in San Diego turned to her abruptly and asked. “I feel like an apocalypse is…
I work at a school for special needs children. Historically, there’s been very little effort expended to help people with mental illnesses, and when there was more help, only the wealthy could afford it. Eventually, with…
Play. Pause. Translate. Play. Pause. Translate.
It’s the early 1980s in China. A small group is listening to a cassette tape recording of a Bible study. They…
In the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. –Romans 4:17, ESV
How…
The gospel is good news, not good advice. It doesn’t tell us what we must do but rather what God has already done for us. And what He’s done for us is so monumental and complete that we literally can’t add anything to…
When it comes to metaphors of God’s love, Fathers often get the spotlight. They no doubt communicate God’s love in an irreplaceably unique way. But Scripture tells us that it takes both genders to understand the fullness…
Ghana’s Adventist history is said to have started with literature.
In 1863 Adventism found its way into West Africa through literature. It wasn’t an official church…
“I wish I could believe in God, but I’ve never heard Him explained in a way that made intellectual sense. He might as well be the Easter Bunny.”
These are…
Winnie is a changed woman. Her life was on the path of destruction, which, in turn, was destroying many others’ lives. But Jesus has changed the trajectory of her life completely and forever.
…
As told by Pastor Protus Makimu
The Magomeni Church in Tanzania has been richly blessed by the continued donations of literature from Light Bearers. We’ve…
Once I began a sermon by asking the congregation to shout out the first thing that came to mind when they thought of the Second Coming.
One guy yelled, “It won't be a…
Do you love snow? I’ve always loved it, but today I love it a little bit more. You see, I’ve lived in sub-tropical Australia for the last six years. “Cold” there is 50° Fahrenheit. So, as you might’ve guessed, it…
Each year Light Bearers is privileged to provide more than 20 million pieces of gospel literature in local languages to developing countries—all printed, packaged, and shipped free of charge to regions in need of resources…
As told by Bible worker Emmanuel Kadima
Christian Lema was born into a Roman Catholic family in Mbanza-ngungu, a small town west of Kinshasa, the capital…
Love Brings Us Face to Face with Ourselves
“This is true weed whacking!” my roommate said as she attacked the two forests that were my eyebrows with a pair of…
Probably the most important and yet challenging discipline to which the Christian is called is to love with a kind of love that “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians…
An Answer to a Prayer and a Provision to Fulfill a Vision
by Light Bearers
The following report was sent to us by Pastor Thomas Ongasa:
In 2012, God called me to step down as president of a local mission/conference faith-based ministry.…
Love Never Fails
Murphy’s Law states that everything that can go wrong will. I don’t think it’s true, but the law seems to describe 2020 quite well. As if a global…
Love Does Not Rejoice in the Failures of Others.
My best friend and I were trying to master a challenging skateboard maneuver. The goal was to dip down from the shallow end…
Catherine was raised in a loving Christian family of four in Morogoro, Tanzania. She was the only child in the family who had the opportunity to receive higher education at the University of Dar es Salaam. It may be painful…
On the Nature of Forgiveness and When to End a Relationship
by Ty Gibson
There are traits and talents latent within you that can only be brought to active expression when you are in healthy, honest relationships. By remaining in destructive relationships, you are suppressing your unborn…
Amina grew up in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania under the care of her loving parents. In university, she pursued computer science. Upon completion, Amina was hired at Tanzania’s Ministry of Labor headquarters in Dar es Salaam.…
Love Keeps No Record of Wrongs
Did you know that God practices a voluntary form of amnesia? It’s true. The only One who knows everything about everything chooses to block…
Growing up in earthquake territory, I was keenly aware that while no one knew when, everyone anticipated “the big one.” Earthquake drills in school, tremors, and even actual midnight earthquakes kept the apprehension…
Nelly is an Australian lady who worked as a prostitute around the world. However, today she is a faithful missionary of the Word of God in Australia and beyond. This is her story.
…
Love is Not Provoked
I have a problem in the kitchen. Every time I attempt to boil water, it boils over. This, of course, creates a terrible mess. But this is a small…
An antagonist is typically someone who is against us. Defined as an opposing, limiting, nullifying force, the antagonist does not carry a positive connotation. In the world of physiology though, a healthy balance of life…
Stories from Tanzania: Richard and Jackson
One thing stands out in all my interviews with people when listening to their conversion stories: there is a fresh desire to share…
When I arrived in Tanzania, the Seventh-Day Adventist Church was in the middle of a satellite evangelism program. I wanted to visit one of the sites, so a local church elder picked me up from the hotel.
…
Various studies show that somewhere between about 25-35 percent of adults in America and 50 percent of those 60 years of age or older are estimated to have metabolic syndrome. These are staggering statistics. Potentially 3…
Love is Not Self-Seeking
I have a friend who wears a t-shirt that says, “I have gone to find myself. If I get back before I return, please keep me here.”
…
For a while now we’ve been in the throes of the coronavirus. Most of us have never experienced empty grocery store shelves, social distancing, and unemployment due to a virus. Because COVID-19 is novel, one we’ve never…
Love is Not Rude
My heart sank as I checked my Facebook notifications. I had commented about emotions I was feeling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While I’m confident of…
During the telegraph era, humans started to formulate abbreviations to communicate. Today, abbreviated texting lingo abounds. It is referred to as SMS language or textspeak. I am admittedly slow with cultural change, but I…
As a publishing correspondent for Light Bearers Ministry in Africa, I have the privilege of listening to literally hundreds of people tell me their conversion stories. I see lives who are touched by God’s powerful Word…
In Matthew 24, Jesus warned that as the end of human history approaches a number of signs will increase in frequency and intensity. The spread of contagious diseases is in His list. The coronavirus it's pretty scary for a…
As told to Meiring Pretorius by Ilunga Kazembe, Northern Zambia:
It was a Sunday. I was going home from visiting some students who were enrolled to study the Discover…
Black-eyed peas are not pizza or hamburgers. That’s for sure. Black-eyed peas are associated with soul comfort food. However, I don't think the amount of black-eyed peas consumed in the United States can even be compared…
Love Does Not Envy
Kids believe weird stuff. For example, I have a friend who, when he was young, didn’t think girls pooped. I guess, for him, femininity and bodily…
What to Do When You’re Accused of Stealing Organs: A Literature Report from Zambia
by Anneliese Wahlman
“They don’t want to teach you about the God of the Bible. They just want to harvest your organs and use them for witchcraft.”
When you’re holding an evangelistic…
Zingy, zesty, and bright. That's how some describe the taste of gooseberries. Others say they're like sour grapes. Scientific circles refer to them as Phyllanthus emblica or Emblica officinal. In Sanskrit…
Love Suffers Long
I ran my first marathon at 23. The first half was a breeze. By mile 18, I felt sore. At mile 23, a young man ran up beside me and asked:…
“Whenever I feel the need to exercise, I just sit down until it goes away.”
I found this snarky saying printed on a little plaque, stored in a box of my junk from high…
When Martyrdom Doesn't Matter
Shortly after I became a follower of Jesus, somebody in a group Bible study said something that was kind of like theological shock therapy for…
Diabetes for Dummies
I spend time with a woman every other month who uses words such as "dummy," "stupid," and "idiot" when describing herself. As she acknowledges what…
Presently, for my local church, I’m in the midst of a preaching series on the book of Romans, called All Roads Lead to Romans. And the next sermon is on one of my three favorite passages in Romans: chapter…
Have you ever expected one thing and gotten another?
Once while traveling to Germany, I expected a small, gutless, compact rental car, because that’s what I reserved.…
Shortly after finishing her master’s degree at Johns Hopkins University, Ana Montes was hired at the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). What the DIA didn’t know was that she already had been hired by the Cuban…
São Tomé and Princípe is a small country located on the seacoast of West Central Africa, just under the equator. With a population of approximately only 200,000, São Tomé and Príncipe is a peaceful country. It has few…
“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17).
…
Growth doesn't occur without resistance of some kind. Sometimes the strongest resistance we face when pursuing change is from ourselves. How do you feel when you think of going back to school, joining the gym, losing weight,…
This year, 2019, the Seventh-day Adventist Church marks one hundred years of its existence in Rwanda. A celebration was held on August 31. It was a high Sabbath. About 50,000 Adventists packed into the Mahoro stadium in…
Get three animals, cut each of them in two, straight down the middle, and lay the pieces across from one another to form a pathway between the three sets of severed pieces.
…
These articles on insulin resistance are an attempt to provide reasons for resisting the typical approach to managing diabetes. I find that when the focus is primarily on blood sugar readings, we tend to forget the larger…
In a Different Army
I met him near Kisumu City in Western Kenya. His name is Dyvan Fred Khakame. He served as a counselor and "pastor" in the Salvation Army, led the…
From an early age Jesus knew who He was. He was only 12 when Joseph and Mary questioned His whereabouts and He simply said, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke…
Removing the reason for resistance is the most effective remedy for the need to resist that I can think of. If you remove injustice, overcome hate, restore harmonious existence, you eliminate the need for war and resistance…
In May 2018, Pastor Mark Finley and his team conducted a series of evangelistic meetings in Mwanza, Tanzania, with satellite sites in all districts of South Nyanza Conference. A few satellite sites were also established in…
We typically think change has to take a long time, but you can actually accomplish quite a lot in just a few days.
Like traveling to the moon if you’re Neil…
A while ago, some friends and I who were raised going to church were discussing an important question: How can you share Jesus with secular people and not make it—for lack of a better word—weird?
