Hello, I'm Shelley
Quinn and welcome again to
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Issues and Answers.
Today's issue, we're going to
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be talking about a great need
in India and about a woman who
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turned pumpkins into churches
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in India. Now that's a story.
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She reminds me actually of the
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Proverbs 31 wife. Let me read
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you just a little bit about
her. In Proverbs 31:10 it says:
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a capable, intelligent and
virtuous woman; who is he who
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can find her? Men if you've
found her hold onto her. She is
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far more precious than jewels
and her value is far above
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rubies or pearls. Then it says
in verse 20: She opens her hand
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to the poor. Yes she reaches out
her filled hands to the needy.
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And verse 31 says: Give her of
the fruit of her hands and let
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her own works
praise her in the gates.
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We're going to be telling you
her story and unfortunately she
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is not here with us today but
we've got someone very special
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returning to visit with
us and that is Jeff Wilson.
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Jeff, thank you so much for
returning again. Now you've been
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here several times and
we're very thrilled. You are the
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director for the planned
giving and trust services of the
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General Conference of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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That's right. I got that
all out didn't I? Praise God.
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And we also have with us
Rita Westfall. Rita you and your
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husband Leonard...
It's wonderful to be here.
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Oh we're glad you're here
and you and your husband Leonard
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work with the trust department
for 3ABN and do a great work.
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We are going to be talking about
something very important but for
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those people who haven't caught
some of the earlier shows that
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we've taped to together, Jeff
why don't you kind of just tell
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us how did you become interested
in trust services? Going from
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being a pastor and a youth
director, how did you make that
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segue, the
transition, into trust services?
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Well it's something that's
always been of interest to me
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is some of these major decisions
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that people make in their lives
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that can carry far beyond their
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lifetime. And I've been impacted
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by some people who were involved
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in trust services through the
years who blessed my wife and I
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as a young pastor in helping us
through this kind of scary area
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in our lives. When our children
were young and we needed help
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on how to choose guardians and
all those kinds of issues and
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they've just helped us all along
the line and I thought you know
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when I get older I'd like to do
that too. The Lord sort of got
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me into it before I was older.
I'm older now; when I started I
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wasn't so old. Well
then Rita, how did you make
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the transition to
come to work with Leonard?
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Well, that was a kind of an
unusual situation. I used to be
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teaching, I loved teaching, I
loved my job and I never thought
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of being part of the 3ABN trust
services. I could see myself
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working for 3ABN in translating,
in speaking and doing this or
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doing that, but not trust
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services because I had this idea
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that it was all an area that I
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wasn't really into. Well once
I started accompanying Leonard
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here and there I realized that
it was a fascinating thing and
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a very important ministry and I
got very, very interested in it.
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It's very much a
teaching ministry, isn't it?
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It is. I am still teaching the
principles of good stewardship.
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I have become more like the
telephone person and the person
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who kind of oversees in general
what is going on and I keep in
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touch with the people. So I have
been very blessed. Very, very
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blessed. We've been
very blessed to have
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both of you and I know Leonard
is excited that you're working
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alongside him. Yes,
it's very wonderful because
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like Leonard used to tell me
I talk with the best people in
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the world. They are the best.
Now I tell him, yes, you are
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right. We really talk with the
wonderful Christian people who
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really want to make a
difference in the Lord's work.
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Well we're going to be talking
today about someone who's not
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necessarily using trust services
but a precious soul that I met
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and interviewed and we're going
to be talking about how the Lord
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has actually led her to make
a difference in India. But first
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Jeff, why don't you tell
us a little bit about the
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demographics of India and
what kind of issues that we are
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facing there.
India is a very, very
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interesting place. It's as
opposite of the west in many
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ways as anyone could ever
imagine. It's a country that's
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geographically about one-fourth
the size of the United States.
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And yet more than four
times as many people live there;
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more than one billion people,
one billion with a B live in
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India. So wherever you go we
work in evangelism in the small
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villages out in the country,
but there are people everywhere.
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For decades and decades our
dedicated missionaries worked
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very, very hard in India
and found almost no results.
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Then the last decade or so the
work there has just virtually
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exploded; it's just amazing
what is happening in evangelism.
