Participants: Gary Krause (Host), May-Ellen Colón, Jan Paulsen
Series Code: GMS
Program Code: GMS000052
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00:01 On today's program Pastor Jan Paulsen,
00:03 former president 00:04 of the Seventh-day Adventist church 00:06 reflects on lessons he has learned. 00:09 We also meet the longest serving Adventists volunteer missionary 00:13 and we learn how to make a difference in our communities, 00:16 all that and much more coming up next 00:18 on Global Mission Snapshots. 00:31 Just before He went up to heaven, 00:33 Jesus gave us a command. 00:36 He gave us a mission. Jesus said, go. 00:42 Go unto all the world, telling them of His love. 00:46 This is our mission. This is our Global Mission. 00:56 Hello, I'm Gary Krause 00:57 and welcome to Global Mission Snapshots. 01:00 Today we will be talking 01:01 with Dr. May-Ellen Colon about community services 01:05 and how Adventist small groups 01:07 are touching the lives of people around them. 01:10 We will also here what Pastor Jan Paulsen has learned 01:13 from a lifetime of service as a missionary, 01:16 educator and church leader. 01:19 And we will meet an incredible Australian 01:21 who is the longer serving Adventist volunteer missionary. 01:25 Over years that Helen Hall has affected 01:27 the lives of thousands of children 01:29 through teaching in refugee camps in Southeast Asia. 01:34 But, first let's travel to the country of Greece 01:37 and see the impact 01:38 that an international church has made on one man 01:41 from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 01:47 Greece is home to many significant events 01:50 throughout history, especially in the Bible. 01:54 The large city of Athens has evolved over time 01:57 but still holds on to its historic culture. 02:00 Today thousands of immigrants 02:02 from all over the world live in Greece. 02:06 My name is Michel Tiambo. 02:10 Michel is from the Democratic Republic of Congo. 02:14 He has lived in the city of Athens for some time now. 02:17 When he moved here he was not an Adventist. 02:20 Michel attended other churches 02:23 seeking what God really wanted for him. 02:26 He met an Adventist who invited him to church 02:28 and he believed what he heard. 02:31 I attended the church and I liked it 02:33 and I appreciated the way they preaching 02:36 and the way the people are 02:38 or they are doing in the church. 02:41 Now Michel plays an active role in reaching African immigrants 02:44 who are seeking the way he once was. 02:48 He is part of a Bible study that meets weekly. 02:51 They discuss various topics 02:53 and the people are focused on learning 02:54 all the lessons from the Bible. 02:57 Not all of the immigrants speak the same language 03:00 so Michel uses his gift of language 03:03 to translate the words of the pastor. 03:05 I am there with one of the elders of the church 03:08 and he is giving the Bible study 03:11 and I am translating for immigrant, 03:13 people from my country from Congo. 03:15 And After the service of the Bible studies, 03:18 we're sharing what we have food 03:20 and we enjoy together 03:21 under the fellowship-- the fellowship. 03:25 The Bible study transitions from studying the Bible 03:28 to sharing a meal together. 03:30 The visitors enjoy the opportunity for fellowship. 03:34 As you can see, the apartment is so small 03:37 they have to limit the number of people 03:39 who attend the meetings. 03:40 The church in Greece prays for a new building 03:43 that can be used to share Jesus with immigrants. 03:46 Their dream is to build an international church 03:49 where people from all over can come worship together. 03:52 Please pray for this group of eager followers. 03:55 That they may find a place to study without limits. 04:03 It's my pleasure to introduce my friend 04:06 and colleague Dr. May-Ellen Colon 04:08 who is the director of Adventist Community Services 04:12 for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 04:14 May-Ellen, thank you for joining us. 04:15 Oh, it's so good to be here. 04:17 Community services, what do we mean by that? 04:20 It means, being salt and light in the community. 04:24 It means coming out of our fortress 04:28 and going out in making the community a better place 04:31 because our church is there. 04:33 And so it's all through the church 04:35 that is the part that I specifically work with. 04:39 To modify church is to be 04:41 transforming agents in the community. 