…
Kateregga Kyembe served seven years in Luzira Upper Prison for a crime he did not commit and was released on March 19, 2018. He was found innocent and suffered unnecessarily because of Uganda's poor legal system. A survey…
As a freshman college student, Martin Luther King Jr., became “fascinated by the idea of refusing to cooperate with an evil system” and fighting against it while holding to his Christian value of love.1 Jesus…
Resistance comes in many varieties and forms. Nancy Wake was a New Zealand born Australian who married a wealthy Frenchman and settled in Marseille in 1939, a year before Germany invaded France. Upon their invasion, she and…
I’ve heard quite a few people say it: “I have the best job in the world.” I always like it when I hear that, because it makes me feel really happy for the person that says it. And I’m one of those people. I say it.…
We were entering a Tanzanian open market where a young Muslim woman was selling her produce. While waiting for customers, her attention was absorbed in a piece of literature from Light Bearers. The pastors and elders with me…
Don’t mess with my sleep. That’s just a fair warning. In truth though, when you hear about the increased airplane accidents associated with exhausted pilots or medical errors from sleep-deprived physicians, a warning…
“What may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by…
In ancient times, the people of God considered it vital to their spiritual well-being to spend time in one another’s presence before the Lord. They saw themselves as many individuals that together composed one corporate…
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free" (Galatians 5:1). I love that! He set you at liberty for the sake of freedom, no strings attached. It is God’s design that all of His creation thrive in the context of…
Nations had leagued together to war against Jerusalem. Fearful, King Jehoshaphat sought the Lord. Through a messenger God assured him of unconventional victory. How? Through praise. They “stood up to praise the Lord God of…
When I walked into one of India’s many temples, it felt like I was entering the realm of darkness. Creepy to say the least. In one corner, six men (Hindu priests I presumed) were chanting and praying loudly to a…
What does it mean to be comfortable in your own skin?
What does that look like? I recently asked these questions to my youth Sabbath school class. We briefly remembered…
The last book of the Bible speaks of a group of people who will follow God to the very end. He identifies them as the “remnant” that “keep the commandments of God” (Revelation 12:17).
…
During a time of upheaval in our nation, Lou Gherig, America’s baseball iron horse, received a diagnosis that completely changed his life. In the face of his own uncertain future Lou Gherig stood before over 60,000 people…
One of my favorite Bible verses of all time is John 10:10:
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and…
I don’t know about you, but I love a good road trip. There’s something really satisfying about covering large distances while listening to a great audiobook or inspiring music. I’ve always thought the point of a truly…
We live in a world in desperate need of a revolution.
In cosmology, the word revolution refers to “the rotation of a celestial body on its axis.” From that…
Sandra Haynes, who attended this year’s Convocation, applied her poetry skills to encapsulate some of the keys points the speakers made from the writings of the minor prophets. For the poetry lovers out there, you will be richly blessed by this…
The early 1930s was a time of great uncertainty. Prior to President Roosevelt, our nation was uncertain of its leadership. Investment uncertainty existed after economic collapse. Among the working class there was uncertain…
According to Scripture, what are our responsibilities to our governments? The answer is found in the Bible. Joseph and Mary set an example of complying with government census and taxes (Luke 2:1-5). Jesus affirmed their…
There's a controversy astir in the evangelical world nowadays about one of the fundamental beliefs of my own denomination, the Seventh-day Adventist Church. It’s not the Sabbath or the investigative judgment. It’s not…
Did you know that without the special protein albumin, your body would swell up with water like a balloon? Without the protein rhodopsin our eyes wouldn’t be able to see light. Without hemoglobin in our red blood cells,…
It’s the New Year. Time to make plans to lose weight, learn a new language, become a new you.
Just look on Instagram and you’ll find people who can teach you how to…
In case you didn’t catch the story, recently, a group of guys from a YouTube channel called Yes Theory, a channel created by four friends who spend their time doing crazy feats and documenting their experiences, challenged actor Will Smith to…
Sweeter Than Honey
A young man with an impressive name, Ernest Mukwekwe, was not satisfied with how the truths of the Bible were being taught in his church. Ernest was earnest to know the Lord. Someone handed him a Bible lesson from Light…
Medical residents regularly exposed to chronic stress were found to have elevated white blood cell counts. White blood cells are a crucial part of the body’s defense against invasion, sickness, and disease. They search out and destroy invading…
Paul prays, “That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love” (Ephesians 3:17). Rooted and grounded are agricultural and building terms that describe Paul's desire for us to…
When You Need to Know God’s Will but You’re Scared of Making the Wrong Choice
by Anneliese Wahlman
For my eighteenth birthday, my mom gave me a card that read, “I used to live each day as though it were my last. But people got tired of hearing me scream, ‘I’M GONNA DIE!!! I’M GONNA DIE!!!’ Hope your birthday’s a scream.” Funnily…
Each year Light Bearers Ministry sends containers of literature to developing countries all over the world. Each container holds about 2 million tracts and often includes Bibles and other inspired books like The Great Controversy and The…
I was 19, ignorant, and trusting. A woman who lived near the college I was attending convinced me that I needed to go on a "seawater cleanse." It lasted about 10 days. I don’t remember the particulars of the program, except that I fasted for many…
“David, I’m so judgmental. I’m just so judgmental of others. I need Jesus. I love Jesus. He can change my heart, because I’m very judgmental of those who are not like me.”
And there were tears that ran down the cheeks into a beautiful…
If you were to walk into my office, one of the first things you would see as you enter is the large flag that hangs on my wall. My flag travels with me when I move to a new place or achieve something significant. I have a photo somewhere of me…
One time when I was in the fifth grade a fight broke out during recess. All the kids were gathered around yelling as two boys were punching and kicking one another. What I remember most is feeling nervous and sick to my stomach. That’s what the…
In 1984, Michael Jordan received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and an Olympic gold medal. It was a good year. He wore a pair of pinkish Converse tennis shoes at some point that year, supposedly even in the Los Angeles Olympic games. Decades…
Peter’s last recorded words (2 Peter 3) highlight the importance of memory and the danger of ignorance.
A person can’t remember something he is ignorant of. But when a culture is “willingly… ignorant” (3:5), its new generations…
Note: some names and minor details in this post have been changed to protect privacy.
Lots of people complain about millennials: we’re shallow, entitled, lazy, we don’t know how to do anything useful. We’re pretty much the equivalent…
Just yesterday a friend in his 30s said, “I went to a wedding last week and was blown away to find out that nearly all of my friends from college are already married and divorced.”
Divorce has become so common, we basically expect it…
Air and water purifiers operate off the concept that invisible contaminants are lurking in the atmosphere around us, in our aquifers and watersheds. Transforming and removing these contaminants is how we purify indoor air and drinking water. Last…
They are called the Minor Prophets because of their size, not their spiritual depth. Hidden in these little books of the Old Testament are found sublime pictures of God’s unrelenting love. That’s why this year we plumbed their depths to mine…
On June 15 of this year, Cambridge University scientist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018) was buried between Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin. A physicist and cosmologist of the highest rank, Hawking is believed to be the greatest scientist of his…
The dictionary definition to purify is: 1. to make pure; free from anything that debases, pollutes, adulterates, or contaminates. 2. to free from foreign, extraneous, or objectionable elements. Detoxification is a modern word that represents this…
Rwanda is still busy healing from its deep and sensitive scar. The horror of the satanic killings that began on the morning of April 7, 1994 is still fresh in the minds of the survivors. More than one million victims, the survivors’ family and…
The best policy
I’m not a parent, but from watching my sister Catie and her kids, it seems to me that it is a truth universally acknowledged that a mother trying to maintain a semblance of control is in want of a child who will keep…
Someone has said, “Marriage is like flies on a windowsill. Those on the outside want in, and those on the inside want out.”
Well, I've got better news. It's possible to be on the inside of marriage and want to be there. I've been on…
As I turn 50 this month, I have to admit, the concept of being ageless is rather appealing. I would love to know how to age less. One way of minimizing the impact of aging is by decreasing AGEs. Rather than referring to the lapse of time, AGEs are…
There is a genuine revival taking place among the youth and young adults of my local church. Read that first sentence again, please. And again.
This is not a hyperbole or exaggeration; it’s the wonderful, God-glorifying truth. Let me tell you…
“At least 35 people have died and 90 more were injured after a series of attacks in Burkina Faso, believed to have been conducted by Islamic extremists. Seven soldiers were killed in the country’s capital Ouagadougou after gunmen open fired on…
In the year following her CHIP attendance, Angie lost over 100 pounds. Recently, Angie shared her story with the current CHIP class. Gasps were heard around the room as she told of her weight loss journey. She was flooded with questions like,…
Lately, I’ve been taking my teenage sons, Landon and Jabel, to the climbing gym. I was introduced to rock climbing by two close friends, a young couple named Tim and Tanya, when I was a teenager. On my first day, I had to be essentially rescued by…
Light Bearers Convocation is right around the corner, July 3-7. If you’ve never attended, you’re missing out. "Convocation" is a big, old word. We don’t necessarily like big words, but we do like old words with big meaning. This word basically…
Carl had the typical cardio metabolic syndrome profile: diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and elevated cholesterol and triglycerides. He approached me after a week into the Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP) that I was leading at the…
Has Jesus given eternal life to every person? What we can say with biblical clarity is that the life and death of Jesus purchased temporal life for everyone. This is Paul's argument to the Athenians in…
As I moved through our publishing house today, checking the inventory, I felt a sense of urgency to get literature out the door. Things are changing. The world is changing. The ability to send gospel-filled containers around the world is…
A 24-year-old male teacher began to have deviant thoughts of doing harm to his students. He sought professional help and complained of depression, insomnia, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, and anxiety along with the thoughts of inflicting harm. The…
Jesus’ words, “The flesh profits nothing” (John 6:63), explain the mess the world is in. Except for the human Jesus, we each are born “of the will of the flesh” (John 1:13). This is human nature left to its sinful condition. It gives to us…
One of the best experiences I’ve ever had as an evangelist was in Malawi. I preached from a wooden platform constructed of an odd mixture of wood, sheet metal, bricks, and colorful cloth. Speakers were hung in trees. There were a few chairs, but…
“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).
