We have nothing to
fear for the future,
00:00:01.43\00:00:04.03
except as we may forget
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the way God has
led us in the past.
00:00:05.73\00:00:10.01
Hi, I'm Cami Oetman.
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And I just spent
the most amazing week
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visiting our
Adventist Heritage Sites.
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It was my first time ever.
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I can't wait to
share more info with you.
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This is AWR360°.
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I love reading from the Bible
00:00:40.54\00:00:42.30
stories of people
who allow themselves
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to be led by God and
trusted solely on Him.
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Today we start our
journey into our churches past
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where modern men and women
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sacrificed all
to tell the world.
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I am greeted by Markus
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from Adventist
Heritage Ministries.
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He will be my guide.
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Hey, Cami. Hello, Markus.
00:01:01.22\00:01:03.26
Wow, this is a
fantastic place. It is.
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I love the
openness and the land.
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I bet you get a lot of
visitors here, don't you?
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Yes.
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And not just
Adventists, others too.
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And this is
because, as you can see,
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this is a historic site.
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So we get a lot of
visitors all year long.
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You know people are interested
in their American history,
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and so they are coming
here to see how they lift
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in these old times to
get a feeling of that.
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Oh, I can see that.
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And we as Adventists
have a more vested interest
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in this farm because
it's William Miller's.
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Absolutely.
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William Miller's
house was purchased
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as a historical site in 1984.
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The home had been
neglected and was in disrepair,
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but with many
faithful volunteers
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who devoted their time
and efforts to restore it.
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By 1994, it was fixed
and ready for visitors.
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Yes, William
Miller was a well of men.
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Thanks to his many jobs.
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He was deputy
sheriff, a constable,
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and later he became a
lieutenant in the militia.
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And during this time,
he also became a deist.
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You mean, he
believed in a Creator God
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but one who was
indifferent to human life.
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Yes.
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And this is
until the War of 1812.
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Oh, okay.
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The Battle of
Plattsburgh in 1812
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was a dramatic event for Miller.
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The American forces
were vastly outnumbered.
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Miller said, "The fort I was
in was exposed to every shot.
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Bombs, rockets,
and shrapnel shells
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fell as thick as hailstones."
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One of these many shots
exploded two feet from him,
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wounding three of his
men and killing another,
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yet he survived
without a scratch
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and the
Americans won the battle.
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Miller came to view
the outcome of this battle
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as miraculous
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and therefore at odds
with his deistic views.
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It was then that he devoted
his time to study the Bible.
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So in this room,
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he must have studied constantly.
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Yes.
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I really love to be here.
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This is the very
room where he studied
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and the very house
where everything happened
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during the next years.
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It was here
where he fell in love
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during the years as
he studied his Bible
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with his Jesus.
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And it was here in 1818,
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as he discovered
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that the
centaur will be cleansed
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in a couple of years.
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So he thought it will take place
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between the spring of 1843
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and the spring of 1844.
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Markus then showed
me the prophetic chart
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in Miller's original bedroom.
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It was inspiring
to be in the room
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where he made this discovery.
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In the parlor, I saw a
loom, a time period Bible
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and a pump organ once owned
by one of Miller's grandsons.
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Miller spent many evenings
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here by the fire
in deep Bible study.
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I tried the pipe organ,
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having to manually
pump the air with my foot
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to make the music.
00:04:04.01\00:04:05.77
Things were
done very differently
00:04:05.81\00:04:07.14
before
electricity was available.
00:04:07.18\00:04:09.34
I tried lifting a cannonball
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in the museum
portion of the house
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and was fascinated by
each artifact in the room.
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So he thought
Jesus would return.
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Yeah, picture that.
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Now he recognized
that his friend Jesus
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is coming soon.
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Yes.
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And it burned in his heart.
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He liked to share that
with all the people around him
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with everybody to get
ready when Jesus is coming.
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Yeah.
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But he was struggling with this.
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He was a farmer
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and he didn't feel
ready to go out to preach.
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But during the years,
the pressure developed,
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you know, to go out, to
preach it to the people.
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So finally, he pleaded with God
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and He made the
covenant with Him.
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So he told Him, "Okay,
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if You will send
somebody to call me,
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to preach, then I will go."
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So he felt very safe
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because who is
coming to ask an old farmer
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to go out to preach the message.
00:05:04.17\00:05:07.07
So what happened next?
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That's the funny
thing on the story.
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Okay.
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And on the very same day...
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I love that, same day.
00:05:13.64\00:05:14.98
A little bit later,
it knocked on the door.
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And he went to the door,
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opened the door and
there was his nephew.
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"Oh, what happened?
What are you doing here?"
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"Oh, you know, we don't have
somebody to preach on Sunday
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and father thought you
might be willing to come in
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to share what you found out
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about Jesus and
His Second Coming,
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His soon Second Coming."
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He got mad. He really was angry.
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He ran out of the
house into a grove,
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and there he struggled.
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He was an honest man.
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So he promised to go
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if the Lord would send
somebody to ask him to preach.
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Into the grove, then to farm.
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Out of the grove,
into preaching now
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Amen.
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You know, Markus,
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I personally identify
with Miller's reaction.