04:43 Wonderful and we have talked about this many times 04:46 about how we need to as church members get off our pews 04:50 and actually engage in the community like Jesus did. 04:53 Now you get to see many examples 04:55 of Adventist community services in action. 04:58 Tell me about what you have seen in Korea? 05:02 Well, that's a-- that is quite a place. 05:05 A couple of years ago, 05:06 I did go to the Seoul Central Church. 05:08 I heard about it that it's doing amazing thing in the community 05:11 but it was wonderful to see at first hand. 05:14 And several years ago the pastor of that church 05:18 got signals from the community that, 05:20 that they could really use a vegetarian restaurant. 05:24 It's basically a Buddhist area, 05:26 across the street has big huge Buddhist temple 05:30 and then next to the church on the other corner 05:32 there is a store for Buddhist religious articles 05:37 and so pastor, the pastor of that church went around 05:42 and started talking to the community 05:43 and just to see to what extent 05:46 they would support this restaurant idea 05:49 that they actually got from the community. 05:52 And he went to the temple across the street 05:54 and they, they said we will love this. 05:58 When our people have lunch breaks they would, 06:01 they would love have a place to come to that 06:03 they feel comfortable eating the food. 06:06 And so they gave part of donation towards it 06:09 and you're running around yet. 06:10 Now, exactly what you are saying 06:11 there is a crucial part of community services 06:14 to actually go into the community 06:16 you find out what they want. 06:17 Yes, and ask and don't just-- Assume. 06:19 Don't just assume 06:20 you know, do ministry by crystal ball 06:24 you know, guessing. Okay. 06:26 This is the best way to take a guess, 06:28 the guess work out of your community service. 06:31 In fact the first successful the step 06:35 I should say, the first step in any venture 06:38 in the community is assessment. Yes. 06:40 Find don't guess what their needs are 06:42 and that's what he did and now he got supported 06:45 and it was not just the church's idea 06:48 and not just the church supporting it 06:49 but the community was involved too. Wonderful. 06:52 It was working with the community 06:54 on something they all agreed on. 06:56 And so to make a long story short, 06:58 the vegetarian restaurant was started 07:01 and you'll see some pictures of it. 07:02 It's a wonderful peace in the community. 07:06 People come there for lunch hour 07:08 and it's been going for several years now. 07:11 And then the-- I heard about 07:14 something else that was going on. 07:15 They did demographics in the area of the church. 07:18 That's another step in the assessment, 07:20 finding out what type of people, 07:22 what's the educational level, what's the ethnic level, 07:24 what are the ages et cetera 07:26 of the people in our communities. 07:29 And they did that and I find out 07:30 there is a large population 07:32 of senior citizens right around the church. 07:36 And so they, they started in response to this real issue. 07:41 They started a specific ministry 07:45 geared towards senior citizens. Perfect. 07:49 And so they have actually two church services. 07:53 Their ministry has grown so large 07:54 that they have two church services. 07:56 One up stairs for the-- 07:57 for everybody else that's consider themselves seniors. 08:03 And then they have another one down stairs 08:06 which is the geared senior citizens 08:08 and they-- I last heard they were 08:11 and there is a picture that you will see 08:12 there's about 300 attending 08:15 the service every week many of them from the community. 08:19 And after church each week, 08:20 they, they take them to the restaurant 08:23 and the part of building 08:24 and some of youth from the church help 08:26 to adopt a senior citizen, 08:28 you know, they help them with their food and their trays 08:30 and help them get up there and so forth. 08:32 And then they have health ministries 08:36 or health services. 08:38 Every week its little different emphasis, 08:40 one week they will give free immunizations 08:42 and other times they will have lectures 08:45 and doctors volunteer their time 08:47 and give them free consultation. 08:49 They give different kinds of treatments. 08:51 They even give free haircuts. Wow. 08:54 And this is an on going thing. 08:56 It's not just and event, 08:57 you know, that happens occasionally. 