Participants:
Series Code: ISITE
Program Code: ISITE018005A
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00:05 Hello and welcome to iSITE program #5.
00:09 We're standing outside the Arizona Conference 00:12 office of SDA's, and it's a beautiful day here in Phoenix, 00:15 Arizona. It is! The sun is shining. 00:17 It's a little bit warmer than it has been. 00:19 And we're thankful. Yes we are. 00:22 In the past we've been actually almost wanting to wear a little 00:23 hat and coat, but we're so happy to have Pastor C.A. Murray 00:26 and his wife Irma with us to open this iSITE program. 00:30 And we had some great meetings, pastor, haven't we 00:32 here this morning at the conference office. 00:34 Very good spirit. The president was warm and inviting. 00:37 All of the conference officers and the staff 00:39 very very friendly... very beautiful spirit. 00:42 It was incredible. You know what I like about this conference 00:45 is their focus on evangelism. 00:48 You know, you can really see that. 00:50 And we just had a great meeting, a beautiful spirit, 00:52 a time of prayer, didn't we Irma? 00:53 Oh, beautiful! That was very nice. 00:55 Yeah... very, very touching. It was. 00:58 And Stephanie Dawn was here and we got to hear from Stephanie! 01:01 And she sang a precious song: The Love of God. 01:04 That was wonderful! Yeah, brought tears to my eyes. 01:07 It was beautiful. I think it's a blessing to have 01:10 open worship together... you know, at the conference 01:13 with us joining as the evangelistic team here with 3ABN 01:16 with the conference and being around that table 01:18 singing songs, opening in prayer. 01:20 Having a worship talk by Pastor Lomacang. 01:22 From our earliest contacts with this conference there's 01:25 been this spirit of open- ness, willingness to cooperate. 01:28 And it's in the churches also. 01:30 You feel it in the churches with the pastors. Yes. 01:32 With the church elders, with the church members there is 01:34 a very very sweet Christian spirit here in this conference. 01:38 Amen! I also noticed in our churches people are so sweet. 01:43 Very nice and they're very enthusiastic about the meetings. 01:48 Amen! Yeah, give us a flavor. What is it like at your church 01:51 at Desert Cove? Our attendance has been consistent 01:55 throughout the first several nights. 01:58 Members... there's a good feeling. 02:01 Last night I think we had some faces that I have not seen 02:04 before. And Irma's made friends with this one lady 02:08 who has been coming to the church for quite a while, 02:10 she said, but she has not joined. 02:12 Hopefully we can get her across the line during this time 02:14 or we'll plant the seed that will result in a baptism. 02:18 But there is this spirit... The first elder - 02:22 very, very loving Christian fellow - 02:25 his wife is behind the scenes putting together the music. 02:27 That's the Fields! That's Randy and Cathy. 02:30 We had them at a previous iSITE - yeah - 02:33 and we interviewed them so you at home know who they are. 02:36 Yeah. I was teasing Cathy 'cause when we met them... 02:39 She's just about Irma's height so I said: "You've got somebody 02:42 who can look eye to eye with my wife. " 02:44 And she said: "Yes! " 02:47 But very very loving... very very helpful. 02:51 Love the Lord and you can feel that in everything that happens 02:53 in that church. So nice, these people: so wonderful. 02:58 And yes, it was a privilege for me to talk to this lady 03:03 and her husband who is not yet "sold" on Christianity. 03:08 But with God's Spirit and God's love 03:12 she will come. Amen! 03:15 Yeah... praise the Lord. Well we need to pray for them. 03:17 You know, we want to encourage you at home to pray for each one 03:20 of the people who attend the meetings 03:23 because as you think about it, pastor, souls are in the balance 03:26 right now. People are making decisions for Jesus 03:28 or they're making a decision against that. 03:31 So we need to really be in prayer for what's going on 03:33 with these meetings. Very much so, Jill. 03:35 Last night we had a quartet that played the special music. 