Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn
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and welcome again to
"Issues and Answers."
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We're so glad that
you could join us today.
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And today we are going to
be focusing on women's issues.
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Particularly,
we want you to know
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that whatever pain
you may be going through,
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you're not alone.
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We all go through
the same types of things.
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And we want to show you
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how you can allow God
to comfort you in that time
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and turn around and
share that comfort with others
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the comfort
that He has given you
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because God has a
ministry for every woman.
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Let me read to you something
that Paul wrote in Titus 2:3-5.
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He is counseling the women here,
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the older women, the
women that are more mature
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and He says
that-- he's telling them,
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"Go out and give good counsel,
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be teachers of
what is right and noble.
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So that they will wisely,
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these older
women will wisely train
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the young women to be
sane and sober of mind
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and to love their
husbands and their children."
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And, you know, this
is what God wants to do.
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He trains us up,
so we can turn around
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and train others up.
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We're so thrilled today
to have Heather Dawn Small,
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who is the Director
of Women's Ministries
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for the General Conference
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of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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And she has joined us here.
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We're gonna be talking about
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"A Ministry for Every
Woman" touch and tale.
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Heather, thank you
so much for coming back.
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You're welcome. Thank you.
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It's always a
joy to have you here.
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And today, we've got
so much to talk about.
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I'd like to just
hop right into it.
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And let's talk about the issues
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you traveled as
Director of Women's Ministries.
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For the last few years,
you've been traveling the globe.
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What are the main issues
that women are dealing with
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around the world?
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We have
identified six main issues
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that all women face
whether they're first world,
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third world or in between,
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all women face these
issues at some point in time.
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The six issues are
and there's a slide
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which is gonna come up. Okay.
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Threats to health.
A women's work load.
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Then we have poverty.
Lack of training and mentoring.
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Abuse and illiteracy.
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And all these are challenges
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which women
across the globe face.
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Because these
challenges are common to all,
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I want to make sure
that everyone understands.
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So let's just
take a few moments.
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You brought some
more slides with you
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and let's
discuss these in detail.
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Okay, so let's go to
the-- to the next slide,
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Threats to Health.
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And on this slide,
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we're dealing
with women's health,
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which includes emotional,
social and physical well-being.
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The quality of a woman's health
directly impacts on her life
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and her well-being and
also her family and society.
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Now, are the
threats to health different
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as you go from
country to country,
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I mean that's a
general category,
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but obviously there is probably
some more serious threats--
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Oh, they are so
many that are the same.
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Women across the world
are dealing with HIV AIDS,
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diabetes, high blood
pressure, heart problems.
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Those are the
main things, cancer.
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I think those are the top five
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which women face
across the globe.
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So there is no
differentiation there,
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and then you have a
multitude of other things.
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My goodness.
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And, you know, it is
true that if we are--
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I tell people that when
we are physically depressed
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when we're--or there's a
problem going on in our body,
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eventually if that
doesn't correct itself
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or it's corrected quickly
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then we become mentally
depressed. That's right.
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And when we are both physically
and mentally depressed,
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we become spiritually depressed.
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That's right.
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Even those of us who have a
very close walk with the Lord.
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You can't suffer these things
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too long before they begin
to affect your spiritual life.
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That's very
true. That's very true.
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The second one is
a women's workload.
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And on this
slide, you see it says,
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"Women around the
world and in all cultures
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face the problem
of work overloaded."
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Now that is everywhere,
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whether it's a
first world problem
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or third world problem.
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It may be-- it may
come in different shape
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and forms and sizes,
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but generally speaking
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women around the
world are worked to death.
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We do too many things.
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We've got the
family to see about.
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We've got work
to go and see about.
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We've got extended
family members to see about.
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We've got church
work to see about.
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We've got friends.
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I mean, it's just a long list
of all the things which we do,
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and the truth is it's too much.
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So it's same from
culture to culture?
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Same things everywhere.
These things land on the women.
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That's right. That's
right. That's interesting.
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Now the third point is poverty.
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And statistics tells us
that, 80% of the world's
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24 million refugees are women.
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And 70% of the
world's poor are women
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and this affects
the children also. Amen.
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So poverty is something
that we find everywhere.
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And it's interesting
that even in the United States
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there is a poverty problem.
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There are people here who
do not have anything to eat
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and don't know where
their next meal is coming from.
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And I'm not just
talking about the person
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who is homeless on the streets,
but there are communities
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where people are
really impoverished.
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But it happens everywhere.
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It's not just the
third world problem,
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it's an everywhere
problem. That's amazing.
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We don't think about that
so much in the United States
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other than maybe
what we see on the news.
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And then we go on to lack
of training and mentoring.
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And you read that text at
the beginning Titus 2:3-5,
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where Paul said to the
women, "Those who are older,
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you need to
train the younger ones.
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Education for all-- for
all is a basic human right.
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For women to
achieve better health,
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nutrition, and
quality of life for themselves
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and their families they
need equal access to education."