08:58 It's an on going ministry that they have going 09:03 and twice a year they, 09:06 they believe in the farming part which is what this is 09:09 and they believe in the reaping part. 09:12 The whole cycle and they have-- 09:14 they have a reaping meeting twice a year. 09:18 And the pastor there they have-- 09:20 they have a pastor specifically for the seniors 09:23 another pastor that focuses on the other, other ages. 09:28 And the pastor for the seniors said 09:30 that there's about 90 baptisms a year 09:32 for the whole church. 09:33 And 80 of them come from-- approximately 80 come 09:38 from the senior citizens congregation. 09:42 Amazing, isn't that, just one church. 09:43 Yes, yes and just starting-- 09:47 you know we can't do everything. Of course. 09:49 In any given community 09:50 but the things that we choose to focus on 09:52 may be its one or two things we will know it's relevant, 09:56 that is meaning a real need if we ask the community first. 10:00 And that's what they did 10:02 and they are growing their church from this ministry. 10:06 And so one part of this to find out 10:07 what the need are is and then to find out what gifts 10:10 and skills you have in the church 10:11 to be able to connect. 10:13 Yes, you have--you should assess the church members 10:16 what resources you have to offer and then assist the community 10:21 what they felt needs are. 10:22 And eventually when you meet their felt needs 10:26 you find out-- they find out many of them 10:29 that I have a-- a need I didn't feel 10:32 which is to know Jesus 10:34 and have the abundant life that He offers. 10:37 Yeah, meeting those other needs prepares 10:38 the way for them to come that realization. 10:41 Yeah, now the church members they do-- 10:44 you said there's a mentorship program 10:46 where the, where the young people adopt one of the older. 10:48 Yeah, that's what the pastor was saying, 10:50 that he had some of the young people get involved too 10:54 and its, its so exiting church to be there. 10:57 Oh, yeah, fantastic, 10:59 May-Ellen, thank you so much for sharing with us today. 11:02 That's an exciting story. 11:04 Viewers at home we, we sometimes think about church is being-- 11:07 as being a building as a place 11:10 where we go to meet once a week 11:12 but actually we are called to actually leave the pews 11:15 and actually be salt and light 11:17 as May-Ellen said in the community. 11:19 And I encourage you to find out ways 11:21 that you too can be involved in not just warming up a pew 11:25 but to actually be engage 11:26 connecting with the community like Jesus. 11:38 It is my pleasure and privilege 11:40 to welcome Pastor Jan Paulsen to the program, 11:44 former General Conference president. 11:47 Pastor Paulsen, glad you could join us. 11:48 Thank you, I'm happy we're with you here. 11:50 We are focusing on mission 11:52 and I know that you served as a missionary 11:54 for several years in West Africa. 11:58 I remember you telling a story about 12:00 you there at the time of war. 12:02 There was a lot strife, a lot of conflict 12:06 with in that context did you face any personal danger? 12:11 Well, yes. 12:12 When the battle front gets near to you, 12:14 you're not sheltered from the challenges of a civil war. 12:18 This was the civil war in Nigeria 12:20 known as the Biafran War 12:21 which ravaged the country in the mid 60s 12:26 and we lived in Nigeria then. 12:28 Through that period 12:29 I was during a particular critical year 12:32 when the battle front was very near to the college 12:34 only about 15-20 miles away from the college it self. 12:38 It was a battle between-- 12:41 the opposing forces were mainly the evils 12:44 from the east and forces from the north. 12:48 Not the western Nigerian's the-- 12:51 the Yoruba people of Western Nigeria 12:53 were not really as such engage as much in the war. 12:56 So it was people from the North and the-- 12:59 and the evils in the east. 13:02 We had a number of students who where Igbo's. 13:07 The value of education was so high 13:09 that even though the battle front 13:11 was coming better near to them. 13:13 They may send their families, 13:15 their wife and children back to their country 13:19 but they themselves would stay. 13:21 And I remember one particular incident. 13:24 You know, the college had a bakery 13:25 which delivered made and delivered the best breads 13:28 you could buy in the country to both the Lagos and Ibadan 13:32 and we had two bakery vans 13:34 which would load up every morning. 13:36 Two drivers would go in a different direction. 