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I had too experienced
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something
similar a few years ago.
00:06:04.63\00:06:06.49
Actually, in my dad's barn,
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I fell to my knees
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and pledged my
devotion to God's will,
00:06:09.46\00:06:11.80
"However You want to use me."
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I like Miller made
a plea with the Lord.
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Lord, if you want
me to be an evangelist,
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then sell my business
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so that I'm free to
preach Bible prophecy.
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And God sold my company, Markus.
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Wow.
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And I went on to preach
about 350 sermons in 3 years.
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Wow. And that is a miracle.
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That's all God. This is amazing.
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He can use anybody. And
I'm a testament to that.
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Amen.
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Thank you for
sharing that with me.
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This is exciting.
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It was a moving experience
to be in the very spot
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where Miller struggled to
make his decision to preach.
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This was the
beginning of a movement
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that would revolutionize
the Christian world in his day,
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as he proclaimed the
soon coming of Jesus.
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He started to preach.
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He had the message of urgency
like Noah and time was short.
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Yeah.
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And in 1844, the
sweet turned into bitter.
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Yes, but through his actions,
many were led to the faith.
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You know, there
are many out there
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who do the work of the Lord
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yet feel
disappointed with their results.
00:07:20.40\00:07:22.37
But God knows more than we do.
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And our actions,
even if they're a little,
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our Lord can use to
make something wonderful.
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Oh, yes.
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Take for example, Robert Dulay.
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A few years ago,
AWR was not reaching
00:07:34.12\00:07:36.62
the mountains
of the Philippines.
00:07:36.65\00:07:38.25
And when we asked
Pastor Robert Dulay
00:07:38.29\00:07:40.22
to set up the radio broadcast,
he doubted it would work.
00:07:40.26\00:07:44.03
But he set it up
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and faithfully
the signal went out.
00:07:45.43\00:07:48.00
Yet for a few weeks,
there were no results.
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It could have been easy to quit
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as it was very discouraging,
but he stayed faithful to God.
00:07:52.53\00:07:57.41
Then he had the
idea for something called
00:07:57.44\00:08:00.08
the Bible question of the day.
00:08:00.11\00:08:02.74
Once the broadcasters
asked for a response,
00:08:02.78\00:08:04.98
calls came flooding in.
00:08:05.01\00:08:08.55
In a little over a year,
00:08:08.58\00:08:09.92
there have been
over 6,000 baptisms
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and more than 113
villages have accepted
00:08:13.25\00:08:16.62
the Adventist
message in Mindoro,
00:08:16.66\00:08:19.26
with the majority of
those being rebel soldiers
00:08:19.29\00:08:22.00
who reside high
in the mountains.
00:08:22.03\00:08:25.83
With many miracles taking place,
00:08:25.87\00:08:27.94
listeners of all kinds
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are giving their hearts to Jesus
00:08:29.67\00:08:32.11
thanks to the
dedicated men and women
00:08:32.14\00:08:33.98
willing to share their faith.
00:08:34.01\00:08:35.58
As we continue the tour,
00:08:39.38\00:08:40.78
it's incredible to see how
people lived in times past,
00:08:40.82\00:08:46.15
the buildings, the
tools, all the heritage.
00:08:46.19\00:08:50.63
As I look around me,
00:08:50.66\00:08:51.99
I marveled at
how God led this shy,
00:08:52.03\00:08:53.66
simple farmer to
proclaim the message with power,
00:08:53.70\00:08:56.93
a present truth that
the world needed to hear.
00:08:56.97\00:09:02.37
You know, I owe my life
to these great pioneers.
00:09:02.40\00:09:06.31
Tell me more.
00:09:06.34\00:09:08.34
Well, I grew up in East Germany.
00:09:08.38\00:09:11.41
And I mean, we
lived under the communists
00:09:11.45\00:09:14.72
that was under the Russians.
00:09:14.75\00:09:16.99
Though he was raised Adventist,
he gave it little attention.
00:09:17.02\00:09:20.32
The only things he knew
were that you don't eat pork
00:09:20.36\00:09:23.19
and you go to
church on Saturday.
00:09:23.22\00:09:26.03
And what they teach us in school
00:09:26.06\00:09:28.66
was that we are the generation
00:09:28.70\00:09:30.97
who will bring the
communism to success,
00:09:31.00\00:09:34.50
so we have to buy
into the whole thing.
00:09:34.54\00:09:36.84
So we were really
educated in this direction.
00:09:36.87\00:09:40.11
Then in 1989,
the wall came down.
00:09:40.14\00:09:43.55
So I started to
join the Nazi movement.
00:09:43.58\00:09:47.05
And I found the book
in the room of my mother,
00:09:47.08\00:09:52.12
on the desk.
00:09:52.15\00:09:53.59
And this book
was called in German,
00:09:53.62\00:09:55.89
Der Grosse Kampf.
00:09:55.92\00:09:58.59
And that sounds
very similar to the book,
00:09:58.63\00:10:01.10
Mein Kampf from Adolf Hitler.
00:10:01.13\00:10:03.30
Yes.