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We got caught up in it about
seven years ago. We were trying
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to get trust services going
in that country and we were
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training our local workers
and our relationship with Cheryl
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Erickson, the pumpkin lady,
who you've interviewed on this
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program. She, by God's grace,
sent us some money to build
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a few churches and we built
those churches and we dedicated
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those churches and then we got
involved in what they call ten
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village evangelism where we
have native workers, pastors and
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Bible workers who go from
village to village much like
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evangelism was in Jesus'
day. They knock on doors and ask
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people if they would like
to study the Bible and if they
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wouldn't, they move to another
village. But more often than not
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the people say yes we'd like to
learn about the Bible. So they
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say do you have a place we
can stay and the people are very
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hospitable. They will provide
them a bed and food and they
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will study the Bible with the
people. Then after about a month
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or a month-and-a-half of that
we come, generally in the fall
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of the year in November, pitch
a tent out in an open field and
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have a little power plant
to power little lights and a
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generator for a projector
and we do 15 nights of meetings.
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We use Mark Finley's New
Beginnings series. We put a
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sheet between two poles
and show a picture up there.
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It's in their native tongue and
as many people as we can bring
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come. We hire trucks and
tractors pulling trailers and
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they bring the people because
the people have no other means
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of transportation. We'll have
anywhere from 600 to a couple
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thousand people there every
night, many children are there
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and we have baptisms every
day of the week through all that
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time. In our little meetings we
will have anywhere from 800 to
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a couple of thousand new 7th Day
Adventists. What we end up doing
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is establishing a 7th Day
Adventist church in that village
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Now that village many times
had no religion before at all or
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just a heathen religion. In some
villages we were in last year
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there was the hammer and sickle.
Actually communism had been the
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religion in those villages.
So what we make a commitment to
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do is to build a church for
those folk because they could
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never in their lifetime afford
to build a church. Most of them
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earn; they work out in the
fields in the fields, in the
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cotton fields and the pepper
fields and the rice paddies.
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They make about 40 cents a day
for working from sun up to sun
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down. So for about $3500,
some of them are $5000, we build
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churches for them and the next
year we come back and dedicate
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those churches. Well the pumpkin
lady, and that was her own name
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for herself, her name is Cheryl
Erickson, she's a farmer's wife
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up in North Dakota and we've
worked together for seven years
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now and I just met her this
past summer at camp meeting,
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interestingly enough.
John Turk, the trust services
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director in her conference came
to preach one Sabbath and told
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about our India church projects.
She has been wanting to do
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something in missions and she
said that's my project. So she
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wrote to me and she said I have
some money to build two churches
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in India. Well that was a
miracle to me because I knew
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they needed churches, they need
thousands of churches, and the
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Lord had laid the burden on
my heart and I said where can we
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find this. So for the last seven
years she's raised enough money
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with her pumpkins to build two
or three churches and God has
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sent us money from other places
because every year we've built
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at least 10 and sometimes 11 or
12 churches a year. Now I know
00:10:08.38\00:10:12.11
some who do 50 and 100;
ours is just a little project.
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When I interviewed Cheryl
Erickson. Rita, she was such a
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precious woman. The scripture
that comes to my mind is
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Isaiah 48:17 where the Lord
said I am the Lord your God who
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teaches you to profit, who leads
you in the way you should go.
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Because after she heard this
story she was praying and asking
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God what can I do. You know
I'm just a farmer's wife and she
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went out and asked her husband..
God impressed her to take that
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acre and dedicate it to him.
Do you remember the story of the
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miracle of that acre?
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Well there are at least seven
miracles that she counts up.
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One was that first year there
was a drought and there was no
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rain and she was out pacing
in the field, Lord, my pumpkins
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could sure use a drink of water.