Paul tells us that when the…
We all have a moral compass that guides us. It keeps us from punching the people who upset us and lets us know we need to apologize for telling our sister she’s fat. But we also experience a sort of silly guilt for things that aren’t really…
To some of us, they were Aunty Carol and Uncle Dave. She was small like a bird and sweet as honey. He was tall, practical, and kept a hundred stories tucked away in his pockets to share with the students assigned to him during the work period. They…
The Eastern and Western Tanzania Conferences organized a series of public evangelistic meetings for June 2017. With 300 Seventh-day Adventist churches in the city of Dar es Salaam and every church hosting three separate sites, the effort was huge…
Found within all human cells (with the exception of red blood cells) is the ability to produce energy—energy that enables action, maintenance, movement—and life in general. Microscopic structures called mitochondria are the key players in these…
It's no secret that Christianity is dying in Western countries. There are a number of factors contributing to this trend, but maybe the biggest is the fact that mainstream Christianity is asking the world to believe two doctrines that together…
Holidays are over. The time to excuse our excess is behind us. Now, with a few extra pounds and a sense of guilt, we are on to making enthusiastic compensatory resolutions. It's reported that the majority of resolutions pertain to weight and health.…
Cracker crumbs stuck to his tie and broccoli to his teeth as Dr. Taylor told me his story.
“She grew up in Texas, so she’d never seen snow.” He grinned. “The first time she saw it, she started twirling and dancing and laughing like a…
“Let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another” (Galatians 6:4, NKJV).
There’s a reason why so many treadmills end up at the thrift store.
New Year's Resolutions are a popular…
It was November of 2001—November 5 to be exact. Sixteen years ago!
That was the last time and the only other time that Light Bearers managed to get a container of gospel literature into India. Now God has again prevailed, this time through a…
Grasping in the dark for my phone, my terrified mind sought to force my trembling fingers to dial 911. It took hours to calm my nerves even after the police arrived. Fear is not a foreign emotion. I have often felt fear in the form of butterflies…
Emotions are a mysterious phenomenon. Think about it. A person’s smile has the power to make you feel something pleasant inside. A person’s tears can throw you into tears with them even before you know why they’re crying. The mere fact that…
Besides things like rolling my brother down a hill in a cardboard barrel and convincing my sister to ride our pet goat like a horse, a lot of my childhood memories are framed around stories. Some of my earliest memories are of my dad reading to me…
I was a baby Christian, just a few weeks old, when asked why I still listened to rock 'n' roll music. My response was quick and defensive. I've given my heart to Jesus, I go to church instead of bars, so it really doesn't matter what music I listen…
Pretty ugly, deafeningly quiet, make haste slowly, and vegetarian meatballs are great examples of oxymorons that make you smile when you think about what the words by themselves mean in contrast to what is conveyed by the phrase. There is one…
Every ARISE class is a miracle. And not just a miracle, but miracles upon miracles. Like a cluster of delicious grapes, each one is amazing in itself and the cluster magnifies the miracle all the more. The 2017 class was no exception!
One of…
It's 6 AM and already 17 new emails have appeared in my inbox. No, wait, four more just arrived, so make that 21. By 9 o'clock there will be 40 or more. Here’s one from Stephanie, who coordinates literature shipments from Light Bearers. She is…
From dead seas to living ones, embedded in white veins in the depths of the earth to its surface, salt is one of the world’s most precious commodities. At one time, salt was traded ounce for ounce with gold. Salt coins were used as money. Salt was…
Do you like winning? And do you like surprises?
Have you heard that the only way you can win in life’s ultimate contest is through the unselfish giving of genuine love? The meek and lowly win, and the braggarts and proud lose! Surprise!
The…
“The Protestant Reformation was the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that splintered Catholic Europe.”
That’s how the History Channel website defines the Protestant Reformation—as an historical event…
Throughout much of the 20th century, atherosclerosis was thought of as a disease of the inside space of arteries, the lumen. Most of us considered this hardening and thickening of the arteries to be the result of excess lipids in the…
In 2005, a fresh-out-of-prison graffiti artist was asked to paint some murals in the office of a small startup in Palo Alto, California. As payment, the artist was offered thousands of dollars in cash or company stock. Eight and half minutes of…
There are certain times in life when it’s important to be committed, to not stop halfway. Like when you’re getting married or shaving your beard. Then there are other times when it’s important to have the freedom to change your mind, like when…
When it comes to spiritual things, do you know why we do what we do?
The reason is this:
“The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another so that you do…
Martin Luther and John Calvin changed the world by the power of their good theology in spite of their bad theology. The Dark Ages from which they were emerging were very dark, indeed, and some of that darkness clung to the great Protestant Reformers…
Suffering from pain, debility, loss of quality of life, destruction and/or malfunction of bodily processes and tissue characterizes disease. Medical science has devoted itself to the study of disease and in so doing has specialized in categorizing…
ARISE Australia is five years old and each year has been a wonderful experience. The dedicated staff of the North New South Wales (NNSW) Conference and the workers directing the program make the impact of this 15-week Bible school…
There Is No Greater Power Than the Power of Testimony
by Ernest Chazya
At Riverside Farm Institute we feel that God has been working in many amazing ways, so we just must share some of them with you!
Our Education Department now runs two classes of students each year. Towards the end of each program, before the…
Time is central to planet Earth. Every facet of this globe is regulated to some degree or other with time. Creation was based on time segments. Separate and unique accomplishments were designed in each sequential day. Heavenly bodies were assigned…
We are creatures of “knowledge.” Our entire existence is shaped by what we know and how we know. According to the Bible, there is a regular, run-of-the-mill knowledge, and then there is a kind of knowledge that operates at a deeper, wider,…
My parents thought I was going to Ecuador to be a student missionary. I was really going so I could run away from God as I knew Him. I was drawn to the Latin surf scene, the gorgeous women, and the freedom to pursue my new pornography…
My mom was a force of nature. As poet Barbara Kingsolver once said, “Sometimes the strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws.” That was my mom. Fiercely independent, she left home at 15 and got a job as a waitress. The popular, cool…
Hello friends of Light Bearers!
There are so many exciting things going on here at the ministry, I can hardly keep up. But I'd rather be busy than bored. I'm sure you feel the same. I recently read in Ezekiel the mind-blowing fact that we’re…
Reportedly there are 195,000 species of plants which produce edible parts that could be consumed by humans. How many of those 195,000 species do we consume? Approximately 17 plant species provide 90 percent of our food supply. Grains constitute the…
I recently did the Rainbow Ride, a local 102.5-mile (165 km) race. It was my first large group ride, and it was awesome! The ride starts with a steep and winding climb, followed by a fast descent, and about 30 miles (50 km) of relatively flat…
5 Types of Adventist Extremists and How to Avoid Being One
by Nelson Fernandez
I've been an Adventist all my life. While others adopted into it, I was born in it and molded by its culture (cue Batman-Bane meme reference). Because of this, I've seen all kinds of people literally come and go in our church.
One of the hardest…
That Thing We All Struggle With
In her song If We’re Honest, singer-songwriter Francesca Battistelli clearly articulates one of the biggest struggles of our culture:
Truth is harder than a…
It’s the middle of August, 2015. Greg Fisher steps onto a Greyhound bus, takes a big whiff of recycled oxygen, and quickly scopes out his seating options. The plastic armrests feel like they’ve been painted with popsicle juice and the air is…
If you know me at all, then you know that I am decidedly anti-coercion. And yet, if I could make every person on the planet listen to this audio message by my friend, Elise Harboldt, I would. Well, maybe I'm exaggerating for effect, but I'm hoping…
Fear is a tricky thing. In the biblical worldview it originated—of all places—in a garden named pleasure. It is the child of insecurity, the product of removing one's heart focus from the all-powerful, benevolent, pleasure-giving Creator…
The term migration, in the animal kingdom, refers to a phenomenon that portrays rhythmic cadence, routine, and structure. Whether of butterfly, bird, or fish, the intent of migration is typically to ansure healthy survival in response to…
The Seventh-day Adventist Church membership in Zambia has doubled in the past 10 years, growing from 500,000 members to more than a million. With a population of 15 million people, Zambia has the highest Adventist Church growth rate in Africa, and…
Today is International Women’s Day.
As for me, I’m a “ladies man,” but not in the way you are familiar with the term.
My happiest childhood memories are of one summer with my grandmother, Eleanor, fishing, trapping critters, hiking up…
“Many whom God has qualified to do excellent work accomplish very little, because they attempt little. Thousands pass through life as if they had no definite object for which to live, no standard to reach. Such will obtain a reward proportionate…
Spinach is an extremely nutrient-packed vegetable. Its tender leaves and mild flavor have made it a versatile food. Interestingly, the cooler the temperatures and the more stress the spinach experiences while growing, the denser the vitamins and…
My 19-year-old daughter recently shared for our family worship some insights from a book she is reading for her university Bible class. When she finished, my mind went to the following scripture:
"As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had…
What I Take from the Compost Bucket
I’m one of those people who can eat whatever is on my plate even if it looks like it was scraped from the bottom of the compost bucket, and I’ll still enjoy it—as long as it tastes good. I figure…
How I Can Love the Gospel and the Investigative Judgment at the Same Time
by Marcos Torres
I have two theological confessions to make. The first is that I am madly in love with the gospel. Seriously, I am. As an Adventist, a father and a pastor, the gospel is my everything. Jesus-only is my motto, my passion and my standard. After…
His eyes were blue, like an October sky. His hair was the color of sand off the beach, the kind you put in a bottle and take home for memories. I won’t mention his name, but it rhymes with schmichael. When he and I talked, I literally felt…
As I drove into the country of Lesotho, I typed into my GPS the address of the Lesotho Conference headquarters and followed the directions into the central part of Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho. With the GPS it should not be too difficult…
If we readily saw the microscopic organisms swimming in lake water the way Antonie van Leeuwenhoek did, we would probably never venture in again. If we could see what lives on our teeth as Leeuwenhoek observed, we might not be able to stomach a kiss…
“War broke out in heaven…” (Revelation 12:7).