00:10:03.33\00:10:04.67
So I looked at
the book and thought,
00:10:04.70\00:10:06.03
"Well, this is interesting.
00:10:06.07\00:10:07.40
So let me see what it is."
00:10:07.44\00:10:08.77
So I opened the book.
00:10:08.80\00:10:10.41
And it was The
Great Controversy...
00:10:10.44\00:10:12.24
Amen. In German.
00:10:12.27\00:10:13.61
So it started with
all these reformers
00:10:13.64\00:10:15.78
and it was about history.
00:10:15.81\00:10:17.15
So I thought, "Oh,
that's interesting,
00:10:17.18\00:10:18.51
so let's read it."
00:10:18.55\00:10:20.45
And as I read the book,
00:10:20.48\00:10:22.08
I couldn't believe what I read.
00:10:22.12\00:10:25.22
I mean, these people
00:10:25.25\00:10:26.82
really surrendered
their whole life to Jesus.
00:10:26.86\00:10:29.32
They really stand for something.
00:10:29.36\00:10:31.49
And that really touched me.
00:10:31.53\00:10:33.19
And the first time in my life,
00:10:33.23\00:10:35.46
I understood what
Adventism is about.
00:10:35.50\00:10:39.03
That is amazing.
00:10:39.07\00:10:40.44
And I mean, I went to school,
you know, close like a Nazi.
00:10:40.47\00:10:45.11
And then I had my Bible with
me and The Great Controversy.
00:10:45.14\00:10:48.08
And I was reading
00:10:48.11\00:10:49.44
and they had
their school classes,
00:10:49.48\00:10:50.81
I couldn't stop.
00:10:50.85\00:10:52.18
I mean, that was what I did.
00:10:52.21\00:10:53.72
And that changed my life.
00:10:53.75\00:10:56.22
To him the stories in the
Bible were being told again
00:10:56.25\00:10:58.79
through the
lives of the pioneers.
00:10:58.82\00:11:00.72
It impressed him.
00:11:00.76\00:11:02.09
And this is what led him
to Adventist Heritage Ministry
00:11:02.12\00:11:04.59
many years later.
00:11:04.63\00:11:07.43
So the first time
in 2007 was Jim Nix
00:11:07.46\00:11:10.17
coming here to the place
where William Miller left.
00:11:10.20\00:11:12.90
And you could see
it, you could feel it,
00:11:12.93\00:11:14.64
he was really in.
00:11:14.67\00:11:16.00
I mean, that was
really, really incredible.
00:11:16.04\00:11:17.97
It's sites like this one
00:11:18.01\00:11:20.01
which takes us
back to our founders.
00:11:20.04\00:11:22.94
That is so true.
00:11:22.98\00:11:25.61
As the tour ended,
00:11:25.65\00:11:26.98
I took one last look at the farm
00:11:27.02\00:11:29.32
and remembered
the words of Miller
00:11:29.35\00:11:31.05
now immortalized in
that wonderful song,
00:11:31.09\00:11:34.26
"I have fixed my
mind upon another time
00:11:34.29\00:11:37.23
and here I stand until
God gives me more light.
00:11:37.26\00:11:40.76
And that is today,
00:11:40.80\00:11:42.26
today and today until He comes
00:11:42.30\00:11:45.43
and I see Him for
whom my soul yearns."
00:11:45.47\00:11:48.67
The next day we drove to
Clifton Springs, New York
00:11:53.01\00:11:55.81
to visit Hiram Edson's Farm.
00:11:55.84\00:11:57.68
So tell me about
this beautiful place.
00:12:03.35\00:12:06.19
Yeah, it was in 1989
00:12:06.22\00:12:08.29
that AHM was able
to acquire this place.
00:12:08.32\00:12:12.73
And in 1993, AHM was able to buy
00:12:12.76\00:12:17.80
the original farm
of Hiram Edson's father
00:12:17.83\00:12:20.67
and this is what you
see here in the back of us.
00:12:20.70\00:12:24.01
But at the same time,
00:12:24.04\00:12:25.37
we didn't had
the visitor center.
00:12:25.41\00:12:26.84
Okay.
00:12:26.88\00:12:28.21
So AHM was
looking forward to the day
00:12:28.24\00:12:30.48
when we could open
this building in 2010.
00:12:30.51\00:12:33.52
Now we have a
little visitor center
00:12:33.55\00:12:34.88
to invite the people
00:12:34.92\00:12:36.25
and tell the
story of Hiram Edson
00:12:36.28\00:12:37.62
before they go over to the barn.
00:12:37.65\00:12:39.62
Love it. This is fantastic.
00:12:39.65\00:12:41.62
Hiram Edson was a
real man of the Lord.
00:12:45.33\00:12:48.10
Amen.
00:12:48.13\00:12:49.46
In the early 1840s,
00:12:49.50\00:12:51.53
he was listening to Miller
00:12:51.57\00:12:52.97
as he was
preaching in Rochester,
00:12:53.00\00:12:55.27
and finally he surrendered
his heart to the Lord.