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And I want to throw
in a little example here.
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I was in a
particular country recently
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and I noticed something
that really shook me inside.
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I saw all these young women
standing by the side of the road
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with their little children
and they were young women,
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they look like if
they were in their teens,
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a few may have
been in their early 20s,
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but they had their
little children by their sides
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and they stood up with all
these baskets of food on foot
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selling by the side of the road.
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And I asked the
person who was with me,
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"Why do all these women,
I mean these long lines."
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From village to
village we saw this.
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And they said
because in the culture
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of that particular area,
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the man may have
six or seven wives,
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but the wife has to maintain
herself and her children.
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So when she marries the man,
he gives her a piece of land,
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she has to plant it,
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she has to go and
sell the fruit from it
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and with it she
has to maintain herself
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and her children as well
as cook for him once per week
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if she is wife number
six or wife number five
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and he has six or seven wives.
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So that it keeps
going around like that.
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And so these poor
girls find themselves
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from the time
they're very young,
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married off to some man,
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who's already got so many wives.
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And I thought the only thing
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that could break
that cycle is education.
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Because these
young girls have no idea
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what life could hold for
them beyond getting married
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and planting a field?
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Unless they are
educated to see beyond that,
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that I can be
something more then
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that's all they
will do for their lives.
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That's all they see.
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Let's see, Heather
Dawn, that's where we do
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in the first
world where we do have
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an advantage over
others. Yes, we do.
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Because we have that available,
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but isn't it true
that so many people
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here in the Unites States
take for granted that education?
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And quite
frequently, young girls
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maybe they find themselves
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pregnant out of
wedlock or something.
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They'll quit schools and
not worry about their education
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or they don't put the
emphasis on education.
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That's right.
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And then they find themselves
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paying for the rest of
their life. That's right.
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And I also think to
that one of the challenges
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which we face in
the system here is that
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children get moved up
from one class to the next,
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especially in high school.
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Not always having the
skills which they need.
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And a child could
graduate from high school
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and not really be
able to read properly
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or comprehend properly
and then they go into college
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and they really
can't handle the work,
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because it's way above
what they are capable of,
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and if we don't catch
these problems early enough
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and really do something
to help these young people,
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then by the time
they reach college
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or they reach to
the end of high school,
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they're finished with school
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because this was just
too tough, was too hard.
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I know this is a
very accurate statement
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because I speak with a
lot of college professors
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who say that they're offering
remedial courses. That's right.
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Reading in
English and the math even,
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you know, so that's true. Yeah.
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But now we're discussing those
six main areas. That's right.
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I probably just had two
more and that was abuse,
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which is on the
next slide. Okay.
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And abuse is a problem again
worldwide across the board.
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"Domestic violence,
incest, rape and battering
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are all too common
burdens that women carry."
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And the last one is illiteracy.
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And illiteracy again is
another big, big problem.
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"1 billion
adults across the world
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cannot read." My goodness.
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"And 2/3 of those who
cannot read are women."
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These problems are
so huge. Yes, they are.
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I'm just one
person, what can I do?
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Well, you know,
that's the question
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I asked myself a few years ago.
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I had the opportunity to attend
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a conference at
the United Nations
00:10:04.76\00:10:07.20
and it was-- they
were about 8,000 women
00:10:07.23\00:10:09.63
from around the world
who came to this conference.
00:10:09.66\00:10:12.29
And I'm sitting there in
the hall--in this big hall
00:10:12.32\00:10:15.61
and I'm listening to Kofi Annan,
he's giving his opening address
00:10:15.64\00:10:18.50
and I'm sitting there
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and I'm listening to
all of these statistics.
00:10:19.93\00:10:23.04
And I'm thinking to myself,
"Okay, Lord, you just put me
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in this position as
Director for Women's Ministries.
00:10:27.83\00:10:30.94
These problems are immense.
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What in heaven's
name can we possibly do?"
00:10:34.66\00:10:37.87
I mean, women of
the world church,
00:10:37.90\00:10:40.94
how many of us are there
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compare to the many multitude
millions of them outside?
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What can we do?
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And as I sat there and
I had my little journal
00:10:49.06\00:10:51.35
and I was writing 'cause I was
completely overwhelmed by this.
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God started to say to me,
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"You don't have to
solve that whole problem.
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You just do one
person at a time.
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One person at a time."
00:11:01.63\00:11:03.02
And I think the big
thing is begin doing something.
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We do a lot of talking.
We have a lot of committees.
00:11:06.85\00:11:09.26
We come up with a
lot of wonderful plans,
00:11:09.29\00:11:11.43
but the action
take so long to happen.
00:11:11.46\00:11:14.37
And while we're doing all
of these people are dying,
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people are starving,
00:11:16.50\00:11:17.87
and we need to
become more active
00:11:17.90\00:11:20.43
when it comes to
meeting the needs
00:11:20.46\00:11:22.93
and dealing with
these problem areas.