03:38 A pianist, a cellist, a flutist, and a violinist. 03:42 And the flutist or "flautist" depending on what part of the 03:46 country you're from I thought was Adventist. 03:50 But she was not, and she had just a "ton" of questions. 03:53 I guess 21, 22... very, very young. 03:56 Very very innocent. Struggling 03:58 with taking a step out of one world 04:00 and into a new one. A lot of questions. 04:02 "How do I know the voice of God? " 04:04 "How do I know what God wants me to do with my life? " 04:06 "How do I know when God is calling me and is not? " 04:08 You know, just those kinds of questions 04:09 that say that something is going on her heart. 04:12 And she wanted to know: "What does it mean 04:14 to give your heart to the Lord? 04:15 Is it against your heart? Is it my heart? " 04:18 I told her when the Bible means your heart it means your head 04:21 and your heart and your soul. And she liked that. Everything! 04:24 Um-hmm... everything. Yeah. 04:26 That's encouraging, and we will be praying for her. 04:29 I want to give a shout out right now. 04:31 I know we're streaming on Facebook 04:32 and many of you have liked and have shared. 04:35 So this is to Claudio and Anne Marie, 04:37 Brad, Amy, Ken, Pam, Genevieve, Carol, Robert, 04:41 Rumi, Frank, Elvina, Irena, Mara, 04:45 Felicity, Patrick, and others. 04:48 So thank you so much. Keep sharing. 04:50 Keep liking and keep watching on Facebook 04:53 and Youtube and each one of the other avenues we have. 04:56 You know, I liked Elder Lomacang's message 05:00 for the devotional this morning with the conference. 05:02 I thought it was good. He was talking about the River Jordan 05:04 and about how it just needs to flow. 05:06 And you know, success isn't always determined by numbers 05:08 is it Pastor C.A.? You can have one person 05:10 that's baptized or accepts Jesus Christ 05:12 and that's huge. It doesn't have to be thousands and thousands. 05:14 Indeed... indeed. I think, if I recall, 05:17 H.M.S. Richards was a solo baptism 05:20 and what a baptism that was for the church! 05:22 Incredible! Wow! And even Mark Finley, I'm not sure. 05:24 But you know, you look at the numbers 05:27 and the numbers are nice... but it's also the lives changed 05:30 and how one person in the hand of God can 05:33 do such a great work for the Lord. Yes! 05:35 Amen! Sometimes we worry about the fact that we only see 05:38 Adventists coming but Adventists also need the Holy Spirit. 05:43 They need a conversion sometimes and walk further 05:48 in our walk. 05:49 That's right. Thank you so much Pastor and Mrs. Murray. 05:53 We're praying for Desert Cove and what's going on there. 05:56 And just a few moments ago Pastor John Lomacang 05:59 had a chance to talk with Elder Ed Keyes, 06:01 the conference president, and we want to go to that interview 06:04 now. 06:06 I'm here at the Arizona Confer- ence of SDA's with the president 06:09 Ed Keyes. So good to see you, Ed. 06:12 Good to see you, John. Not only as the conference president 06:15 but as a former tristate resident. 06:17 I'm from New York; you're from New Jersey. 06:19 Right. And here we are meeting together in Arizona. 06:22 So good to have you here with us on 3ABN today. 06:25 Well thank you; I'm glad to be here. 06:26 It's amazing how God works. Take us from the big city 06:30 out to the desert to do evangelism for God. 06:33 Well tell us a little bit about your journey 06:34 because I know you started in New York City. You moved around 06:38 but tell us how the Lord led you here to the Arizona conference. 06:41 Well... it's kind of amazing. That's how God works: 06:43 in mysterious ways. I had a friend that came out before me. 06:46 He said: "Ed, I need an evangelist. " 06:48 I came out to do evangelism and then worked with the ministers 06:52 of this conference in Arizona. And then before you know it 06:55 I worked in different areas and started doing administration 06:59 with the conference. OK! So I'm really thankful. 