00:12:55.30\00:12:58.77
And as he came
back here to his house,
00:12:58.81\00:13:01.58
after while he
had a deep impression
00:13:01.61\00:13:03.38
that the Lord called
him to go to his neighbors
00:13:03.41\00:13:06.31
and share with them
that Jesus is coming soon.
00:13:06.35\00:13:09.68
But, you know, as it is
today he struggled to his death.
00:13:09.72\00:13:14.16
I'm sure he must have struggled,
00:13:14.19\00:13:15.52
but what did he do next?
00:13:15.56\00:13:18.06
He stood faithful, you know?
00:13:18.09\00:13:20.60
So finally, he
overcame his fears.
00:13:20.63\00:13:23.90
He went out to the neighbors.
00:13:23.93\00:13:26.20
And in a short time,
about 400 people here
00:13:26.23\00:13:31.71
believed in the
Second Coming of Christ.
00:13:31.74\00:13:33.78
Amen.
00:13:33.81\00:13:35.14
And most of them
surrendered their life
00:13:35.18\00:13:37.01
the first time in their life.
00:13:37.05\00:13:39.28
But then 1844 came
00:13:39.31\00:13:42.25
and with it The
Great Disappointment
00:13:42.28\00:13:44.69
on October 22.
00:13:44.72\00:13:46.92
You know, it was tragic
and so discouraging to them.
00:13:59.20\00:14:03.34
But what happened next?
00:14:03.37\00:14:06.81
After October 22 passed by,
00:14:06.84\00:14:09.71
he's disappointed
people were here together,
00:14:09.74\00:14:12.98
a lot of them.
00:14:13.01\00:14:14.75
On the morning of October 23,
00:14:14.78\00:14:17.62
Hiram Edson asked
some of his friends
00:14:17.65\00:14:19.59
to go into the barn to pray,
00:14:19.62\00:14:23.76
and ask God, "What happened?"
00:14:23.79\00:14:25.39
Yeah. "What went wrong?"
00:14:25.43\00:14:28.40
And they did.
00:14:28.43\00:14:29.76
And after this,
00:14:29.80\00:14:31.13
he decided to go
with one of his friends
00:14:31.17\00:14:34.37
to go to the believers
around to encourage them.
00:14:34.40\00:14:39.67
So they choose not
to take the streets
00:14:39.71\00:14:43.01
as you can imagine.
00:14:43.04\00:14:44.38
Yeah.
00:14:44.41\00:14:45.75
So they choose to go
here through the cornfields,
00:14:45.78\00:14:47.88
a quiet path.
00:14:47.92\00:14:49.25
Right here? In this...
00:14:49.28\00:14:51.12
You are close. Yes.
00:14:51.15\00:14:52.79
This is his property,
00:14:52.82\00:14:54.16
so we don't know exactly
where his corn field was,
00:14:54.19\00:14:57.39
but it was here on the property.
00:14:57.43\00:14:58.76
So what happens
00:14:58.79\00:15:00.13
when they are
walking in this cornfield?
00:15:00.16\00:15:02.03
I mean, after he prayed
for some light and guidance,
00:15:02.06\00:15:06.94
and they went here
through the cornfields,
00:15:06.97\00:15:09.77
something went through his head,
00:15:09.80\00:15:11.94
through his mind,
00:15:11.97\00:15:13.38
and it popped up somehow
00:15:13.41\00:15:17.01
that his thoughts
went to Hebrews Chapter 8.
00:15:17.05\00:15:20.92
And he recognized "Hey,
00:15:20.95\00:15:22.58
there's a High Priest in heaven,
00:15:22.62\00:15:24.05
in the heavenly sanctuary."
00:15:24.09\00:15:26.42
Could it be that
we misinterpreted
00:15:26.45\00:15:28.22
that he's coming
back to the earth
00:15:28.26\00:15:31.69
but instead of this
something happened in heaven.
00:15:31.73\00:15:34.26
So the two of them went back
00:15:34.30\00:15:36.06
and started to
study their Bible.
00:15:36.10\00:15:38.53
Awesome.
00:15:38.57\00:15:39.90
So it's like they
had the date right,
00:15:39.93\00:15:41.97
but it was a different event.
00:15:42.00\00:15:43.34
Right.
00:15:43.37\00:15:44.71
As we walked, I became
more and more impressed
00:15:48.58\00:15:51.11
with what took
place in this very field,
00:15:51.15\00:15:53.88
the history of our
churches all around us.
00:15:53.92\00:15:56.79
And I could almost
see the events of the past
00:15:56.82\00:15:59.05
unfolding before me.
00:15:59.09\00:16:03.26
You know, Markus,
this is my first time
00:16:03.29\00:16:05.29
to be at this property.
00:16:05.33\00:16:06.96
And the Edson
Farm is so much more
00:16:07.00\00:16:09.30
than I ever thought it would be.
00:16:09.33\00:16:10.67
Oh, yes, that's true.
00:16:10.70\00:16:12.07
So much history happened here.
00:16:12.10\00:16:14.57
I mean, Joseph Bates came here
00:16:14.60\00:16:16.37
and met with Hiram
Edson and his friends,
00:16:16.40\00:16:19.07
Dr. Hahn and Crosier.