And she said the Lord said to
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her, Cheryl, if I can make
pumpkins out of nothing, I can
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make them with no water. That
year she had a beautiful bumper
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crop of pumpkins. She was able
to sell every one of them when
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everyone else couldn't. She went
to the grocery store chain in
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town to sell pumpkins. Well she
found out of course they already
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had a contract with another
farmer. But the produce manager
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said, Well I haven't heard from
him for a while. Let me get him
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on the phone. Well he called
the man and the farmer said I've
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been meaning to call you because
none of my pumpkins came up this
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year. I have none. So that was
several thousand pumpkins she
00:11:45.53\00:11:49.25
was able to sell there. The bank
bought 235 pumpkins because they
00:11:49.28\00:11:54.66
were such perfectly formed
pumpkins that they were lovely
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for decoration in the bank
branches. But then she said she
00:11:58.76\00:12:02.44
got to her lowest point because
she still had thousands of
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pumpkins to sell; the Lord
had given her such an abundant
00:12:06.18\00:12:09.28
harvest and she didn't know
where to sell them and the phone
00:12:09.31\00:12:13.66
rang and here was a farmer's
market in Fargo, North Dakota,
00:12:13.70\00:12:17.20
a person she didn't now, she
didn't even know how they got
00:12:17.24\00:12:20.48
her phone number. He said, you
know, do you have pumpkins to
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sell and she said, do I have
pumpkins. He said, I'll take
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every one you have. She hung up
the phone and she said she was
00:12:26.68\00:12:31.31
like the paralytic who was
healed. She was dancing around
00:12:31.35\00:12:34.11
and praising God.
What a wonderful story.
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You know, this just shows when
you dedicate... The Bible says
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commit your way to the Lord and
commit your plans to the Lord
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and he'll cause them to
succeed and that's what she did.
00:12:46.94\00:12:49.73
And this great work, this great
need in India... When you said,
00:12:49.76\00:12:54.17
it just really struck me,
that up to 10 years about there
00:12:54.21\00:12:58.33
really much that we were able
to do and the explosive growth
00:12:58.37\00:13:03.25
of the last 10 years. Every
major religion is represented in
00:13:03.29\00:13:08.98
India. Christianity is still
something that many have never
00:13:09.02\00:13:13.65
heard the story of Christ
and when they hear they are so
00:13:13.68\00:13:18.25
hungry because many of the poor
people have been locked out of
00:13:18.28\00:13:21.96
their temples and their God
is not an approachable God, he's
00:13:21.99\00:13:26.07
not a God of love. And I
know that between the Nolans and
00:13:26.10\00:13:30.11
Merlyn Farley and the work that
they're doing, Maranatha and the
00:13:30.14\00:13:35.08
work that they're doing, it just
reminds me of Matthew 24:14.
00:13:35.11\00:13:40.10
God is saying... He promised
take this gospel into all the
00:13:40.11\00:13:44.70
ends of the earth and then the
end shall come. It just shows
00:13:44.71\00:13:47.84
us that we're
getting closer to the end.
00:13:47.87\00:13:49.71
It's really a wonderful time
to be involved in evangelism in
00:13:49.75\00:13:55.84
India and I would encourage
anyone who wants to have a
00:13:55.88\00:13:59.82
life-changing experience to
contact one of these groups.
00:13:59.85\00:14:03.73
There's work for everyone to do.
My daughter often goes with me
00:14:03.76\00:14:08.35
and she tells the Bible story
but she'll sit with the children
00:14:08.38\00:14:12.27
in the front and visits with the
women and the children in the
00:14:12.30\00:14:16.15
villages and just has a
wonderful time. But if we go,
00:14:16.19\00:14:21.06
they will come and they will
listen and village after village
00:14:21.09\00:14:25.76
will become 7th Day Adventist
Christians. It's thrilling. More
00:14:25.80\00:14:30.43
than 100,000 people are
being baptized a year right now.
00:14:30.47\00:14:34.59
It has just passed a million
7th Day Adventists, I think, in
00:14:34.63\00:14:38.72
India. And again, it took
decades to just get 10,000
00:14:38.75\00:14:43.03
members. You
know, 3ABN is on there.
00:14:43.06\00:14:45.40
I remember when we were at the
General Conference. You know you
00:14:45.43\00:14:48.50
work for an international
ministry. You know it here
00:14:48.53\00:14:54.78
I knew it in my heart at the
General Conference when a little
00:14:54.81\00:14:58.59
lady came running down the aisle
and she was from India and she
00:14:58.63\00:15:02.37
was going Oh Shelley
Quinn, Shelley Quinn, you know.