Satan launched his revolt against God not with bullets and bombs but with subtly spun lies. The Greek word for “war” in the above text is…
“Who of you respect authority?” questioned the professor to those of us sitting in her classroom. I immediately raised my hand. Awkwardly, I realized that mine was the only hand raised. I was surprised but unshaken in my response. I respect…
Have you ever heard of drafting? Sure you have, but perhaps not the kind of drafting I’m thinking of. Drafting can refer to:
Refining several preliminary versions of a piece of writing.
Governmental enlistment of young men…
Do you have a New Years resolution? I have a track record of failed resolutions. In 2013, I vowed to learn Spanish. In 2014, I promised to stop interrupting people. 2017 has arrived, and I’m embarrassed to say that no hablo español,…
Hey, you. Yeah, the person staring at the screen.
I’d like to invite you to think about your feet.
They’ve done a lot for you, so take a few minutes to acknowledge your ten-toed reality. How far have your feet travelled today? Have you ever…
Have you ever had one of those Christmases where your entire pajama-clad family is gathered together, the tree is wrapped in lights that shine à la star of Bethlehem, and mugs are filled with hot chocolate and freckled with…
Traditional Adventism or Adventist Traditionalism?
by Light Bearers
“Tradition is the living faith of the dead,
traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.…
It is traditionalism that gives tradition such a bad name.” – Jaroslav Pelikan
True “Tradition”…
On October 31, 1517, a young Catholic monk named Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany. This single bold act set off a religious reformation that shook Europe and the world. Luther was later excommunicated by…
Lessons From the Book of Job: Elihu—Friend or Foe?
by James Rafferty
Elihu exemplifies one of the major reasons why we might not listen to what someone has to say about God. Young and obscure, Elihu presents a testimony that carries little weight among many intellectual greats. This may be one reason why God has…
This year flew by, but not without heaven making a notable impact on our world through your generous support of Light Bearers Ministry. “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy!” (Psalm 126:3). Here are a few joyful…
Did you know that an estimated 80% of the world’s inhabitants rely on traditional therapies that have been used for thousands of years? Anciently, turmeric was used in places like China and India to aid digestion, improve liver function, treat…
Job’s wife usually gets a bad rap. As we read through the story of suffering, we’re tempted to view her as an evil character, undermining the faith of her husband. Augustine even named her “the devil’s accomplice.”
I wonder if this is a…
When I tell people how many siblings I have, their eyes usually grow to unflattering proportions and they say something like, “Wow. That’s a lot of kids.”
You don’t say.
None of us is adopted and no, we’re not catholic. My mom…
I am the weakest link.
Yep, I’ve long since known that I’m the first man down, or woman to be precise. I’ve felt rejection so often that I’m more surprised when…
Have you ever wondered how the gospel message will reach every person on the globe? Well, this is God’s promise in His Word according to Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the…
You will not find this word in Webster’s dictionary, in a telephone book, or a listing of careers. The word plantrician was created to identify health care practitioners, such as physicians or clinicians, who are empowered with knowledge…
The first crisis I can remember experiencing came when I was four years old and fell backward into a swimming pool. I couldn't swim and my mom was in another country… it seemed. I was going down for sure, but after a heroic effort and what seemed…
I find it quite paradoxical how, on a given day, I can clean my kitchen so well you’d think I was Cinderella, but then the next day it looks like the shared apartment of a couple phlegmatic bachelors. Something tells me this shouldn’t happen,…
Share the Wealth: A Mission Update from Madagascar
by Anneliese Wahlman
The United Nations Development Programme’s most recent data ranked Madagascar 154 out of 188 countries on the Human Development Index.1 That’s basically a sterile way of saying that, as a country, Madagascar doesn’t seem to have…
Crosstalk is a term that can pertain to telecommunications, when distinguishable signals leak from one connection to another. In electronics, crosstalk is a phenomenon by which a signal on one circuit or channel of a transmission system creates an…
God loves because He is love. Unselfish love describes the essence of His character and the relational joy of His existence. He asks us to love because He has designed us to enter into this joy.
Even after sin’s removal of love…
As a kid, I suffered from the quintessential childhood fear: I was scared of the dark. I could be in a room that I knew like the back of my hand, and if the lights turned off, my fear turned on. It didn’t help that my older brother would come into…
Magomeni Seventh-day Adventist Church believes that the most rapid and cost-effective way of placing the gospel in the hands of humanity’s hungering masses is through spreading truth-filled literature and publications.
It is because of this…
Last month we began understanding one of the ways the community of microbes residing within impacts the health of its host organ, the colon, as well as other facets of human health. This community is composed of many members in various…
Why does God love us? Simply put, because that is what and who He is (1 John 4:8, 16), just as what you are directs your actions. What He does in loving us can be measured by its "breadth, and length, and depth, and height" (Ephesians…
“This quote is exploding my mind.”
That’s the text I received this morning from my friend Janessa, whose birthday just happens to be today. Jesus sent Janessa a beautiful birthday sunrise and a quote so epic it’s exploding my mind…
The kingdom of heaven is like unto two men, one who believed in God and one who did not.
The first man engaged in prejudice and hatred and various other forms of ugliness…
Discipleship is a bit of a buzzword right now, and that’s a good thing. As the church, and as followers of Jesus, we should be talking about discipleship. More than this, we should be doing discipleship.
But right there is the…
Modern man has a problem with his colon, the large intestine, one’s bowels, the gut, the last processing plant in the digestive tract. Yep, whether it's diverticulosis, diverticulitis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel…
Revelation 12, the centerpiece of the book, uncovers a central issue for Planet Earth—redemption from deception.
Deception began in heaven, not earth, with the dragon who hoodwinked the third part of the angels from heaven with his tail or…
If righteous indignation were a tub of gasoline, then the recent Stanford sexual assault case has been the match. There’s nothing more infuriating than seeing someone suffer unfairly and justice go unserved, and this particular story has caused…
Skeletal muscle has this amazing ability to adapt to being overloaded. When weight bearing loads are repeatedly placed upon them, muscle responds by increasing in size and strength. Exercise is the most powerful stimuli for inducing reorganization…
Ministry needs to happen everywhere—even among the educated elite. Evangelists recognize that the highly educated are the most difficult class to reach with the gospel, generally speaking. Recently, feeling the weight of this fact, I delivered six…
It’s nighttime. You are driving a country road when a deer leaps onto the pavement in front of you, stops in the middle of the road, seemingly looks straight at you and freezes. If the deer kept his eyes focused on the direction he was originally…
Let me tell you about one of my least favorite Australian realities: speed cameras. Ugh, just saying those two words makes me feel ill. You see, in the US, where I’m from, you receive a speeding ticket by being pulled over by an actual officer and…
When the “remnant” is brought to view in Revelation, our attention is directed to God’s intent that the movement be defined by a specific theological construct:
“And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the…
The Solidarity Project took place on the University of Oregon’s campus from April 18th - 22nd, 2016. From the beginning of the ARISE internship, we intentionally set the goal to plan an event that would minister to the U of O…
My wife was often asked what she did while mothering our two children.
“I am a mother,” was her natural response.
“Yes,” was the reply, “but what do you do for work; what are you”? (As if being a mother were not a full-time…
We are a society that admires independence. The methodology of our educational system is established on this premise Parenting is conducted in such a way as to develop independence in our children. We even construct our theology around ‘me,…
"How long?" is the ultimate time query in the great controversy between good and evil—how long will it last?
From eternity past to eternity future the principle of selfless, self-giving love has been the law of life for the universe. It flows…
Dear Abraham,
Kill your only son.
God.
Let's face it—that's a tough Bible story to swallow. At face value, it assaults the very idea that God is love. Or does it?
New Testament scripture offers insight into this Old Testament…
After explaining that Christ is “the Word” and “the Light” to every person in the world (John 1:1-9), John makes an enormous, encompassing, extravagant claim:
“Of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace” (John…
Nearly 35% of adults in America and 50% of those 60 years of age or older are estimated to have metabolic syndrome, also called syndrome X and insulin resistance syndrome. These are staggering statistics. Potentially 3 of 10 adults in America are…
On February 8, ARISE Australia’s fourth three-month session began enthusiastically here in Kingscliff, Australia with students from all around the world. Norway, Germany, Finland, the United States, Canada, and South Africa, in addition to…
“Do you cut yourself?” I ask. “No,” she whispers. “I burn myself.” She pulls up her sleeves to show me dark red lines all the way up her arms. “I use a curling iron.”