07:01 Long journey though. Went to Oregon; back to New Jersey 07:04 and THEN out to Arizona. 07:06 OK... and here we are. Yes. Now the fun thing about it 07:09 is we're partnering with you. 3ABN is partnering with the 07:11 Arizona Conference in evangelism. 07:13 Tell us about your approach to evangelism. 07:16 Well, it's one of the most important things we can do. 07:18 Yeah, we might as well put a lock on the church 07:21 if we're not doing outreach. And I am really impressed 07:25 with our pastors, our leaders, our conference staff. 07:28 They all have a heart and soul for reaching people for Christ. 07:31 We know that Jesus is coming soon - 07:33 that's right - so we want people to be ready to meet Him 07:35 when He comes. And that's our responsibility here 07:37 and we take that as first priority. 07:39 Now Arizona is a unique place. It's not far from California; 07:43 it's kind of that desert land, Phoenix. Yes. 07:46 But tell us about some of the challenges here 07:48 in Arizona as it relates to evangelism 07:51 because we know there are obstacles everywhere. 07:53 Sure... and we have some... I guess our main challenge 07:56 you would say might be the geography 07:59 because in the summer it's hot here. 08:01 I can't hide that at all, and so it's hard to reach anyone 08:05 during those months. People have their air conditioners on. 08:08 And then in the nice times of year 08:11 people are going to events and other things: ball games, 08:14 spring training, all this other stuff. 08:16 So there are people who are very highly occupied here 08:19 and it's challenging to get them out. However, 08:23 we're never going to stop. And we know that people who are 08:25 seeking for God are going to respond when they have 08:28 an opportunity. And so now evangelism 08:31 is happening at first of all about five churches 08:33 where we have 3ABN speakers but it's broader than that. 08:36 Talk about that. Yeah, we have the five 3ABN 08:39 and we are truly thankful for the partnership there. 08:41 We have the five 3ABN meetings but we also have my executive 08:44 secretary Jose Marin is holding a meeting in Apache Junction. 08:48 There is another series going on in Glendale 08:50 which is the west side of the valley. 08:52 We have a series going on with a fellow named Richard Halvorsen 08:55 who's been doing outreach for many years up in Sedona. 08:59 And we have meetings like that going on all over the state. 09:01 We're going to keep doing it till the Lord comes. 09:04 Now let's talk about the urgency of the hour. 09:06 What drives the evangelism? 09:08 We know that we are living in a very challenging world. 09:10 Tell me why you believe evan- gelism is so vitally important. 09:13 Well, to think what evangelism is: 09:16 it's preaching the good news. Bringing the good news to people 09:19 who... Some have heard it and turned their back on it. 09:21 Some have never heard it, and we want them to have 09:24 an opportunity to make a decision for Christ. 09:26 'Cause we believe, look- ing at the signs of the times, 09:28 that Jesus is coming soon. That's right! 09:31 We don't want them to miss that "train to heaven" 09:33 if you will. Now evangelism is not only for 09:36 one demographic group. Talk about the different types 09:38 of evangelism you have here. Ah... good point. 09:41 Yeah, we have... The state of Arizona is about 30% Hispanic 09:44 so we have a Hispanic meeting going on. 09:46 One of the 3ABN meetings is Hispanic. 09:48 John Dinzey. Absolutely! And it's fantastic that we have 09:52 outreach to the Hispanic... We also have Native American 09:55 is real big here: Navajo and other groups. 09:58 We're thankful for opportunities to reach out to them as well. 10:01 But you're right: the demographic is broad. 10:03 That's true. Now evangelism often has a beginning 10:06 and an end, but how is evangelism a never-ending 10:10 process? Oh, that's a good point. We have a life cycle 10:13 of evangelism... it never stops. 10:15 We're doing Bible studies; pastors are giving out 10:17 Bible studies and reaching into peoples' homes. 