00:11:22.96\00:11:24.81
Amen, amen.
00:11:24.84\00:11:26.70
If--tell me something
because you struck some nerve
00:11:26.73\00:11:31.14
when you talked
about the mentoring,
00:11:31.17\00:11:33.00
which the Bible
clearly tells us to mentor.
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Frequently,
I'll have someone ask
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if I can mentor them.
00:11:37.30\00:11:39.45
And with my schedule
and the travel that I do
00:11:39.48\00:11:45.07
as wells as the
administrative duties I have,
00:11:45.10\00:11:47.68
you know, sadly
I've had to tell people,
00:11:47.71\00:11:49.50
I really don't have time
00:11:49.53\00:11:50.90
to become involved in
a mentoring relationship.
00:11:50.93\00:11:54.12
What would you
advice someone like me?
00:11:54.15\00:11:55.88
How can I do that?
00:11:55.91\00:11:57.75
Well, I have the same challenge
00:11:57.78\00:11:59.15
which you do with a
busy schedule travel.
00:11:59.18\00:12:01.70
And I have had young
woman come to me and say,
00:12:01.73\00:12:05.06
"Can you mentor me?"
00:12:05.09\00:12:06.46
Well, one of the areas
00:12:06.49\00:12:07.86
which we have been focusing
on from our department is
00:12:07.89\00:12:11.14
leaders mentoring leaders
00:12:11.17\00:12:13.58
that those of us who
are in leadership positions
00:12:13.61\00:12:16.19
need to intentionally
mentor other young women
00:12:16.22\00:12:19.05
because when we leave the scene
who's gonna take our place?
00:12:19.08\00:12:22.10
And so I've had to
say yes to some of them.
00:12:22.13\00:12:24.42
And I'm gonna tell
you, it was difficult.
00:12:24.45\00:12:27.27
I have some young
ladies who invade my home.
00:12:27.30\00:12:30.28
You know, they come at my home,
00:12:30.31\00:12:31.68
they throw themselves on my bed,
00:12:31.71\00:12:33.23
you know, they talk with us,
00:12:33.26\00:12:34.91
and what I have done
in order to make it more--
00:12:34.94\00:12:39.44
to make it easier
for me, to actually do is
00:12:39.47\00:12:42.59
I've kind of included
them as part of the family.
00:12:42.62\00:12:45.43
So it's not that I have to
take specific time out of my day
00:12:45.46\00:12:48.50
because I don't have time.
00:12:48.53\00:12:50.50
They come to my home
and as I'm in the kitchen
00:12:50.53\00:12:53.57
or as I'm in the
bedroom, they chat with me,
00:12:53.60\00:12:56.36
they may come by my office.
00:12:56.39\00:12:58.30
We talk on the
phone, we send emails
00:12:58.33\00:13:00.84
and that's how we do it.
00:13:00.87\00:13:02.24
And they see my strong areas
and they see my weak areas.
00:13:02.27\00:13:06.83
And God has been
teaching me patience,
00:13:06.86\00:13:08.80
God has been teaching me--
it's not always what I want,
00:13:08.83\00:13:12.21
but I've to sometimes got
to reach outside of myself.
00:13:12.24\00:13:14.89
And there are times
when I have to say to them,
00:13:14.92\00:13:16.29
you know what, I'm
really not up to today,
00:13:16.32\00:13:18.51
I just need some quiet time.
00:13:18.54\00:13:20.18
And they understand that
00:13:20.21\00:13:21.58
because we have
that kind of connection.
00:13:21.61\00:13:24.97
But it is hard.
00:13:25.00\00:13:27.14
But sometimes all
you've got to do is
00:13:27.17\00:13:28.67
to allow someone into your life,
00:13:28.70\00:13:31.00
it's almost like if
they're shadowing you
00:13:31.03\00:13:33.23
and they learn from you.
00:13:33.26\00:13:34.96
A mentor does not have to be
00:13:34.99\00:13:36.40
someone who's
perfect or always strong.
00:13:36.43\00:13:38.98
They have to learn
from our weaknesses too.
00:13:39.01\00:13:40.66
They've got to learn
what to do and what not to do.
00:13:40.69\00:13:43.66
You know, as you're
talking I feel a little better
00:13:43.69\00:13:45.49
because in some ways I realize
00:13:45.52\00:13:47.11
I am mentoring at
least in the workplace.
00:13:47.14\00:13:51.35
If I was thinking
more of a big brother,
00:13:51.38\00:13:53.32
big sister may be.
00:13:53.35\00:13:55.23
But when we have--
00:13:55.26\00:13:58.63
you said they don't have
to see us as being perfect.
00:13:58.66\00:14:00.91
They need to
recognize our weaknesses.
00:14:00.94\00:14:02.93
Actually the pain that
we've experienced in our life
00:14:02.96\00:14:06.63
and how the Lord has let
us through certain trials.
00:14:06.66\00:14:09.62
This is
something that as we share
00:14:09.65\00:14:11.61
there's a lot of healing
that goes on. Definitely.