“I took the whole bottle of…
One of my favorite flowers possesses delicate blue petals that drop off before evening, only to open a new bouquet every morning. The flower is delicate, yet tenacious, resilient, and beautiful. Science has found that of even greater significance in…
A Hard Time to Be A Catholic
If there was ever a bad time to be a Catholic in America, it was during the nineteenth century. A massive wave of European immigration flooded the United States with over 3.5 million newcomers, many of whom were…
Light Bearers’ Materials Lead to Booming Bible Schools in Malawi
by Meiring Pretorius
My recent trip to Malawi was very fruitful. The Voice of Prophecy Bible School Director, Pastor Moffat Botolo, went out of his way to make my visit meaningful. His department of the Malawi Union Conference is very active in using Light Bearers’…
Do you remember what goals and aspirations you had for yourself when you were a senior in high school? Do you remember how challenging it was to answer the question on everyone’s lips, “So, what are you going to do with your life?”…
Coined in an advertising agency meeting for Nike, the "Just Do It" campaign launched in 1988. It was highly successful, as one of the top two taglines of the 20th century, being both "universal and intensely personal." Nike presented this…
“Ellen White said…”
Those are three apparently innocent words that have been used and abused with much zest and confidence. They have been known to strike dread and incite rebellion in the hearts of some. But why? Is it in reaction to Ellen…
It is estimated that the average American woman is exposed to some 200 chemicals before she even leaves her home in the morning. While men do not use the lotions and potions that women do, they are still exposed to potentially thousands of other…
There are definitely moments in which you ought to be careful, calculated, and cautious. And there are moments in which you ought to cast caution to the wind and be a big-time risk taker.
Yeah, be cautious as a driver. Relax—please. Being late…
The Bible is filled with agricultural symbolism as a means of depicting God’s grand and glorious purpose for humanity (Matthew 13). God is in the business of growing things—a new crop of humans, to be exact (1 Corinthians 3:6-8).
Human…
I sink down in my pew, cringing to the core. “It’s coming,” I think. "There’s no way she’s gonna make it.”
“Oh night divine. Oh night when Christ was born."
My palms are sweating. My face is turning red. "Why am I embarrassed?…
Sex is in the news.
Big time!
Bruce Jenner’s transgender process has prompted nearly everyone on the planet to ponder the nature of human sexuality. To the delight of some and to the horror of others, Caitlyn, formerly Bruce, was named…
Ben Carson, the Media, and the Mocking of Adventism
by Light Bearers
Clearly, these are very interesting times for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. At a rally in Florida, Donald Trump assured his audience of his mainstream religious affiliations with the Presbyterian denomination. Alluding to Ben Carson, he added,…
Expecting our second child, Luke, Jeannie and I ignorantly prayed that God would manipulate our circumstances to give us an easier child than our first. Life with a healthy, rambunctious two-year-old seemed so challenging to us, and we…
Breaking news from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organization (WHO), reports that processed meats are carcinogenic to humans. Processed meats such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs, salami, corned beef, beef…
Oh, how sweet it was when the barge finally arrived bearing the precious Bible lessons from Light Bearers Ministry! It had been a long journey! Several months before, the container packed with Bible studies in French, Lingala and Swahili had left…
In 2014, Michael and Lisa Gungor, who together form the band Gungor, had a child with Down Syndrome. They named her Lucette, meaning “light."
Also in 2014 a woman tweeted…
A rational appeal to the atheist:
Intending no disrespect at all to the scientific achievements of mankind, I want to call our attention to the fact that the human data bank of knowledge is minuscule compared to all there is to know.…
Prison Ministry
What message does one give to a prison full of inmates who committed capital offences? Most are sentenced 20 years or more. Others are on death row. As we approached the high-walled Naivasha maximum security prison, my eye…
In Toronto, Canada, 1922, Leonard, a 14-year-old young man, weighing a mere 65 pounds, lay dying of type 1 diabetes in a hospital ward. At that time hospitals had dedicated wards where 50 children could be congregated, suffering the trauma and…
"He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown…"(Daniel 11:41).
James White believed this power, spoken of in the final verses of Daniel 11, to be the papacy supported by the United States.…
A man once came to me and said, “My marriage is falling apart. My wife says she doesn’t have feelings for me anymore, and my feelings for her are pretty much dead too. I guess it’s over, huh?”
He was startled by my immediate…
Before the age of GPS or iPhone Maps, London taxi drivers relied on their memories. They developed what was coined “the knowledge.” Developed over centuries, the winding, crooked streets of London resemble a maze more than neat perpendicular…
In 1985, a few of us new converts—James Rafferty, Sue Gibson, and myself—received what we knew to be specific direction from the God of the universe. We were young and on fire for the Lord (now we're older but still on fire for the Lord). James…
Pope Francis definitely has our attention.
Bible prophecy said that would be the case (Revelation 13:3).
But why?
What is the significance of his influence and why does he have such massive influence in the first place?
Even avowed…
Written by Nathan Egbert 9/5/15 in response to current news events.
In the arena of social contention, two topics reign supreme: religion and politics. While subject matters do change over time, fodder for controversy is never lacking.…
The calls started coming in as fast as I could keep up.
“I heard about your Bible study guides, I’m a district pastor in Mindoro, I have 13 churches with small groups in each. May I have four boxes? I’ll be there tomorrow.”
“I’m…
Dr. Denis Burkitt, a well-known Irish missionary surgeon made an interesting observation of America. His comment was this: “America is a constipated nation…. If you pass small stools, you have to have large hospitals.”1…
During that secret interview at Jesus' place of retirement on the Mount of Olives, when the city was hushed in slumber, it wasn't the flickering lamp or torchlight, or the pale light of the moon, that shown into the heart of Nicodemus, that "master…
Here’s a miracle story. Fifteen years ago, I was preaching an evangelistic series in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The series was a joint venture with Adventist-Laymen’s Services & Industries…
Splenda is the most popular sugar substitute on the market. It is easily identifiable in the large yellow box or little yellow packets filled with sweet white crystals. The key ingredient in Splenda is sucralose, a non-nutritive artificial…
I’ve made a habit of listening when children speak. Charis is a little friend of mine who happens to be an aspiring writer. She’s nine years old and she’s a thinker. When she shared her first writing project with me, she wondered if anyone…
In just two days, the gathered delegates for the Seventh-day Adventist church will be making a decision regarding ordaining women to the pastoral ministry. I doubt that…
In the hospital it is not uncommon to see doctor’s orders for C. diff testing in patient charts. C. diff is an abbreviation for Clostridium difficile. If C. diff + is charted it means the patient has Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). C.…
The God of the Bible is a delegator, not a micromanager. He entrusts His children with decision-making power. God is not a control freak, but rather a freedom lover.
Adam and Eve were given “dominion” over the world God had made for them…
Background
In September of 2012, I was asked to serve on the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) "Theology of Ordination Study Committee." This group met four times during 2013 and 2014, and considered voluminous amounts of…
Women’s Ordination: Shall Angels or Demons Guide Us?
by Ty Gibson
Adventism is heating up as we approach the GC Session in Texas, during which a vote will be taken on women’s ordination. In all my years as a member of this church I…
A pastor. A physical therapist. A builder. An investment banker.
Since its inception, ARISE has attracted diverse groups of people, and this year’s class was no different.…
The word obstinate has a bad rap. The dictionary definition is:
Refusing to give up or let go; persevering obstinately
Refusing to give up or let go. Persevering. Insistently repetitive or…
“The measure of intelligence is the ability to change,” said Albert Einstein. Others of comparable IQ have defined intelligence similarly, as the ability to adapt to change. I find this an interesting way of looking at something we try so hard…
“Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left” (Isaiah 30:21).
Apparently, God sees in us an inclination to veer off course to the…
I was heart-converted in November 2008 after 36 years growing up “in the church.” With this heart-conversion came a deep longing to share Christ, yet I felt powerless and tongue-tied when it came to speaking up among my peers in the corporate…
The resurrection of Jesus was not an arbitrary act of God. Rather, it was the definitive conquest of other-centered love over the death-dealing principle of self-centeredness inherent in all sin.
According to Paul, “the law of the Spirit of…
When I first came to Christ I knew very little about the Bible. I said a simple sinner’s prayer, experienced God’s boundless forgiveness and fell madly in love with Jesus. When I was confronted with the Bible evidence for the seventh-day…
Mary Hunt worked for the Department of Agriculture’s Northern Regional Research Laboratory (NRRL) in Peoria, Illinois in the early 1940s. She had been assigned the task of grocery shopping for the lab with a shopping list that probably surprised…
It's a loaded question, one that probes my very existence. Jesus faced it (John 8:24-25, 28). When I face it, I usually answer with the name from my earthly family. But we each have an identity from a larger family that draws its identity from the…
It takes all kinds, or so the saying goes. While the it in this statement has the potential of referring to options too numerous to count, according to Katharine Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers, the all kinds is limited to…
In 2014 God blessed Light Bearers Ministry in a number of ways, one of which was the ability to send out an extra container of literature above our budgeted 11. Each container is filled with millions of tracts that make a huge impact in the world…
“I hate evangelism!” my friend Edward said as he wrinkled his nose in disgust.
“No you don’t,” I said. “You just don’t know what it is yet.”
To be honest, I used to think I hated evangelism. To be extra honest, I have a…
If you are like me, you like to get the most bang for your buck, the best results from your effort, the greatest number of items on the to-do list accomplished for the time invested. When it comes to supplying the body with nutrition, we often hear…
"And they walked hand in hand off into the sunset…." There's something about an ending like that which intrigues the imaginative soul. All's well that ends well. Together… into the future…
Could God's ending in the great…
My granny was very protective of spiders. Whenever she found one in our house she would gently pick it up, give it a kiss, and toss it out the nearest open window. As a little boy I was afraid of creepy, crawly spiders along with other things like…
Plain and simple: words of truth on paper are extremely powerful. Allow me to break this down for us. First, are need to understand that the words of God are a creative, life-giving force:
“The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they…
Baby Sara was born into the Glick family in the summer of 1999. Having seven older brothers, she was the cherished little girl the family had hoped for. Samuel and Elizabeth Glick were Amish dairy farmers in rural Pennsylvania. Four months later…
From year to year certain Bible verses speak to me, becoming favorites. This year it’s John 13:1: “Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved…
When we speak of the birth of Christ, we are speaking of the most sublime and astounding event in all of eternal history. God literally became a human being. “Without controversy,” Paul exclaims with wonder, “great is the mystery of godliness:…
Being home has made me realize what a privilege attending ARISE was for my life. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was undoubtedly there! I did not know much about the instructors, but before I came I prayed that they would speak the truth of the…
It was crucifixion week. Matthew and Mark recorded the story (Matthew 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-34). A Pharisee (lawyer and scribe) asked Jesus a profound question that could be referred to as the first law. "Which is the greatest commandment in the law?…
Foie gras is French for fatty liver. Though considered a delicacy of French cuisine, its production dates back to ancient Egypt. The Egyptians discovered that migratory geese overfed themselves in preparation for their long flights, which produced…
The current tensions and polemics within the Seventh-day Adventist Church are not occurring in a vacuum. We have history behind us that has created the trajectory within which we are now living. To a significant degree the spirit and content of our…
Sometimes I forget the words of Christ in Matthew 25:40. I judge, I disdain, and I criticize my brethren in my heart (and with my actions). When I do this to the least of these my brethren I do it unto Him.