13:37 The one, who would drive to, to Ibadan was an Igbo driver 13:44 and I can remember one early morning at 5 O'clock 13:47 he came up to my house and he said to me pastor, 13:51 I hear there is much trouble on the road. 13:53 I'm afraid to go by myself can you go with me? 13:56 So, I said yes, I will go with you. 13:59 So we had the van loaded up, 14:01 we put in an extra box of bread 14:05 because we would-- we knew we would 14:07 go through military check points 14:09 and there is a good thing, you know, to have some-- 14:11 to have an extra loaf of bread to give to the soldiers. 14:14 You know, there is lot of religion 14:15 in the loaf of bread and it helped. 14:20 So we did--we went go through the check points, 14:23 the official check points they were at, 14:25 they were always be at certain specific points I knew of. 14:28 Two or three check points before we got into Ibadan. 14:31 Delivered the bread in Ibadan and we are heading back home. 14:34 The van was empty. 14:37 We had heard stories about certain vigilante group 14:41 with people from the north. 14:43 Soldiers from the North 14:45 who would all of a sudden appear on the road, 14:48 stop vehicles and check the ethnicity 14:53 or check the ratio of the occupants of the car. 14:59 And as we were coming on the way home, 15:01 we came around this sort of a slow lazy bend in the road. 15:04 And we saw half a dozen men 15:09 with the automatic weapons stopping every vehicle passing 15:14 and they would just ask-- 15:16 they spoke English very, very poorly 15:18 and they would just ask of the occupant 15:21 which nation meaning which tribe? 15:25 They stopped ours asked which nation, 15:29 they really didn't need to ask for the tribal marks 15:32 of my driver gave it away before we said them. 15:34 They said they knew he was a Igbo 15:38 and they was with they were drunk 15:41 and they could speak very little English 15:44 they were clearly had their 15:46 more than fair share of bomb wine 15:48 and they were waving these automatic weapons around 15:52 and, and pointing it inside through the window into the van. 15:57 And so they said to my driver, come out. 16:01 And I opened the door on my side to come out. 16:03 No, no, they said, no stay. They want me to stay. 16:06 I didn't want my driver to go. 16:08 I knew what would happen to him if they took him out. 16:10 There were too many stories 16:12 about Igbo's who had been plucked out of the cars 16:15 and who's bodies were found by the roadside. 16:18 So, I said to him stay here. 16:21 So, I began to talk to the one I thought was the leader. 16:28 And for the next 15-20 minutes I just talked to him. 16:36 Afterwards even immediately 16:37 after I had no recollection of what I said to him. 16:41 None what so ever, but the others they, 16:47 they lowered their weapons and they came over to the van 16:52 and they stood there quietly listening to us. 16:56 As I said I had no idea what I talked to him about. 17:00 But I felt I knew to talk and may be he will listen to, 17:04 may be something can be said, 17:06 may be I will still get through 17:07 although they understood very little. 17:10 After about 15- 20 minutes he said to my driver. 17:15 I'll let you go but only 17:17 because your master talked so well. 17:20 If there ever was a case of speaking in tongues 17:23 this is it. 17:25 Because I'm absolutely convinced it was the Holy Spirit 17:29 who took the words I was trying to communicate 17:33 about the mission we were involved in. 17:36 And that we were there for the good of the people 17:40 that we had no other agenda accept Christ loved the people 17:44 and serve them 17:46 and I think the Holy Spirit was able to take my feeble effort 17:49 and bring it into the mind 17:51 and understanding of these half-drunk vigilantes. Wow. 17:58 My life of course, you are exposed 18:01 but I was more concerned for my Igbo driver. 18:05 Yeah, Dr. Paulsen, thank you 18:07 so much for sharing that story with us. 18:10 Viewers at home, even today 18:13 missionaries face various types of danger. 18:16 Please continue to remember them in your prayers 18:18 as they labor in various parts of the world 18:21 under difficult challenging and trying circumstances. 18:45 If you had just a roof over your head 18:47 and enough space, you can work 18:50 and the kids can learn. 19:01 I get a great deal of pleasure 19:02 when I see kids who have come from a family 19:05 where no one's ever been to school 19:07 and that they are the first ones to go through the grade six, 19:10 then they are the first ones to finish year twelve 19:13 and then they are the first ones to go to college. 19:17 Adventist Volunteer Services or AVS is an opportunity 19:22 for people to serve in a mission setting globally. 