00:15:02.41\00:15:04.97
And Merlyn Farley, we'd been
talking with the Farleys and
00:15:05.01\00:15:09.12
you know they're very connected
with Gospel Outreach and they
00:15:09.15\00:15:12.68
have invited us to go with
them and I think possibly we're
00:15:12.71\00:15:16.17
trying to arrange this hopefully
for the first part of the year
00:15:16.20\00:15:19.54
that J.D. and I and maybe some
others from 3ABN... Rita Do you
00:15:19.58\00:15:22.88
and Leonard want to go
over and do some campaigns?
00:15:22.92\00:15:25.29
I might. India is very dear to
my heart. If there is a country
00:15:25.33\00:15:30.82
that tugs at my heart,
it's India. I love the little
00:15:30.86\00:15:34.49
children. The people are so
beautiful. They seem to be so
00:15:34.52\00:15:38.63
genuine, they seem to be so
needy and willing too. They are
00:15:38.66\00:15:44.19
grasping to be accepted, to
be connected to God. It's just
00:15:44.23\00:15:49.73
amazing. It's very, very
touching for me the way they
00:15:49.76\00:15:54.27
respond. They're a
very loving people. Yes.
00:15:54.31\00:15:56.25
They have deep concerns for
their children. The elders will
00:15:56.28\00:16:00.37
come up and ask if we can
provide a school, a Christian
00:16:00.40\00:16:04.42
school, for their children. They
need pastoral care and that's a
00:16:04.45\00:16:09.55
major challenge. We try to
raise money; by God's grace
00:16:09.59\00:16:14.62
we've gotten enough this year
to buy a couple of motorcycles
00:16:14.65\00:16:19.06
for some of the area pastors.
They have 25-35 churches that
00:16:19.09\00:16:23.21
they have responsibility
for and never in their lifetime
00:16:23.25\00:16:27.30
could they afford an automobile.
There's a government bus once in
00:16:27.33\00:16:31.23
a while but it may not be going
to the village when they need to
00:16:31.27\00:16:34.67
go to conduct a funeral or have
a prayer meeting or something.
00:16:34.70\00:16:38.90
So for about $1200 we can get
the best Indian-made motorcycle
00:16:38.93\00:16:43.09
and a helmet and some side
containers so they can carry
00:16:43.13\00:16:48.13
their Bible and their Bible
lessons and provide some wheels
00:16:48.16\00:16:53.10
for some of our pastors and they
are so grateful to have a means
00:16:53.13\00:16:57.94
of transportation.
What is a pastor's salary in
00:16:57.98\00:17:02.18
India or a Bible
Worker's salary in India?
00:17:02.22\00:17:05.40
It's about $300 or $400.
00:17:05.43\00:17:08.76
So for every $300 or $400 a
month that we can contribute
00:17:08.79\00:17:15.36
you can have someone
who's working full time?
00:17:15.40\00:17:18.06
Yes. One thing that we also
do of course, I think most of
00:17:18.10\00:17:22.17
the groups do is provide Bibles
for the new converts. They're
00:17:22.20\00:17:25.89
from the Indian Bible Society;
they're in Telugu, their native
00:17:25.93\00:17:30.38
language. When they come up out
of the watery grave of baptism
00:17:30.41\00:17:35.57
we give them a Bible and they
just hug those Bibles they are
00:17:35.61\00:17:40.08
so precious to them. Well many
of the adults are illiterate so
00:17:40.11\00:17:44.27
someone says why give them a
Bible if they're illiterate? The
00:17:44.30\00:17:48.10
answer is the children are not
and the children will teach the
00:17:48.13\00:17:52.78
parents to read and the only
book in the home will be a Bible
00:17:52.82\00:17:57.43
Every night at the meetings
we'll see people come with
00:17:57.46\00:18:01.82
Bibles and especially the
children will turn to the texts
00:18:01.85\00:18:05.85
that we're referring to and
it's such a joy to see that.
00:18:05.88\00:18:09.81
These Bibles cost a little less
that $2 U.S. each and they're
00:18:09.84\00:18:15.67
just in a little plastic sleeve
like we would toss away but the
00:18:15.70\00:18:20.38
people will very carefully slip
that sleeve so they can slip
00:18:20.41\00:18:25.06
their Bible back into it
to keep it fresh and new.