During such times of stark spiritual…
When symptoms of disease and sickness are said to be all in one’s head, there is an implication made that questions the legitimacy of physical ailment. When we hear this description we understand that something is thought of as reality, but is…
“What Lance couldn’t handle was the truth.” So said Betsy Andreu at the close of Alex Holmes’s difficult-to-watch documentary on the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong, Stop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story.
Lance is not…
My Thoughts on the Present Conversation Regarding the Ordination of Women
by David Asscherick
I am admittedly surprised to hear over and over again that the current conversation and study the Seventh-day Adventist Church is having regarding the theology of ordination, generally, and of the ordination of women to pastoral ministry,…
Linguistically, the term bowel has been used to express the inner workings, the depths of man emotionally as well as physically. It is where input is broken down, digested, absorbed, sorted, reacted to, and transformed into us.
Interestingly…
God is up to something bigger than our eternal salvation. Certainly, from our individual standpoint it is hard to imagine anything bigger. To be saved from sin and given the assurance of eternal life is a truly marvelous thing. But notice the…
This year marked the 30th Annual Light Bearers Convocation. Our theme was “Faith to Faith,” based on Romans 1:16-17:
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to…
Physiologically, the bowel is synonymous with the gut, the gastrointestinal tract, including stomach and the intestines. In this context, the association made between the bowel and the brain in the following statements is quite intriguing. “The…
Some historians and philosophers have pointed out that much of our scientific and medical literature is updated often because new discoveries and new knowledge render previously accepted knowledge obsolete. No one in their right mind would ever be…
It only takes five pennies for Light Bearers to print, ship and distribute one piece of gospel-filled literature. By the grace of God and with your help, we can put millions of gospel literature into circulation. …
Sutherlin, Oregon and Papua New Guinea are worlds apart. Separated by 6,518 miles and the vast Pacific Ocean. Sutherlin is in the Northern Hemisphere and Papua New Guinea is in the Southern. But the two places and their people are separated by more…
At the age of 45, the lifetime risk of heart disease is 60.3 percent for men and 55.6 percent for women. In other words, three out of five men without heart disease at age 45 will develop the condition at some point in their lives. Being a woman,…
Recently we had our car broken into. Between the damage to the car and the stolen goods, it set us back several thousand dollars. Not the nicest “Welcome to Australia” moment one could imagine. I can still recall the almost nauseating feeling in…
Clifford Goldstein didn’t believe in much, but one thing he did believe in was Truth. He just didn't know what it was or where to find it. As the fiery writer traveled Europe and Israel in search of his novel's soul, his quest for the meaning of…
There I was two years ago, praying, “God I want to know truth. Can you please reveal Yourself to me? I don’t want to learn culture or traditions. I just want to know YOU.” So starting with the Bible, I set out to challenge the beliefs, culture…
It would be overly simplistic to say that one food or food component is capable of causing, preventing, or curing cancer. However, it would be completely ignorant to intimate that food and food components are not factors in the development of many…
When you read words that are effective in describing something, you can picture it in your imagination. “See ye the word of the LORD” (Jeremiah 2:31). This “seeing” is not simply letters on a page. God is asking us to see the story—His…
As a secular American Jew, Clifford Goldstein was driven by one consuming obsession: to write a bestselling novel. God was nowhere on his radar. And yet, Cliff was on God’s radar. Here is the trailer for the video, Bestseller, to be…
By far the most traumatic event of my adolescence was Sue Cook’s house fire. I recall the suburban home ringed with a crowd of people, spewing fire and black smoke out of its windows. I stood there watching solemnly with Sue, who whispered,…
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, under intense public pressure, vetoed Senate Bill 1062, a religious freedom bill that had been “egregiously misrepresented,” according to a coalition of law professors who wrote in defense of the bill. The bill…
“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).
The word “groaning” in this…
When I think of hunger, I picture an emaciated man with defined ribs, and perhaps a slightly protruding, enlarged abdomen, signaling malnutrition. Associating the enlarged abdomen of an overweight person with hunger has never seriously entered my…
Yeehaw! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Amen!
Yes, I know I’m geographically Down Under, but, wow, am I flying high right now! It’s the Monday after the final weekend of the ARISE Australia…
Where is the United States in the End-Time Scenario?
“When I look at Bible prophecy, one thing that is of great interest to me, and of great concern, is the absence of the United States. It is interesting to note that a number of nations are…
The Bible knows what’s going on inside of you. It understands the complexity of the human being and penetrates into the deep mental, emotional and moral issues we all deal with. Notice, for example, this insightful passage from King…
Ignaz Semmelweis was a Hungarian physician who lived in the mid-1800s before the germ theory was born. Years after his death he was referred to as the “savior of mothers.” His new-fangled notion of washing hands between touching cadavers and…
Liberty of Conscience: The Core Principle of Protestantism
by James Rafferty
The Origin of Protestantism
“Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me…
It’s been said that Christians are “so heavenly minded that they’re no earthly good.” That’s a tragic indictment. It infers that with all the injustices and pressing needs of this world, what good is it to be fixated on a future,…
The heart has always been thought to be responsible for pumping some eight thousand liters of blood per day at rest and much more during activity. This has been compared to the lifting of approximately 100 pounds one mile high! Blood is five times…
In February of 2012, I traveled to Guatemala to conduct a series of evangelistic meetings in connection with a shipment of over 1.3 million pieces of literature. When I arrived, the container that had…
The book of Revelation is highly symbolic. Its prophecies are written in a kind of code language that must be interpreted to make sense. A casual reading will blur the eyes and befuddle the mind. One must take the time to define each symbol by…
The new Pope, Mr. Jorge Mario Bergoglio, has caused quite a stir recently. So much so, in fact, that an ardent Protestant friend said to me the other day, “Wow, this new pope seems like a really good guy and he’s saying some good things. Maybe…
Six million people.
It’s a big number. When I hear it, I don’t see faces.
But God does.
To me, it’s a number that represents a nameless mass.
But not for God.
He sees faces, behind which are personal histories and heartaches,…
It was March 1, 1945, during his fourth term, that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt [FDR] delivered a speech to inform Congress and the American people via national radio of the decisions made at the recent Yalta Conference with British Prime…
Paul the Apostle said some strange things, things hard to understand. Even Peter agreed (2 Peter 3:15). And if some of his writings were admittedly puzzling back then, how much more so would that be the case today, nearly two millennia later?
I…
Harnessing the Brain: Nutritional Neuroscience, Part 2
by Risë Rafferty, RDN
The dental student examined her inflamed, bleeding gums and loose teeth. From all appearances it looked as though her teeth would have to be pulled. A supervising dentist with an experienced eye asked the woman what she ate. Her diet consisted…
“The Father Himself loves you” (John 16:27).
Fatherhood is an identity-shaping vocation. Whether he does so consciously or not, a dad tells his child who and what to become. The child is significantly defined by the father’s manner of…
As a student of the ARISE program, I was blessed with a rich experience of meaningful Bible studies, priceless interactions with classmates, staff, and community, and most importantly, a clearer…
First, let’s make something clear: Richard Sherman is not a thug (ie., “a cruel or vicious ruffian, robber, or murderer”).
By now, even if you’re a nominal sports fan,…
Every time you perform an action it contributes to shaping your fundamental identity. When life is done, you are the sum total of your repeated actions. Here are seven actions worth repeating over and over again this year until they become habits…
Lord God Almighty, ineffably holy,
Great in weakness, immeasurably lowly,
From the corner of my eye, I see Your glory,
Through prophets of old who breathed Your story.
But sweep me into the narrative now,
Resisting no longer, Your will to…
Harnessing the Brain: Nutritional Neuroscience, Part 1
by Risë Rafferty, RDN
One of the most exciting fields in nutrition is nutritional neuroscience. It is the study of how components of the diet impact the central nervous system, specifically cognitive function and mental health. The idea that food impacts brain function…
A really cool thing happened recently, and I can’t wait to tell you about it. Here goes…
It started at the Light Bearers Convocation earlier this year. The theme was Jesus Only, and was a…
We are living in desperate times—desperate, meaning a feeling showing, or involving a hopeless sense that a situation is so bad as to be impossible to deal with, like national debt, life-destroying typhoons, earthquakes, tsunami’s, war,…
I’m one of those weirdos who could listen to Christmas music year-round. But I don’t, because I love the special sense of awareness of the incarnation that dawns upon my heart every year in December as advent songs begin to play. Some of these…
Cinnamon is one of those flavors and smells that can’t be substituted, especially around the holidays. I have cooked with coriander and cardamom and they can be quite good—but they are not cinnamon. I find it very interesting though (because I…
Is there somebody in your family or in your church who is doing something you think they ought not to be doing?
Of course there is!
Are there people around you with defects of character that you can’t help but notice?
Yep!