00:16:19.11\00:16:20.68
They studied the
sanctuary message
00:16:20.71\00:16:22.61
and Bates studied the Sabbath.
00:16:22.64\00:16:24.95
So as he came here,
he listened to them.
00:16:24.98\00:16:27.38
And after they
shared their thoughts,
00:16:27.42\00:16:30.32
he took out his little pamphlet
00:16:30.35\00:16:32.09
and then he
started to teach them
00:16:32.12\00:16:33.46
about the Sabbath.
00:16:33.49\00:16:34.82
Amen.
00:16:34.86\00:16:36.19
And as he finished, Edson,
he jumped out of his seat,
00:16:36.22\00:16:38.73
you know, "Brother
Bates, this is life!
00:16:38.76\00:16:41.00
This is truth."
00:16:41.03\00:16:42.36
Amen.
00:16:42.40\00:16:43.73
"I'd like to join
you to keep the Sabbath."
00:16:43.77\00:16:45.10
That's right.
00:16:45.13\00:16:46.47
So that happened here
00:16:46.50\00:16:47.84
and also Ellen and
James White they came here.
00:16:47.87\00:16:49.20
So this is really a
place which is talking
00:16:49.24\00:16:51.11
about the
beginnings of our church,
00:16:51.14\00:16:53.61
and it's called the birthplace
of the Adventist theology.
00:16:53.64\00:16:58.05
So how do you find visitors'
00:16:58.08\00:17:00.65
lives being impacted when
they visit the Edson Farm?
00:17:00.68\00:17:03.79
Oh, let me share
a story with you.
00:17:03.82\00:17:07.02
Oh! I can't wait. Yeah.
00:17:07.06\00:17:10.96
He told me that
one Sabbath afternoon,
00:17:10.99\00:17:13.43
a family who had
called the farm many times
00:17:13.46\00:17:15.86
finally made the trip.
00:17:15.90\00:17:18.93
They were very
curious about the place
00:17:18.97\00:17:20.80
and wanted to
experience everything
00:17:20.84\00:17:22.64
the farm had to offer.
00:17:22.67\00:17:26.57
Their tour started with a video
00:17:26.61\00:17:28.11
about Hiram Edson and his life.
00:17:28.14\00:17:32.75
Then they
experienced what it was like
00:17:32.78\00:17:34.52
to be inside an
18th century barn.
00:17:34.55\00:17:36.95
The children had
never been in a barn before
00:17:39.95\00:17:42.79
and everything interested them.
00:17:42.82\00:17:44.79
Since Janice, the
mother, had trouble walking,
00:17:48.56\00:17:51.10
there was a golf
cart available for her
00:17:51.13\00:17:53.40
which the children
were excited about.
00:17:53.44\00:17:55.27
They enjoy riding the cart
00:17:59.71\00:18:01.21
along the prophecy
and prayer garden trail.
00:18:01.24\00:18:03.91
All in all,
they had a great day.
00:18:07.42\00:18:11.89
When they returned
there was another group
00:18:11.92\00:18:13.69
singing hymns in the barn,
00:18:13.72\00:18:15.42
so they were invited to join in.
00:18:15.46\00:18:17.03
Soon tears filled Janice's eyes.
00:18:20.10\00:18:23.03
She went on to explain
00:18:23.06\00:18:24.40
that the songs brought
back memories of her childhood
00:18:24.43\00:18:27.04
and of her mom who
had been an Adventist.
00:18:27.07\00:18:30.87
The group then held hands
00:18:30.91\00:18:32.24
and prayed
together with a family
00:18:32.27\00:18:34.11
thanking God
for all He has done.
00:18:34.14\00:18:37.65
And after the prayer,
00:18:37.68\00:18:39.01
someone asked where
they were headed next.
00:18:39.05\00:18:41.82
They replied,
"Back home to Ohio."
00:18:41.85\00:18:45.09
Janice explained,
00:18:45.12\00:18:46.45
they had made the
journey to the farm
00:18:46.49\00:18:48.19
because of their
daughter's dream.
00:18:48.22\00:18:50.59
As all eyes turned toward
her, she revealed her dream.
00:18:50.63\00:18:55.76
I found myself in an
old barn with two men.
00:18:55.80\00:18:58.83
One was named Joseph Bates.
00:18:58.87\00:19:01.00
And as I turned
I asked the other,
00:19:01.04\00:19:03.37
"Are you Hiram Edson?"
00:19:03.41\00:19:05.87
He responded,
00:19:05.91\00:19:07.24
"Around these parts,
people call me Hiram."
00:19:07.28\00:19:10.01
Then she was told to look up.
00:19:10.05\00:19:12.38
And as she did, she
saw brilliant stars,
00:19:12.41\00:19:14.82
planets, and constellations.
00:19:14.85\00:19:17.45
As she woke up,
00:19:17.49\00:19:18.82
she pondered
what the dream meant
00:19:18.85\00:19:20.36
and who these men could be.
00:19:20.39\00:19:22.32
She told her
mother about her dream.
00:19:22.36\00:19:24.49
It was then her mother
remembered her Adventist roots
00:19:24.53\00:19:27.60
and shared with her daughter
00:19:27.63\00:19:28.96
the story of William
Miller and the other pioneers.