00:18:25.09\00:18:28.68
That's something that they
treasure it quite... It reminds
00:18:28.72\00:18:32.80
me of Jeremiah 15:16: Your words
were found and I ate them and
00:18:32.83\00:18:36.88
they were to me the joy
and rejoicing of my heart.
00:18:36.92\00:18:39.64
Oh that we would treat out
Bibles more like that. Now this
00:18:39.67\00:18:44.84
10-village campaign, how long
is this? Tell us a little more
00:18:44.88\00:18:50.01
about that. It goes
on for 15 nights and
00:18:50.05\00:18:55.85
during the daytime we
are visiting in the villages.
00:18:55.88\00:18:58.30
We spend probably anywhere from
six to eight hours a day on the
00:18:58.34\00:19:04.95
road. The roads
are pretty rough over
00:19:04.98\00:19:08.65
there I understand.
Traveling on the roads in India
00:19:08.68\00:19:11.51
is different than other parts
of the world. It's an adventure.
00:19:11.55\00:19:16.65
It's a roller coaster ride.
There are times when we've spent
00:19:16.69\00:19:21.20
12 hours a day on the road and
probably about every minute you
00:19:21.23\00:19:25.71
say this is my
last moment on earth.
00:19:25.75\00:19:29.18
Is that because of the condition
of the roads or the way they
00:19:29.21\00:19:33.55
drive? It's everything.
Everything, all of the above.
00:19:33.59\00:19:36.48
It's everything. The roads
generally are not in very good
00:19:36.51\00:19:39.97
condition. They are building
some new roads, World Bank has
00:19:40.01\00:19:43.40
provided the funds; nice double-
lane roads with an island in the
00:19:43.43\00:19:48.85
middle. But if the people want
to go the other way and it's
00:19:48.88\00:19:52.13
more convenient to go the wrong
way, they will do so. If there's
00:19:52.16\00:19:56.19
a chug hole on their side of the
road, they will whip over to the
00:19:56.22\00:20:00.21
other side of the road and
the oncoming traffic will move.
00:20:00.25\00:20:04.98
The road is the habitat of every
living thing and some things
00:20:05.02\00:20:11.11
that aren't alive. People will
dry their grain on the road.
00:20:11.14\00:20:15.72
People will sleep on the road
even at night. Animals will be
00:20:15.76\00:20:20.01
asleep on the road. If your
vehicle breaks down, you don't
00:20:20.04\00:20:23.30
pull it to the side of the road,
you leave it in the middle of
00:20:23.33\00:20:27.31
the road. At night most of the
trucks have no tail lights that
00:20:27.34\00:20:31.54
work and sometimes their head
lights don't work and when they
00:20:31.58\00:20:35.72
do work it's worse because
for whatever reason when they're
00:20:35.76\00:20:39.39
overtaking and passing they
throw their beams up on high
00:20:39.42\00:20:43.56
beam and with all the dust
on the wind shield at least I'm
00:20:43.60\00:20:47.22
blinded. I'm hoping that
the driver can see something.
00:20:47.25\00:20:50.80
Then there are ox carts on the
road. There are people driving
00:20:50.84\00:20:54.57
sheep and goats on the road.
There are bicycles on the road.
00:20:54.60\00:20:58.70
There are people walking on
the road. There are a few cars.
00:20:58.73\00:21:02.77
In a day's driving we might
see five or six automobiles, a
00:21:02.80\00:21:06.50
typical automobile like we are
familiar with here. There are
00:21:06.53\00:21:10.68
lots of buses and that's how
most people travel and lots of
00:21:10.72\00:21:15.68
trucks. Sort of the rule is, the
big guy has the right of way.
00:21:15.72\00:21:19.91
So the trucks and the buses,
they go very fast and when they
00:21:19.95\00:21:23.55
want to pass it doesn't matter
that cars or motorcycles are
00:21:23.59\00:21:26.80
coming the other way. They will
whip over in that lane and the
00:21:26.83\00:21:30.25
people get out of the way if
they can. So as I say I've many
00:21:30.29\00:21:33.35
times come right up to a car
and then he'll just pull back
00:21:33.38\00:21:36.71
in at the last moment and you
think, Lord I don't know, this
00:21:36.75\00:21:40.05
may be it for me. Well
it's something that we see
00:21:40.08\00:21:45.31
we see the great need there.