00:14:11.64\00:14:13.55
And when we look
at all of these areas,
00:14:13.58\00:14:15.99
I think of so many
women in the church
00:14:16.02\00:14:18.17
who have gone through abuse
or poverty, health challenges
00:14:18.20\00:14:24.33
and yet say nothing.
00:14:24.36\00:14:26.44
You know, we don't want
to tell anyone our story
00:14:26.47\00:14:28.93
because it's my story.
00:14:28.96\00:14:31.38
But then whose
story are you gonna tell?
00:14:31.41\00:14:33.75
Because I firmly
believe that every challenge,
00:14:33.78\00:14:36.21
every trial
that God has given me
00:14:36.24\00:14:38.51
is my story to the world.
00:14:38.54\00:14:40.14
That this is what
God wants me to then take
00:14:40.17\00:14:42.60
and use that to
reach out to someone else.
00:14:42.63\00:14:45.93
I cannot tell you how
many people I have come
00:14:45.96\00:14:48.38
and contact with
who have lost children
00:14:48.41\00:14:51.25
that I never intentionally
went and looked for,
00:14:51.28\00:14:54.08
but that was one
thing that we had in common.
00:14:54.11\00:14:57.15
I had lost a son.
00:14:57.18\00:14:58.55
They have lost a child,
whether it was years ago
00:14:58.58\00:15:00.68
or recently and I'm like,
00:15:00.71\00:15:02.16
"Lord, how do these
people always come into my life?
00:15:02.19\00:15:04.62
Whether it's on a
plane, in an airport,
00:15:04.65\00:15:06.92
you know, a stranger somewhere."
00:15:06.95\00:15:08.86
God just keeps
bringing this around.
00:15:08.89\00:15:11.77
And each time I'm able
to minister from the trial
00:15:11.80\00:15:16.20
that God has either
helped me go through
00:15:16.23\00:15:18.23
or He's helping
me go through. Amen.
00:15:18.26\00:15:20.36
And that makes it--to me
that makes all the difference
00:15:20.39\00:15:24.09
when we connect on that level.
00:15:24.12\00:15:25.72
You know, I'm just
looking at the scripture
00:15:25.75\00:15:27.56
'cause I wanted to share this.
00:15:27.59\00:15:29.52
He says in 2 Corinthians,
Paul writes that in Chapter 1:3.
00:15:29.55\00:15:36.16
Paul writes, "Blessed be the God
00:15:36.19\00:15:38.30
and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ,
00:15:38.33\00:15:40.43
the Father of
sympathy and comfort.
00:15:40.46\00:15:42.94
The God of every comfort
who comforts us in every trouble
00:15:42.97\00:15:47.60
so that we may
also be able to comfort
00:15:47.63\00:15:50.86
those who are in a
kind of trouble or distress
00:15:50.89\00:15:54.09
with the same comfort
that He has given us."
00:15:54.12\00:15:56.34
You know, I always tell people,
00:15:56.37\00:15:58.74
if a woman comes to
me who's lost her child,
00:15:58.77\00:16:01.80
I can sympathize and I
can give godly counsel.
00:16:01.83\00:16:05.94
I can't empathize all
the difference in the world.
00:16:05.97\00:16:10.28
Empathy is when
you've been there,
00:16:10.31\00:16:11.92
gone through yourself,
00:16:11.95\00:16:14.03
you've received that
comfort from the Lord
00:16:14.06\00:16:16.80
and the way all these
people come into your life,
00:16:16.83\00:16:19.73
I'm sure it's by
divine appointment
00:16:19.76\00:16:21.46
because the Lord
knows that you'll stand up
00:16:21.49\00:16:24.38
and share for His glory. It is.
00:16:24.41\00:16:26.73
And I think one of
the things He does,
00:16:26.76\00:16:28.51
but I should say, I
think I know one of the things
00:16:28.54\00:16:30.29
which He has done for me is
00:16:30.32\00:16:32.19
He gave me that
verse a few years back.
00:16:32.22\00:16:34.39
I was at a women's retreat,
it was a Sabbath morning
00:16:34.42\00:16:37.75
and my daughter
called me all the way
00:16:37.78\00:16:39.61
from the United States to
the country that I was in.
00:16:39.64\00:16:41.96
She was going
through a rough time.
00:16:41.99\00:16:43.66
She was about-- I'd
say maybe about 21 then
00:16:43.69\00:16:46.75
and she needed mommy
and mommy wasn't there.
00:16:46.78\00:16:50.54
And I couldn't
get all the details
00:16:50.57\00:16:53.13
of what was going on
from her over the phone.
00:16:53.16\00:16:55.25
I needed to see
her face to face.
00:16:55.28\00:16:57.42
And I got off that
phone and I remember
00:16:57.45\00:16:59.99
I sat in my hotel room
and I cried my eyes out.