00:19:29.00\00:19:32.27
Then Janice found
the historic sites
00:19:32.30\00:19:34.50
and called requesting a
visit to Hiram Edson's Farm.
00:19:34.54\00:19:37.87
After hearing her story,
00:19:37.91\00:19:39.24
we told her Hiram
could be pronounced two ways,
00:19:39.27\00:19:42.54
Hiram or Hiram,
like in her dream.
00:19:42.58\00:19:45.75
She started to cry.
00:19:45.78\00:19:48.48
God is using
these historic places
00:19:48.52\00:19:50.69
of our beginnings to
remind us of our mission
00:19:50.72\00:19:54.29
and to draw people back to him.
00:19:54.32\00:19:56.93
What a privilege it is
to know of our founders
00:19:56.96\00:20:00.06
and their
dedication to the gospel.
00:20:00.10\00:20:02.33
Let us never forget.
00:20:02.36\00:20:03.97
From Hiram's Farm,
00:20:08.44\00:20:09.77
we now drive to
Fairhaven, Massachusetts
00:20:09.80\00:20:11.77
to visit Joseph Bates' home.
00:20:11.81\00:20:13.38
Cami, this is a
house built in 1742.
00:20:19.71\00:20:23.92
And this is
actually the boyhood home
00:20:23.95\00:20:25.65
of Joseph Bates.
00:20:25.69\00:20:27.02
Amazing. The original home?
00:20:27.06\00:20:28.42
Yes, it's
original home. Fantastic.
00:20:28.46\00:20:30.83
I love our
Adventist heritage. Yeah.
00:20:30.86\00:20:32.86
And it's not just
about our heritage,
00:20:32.89\00:20:35.56
I'll show you
something more if you want.
00:20:35.60\00:20:37.17
Okay, I'd love to see. Okay.
00:20:37.20\00:20:38.53
Thank you.
00:20:38.57\00:20:41.67
In the back of the house,
an old wall covered in moss
00:20:41.70\00:20:44.54
testifies to
the age of the home.
00:20:44.57\00:20:48.31
So this wall goes
back to the 1670s.
00:20:48.34\00:20:52.38
That was built
watching a building
00:20:52.41\00:20:54.02
by a man named Thomas Taber
00:20:54.05\00:20:55.98
and he married
the daughter of a man
00:20:56.02\00:20:58.15
called John Cooke.
00:20:58.19\00:21:00.62
And he was one of the pilgrims
00:21:00.66\00:21:01.99
he came over here
with the Mayflower.
00:21:02.02\00:21:04.76
So here you have the
beginnings of American history
00:21:04.79\00:21:08.66
next to the beginning
of our Adventist heritage.
00:21:08.70\00:21:12.63
As we tour the property,
00:21:16.04\00:21:17.37
Markus tells me
of its many rooms
00:21:17.41\00:21:18.91
and what is
planned for each section.
00:21:18.94\00:21:22.88
This first room will be designed
00:21:22.91\00:21:24.45
as an interactive trading store.
00:21:24.48\00:21:27.78
You know, Joseph
Bates as a little kid,
00:21:27.82\00:21:30.49
he had a dream to went to sea
00:21:30.52\00:21:33.22
and he went over
on the first voyage
00:21:33.25\00:21:35.49
to Europe, came back.
00:21:35.52\00:21:37.13
And in the second one,
00:21:37.16\00:21:38.49
something
dramatic happened to him.
00:21:38.53\00:21:42.33
This home is
filled with authentic,
00:21:42.36\00:21:44.43
historic items in every corner.
00:21:44.47\00:21:47.70
You will find a special display
of Joseph's daring travels
00:21:47.74\00:21:50.81
across the sea.
00:21:50.84\00:21:52.57
In the next room, you
can experience life at sea,
00:21:52.61\00:21:55.94
fully immersed in
the ship's galley,
00:21:55.98\00:21:58.55
the lighting, the sounds,
00:21:58.58\00:22:00.45
and the screens
will make it feel
00:22:00.48\00:22:02.48
like the visitor is
right there on the ship.
00:22:02.52\00:22:07.36
As we turn the corner,
00:22:07.39\00:22:08.72
I remind Markus
of his cliffhanger
00:22:08.76\00:22:10.33
regarding
Joseph's dramatic ordeal.
00:22:10.36\00:22:14.36
Let me tell you what happens.
00:22:14.40\00:22:16.20
Yes.
00:22:16.23\00:22:17.57
So in 1809,
00:22:17.60\00:22:18.93
he went on his
second voyage as a cabin boy
00:22:18.97\00:22:20.94
and went back to Europe.
00:22:20.97\00:22:22.80
And since there was a war
00:22:22.84\00:22:24.41
between the
British and the French,
00:22:24.44\00:22:25.81
he got captured
by Danish people.
00:22:25.84\00:22:28.11
He ended up in Dartmoor Prison
where the story is coming from.
00:22:28.14\00:22:32.41
And he was released in 1815,
00:22:32.45\00:22:34.78
came back here
to the United States
00:22:34.82\00:22:36.85
after a long time, 6
years away from his family,
00:22:36.89\00:22:39.85
and joins his family
again here on this property.