Do you find…
The mission field is an exciting place to be. Special and unique experiences occur as human agents make themselves available as ambassadors for Christ. The truth of the gospel maneuvers its way into out-of-the-way places and reaches hearts in…
There is evidence that, as far back as 5000 BC, the Egyptians were making tooth powder of ashes of ox hooves, myrrh, burnt eggshells, and pumice. The chewing sticks of 3500 BC Babylonia could be the origin of our modern toothbrush. Toothpicks were…
No doubt you’ve heard someone say, “I am my own worst enemy.” Maybe you’ve said it yourself.
We intuitively understand that there is some sense in which the I stands against the me. Part of me wants to be something other than…
Duncan Ryan was only 42 and weighed 508 pounds. At five feet eleven inches, he was considered morbidly obese. At that weight it doesn’t matter how tall one is, more fat than anything else is being carried around. Duncan is not alone. One out of…
It’s hard to believe, really. It happened to me, and I’m still trying to grasp it, to take it in. What happened?
Well, I just preached to representatives from more than 110 countries during two globally-significant, Seventh-day Adventist…
Have you ever noticed the invisible sentimental tags we have attached to certain foods? These tags do not read with typical scientific style: “high in vitamin C,” “beneficial to the heart,” “180 calories,” etc. We do not merely receive a…
Recently we published a small book on the humanity of Jesus Christ entitled, How Jesus Was Like Us. This book was written to both identify how Jesus Christ in His humanity is…
Apparently God has a secret to tell us. And it’s the best secret imaginable. If we lean in close to Him through Bible study and prayer, we’ll hear Him whispering the confidential mystery into our hearts. Be still and listen:
“The secret of…
When building our home, I told the carpenter that I wanted a large walk-in pantry. He showed it to me sometime later and I commented that it seemed small. He assured me that I did not understand how things look before they are sheet rocked and that…
The 2013 Light Bearers Convocation is over, but the ripple effects are just beginning. The event was a huge blessing thanks in part to the hard work of various staff and volunteers behind the scenes and primarily to God for the outpouring of His…
Four guys at a table.
A list of provocative and sublime topics.
All they’re told in advance is, “Bring your Bible and your brain.”
No rules.
No script.
Just straight from the heart, conversation about the things that matter…
A consequential question, to be sure. But, first, another: what is meaning?
What does meaning mean?
Who’s to say what the answer is to either of these queries? Or, for that matter, to any query of consequence? Who decides what meaning…
Mungu ibariki Afrika!
[God Bless Africa!]
Here at Kibidula Farm in Tanzania, we were very happy to receive a container of Bible studies from Light Bearers in October of last year. Since then, we have been working hard to distribute them…
Who would have watched food television programs 50 years ago? Would Americans have gravitated to Iron Chef America, watching Bobby Flay and Cat Cora hurriedly trounce around kitchens in an effort to out-impress gustatory judging? Would we have…
Short of making the sun stand still, it is no easy thing to make room for four months of instruction in just nine days. Nevertheless, we here at Light Bearers are trying anyway!
ARISE has, for the last decade, been a four-month endeavor. We have…
Just the other day, while on my morning run, I had a rather sublime revelation. I get these “running revelations” quite a bit actually. Maybe it’s the increased blood flow, or the quiet time, or the aloneness of it all, I really don’t know.…
As a young college student I became quite attracted to the concept of health. Something clicked internally and I was into it. In class, I learned that the vast majority of what an individual might encounter in the hospital was lifestyle related. My…
I saw Jesus Wednesday morning, the week before last. He was sitting quietly at the same breakfast table with a few others, little Riley, and myself. When Riley indicated that he wanted more avocado (of which there was a limited supply), He,…
From July 2-6 several hundred people will arrive on the Light Bearers campus for our 2013 Convocation to study through the book of Acts, chapter by chapter, verse by verse, story by story. And this will be the theme of our study: Jesus…
It was a crisp winter day, and snow blanketed the quaint landscape surrounding me. Bright rays of light sparkled off the fresh snow that had fallen the previous night. Tall evergreens could be seen just about wherever one looked, and the rich smell…
I get admittedly nervous when I hear these words: “Pastor Asscherick, you changed my life.” You see, I’m not in the life-changing business; I’m just a messenger, a mail carrier. The biblical term is evangelist, one who carries a…
In politics, are you Republican or Democrat? In terms of religion, are you liberal or conservative? When it comes to your personality, are you sanguine or melancholy? In diet, are you vegan or vegetarian? Are you for or against…, in or out,…
In 1929, the Italian Parliament ratified the Lateran Treaty settling the Roman Question and setting the stage for what some have since described as the healing of the deadly wound. Somewhere between that time and today, an idea developed that…
As I took my seat on the plane, an energetic little boy came up the aisle with his dad. In my mind I thought, “I sure hope he’s not gonna be in the seat behind me.” As a frequent flyer, I know short legs tend to kick seatbacks.
As he walked…
I despise sloths. The continuous ritardando of their existence is not to my liking. They sleep for 20 hours a day. When they are awake they barely move. They are so slow and sluggish that algae will actually grow on their fur! Can you imagine if…
Traveling all over the world from place to place to share the gospel as part of the Light Bearers Ministry team is especially rewarding when hearts are healed and lives transformed by the power of God. Many of you are reading these words because you…
A powerful ministry to prison inmates is under way in Kenya.
A group called the King’s Messengers, sponsored by the East- Central Africa Division, recently paid a series of visits to a prison in Nairobi housing 3,500 men. Rather than merely…
Benjamin Franklin said, “Your net worth to the world is usually determined by what remains after your bad habits are subtracted from your good ones.” The implication is that habits control much of what life is made up of. We’ve heard the…
This year we plan to print, package, ship and distribute over 22.5 million pieces of paper gold—the gospel of Christ in printed form. That's twelve 20 foot containers packed with truth-filled literature that will make their way to Kenya, Zambia,…
The human mind is creativity in motion. Each moment of each day we see things, take in a plethora of sensory data, intersect with people, and experience life—and all the while, with every encounter, we are incrementally changing, becoming…
For Michael Phelps, the morning was like many others. Though a race-day, he fell into a routine that had become automatic. He ate the same breakfast he always ate, did the same stretching routine he always did. He swam his typical sequence of…
The sign read:
DO NOT attempt to hike from the rim to the river and back in one day, especially May to September.
But that was for normal people. The Hermit Trail spanned only nine miles from the canyon's rim down to the…
Family
My youngest son, Jabel, just turned ten. In the absence of a miraculous intervention, I will never again have the joy and privilege of parenting a less-than-double-digit aged child. Life moves on. Time does its thing. “The past…
In case you missed them, here are the top 12 Light Bearers blog posts from 2012:
#12 – What Is Arise Trying to Accomplish?
"We’re laboring—in mind, body, soul, and…
As 2012 ends, we here at Light Bearers are rejoicing at how God has led. Here’s a recap of the year:
ARISE Internship Program
In January we launched the ARISE…
Danny Fitzgerald was the king of our neighborhood. It wasn't because he was an admirable person, nor was it because he was a great athlete, or one of the more popular guys at our school. He was the neighborhood king because we feared him. Danny…
A group of people was sitting in the waiting area of a popular restaurant. They were hungry, eager for a table, and silently stealing glances at each other. Then in came yet another family with a small child. As the man went to register his name,…
On Friday as I walked into my wife’s office to say hi, smiling and eager to interrupt her work with a flirtatious moment or two, she swiveled around toward me in her chair and said, “Have you heard about what happened in Connecticut?”
There…
There’s a white door. There’s a ‘5’ on it. Two ARISE students, Victor Carreiro and Lindsay White, stand beside the apartment door and knock. There’s a post beside Victor that he leans upon, his hand plays with a…
Here's the Light Bearers 2012 Yearend Report. We are proud of this report, not in a carnal way, but because of the work and ministry it represents. The report is filled with frontline reports and theological insights that are sure to inspire you as…
Emily Bronte, in her poem Fall, Leaves, Fall, writes:
Every leaf speaks bliss to meFluttering from the autumn tree.
Here in Oregon, as I write this, autumn has come and (nearly) gone. Leaves are aground wherever one…
No one is answering. Andy Hausted and Karla Martinez stand before a door refusing to open up. As Andy looks around, he notices two people in the backyard sitting on couches in a sort of outside porch area. The current ARISE…
At the core of the Old Testament is what theologians call the biblical covenant. In other words, it’s a relationship, fellowship time, or… chill-time, or hanging out. It’s in the foundation of every sanctuary offering, every patriarch’s…
I ascended the dark stairway at my childhood home to retrieve a toy I knew was in the upstairs closet for one of my children. As the creak of the steps sounded beneath my weight, memories from my childhood came rushing back. I reached the summit of…
As many of you know, we have a group of ARISE graduates that are part of a yearlong internship program. They are actively engaged in frontline ministry. They are serving in local churches, giving Bible…
[ABOVE: Photo of a fractal riverbed. Fractals are naturally occurring, self-similar patterns that are very complex and incalculably detailed. While they may appear to be random and chaotic at their initial formation, they exhibit an array of…
Wow, I was so blessed by David's “world” that I’d like to expand the vision to the church.
In my world, the church would be a place in which Jesus is the one Truth that gives meaning and heart and…
In my world, there would be no sexual slave trade, because there would be no customers.
In my world, there would be no promising politicians, because people would be too informed and intelligent to believe them.
In my world, there would be no…
Here’s some raw data that ought to blow your mind, make you want to cry, and arouse your suspicions all at once:
“According to the UN Environment Program, the earth is in the midst of a mass extinction of life. Scientists estimate that…
I distinctively remember my General Relativity classes.
Every one of them was a joyful experience, and yet I often came home frustrated because I hadn't understood a particular equation, mathematical reasoning or structure that day. Even so, the…
Quick: what do Jim Bakker, Ted Haggard, and Jimmy Swaggart all have in common?