00:17:00.02\00:17:02.97
I had to go downstairs
00:17:03.00\00:17:04.37
and preach to
these sisters of my,
00:17:04.40\00:17:06.45
encourage them
when my own daughter
00:17:06.48\00:17:08.68
I wasn't there to encourage her.
00:17:08.71\00:17:10.11
I was just so distressed
00:17:10.14\00:17:12.08
and I said,
"Lord, I need Your help."
00:17:12.11\00:17:13.65
And immediately I
felt go to the prayer room.
00:17:13.68\00:17:16.81
So I went to the prayer room
00:17:16.84\00:17:18.21
and there was one
lady in the prayer room
00:17:18.24\00:17:19.95
and she said to me,
"I've a text for you.
00:17:19.98\00:17:22.43
Come, let me pray with you."
And that was the text she gave.
00:17:22.46\00:17:25.56
"That God will comfort me
so I could comfort others."
00:17:25.59\00:17:28.91
And he gave me that
comfort that day that I needed
00:17:28.94\00:17:31.96
that my mind was at peace
00:17:31.99\00:17:33.36
that He was gonna
look after everything
00:17:33.39\00:17:34.76
where she was concerned,
but now I needed to do
00:17:34.79\00:17:37.75
what He had called me to do
which was to comfort my sisters.
00:17:37.78\00:17:40.72
And God will do that for us,
00:17:40.75\00:17:42.71
but we've got to
allow Him to use that."
00:17:42.74\00:17:46.56
And we've got to get past that
that wall in our mind that says,
00:17:46.59\00:17:51.50
"No, I don't want to
let people see my pain.
00:17:51.53\00:17:54.22
I don't want people to
know what I've been through.
00:17:54.25\00:17:56.54
I don't want them to know
that this is the real me."
00:17:56.57\00:18:00.32
So it does take--
it takes quite a bit,
00:18:00.35\00:18:03.43
but it is so rewarding
00:18:03.46\00:18:05.03
when you connect with
someone at that level. It is.
00:18:05.06\00:18:08.66
We're so blessed
that God has called you,
00:18:08.69\00:18:10.53
Heather Dawn, to
this beautiful ministry
00:18:10.56\00:18:13.12
as Director of Women's Ministry.
00:18:13.15\00:18:15.09
Now let me just--
00:18:15.12\00:18:16.49
I'm going to for
our audience' sake
00:18:16.52\00:18:17.89
recap these six
things that we talked about
00:18:17.92\00:18:21.14
that are impacting
women around the world
00:18:21.17\00:18:23.12
and that's, Threats to Health,
A Women's Workload, Poverty,
00:18:23.15\00:18:26.87
Lack of Training or
Mentoring, Abuse and Illiteracy.
00:18:26.90\00:18:30.41
What are some of
the things that women,
00:18:30.44\00:18:33.64
Seventh-day
Adventist Christian women
00:18:33.67\00:18:36.44
are doing around the
world to help meet these things?
00:18:36.47\00:18:39.47
Oh, I couldn't
begin to tell you all.
00:18:39.50\00:18:42.26
It would take far too long,
00:18:42.29\00:18:43.66
but I'll tell you some
things that I see happening.
00:18:43.69\00:18:46.50
In Rwanda, that
terrible genocide
00:18:46.53\00:18:51.02
left many children as orphans.
00:18:51.05\00:18:54.61
No family, I mean not
even a distant cousin.
00:18:54.64\00:18:58.79
Many of them have been
on the streets for years.
00:18:58.82\00:19:01.48
Our Adventist ladies
decided to begin a center
00:19:01.51\00:19:04.53
where they would bring
some of these orphaned girls in
00:19:04.56\00:19:07.44
and they would
teach them a trade,
00:19:07.47\00:19:09.47
teach them basic writing
and reading and also math,
00:19:09.50\00:19:13.91
teach them about God's
word and give them that skill
00:19:13.94\00:19:16.99
to then go out to be able
00:19:17.02\00:19:18.56
to work and to
support themselves.
00:19:18.59\00:19:21.06
And that has made a big
difference in their lives.
00:19:21.09\00:19:23.36
Praise the Lord.
00:19:23.39\00:19:24.76
I can think about India
00:19:24.79\00:19:26.16
where our sisters
do literacy training
00:19:26.19\00:19:27.92
from village to
village to village.
00:19:27.95\00:19:29.70
They go and then
they train everyone,
00:19:29.73\00:19:31.63
men, women and children
00:19:31.66\00:19:33.03
who need to be
taught how to read.
00:19:33.06\00:19:35.01
And the amazing difference
that it makes in a person's life
00:19:35.04\00:19:39.43
when for the first time
they could read their name
00:19:39.46\00:19:42.31
and they can write their name.
00:19:42.34\00:19:43.88
And it makes me
think of just one lady
00:19:43.91\00:19:46.31
who was working for this man
00:19:46.34\00:19:48.26
who had all these
workers there on his farm
00:19:48.29\00:19:51.92
and every week she
would go and she would get
00:19:51.95\00:19:54.31
her few little rupees
00:19:54.34\00:19:55.71
and she put an x
and x to her name.