00:22:39.89\00:22:43.32
And I'm sure he was
telling the stories here
00:22:43.36\00:22:45.83
about what he
experienced in this very room.
00:22:45.86\00:22:48.40
Wow!
00:22:48.43\00:22:50.70
The woodwork of
the original house
00:22:50.73\00:22:52.33
can be seen in the
ceiling and inside the wall.
00:22:52.37\00:22:56.77
Genuine items from
Joseph Bates' time period
00:22:56.81\00:22:59.64
can also be viewed.
00:22:59.67\00:23:02.78
Finally, in 1824, Joseph Bates
00:23:02.81\00:23:05.41
became part
owner of his own ship.
00:23:05.45\00:23:07.95
Awesome. Called Empress.
00:23:07.98\00:23:11.02
Because of his experience at sea
00:23:11.05\00:23:12.99
and witnessing
the negative effects
00:23:13.02\00:23:14.69
of alcohol and tobacco,
00:23:14.72\00:23:16.36
Captain Bates banned anyone
00:23:16.39\00:23:18.76
from using these
substances on his ship.
00:23:18.79\00:23:21.63
This came as a
surprise to many of the sailors.
00:23:21.66\00:23:25.77
Ah, it was a hard
time in the beginning,
00:23:25.80\00:23:27.40
but as they came back,
00:23:27.44\00:23:28.77
many of the people
who sailed out with him
00:23:28.80\00:23:30.71
to South America,
00:23:30.74\00:23:32.47
they asked him to go
00:23:32.51\00:23:34.38
on the next trip
together with him.
00:23:34.41\00:23:36.04
Nice.
00:23:36.08\00:23:38.61
The next room will
showcase his spiritual life
00:23:38.65\00:23:40.88
and the Millerite revival.
00:23:40.92\00:23:42.48
He retired in 1828 from the sea.
00:23:45.72\00:23:50.99
Bates was also an advocate
for the abolition of slavery.
00:23:51.03\00:23:54.46
He prayed daily that
God would save his country
00:23:54.50\00:23:57.17
from such a terrible curse.
00:23:57.20\00:23:59.80
Joseph always
supported a temperate life
00:23:59.83\00:24:02.14
by treating his body
like a temple of God.
00:24:02.17\00:24:06.27
As we go
upstairs, I'm curious to see
00:24:06.31\00:24:08.78
how an antique
bed frame was made.
00:24:08.81\00:24:11.21
Apparently, it took 1.5 hours
00:24:11.25\00:24:13.82
to cross weave one long rope
00:24:13.85\00:24:15.75
creating what we know
00:24:15.78\00:24:17.12
as the box spring
portion of the bed.
00:24:17.15\00:24:19.49
You know, now he
invested his time and money
00:24:19.52\00:24:22.56
totally into the proclamation
of the Second Coming of Christ.
00:24:22.59\00:24:26.33
In 1844,
00:24:26.36\00:24:28.20
he sold his properties
and paid off all his debts
00:24:28.23\00:24:31.73
and used the rest of his
money to support the work.
00:24:31.77\00:24:35.27
And also as he
spent his last money
00:24:35.30\00:24:38.54
on four pounds of flour.
00:24:38.57\00:24:40.78
He lived regarding his
motto, the Lord will provide.
00:24:40.81\00:24:45.08
Amen.
00:24:45.11\00:24:46.45
But then he felt he
has to go to the postmaster
00:24:46.48\00:24:48.82
and there was an envelope.
00:24:48.85\00:24:50.75
And in the
envelope, there was money,
00:24:50.79\00:24:52.79
So faithful. So faithful.
00:24:52.82\00:24:56.42
The final rooms will
focus on how Bates invested
00:24:56.46\00:24:59.09
all of his resources
into the Adventist movement.
00:24:59.13\00:25:02.60
He relied solely upon God
00:25:02.63\00:25:04.43
and his new found
belief in the Sabbath.
00:25:04.47\00:25:08.04
The last hallway will
show the legacy Bates left
00:25:08.07\00:25:10.81
with the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
00:25:10.84\00:25:12.84
Joseph Bates was a man of faith
00:25:12.87\00:25:14.81
and that faith
came shining through.
00:25:14.84\00:25:17.75
Thank you, Cami,
for this wonderful week.
00:25:17.78\00:25:20.08
And I hope you
take a little taste
00:25:20.12\00:25:22.22
of the spirit of
sacrifice and commitment
00:25:22.25\00:25:24.52
which our
pioneers for your life.
00:25:24.55\00:25:28.59
These sites can really
help you to connect truly
00:25:28.62\00:25:32.19
with what God's
beginning of his work
00:25:32.23\00:25:36.87
did to start the foundations
00:25:36.90\00:25:39.03
of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church
00:25:39.07\00:25:40.40
which is now almost 21
million Seventh-day Adventists
00:25:40.44\00:25:44.67
worldwide in
about 215 countries.
00:25:44.71\00:25:47.68
It is a very special experience
for me to be on the places
00:25:47.71\00:25:51.51
where our pioneers
have started our work.