How can people become involved
00:21:46.31\00:21:49.18
other than maybe contacting
Maranatha or Gospel Outreach and
00:21:49.22\00:21:52.98
going over to do a campaign?
How can people become involved
00:21:53.01\00:21:56.99
as Cheryl did? What would they
do if they want to help fund
00:21:57.02\00:22:00.96
something like
this? Well, there are many
00:22:01.00\00:22:03.14
organizations like you said,
the ones that you mentioned,
00:22:03.17\00:22:06.46
ASI and if they're interested
in helping us with our little
00:22:06.49\00:22:09.63
projects they can send money
to our attention at the General
00:22:09.67\00:22:12.34
Conference. I've had little
children in Sabbath School give
00:22:12.38\00:22:16.11
me $2 and say I want one Bible
for one little child in India
00:22:16.15\00:22:19.92
and that's been very precious
to me. I've just shown a picture
00:22:19.96\00:22:23.12
in Sabbath School of some of the
motorcycles. I had these people
00:22:23.15\00:22:26.06
come up to me and they said,
we're motorcyclists. And I said,
00:22:26.09\00:22:29.12
I would have never guessed
that. We want to help you with a
00:22:29.15\00:22:32.09
motorcycle. I was in a
church one day showing about the
00:22:32.12\00:22:34.99
motorcycles and they said do you
get helmets for those pastors?
00:22:35.03\00:22:38.70
I said, I never thought of that.
They need helmet, absolutely.
00:22:38.73\00:22:42.00
So they said we'll give you
money for helmets. So we found
00:22:42.04\00:22:45.38
the best helmets in India,
we went and found the very best
00:22:45.42\00:22:48.69
ones. They cost about $20 U.S.,
with the hood, because you know
00:22:48.73\00:22:52.28
there's lots of rocks that can
be thrown up and a person could
00:22:52.32\00:22:55.84
be blinded or killed very
easily. As I say, at churches
00:22:55.87\00:22:59.70
a lot of people when they find
out you can build a church for
00:22:59.74\00:23:05.76
$3500 or a larger church for
$5000, I've had a lot of people
00:23:05.80\00:23:10.48
say I'll write you a check
to build a church. These are
00:23:10.52\00:23:15.99
concrete and steel buildings.
They are the nicest building
00:23:16.03\00:23:20.24
in the village. Most of
the villagers live in mud huts.
00:23:20.28\00:23:25.31
In fact, to walk in a village
there I'm often taken aback.
00:23:25.34\00:23:29.88
I've said, I'm walking in the
footprints of Jesus. The only
00:23:29.92\00:23:34.71
thing that's different from the
time of Jesus is that there is
00:23:34.74\00:23:39.09
in the village a well with a
pump handle on it. That's where
00:23:39.12\00:23:42.82
they get their water and it's
made out of stainless steel;
00:23:42.85\00:23:45.55
the government's done that so
you wouldn't have seen that in
00:23:45.59\00:23:49.38
Jesus' day. Occasionally there
will be one electric line to one
00:23:49.42\00:23:53.82
little electric bulb in a home
and I have seen a few television
00:23:53.86\00:23:58.23
sets  so that's where they're
getting 3ABN but not every
00:23:58.27\00:24:01.03
village. But if one person has
a television, the whole village
00:24:01.06\00:24:05.24
would come together for
it. Usually the villagers will
00:24:05.28\00:24:09.51
often give us the land for the
church and they will give us the
00:24:09.54\00:24:14.40
nicest, most prominent spot in
the village. That's where they
00:24:14.44\00:24:19.90
want the church. They want
the best piece for God. When we
00:24:19.93\00:24:25.32
have the dedication, there will
be a call for gifts and one will
00:24:25.35\00:24:31.85
say I will give a clock, I
will give a chair, I will give a
00:24:31.88\00:24:36.13
table. Most of the people sit
on the floor but they take grain
00:24:36.17\00:24:39.75
sacks and sew them together and
they will bring some of those to
00:24:39.78\00:24:43.33
lay on the floor and the
children are first and then the
00:24:43.36\00:24:46.34
adults are second. Someone
will say I will give an offering
00:24:46.37\00:24:50.42
plate. It's interesting; I have
some pictures of offerings in
00:24:50.46\00:24:53.49
India. It's very interesting
because people will bring in
00:24:53.53\00:24:56.50
kind gifts. They'll bring their
tithe and offerings and it will
00:24:56.53\00:25:00.89
be a little pot of rice or some
eggs or some other kinds of food
00:25:00.92\00:25:04.97
and that is because they don't
have much money, this is their
00:25:05.00\00:25:09.05
money. I said, how do you deal
with that. They said well after
00:25:09.09\00:25:13.10
sundown on Saturday night
sometimes the pastor who has
00:25:13.14\00:25:16.62
some income from the conference
will buy that or they do an
00:25:16.66\00:25:20.96
auction and they sometimes we
get more than face value for the
00:25:20.99\00:25:25.26
rice and the eggs to turn
it into cash to send to region
00:25:25.29\00:25:30.82
to the mission office.