00:19:55.74\00:19:57.44
And the foreman was the
one who was paying them,
00:19:57.47\00:19:59.20
but this one day
after she had learned
00:19:59.23\00:20:01.54
how to write her name
00:20:01.57\00:20:03.05
and she was
learning how to count,
00:20:03.08\00:20:04.76
she went and as she bend down,
00:20:04.79\00:20:06.95
she realized that the number
of the rupees next to her name
00:20:06.98\00:20:11.03
was not the same amount
that she had in her hand
00:20:11.06\00:20:13.94
and she refused
to put her name down
00:20:13.97\00:20:15.45
and she began
to make a big fuss.
00:20:15.48\00:20:17.21
And she went to
other people and said,
00:20:17.24\00:20:18.64
"Let me count your
money. Let me count your money."
00:20:18.67\00:20:21.11
Well, the owner finally saw
all these confusion going on
00:20:21.14\00:20:23.75
and he came and she told him,
00:20:23.78\00:20:25.62
"We are not being paid
what is on this paper."
00:20:25.65\00:20:29.03
And the owner, he realized
00:20:29.06\00:20:30.43
that the foreman had
been putting it in his pocket,
00:20:30.46\00:20:32.99
giving them half
and pocket in half.
00:20:33.02\00:20:35.49
Oh my goodness.
00:20:35.52\00:20:36.89
Up until that time she was
never able to read and see that,
00:20:36.92\00:20:39.78
but because of our sisters
who had taught her how to read,
00:20:39.81\00:20:43.08
she suddenly was able to
realize I'm being cheated here.
00:20:43.11\00:20:46.61
And she was getting
00:20:46.64\00:20:48.01
half of what she
should have been getting.
00:20:48.04\00:20:49.74
Oh, my goodness. That made
a huge difference in her life.
00:20:49.77\00:20:52.40
I think of my sisters
in other parts of Africa
00:20:52.43\00:20:54.59
that I mean, I just
can't begin to tell you
00:20:54.62\00:20:57.13
all the different
projects which we have going.
00:20:57.16\00:21:01.31
In Kenya, we have a Maasai
Rescue Center for young girls
00:21:01.34\00:21:06.91
and we are helping those girls,
00:21:06.94\00:21:09.02
go through the
school, going to high schools,
00:21:09.05\00:21:11.64
so that they can
then receive an education.
00:21:11.67\00:21:15.21
And I recall one young girl,
00:21:15.24\00:21:17.23
and I went to that
center and visited them.
00:21:17.26\00:21:19.79
And I said to her,
"What do you want to be
00:21:19.82\00:21:21.72
when you're
finished with school?"
00:21:21.75\00:21:23.12
And she said, "A lawyer."
00:21:23.15\00:21:24.52
And I thought to myself,
00:21:24.55\00:21:25.92
"What is this girl
out here in the bush
00:21:25.95\00:21:28.25
know about being a lawyer."
00:21:28.28\00:21:29.65
But she had been in
the school for a few years.
00:21:29.68\00:21:32.27
And I said, "Why?" And she said,
00:21:32.30\00:21:33.67
"Because I want to
make laws to stop the things
00:21:33.70\00:21:36.90
that are happening
to my young sisters."
00:21:36.93\00:21:39.01
Early childhood marriages.
00:21:39.04\00:21:40.82
And the
mutilation. That's right.
00:21:40.85\00:21:42.62
Female genital mutilation
and early childhood marriages
00:21:42.65\00:21:45.58
many of those young girls die
00:21:45.61\00:21:47.29
because by the
ages of 10, 11, and 12
00:21:47.32\00:21:49.37
they've had two
and three children.
00:21:49.40\00:21:50.77
Oh, my goodness. And many
of them die in childbirth.
00:21:50.80\00:21:53.42
And so our sisters are
going out where the need is.
00:21:53.45\00:21:56.52
Whatever part
of the world it is.
00:21:56.55\00:21:58.69
Here in the United States,
00:21:58.72\00:22:00.09
I know my sisters have gone
into the Appalachian Mountain
00:22:00.12\00:22:03.46
with the program
call "God in Shoes."
00:22:03.49\00:22:05.70
And they have got out there
and they have helped people,
00:22:05.73\00:22:08.95
they've given
them health lectures
00:22:08.98\00:22:10.39
and they've
taken clothes and food
00:22:10.42\00:22:12.52
and taught them about God.
00:22:12.55\00:22:14.87
Everywhere there
are people in need
00:22:14.90\00:22:16.72
and we have got to do our part.
00:22:16.75\00:22:19.96
It's not for us to say,
"This problem is too big."
00:22:19.99\00:22:23.50
It's for us to say to God,
"Here am I, send me. Use me."
00:22:23.53\00:22:29.04
He looks after the
rest. He'll bring the money.