00:25:51.55\00:25:54.38
It's a connection
with people and history.
00:25:54.42\00:25:58.05
I always learn things.
00:25:58.09\00:26:00.16
I see things that I
hadn't noticed before.
00:26:00.19\00:26:02.69
It's inspiring. It really is.
00:26:02.72\00:26:05.16
I think this is
so important for us
00:26:05.19\00:26:07.10
as Adventists today to
be reminded of the need
00:26:07.13\00:26:10.90
to be rooted and
founded in the Word,
00:26:10.93\00:26:13.07
to study the Word.
00:26:13.10\00:26:14.44
If we don't
understand it to study,
00:26:14.47\00:26:16.10
and as we look
back on the history
00:26:16.14\00:26:18.54
and see how they did this,
00:26:18.57\00:26:19.91
this helps us as
we go forward as well.
00:26:19.94\00:26:22.34
So when we come
here, we get in touch
00:26:22.38\00:26:24.81
with this other
dimension of God acting
00:26:24.85\00:26:28.05
and inviting us to act with Him
00:26:28.08\00:26:30.72
to make a difference
in other people's lives.
00:26:30.75\00:26:33.76
And as you visit these places,
00:26:33.79\00:26:36.26
you have more meaning and
purpose in your own mission
00:26:36.29\00:26:41.30
in what you do for
Him in your context.
00:26:41.33\00:26:44.90
And I think for me
to see with my own eyes,
00:26:44.93\00:26:48.17
this is where William Miller is,
00:26:48.20\00:26:49.64
this is Joseph Bates.
00:26:49.67\00:26:51.01
And it makes it more real
00:26:51.04\00:26:52.37
and it's not just
somebody telling me about it.
00:26:52.41\00:26:54.31
I've seen it with my own eyes.
00:26:54.34\00:26:55.68
I've stood in on Ascension rock
00:26:55.71\00:26:57.51
and seen while people
waited for Jesus to come.
00:26:57.55\00:27:00.58
And I think that makes
that experience more real.
00:27:00.62\00:27:02.38
It's something that
00:27:02.42\00:27:03.75
nobody can take
that away from me ever.
00:27:03.79\00:27:05.65
My passion is
how do we recapture
00:27:05.69\00:27:09.36
for the next generation
00:27:09.39\00:27:10.73
or for this generation
the story, the miracles,
00:27:10.76\00:27:13.96
the wonderful way
God has led this church
00:27:14.00\00:27:16.87
to bring us to
where we are right now
00:27:16.90\00:27:19.03
because I think once we do,
00:27:19.07\00:27:20.54
even young people
will get excited again
00:27:20.57\00:27:22.84
about what it means to
be a Seventh-day Adventist
00:27:22.87\00:27:25.74
and this beautiful
message that God has given us.
00:27:25.77\00:27:27.94
And the pioneers,
00:27:27.98\00:27:29.48
they are the ones that
started and now God wants us
00:27:29.51\00:27:31.88
to finish the work they began.
00:27:31.91\00:27:33.38
As I stand here
on Ascension rock,
00:27:36.69\00:27:39.29
I reflect upon these sites,
00:27:39.32\00:27:41.46
I am proud to be a
Seventh-day Adventist.
00:27:41.49\00:27:44.33
Our history, our heritage
00:27:44.36\00:27:46.59
is full of courageous
self-sacrificing individuals
00:27:46.63\00:27:50.53
who gave their all
00:27:50.57\00:27:52.07
to spreading the gospel message.
00:27:52.10\00:27:54.04
We must remember our past
00:27:54.07\00:27:55.90
and cherish the lessons learned.
00:27:55.94\00:27:58.37
We have the privilege of
following in the footsteps
00:27:58.41\00:28:01.54
of our pioneers,
00:28:01.58\00:28:03.04
like William Miller's
example of faithfulness,
00:28:03.08\00:28:05.61
Hiram Edison's prayer life,
00:28:05.65\00:28:07.55
and Joseph Bates
courage and complete devotion
00:28:07.58\00:28:11.42
to doing God's
will at all costs.
00:28:11.45\00:28:14.19
They were
completely sold out for Jesus.
00:28:14.22\00:28:17.46
Like them may we
never give in to giving up.
00:28:17.49\00:28:21.36
Step forward in
faith and God will provide.
00:28:21.40\00:28:24.90
Together let's
preserve our Adventist heritage.
00:28:24.93\00:28:27.90
These are evangelistic sites,
truly centers of influence,
00:28:27.94\00:28:32.87
surrounding
communities are impacted.
00:28:32.91\00:28:35.48
Visitors experience
these pioneer testimonies
00:28:35.51\00:28:38.55
on a personal level,
00:28:38.58\00:28:40.02
and even curious
history buffs become converted.
00:28:40.05\00:28:44.02
Our pioneer buildings
and properties can be saved
00:28:44.05\00:28:47.99
and be a witness,
00:28:48.02\00:28:49.36
a reminder for
us and our children
00:28:49.39\00:28:52.46
for generations to come.
00:28:52.49\00:28:55.10
Until next
time, this is AWR360°.
00:28:55.13\00:28:59.00