19:25 This can include a huge variety of jobs. 19:30 Helen Hall is an AVS worker, originally from Australia, 19:34 now working in an Adventist school in Asia. 19:37 She runs the school that ranges from grades one to twelve. 19:41 Her dedication and passion to the job 19:43 has allowed hundreds of children to graduate 19:46 and move on to opportunities 19:48 they might never have had otherwise. 19:50 (Speaking in foreign language) 19:58 The mission at this school is for students 20:00 to receive a quality Adventist education, 20:02 both academically and spiritually. 20:05 But most of the students here are not Christians 20:08 making it hard to reach them spiritually. 20:12 It's very difficult for Buddhist to become a Christian. 20:16 And if they do it too quickly 20:18 then it causes big problems in their family 20:22 but if they wait and go little more slowly 20:25 then they can get by. 20:28 Helen's experience has taught her what works 20:30 and what doesn't work in reaching the students. 20:33 She has had quite a bit of success 20:34 in teaching her students about Jesus. 20:39 Well, in a normal day 20:41 we try to get everybody worship by 8:30 or 8:20 20:45 and then we just go through the classes. 20:54 We've got a lot of teachers here 20:56 who when they came to us the students, 20:58 none of them were from Christian homes. 21:02 And they are wonderful workers now. 21:06 After students graduate 21:08 they will usually go on to university. 21:10 After university graduation 21:12 some students agreed to come back to the school 21:15 and work a certain number of years. 21:17 This is how Helen is guaranteed workers 21:19 to keep the school running. 21:32 She teaches right along with the other teachers. 21:35 Students pay close attentions to the valuable lesson 21:37 she gives in a variety of topics including sciences, 21:41 English, math and the Bible. 21:59 Attu is a graduate from Helen's school. 22:02 He now works in villages telling people about Jesus. 22:05 Attu has helped start multiple churches in these villages. 22:09 The villagers love hearing stories from the Bible. 22:12 Most of them are hearing the name of Jesus 22:15 for the first time. 22:26 Attu knows that God has blessed him 22:28 with the opportunity to do this. 22:30 He gained a strong grasp on the Bible 22:32 while at Helen's school 22:33 and is now passing on his knowledge to others. 22:36 He is just one of many graduates 22:38 using what they have learned in school for God's glory. 22:48 Despite all the success from this school, 22:50 the challenges are big. 22:52 In addition to religious barriers, 22:54 things such as financial resources, 22:57 shortage of education materials 22:58 and even lack of space are constant challenges. 23:02 But when these challenges surface, 23:04 Helen looks to someone she knows 23:05 can pull through the situation. 23:08 When you get this, this courage the Lord sends us 23:11 some blessing or something 23:12 and then you know that He's still with us. 23:15 No man has got wisdom enough to know what to do. 23:19 Only God can know 23:20 and God is just how we should go. 23:24 As you can see the work of an AVS worker 23:27 has the power to change lives. 23:30 They can teach people about Jesus 23:32 and set them on the right path. 23:35 Helen is just one of many AVS workers 23:37 around the world facing the challenge of mission daily. 23:41 Please pray for these workers. 23:44 And thank you for supporting the mission 23:46 of the Seventh-day Adventist church. 24:01 Well that's about it for today's program 24:04 but before we go, 24:05 we have a free gift 24:06 for our supporters in North America. 24:08 It's an Adventist mission tote bag. 24:10 If you like one of these bags 24:12 simply call our toll free number 1-800-648-5824 24:17 or visit our website at adveististmission.org 24:20 and ask for the Adventist mission tote bag 24:23 or offer number 306. 24:26 Please remember to clearly state name and address 24:29 and be sure to mention the tote bag or offer 306. 24:35 Well, thank you for joining us today. 24:36 I hope you have been blessed 24:37 by the stories of frontline mission 24:40 and thank you for your continuing support 24:42 of Global Mission through prayer 24:44 personal involvement and finances. 24:47 As we close we leave you with this music video. 24:50 For Adventist mission I'm Gary Krause 24:52 and I hope you can join me next time 24:54 right here on Global Mission Snapshots. 25:08 [singing in Foreign language.] |
Revised 2014-12-17