10:20 Worship services tend to be more evangelistic 10:24 than in some places where it's just "get together 10:26 and feel good. " We want to reach people for Christ. 10:28 And, of course, public meetings on a regular basis. 10:32 And when evangelism as our meetings are going to be ending 10:36 on March 10th, when that is over what are you forecasting 10:40 for your conference? Good point! There's follow-up. 10:43 You know, we have Daniel seminars that are taking place 10:46 in different places around the state. 10:48 We have follow-up in other areas where people are dealing with 10:52 issues, habits, and so forth 10:54 to try to help them to overcome those habits. 10:56 There's a lot of follow-up that will take place 10:59 and then other things that we can do to help them to know 11:02 Christ better. That's right. And so the greatest joy 11:05 in evangelism is when it's all done 11:07 we hear: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant. " 11:09 Oh, yes! Well, Elder Ed Keyes, 11:11 so good to have you here. It's a pleasure! 11:13 And as a fellow tristate area - all right - 11:14 God bless you. God bless you too. 11:15 And on behalf of 3ABN we thank you for your support. 11:18 How you have not only prayed for us 11:20 but you support the outreach of not only our church - 11:23 the world church - but also the evangelism 11:25 of 3ABN. This is John Lomacang. 11:29 Thank you so much. Pastor John Lomacang 11:31 and Elder Ed Keyes. What a privilege to partner together 11:35 3ABN with the Arizona Conference of SDA's. 11:38 And we're so blessed by their leadership team, 11:39 and I'm standing next to a woman who kind of helps hold it all 11:43 together here at the Arizona Conference 11:45 as well as our local church, the Paradise Valley 11:48 SDA church where we do the broadcast. 11:50 This is Jacque Battistone. And Jackie, we're so glad 11:53 to have you here. Thank you so much. 11:55 It's been a privilege to have 3ABN at the Arizona 11:58 Conference. What a blessing! And also at PV church 12:01 and all the other churches that 3ABN has been taking part of. 12:05 It's a huge blessing for Phoenix, Arizona. 12:08 And we are just so appreciate of all the team effort from 3ABN. 12:12 God bless. Amen! Now you are the president's secretary here? 12:16 Correct. I'm the admin. assistant to Elder Keyes. 12:19 I've been working - or I should say serving - at this conference 12:23 for about close to ten years. 12:25 And it's a privilege having the leadership of Elder Keyes. 12:29 You know, I look after the administrative part 12:32 and very heavily involved when it comes to Camp Meeting in June 12:35 which is about to come. 12:37 So any event or activity that takes place 12:40 I'm just so honored to serve. 12:43 And because I'm bilingual I can also help 12:45 our Hispanic pastors and the Hispanic-speaking church members 12:50 too. So it's just a blessing all over. 12:53 Amen! I know we've been echang- ing some e-mails back and forth 12:57 in preparation for this event. 12:59 Now Jacque, you were born in Chile but you were raised in? 13:01 I was born in Chile, correct. I was born in Australia. 13:05 Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Born in Australia or raised in? 13:07 Raised. OK. Born in Chile; raised in Australia. 13:11 And now I moved here as I got married. 13:14 My husband is from here, so I've been living in Phoenix 13:17 Arizona. And now you're a Phoenix girl. 13:19 That's precious. Now Jacque also sings. 13:22 We have the privilege nightly 'cause we get to hear her 13:25 leading us in the music or doing special music. 13:28 You will hear her on an upcoming song as well. 13:30 And thank you for using the gift that God's given you. 13:33 Not only organization but with the music 13:35 for God's honor and glory. 13:37 You know, it's a privilege to sing. 13:39 And I do a lot of prayer before singing 13:42 because it's not just singing but it's praising God 13:45 and delivering a message first of all to me 13:48 and to others all about God's love 13:51 and how wonderful He has been and is in my life. 13:54 Amen! Thank you so much, Jacque. 