Answer: they’ve all made my life harder.
At various times, and in various ways, they all succeeded in sullying my profession, my faith, and, worst of all, my Savior.…
Someone told me that someone had a friend who was told by someone else that, “ARISE Bible workers don’t get results.” Sure, a rumor is a rumor, but the alleged statement does actually raise an important question, one that I’ve been asking…
Now Available: 4th Quarter Sabbath School Commentaries by David Asscherick & Ty Gibson
by Light Bearers
The final Sabbath School Lesson Quarterly for 2012 was a great one indeed: Growing in Christ. What could be more important than that? Nothing! The Quarterly Lesson took a look at several distinctive doctrines of Scripture against the…
It was, without doubt, one of the highlights of my life: more than a thousand young people standing arm in arm, committing themselves to God and to making a difference in Europe. Even now as I write, my heart thrills within me as I remember that…
We just loaded one of three containers going to the East Central African Division (ECD): one for the Division office, one for the Tanzania Union Mission in Arusha, Tanzania, and the third for the West Congo Union Mission in Kinshasa in the…
The “Fight or Flight” response is defined as the response of the body to a perceived threat. When faced with danger, the body releases hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. These hormones give us a burst of energy…
I watched two cars almost collide as one turned into the other’s lane without seeing the car occupying it. The violated driver went ballistic—honking, yelling, and using inappropriate hand signals.
Driving has to be one of the great…
You would think that a company who: came up with saccharin to produce diet Coca Cola; contributed to research on uranium which led to the atomic bomb; has been a leading manufacturer of plastics, PCBs and DDTs; sold Agent…
"I can't."
Those are the words my dad spoke two-and-a-half years ago. It was his response to a question I had put to him: "Dad will you do a Bible study with one of our contacts?"
"I can't."
Let me tell you a little bit about my dad. Almost all…
Today in a little Australian town called Byron Bay I noticed a sign that says, “I saw the universe change today.” Whoever wrote those words was paying attention.
According to “chaos theory,” the single movement of a butterfly’s wing may…
It was a strange turn of events that left researchers wondering. Proponents of the therapeutic value of food were sure that this study would be an arrow in their quiver. But it wasn’t. Instead the Alpha-Tocopherol,…
In our new documentary, A Light in Zambia, you'll hear firsthand accounts of changed lives and trace the spiritual journeys of five special Zambians who have been powerfully impacted by the gospel.
…
My family and I recently had the privilege of spending some time touring around Boston following a speaking appointment. Not being a city person, I had but mild anticipation. The primary goals were to expose my boys to some American history, and to…
It was a spring morning like any other for my wife, Kathy and then two-year old son Eliah: playtime at the local park. Our son was enjoying himself in the sandbox, when another little boy showed up with his mom. As the boys got busy playing, the…
Have you seen the new Digma videos? If you haven’t, go watch them immediately at digma.com, then share them with your social network. I’m serious. Stop reading this blog because someone on…
His right arm struck his right thigh whenever he made a good point. As Matt Parra preached on Acts 17, biblical balance, and the logical fallacies of traditional definitions of balance, one thought streamed through my mind:
I’m supposed to be…
It is no secret to those who know me that I regard New Zealand as “the best country on earth.” I’ve been there four years in a row, and have no plans or desire to stop my annual visits. My most recent visit, which I’ve just returned from,…
If you had told me eight years ago, when I graduated from high school, that I would be hanging out with people from all over the world and be afforded the opportunity to share the gospel with them, I would have laughed at…
Placing an order in a café recently, the server said, “You don’t eat meat? That’s weird.” I responded, with a smile of course, “Yeah, it’s way less weird to catch a beautiful creature, look into its frightened eyes, cut its throat as it…
For almost a decade now we’ve had the privilege of training over 800 people through our ARISE training programs. It’s been a powerful and beautiful experience! But we’ve always dreamed of having…
As a direct result of attending the ARISE Bible Boot Camp at Kingscliff Church, six young adults from Ipswich Church recently took up the challenge to…
5 Ways to Be a Successful Student on a Public College Campus
by Israel Ramos
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…
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…
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.
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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…
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…
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…
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…
James Cook was one of the greatest sea navigators in history. In the late 1700s, he sailed from England around South Africa, to Tahiti, Australia and beyond. His eyes saw what very few had in his time. He and his men were…
Several of my young adult friends have messaged me recently with comments like, "I consider myself a Creationist because I believe that God created the earth. Why does it matter if He created it in seven literal contiguous 24-hour periods, or over…
Rushing out of the revolving door, we made our way home to Tennessee after staying two days in our hotel to be sure Luke was well enough to travel. The next five months was a game of wait and see; waiting to see if he would meet his normal…
"We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37).
Whoever you are, whatever your struggles and temptations may be, sweet victory is yours for the taking.
Right now!
All you need do is appreciate, appropriate and act upon what…
The great Hellen Keller is noted as having said, "When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us." A little over two years ago my wife and I had…
"Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever" (1 Corinthians 9:25, NIV).
In their excellent book, The Power of Full…
As a child I remember looking once at the clear night sky and feeling the deep awe it inspires. It wasn’t just a sense that the Universe is big that gripped me, though it certainly is. It was the whole experience of being in the dark with my…
An antagonist is typically someone who is against us. Defined as an opposing, limiting, nullifying force, the antagonist does not carry a positive connotation. In the world of physiology though, a healthy balance of life…
The ninth four-month ARISE class has come and gone. It’s hard to believe we’ve been at this for nearly a decade! Every class is special, I’ll be the first…
Leaving But Staying; Changing But Staying the Same
by Matt Parra
Matt, David, and Sherise surfing just South of Brisbaine, Australia
Moving can be dramatic. Yet change is a normal part of the human experience. Accordingly, the…
Even though it’s happened, I still can hardly believe it.
We merged. We moved. We’re here.
After months of conversing, praying, thinking, and planning, it happened. And, again, I still can hardly believe it. But here’s the good news, no…
July 1, 2011 was a day of new beginnings for Light Bearers and ARISE. It was the end of two separate ministries and the beginning of one. And from that day to this, we have experienced unrelenting unity, fellowship, and synergy.
One of the things…
My experience at ARISE can be simply described: God-planned. It is such a jaw-dropping feeling to look back at my life and see how God planned every step of the way. He even turns our mistakes into stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks. That…
What a privilege it was to conduct the Week of Spiritual Emphasis at the General Conference World Headquarters earlier this year! Blessings continue to flow from that…
The original plan was one post with all fifteen points. Plan B was fifteen points in two blog posts. Now we’re on Plan C: fifteen points in, you guessed it, three posts. Life has a way of suddenly rearranging our otherwise perfect and precise…
One of the great things about working in ministry is the privilege of meeting so many people from different backgrounds, cultures, and walks of life. Over time, weekly Bible studies grow into close friendships which is probably the most rewarding…
Pastor Torres, complete with wetsuit, baptizing me in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Best day of my life.
It was June 6, 1996.
Five days ago was June 6,…
Matt: “Hey Sherise, paddle out. Paddle. Paddle out!”
Sherise: Puzzled, frightened, and confused. Doing her best impersonation of a deer in the headlights.
Unidentified Surfer:…
Grace.
What a fantastic and wonderful word! The free, unmerited favor of God.
When my carnal heart first came to the realization of what was offered to me through Christ, I was a heathen. No, worse than a heathen; I was a Christian who knew all…
It is amazing to look at history and see how it often repeats itself.
Amber and I live in beautiful New Zealand. We have been fascinated by the history of this region - particularly its discovery by the Europeans.
New Zealand was first…
ARISE is thoroughly Gospel-centered.
ARISE is authentically Adventist.
Let’s be unmistakably clear: there exists no tension whatsoever between these affirmations. Both can be affirmed concurrently, absolutely, enthusiastically and…
The image is a depiction of Catherine de Medici, Queen of France, who approved the extermination of the Protestants, coming out to see the carnage of St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre…
Twice the Light: ARISE & Light Bearers Join Forces!
by Light Bearers
Yesterday, May 12th, something amazing happened. Something providential and miraculous. Two ministries became one. This did not happen overnight, as you might imagine. We do, after all, live in a Newtonian world, and when two things come together…
Recently, a friend of mine struck up a conversation with a local philosophy professor while exercising at the gym. Before long, the conversation turned to the most important subject of our time (and of all time): the character of God.…
When ARISE confirmed that we would be doing a two-week Bible Boot Camp in Australia, we knew that the Lord would have great things in store. However, God has done above and beyond anything we could have ever expected. We had no idea how many people…
Recently, I met Mark. Mark was scared. Mark had spent the last week cutting people’s limbs off.
I’m not kidding.
February 22nd saw Christchurch, New Zealand rocked by a deadly earthquake. At present nearly 200 have lost their lives.…
Frontline Report: February 22 Christchurch Earthquake
by David Asscherick
David Asscherick shares his eyewitness account of the 6.3 quake.
A deadly earthquake (6.3 magnitude) struck Christchurch, New Zealand yesterday at 12:51 p.m. Reports are that the Central Business…
Twenty-six point two miles. 138,435 feet. 1,661,220 inches.
There are many permutations, but the distance remains the same: long. For reasons not perfectly clear to me, running a marathon seemed like a good idea. That was six months…
Pastor David Asscherick had the privilege of preaching a week of revival sermons at the campus of Oakwood University in Huntsville, Alabama. The meetings were held from April 13 to 17. Assistant Chaplain Marquis Johns enthusiastically remarked, "The…
AYC (Australian Youth Conference) 2010 was the third installment of a youth conference that began because of a desire among the Adventist youth of Australia to fulfill the gospel commission. Matt Parra was invited as a plenary and workshop presenter…