00:25:30.85\00:25:32.29
You know one thing, I was
00:25:32.33\00:25:33.70
talking with Merlyn Farley one
00:25:33.74\00:25:35.84
day and, Rita, I asked him
00:25:35.87\00:25:37.91
specifically... They had so many
baptisms. I mean the numbers
00:25:37.94\00:25:41.56
from these campaigns were
so astronomical and I said, but
00:25:41.60\00:25:45.43
when you go back are these
people staying in the church?
00:25:45.47\00:25:49.05
He said, not only are they
staying but by the time they
00:25:49.08\00:25:52.75
go back there's no attrition.
The churches are actually
00:25:52.79\00:25:57.20
growing because these people
are hungry and they really do
00:25:57.23\00:26:00.64
accept the Lord and they
go out and share their faith.
00:26:00.68\00:26:04.01
I was impressed when I read that
that they really remain faithful
00:26:04.05\00:26:10.05
We go back one year later to
dedicate the church. When I do
00:26:10.08\00:26:13.49
a 10-village campaign this
year, I will go back to the 10
00:26:13.53\00:26:16.91
villages from last year
and dedicate those churches.
00:26:16.94\00:26:19.76
In every case there's 40 or 50
or 60 or 100 more people in the
00:26:19.79\00:26:25.21
church from last year. There's
a loud speaker on the outside of
00:26:25.24\00:26:29.69
the church so if you don't come
to church, church comes to you.
00:26:29.73\00:26:34.15
Everyone will hear the service
and many times the village
00:26:34.18\00:26:39.81
leader, the village elder, will
be the first one to be baptized.
00:26:39.84\00:26:43.67
He says, I want to set an
example for my people and in
00:26:43.70\00:26:47.02
those cases we know that in time
the whole village will be 7th
00:26:47.06\00:26:50.14
Day Adventist Christians.
And to think that someone like
00:26:50.18\00:26:55.45
a North Dakota farmer's
wife, Cheryl Erickson, could be
00:26:55.49\00:27:00.70
sponsoring these churches. You
know, we can do these types of
00:27:00.73\00:27:04.56
things too if we'll just ask
the Lord to lead us and show us
00:27:04.59\00:27:08.27
what to do. Well, again, our
time has gone by too quickly.
00:27:08.31\00:27:11.95
Thank you for sharing
your experiences with us.
00:27:11.99\00:27:14.56
I'm so glad we had the chance
to discuss this matter. I wish
00:27:14.60\00:27:17.66
more young people
would get involved.
00:27:17.70\00:27:19.57
Oh Amen. It doesn't have to
be young people. There's no age
00:27:19.61\00:27:25.62
limit. They've going over
that are 87 years old that are
00:27:25.65\00:27:31.59
actually doing campaigns too. So
if you're looking for something
00:27:31.62\00:27:35.17
to do for the Lord, pray about
this and ask God if he might
00:27:35.20\00:27:38.71
send you or at least in Cheryl's
case she couldn't go so she sent
00:27:38.74\00:27:42.67
the money and she's doing a
great work. May the grace of our
00:27:42.70\00:27:46.04
Lord Jesus Christ, the love of
the Father and the fellowship of
00:27:46.08\00:27:49.38
the Holy Spirit be with
you today and every day.
00:27:49.42\00:27:52.35
Thank you for joining us.
00:27:52.38\00:27:59.95