13:56 We call her the angel at the Paradise Valley SDA church. 13:59 I'm just so thankful that we can introduce you at home 14:02 to our Sr. Jacque here. Right now we're going to go to 14:05 to a tremendous testimony that Angie Lomacang was able 14:08 to get. Their names are Jack and Josie. 14:11 They've been watching 3ABN for six months and they just 14:15 showed up at the doors of the Paradise Valley SDA church. 14:19 So let's have a listen to that interview. 14:22 Hello! My name is Angela Lomacang 14:25 and I am coming to you from Paradise Valley SDA church 14:29 in Phoenix, Arizona, 14:31 where the meetings are being held: Pathway to Life. 14:36 And we have two guests that are here with us 14:39 and Jack and... Is it Jack and Josie? Jack and Josie. Yes. 14:44 They walked in the door and they are 3ABN viewers. 14:48 Welcome Jack and Josie. Thank you; we're very glad to be here. 14:51 Thank you. How long have you been watching 3ABN? 14:54 I'd say approximately about six months now. 14:56 Ah! Have you been enjoying it? Absolutely! It's been a 14:59 wonderful blessing to our lives, to our hearts, 15:01 to our minds. We love it. Wow! Now Josie, 15:05 now you've been also watching 3ABN? That's right. 15:09 Wow! And it's been a blessing to you too, huh? Absolutely. 15:12 Well is there anything you want to share with us? 15:14 How did you hear about the meeting tonight? 15:17 Well, we heard it from the 3ABN TV program. 15:22 And then we "Googled" it, naturally, and saw all the... 15:25 all the programs that were going to be televised through 15:29 Phoenix. And we've been to a few of the other churches. 15:33 A few of the other pastors, yes. 15:35 Wow! C.A. Murray... we saw him. 15:38 And then we saw Shelley Quinn last night. 15:40 And we're here tonight to see John. 15:43 Ah... So we're very excited about it. It's been a wonderful 15:45 blessing. Amen! Amen! We're so glad that you've come tonight! 15:50 And tonight is your first night at this church? 15:53 Our very first time stepping in here. It feels wonderful. 15:57 Praise the Lord! I know you're going to be blessed. 15:59 And thank you for coming. Tonight's topic is about 16:01 the book that breathes, and so it's going to be exciting. 16:05 We know that the Holy Spirit led you here. Absolutely. 16:08 Absolutely! We're breathing in every word. 16:10 Amen! Amen! All right... well welcome 16:13 and we thank you for joining us. 16:18 Thank you Angie. What a powerful testimony! 16:20 I tell you, it's just stories like that that just does 16:23 something to your heart, doesn't it Ralph? To hear how 16:24 someone's life is being changed. 16:26 How they're encouraged about coming back to church 16:28 and everything. Right. I tell you: what a blessing! 16:30 Thank you so much. Great report there from the church 16:32 here at Paradise Valley Seventh-day Adventist church. 16:35 And Ralph, it's good to have you here. 16:38 I want to just tell you something about Ralph. 16:39 I don't get the opportunity to sit down - oh-oh - with Ralph 16:42 too often but we go back a long time. 16:45 We both came to 3ABN... I came in 1999 16:48 and you came just thereafter not long. 16:50 And we did contract work. About a year later, 2 years later. 16:52 And Ralph, where we're at right now 16:54 is the truck that's parked outside the Paradise Valley 16:58 SDA church. Same truck I think. 17:00 Exactly. I was going to say this is the truck that you and I 17:02 started out with years ago. This truck is basically 17:04 twenty years old. Yeah. And we traveled around with this truck 17:07 together. So Ralph's not only a co-worker but he's 17:10 a great friend. Thank you. And I appreciate him. 17:12 And man, we have lots of great memories together, but 17:15 we're not here to talk about all those memories right now. 17:17 Well we're in the truck, Ralph, and you do... I don't know, 17:19 you wear so many hats at 3ABN. You're talented in many areas. 