00:22:29.07\00:22:31.33
He'll bring the
people to organize.
00:22:31.36\00:22:33.36
He'll do all of
that as long as He knows
00:22:33.39\00:22:35.68
we are willing to
be used by Him. Amen.
00:22:35.71\00:22:38.37
And I believe that often
the way the Lord trains us up
00:22:38.40\00:22:42.69
is that He will have us to
be busy with our neighbors,
00:22:42.72\00:22:47.37
busy in our own community
before He'll send us out.
00:22:47.40\00:22:50.63
sometimes people
have these big dreams
00:22:50.66\00:22:52.98
of what they want to go
and do and raise the money
00:22:53.01\00:22:55.38
and they've never even done
anything on a local level. Yeah.
00:22:55.41\00:22:58.06
And I think the
Lord likes us to--
00:22:58.09\00:22:59.54
He trains us up
that way. He does.
00:22:59.57\00:23:01.41
I remember one
sister in the Philippines
00:23:01.44\00:23:03.33
who told me her story
like that because she said,
00:23:03.36\00:23:05.47
she was just-- she
knew within her heart
00:23:05.50\00:23:08.13
that God wanted
her to go and teach.
00:23:08.16\00:23:11.56
In her village,
she and her husband
00:23:11.59\00:23:13.26
were the only
Seventh-day Adventist Christians
00:23:13.29\00:23:15.48
in that village.
00:23:15.51\00:23:16.88
And she said, "Lord,
I don't know what to do,
00:23:16.91\00:23:19.15
but maybe I could go over here,
maybe I could do this there in."
00:23:19.18\00:23:22.22
She began to think of all
the big thing she could do."
00:23:22.25\00:23:24.09
And then she said,
"She had a dream one night."
00:23:24.12\00:23:26.21
And in the dream she
was in the river fishing.
00:23:26.24\00:23:29.18
And she said, she
had her net in her hand
00:23:29.21\00:23:32.20
and she threw the net
our far and she pulled it in
00:23:32.23\00:23:35.44
and there were no
fish that came in.
00:23:35.47\00:23:36.93
She threw it out
far a second time
00:23:36.96\00:23:39.02
and still no fish came.
00:23:39.05\00:23:40.42
And then a voice said to her,
00:23:40.45\00:23:41.95
"Drop the fish right in
front of where you're standing,
00:23:41.98\00:23:45.07
drop the net."
00:23:45.10\00:23:46.47
And she dropped the net
right where she was standing
00:23:46.50\00:23:49.28
and when she began to pull
it up it was filled with fish.
00:23:49.31\00:23:52.41
She said, "Sister
Small, God was telling me
00:23:52.44\00:23:55.00
I needed to fish in
my neighborhood first,
00:23:55.03\00:23:57.40
in my family, by
my next door neighbors
00:23:57.43\00:23:59.98
before I would even think of
going to some other village."
00:24:00.01\00:24:02.76
God wants us to
begin just where we are,
00:24:02.79\00:24:05.25
which is the hardest
thing for some of us,
00:24:05.28\00:24:06.92
because we're not
always the best Christian
00:24:06.95\00:24:09.00
to the people who
are closest to us.
00:24:09.03\00:24:12.00
But that's why God--
00:24:12.03\00:24:13.58
That's right.
That's the good training.
00:24:13.61\00:24:14.98
That's very
true, that's very true.
00:24:15.01\00:24:17.23
You know, as you're
sitting here recounting
00:24:17.26\00:24:19.26
some of the stories
in some other countries
00:24:19.29\00:24:22.73
that you've traveled
00:24:22.76\00:24:24.30
and witnessed
some of these things,
00:24:24.33\00:24:26.43
have you ever
become disheartened
00:24:26.46\00:24:29.21
because the problem is so large?
00:24:29.24\00:24:30.72
Have you ever
come back from a trip
00:24:30.75\00:24:32.76
just feeling
overwhelmed by the problems
00:24:32.79\00:24:35.11
that your sisters are
facing around the world?
00:24:35.14\00:24:38.85
Yes, I have.
00:24:38.88\00:24:40.25
I remember going
to a country in Africa
00:24:40.28\00:24:42.53
and coming home very discourage
00:24:42.56\00:24:44.41
because I felt that
really I had done nothing
00:24:44.44\00:24:47.17
for my sisters on that trip.
00:24:47.20\00:24:48.93
And it was all because
of one counseling session
00:24:48.96\00:24:51.73
I had with a young woman
00:24:51.76\00:24:53.58
whose husband
had given her AIDS,
00:24:53.61\00:24:57.97
and she then
passed it on to her child.
00:24:58.00\00:25:01.76
And this was a
young woman in her '20s.
00:25:01.79\00:25:03.45
And she said to me,
"Sister Small, I'm going to die.
00:25:03.48\00:25:05.83
My husband has died
now, I'm going to die,
00:25:05.86\00:25:08.30
my child is going to
die." I don't know what to do.
00:25:08.33\00:25:11.87
And I remember
sitting opposite to this woman
00:25:11.90\00:25:14.03
and not having a word
that I could say to her.
00:25:14.06\00:25:18.25
Everything that came
to mind sounded weak.
00:25:18.28\00:25:23.36
God will help you. God
will give you the strength.
00:25:23.39\00:25:25.50
I mean, every
good nice platitude
00:25:25.53\00:25:29.18
that I could think of
just wasn't gonna make it.
00:25:29.21\00:25:31.59
And all I could do was reach out
00:25:31.62\00:25:33.22
and pray for her and say,
00:25:33.25\00:25:34.62
"God, I don't know
what to do for my sister.
00:25:34.65\00:25:36.71
Only You know what to
do. Please, help her."
00:25:36.74\00:25:39.82
I came back from that
my trip very depressed
00:25:39.85\00:25:41.59
because I felt as though
what I was doing was not enough
00:25:41.62\00:25:46.75
and then God told me,
it wasn't for me to do it,
00:25:46.78\00:25:49.80
it was for Him to do. Amen.
00:25:49.83\00:25:52.02
And that I
should never ever feel
00:25:52.05\00:25:54.03
that I was the one who
was gonna solve these things.
00:25:54.06\00:25:56.39
It was not mine
to solve, it was His.
00:25:56.42\00:25:59.06
I remember my first
year in full-time ministry
00:25:59.09\00:26:01.35
I would sometimes--
because I was at that time
00:26:01.38\00:26:04.38
traveling to
five different cities
00:26:04.41\00:26:05.93
on a weekly basis and giving--
00:26:05.96\00:26:08.76
they call them
"little home churches."
00:26:08.79\00:26:10.16
I actually-- and there would
be, you know, 40 or 50 people
00:26:10.19\00:26:12.62
and I would be
counseling with people
00:26:12.65\00:26:14.07
and spent a lot
of time on the phone.
00:26:14.10\00:26:15.85
And my
mother-in-law once told me
00:26:15.88\00:26:17.37
I was sharing a
few little things
00:26:17.40\00:26:18.77
with her and she
said, "You can't do this.
00:26:18.80\00:26:20.92
This is gonna drive you crazy."
00:26:20.95\00:26:22.48
And I said, "No,
actually all my job--
00:26:22.51\00:26:25.72
the Lord, Lord had shown me
00:26:25.75\00:26:27.15
that my only
job is to usher them
00:26:27.18\00:26:29.43
before the throne of grace."
00:26:29.46\00:26:30.91
That's right, that's
right. He does the saving.
00:26:30.94\00:26:32.99
It is so amazing when you come.
00:26:33.02\00:26:35.03
How fast the time
goes by, Heather Dawn?
00:26:35.06\00:26:37.98
I'm so glad that
you've come back again.
00:26:38.01\00:26:39.38
I'm glad to. I've enjoyed it.
00:26:39.41\00:26:40.90
It's been
wonderful having you here.
00:26:40.93\00:26:42.86
And I think this is your
fourth program. Yes, it is.
00:26:42.89\00:26:45.22
Well, I am excited
about the Touch the Heart,
00:26:45.25\00:26:49.30
Tell the World Ministry
that the Women's Ministries
00:26:49.33\00:26:53.94
of the Seventh-day
Adventist Church is doing.
00:26:53.97\00:26:56.81
I'm so glad that
God has called you
00:26:56.84\00:26:59.02
and appointed you to head it up.
00:26:59.05\00:27:01.21
Thank you so much.
00:27:01.24\00:27:02.63
You know, for
those of you at home,
00:27:02.66\00:27:04.44
sometimes we think that
00:27:04.47\00:27:07.20
ministry is for
someone more talented,
00:27:07.23\00:27:09.75
more gifted maybe
with more education.
00:27:09.78\00:27:13.19
You know what?
00:27:13.22\00:27:14.59
God can use you
right where you are.
00:27:14.62\00:27:16.70
You can plant a
bloom where you planted
00:27:16.73\00:27:19.69
as Molly always is saying.
00:27:19.72\00:27:22.05
If you will just
reach out in love,
00:27:22.08\00:27:25.41
demonstrate what
God has done for you
00:27:25.44\00:27:28.43
by sharing your
testimony, sharing your love,
00:27:28.46\00:27:31.58
just helping to
meet someone's need
00:27:31.61\00:27:34.49
who is close by you.
00:27:34.52\00:27:36.23
And you will be
amazed at how God can use you
00:27:36.26\00:27:39.94
to comfort others
to bring them hope
00:27:39.97\00:27:42.75
just to introduce
them maybe to Jesus Christ.
00:27:42.78\00:27:46.49
Thank you for joining us today.
00:27:46.52\00:27:48.41
Now may the grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ,
00:27:48.44\00:27:50.95
the love of the Father
00:27:50.98\00:27:52.35
and the fellowship of
the Holy Spirit be with you.
00:27:52.38\00:27:54.71