17:22 But I also see you as an engineer, too, 17:26 in a sense. And there is some equipment that we're... 17:29 that we have here in the truck that is just incredible. 17:33 I'm going to have Ralph explain that to us. 17:35 But we've been having some problems with it this week. 17:37 So we thought that we'd bring it to your attention - 17:40 right - that you can bring it up in prayer. 17:42 Because we're able to ob- viously to get the broadcast out. 17:45 You've been able to watch it and see the signal 17:48 and see the programming, but we're struggling with this 17:50 a little bit. So we thought... Ralph gave us a little report. 17:53 We can pray for this equipment because it will speed things up. 17:56 So Ralph, tell us about Softron. We throw around the word 17:59 Softron. And explain to people at home what that means 18:02 and how it has sped up the process. 18:04 I've been talking so much here, but we've been in this truck 18:07 for 20 years. The equipment has obviously changed. 18:09 We started out SD: standard def. We're high definition. 18:12 We've upgraded the truck on the inside with the equipment. 18:14 But explain what Softron is and how it's a blessing to us 18:16 when it works. Well Greg, that's a great question. 18:19 And you know, you said a lot of the equipment has changed. 18:22 It's amazing. Some of it hasn't, so I think 18:25 3ABN has a great track record for using - making good use - 18:29 and being accountable in all the best ways 18:32 for every dollar that's spent on equipment 18:34 and making sure that we put it to good use 18:38 for our purposes here. 18:39 God's very faithful. Amen! 18:41 Well Softron allows us to do something that 18:44 kind of is hard to conceive of. 18:46 But literally it allows us to begin editing a program 18:49 before we finish recording it. 18:52 That doesn't even seem possible, does it? 18:54 Isn't that amazing? Yeah, it does take a bit of a pause. 18:56 And even those of us who are very technical 18:59 when we first heard of this technology we didn't really 19:03 understand what we were hearing. 19:06 But that's what we've been doing and actually we've been using 19:09 those types of workflows here at 3ABN on the road - 19:12 more recently on the road - and for several years already, 19:15 hard to believe, back at 3ABN studios. 19:18 And so that allows us... One to three editors 19:22 can potentially begin to cut or edit a program 19:26 as the program is being recorded 19:28 and specifically within five or six minutes after 19:31 we start airing a program. So think of this: 19:33 when the director says: "Three, two, one, zero... 19:37 we're recording. " About four or five minutes later 19:40 an editor can sit down and start fixing that program. 19:43 What's incredible, too, Ralph, is that it's recording 19:45 all of the cameras at the same time. 19:47 It's not just recording one and then the director punches 19:49 a button and goes to the next camera. 19:50 It's recording all 6, 7, 8 cameras at once. 19:53 It's really incredible software. That's amazing! 19:54 We call those isodes where each camera has its own 19:58 dedicated channel, and then of course we get what the director 20:00 is cutting. Yeah... no... that's true. 20:02 So we've been having some troubles with it here, Ralph. 20:04 We've got just a few seconds left here in this segment 20:06 but we've been having some troubles with it. 20:08 It's been kind of recording, not kind of recording. 20:10 So that's something that we really want to bring to you 20:12 at home to please pray for this. Yes! 20:15 Because it's an incredible piece of equipment 20:17 that we've been using for a year or two. Right. 20:19 And it's not quite working right here, 20:21 so please lift that up in prayer. 20:23 And by faith, Ralph, the Lord's going to make that thing work. 20:26 Amen. I agree with that. 20:27 What we want to do right now is actually go to an incredible 20:30 interview at the Phoenix Central SDA church 20:32 where Shelley and J.D. are at with Norm Johnson, 20:35 their head elder there. And he's also a great 20:37 family friend of my parents and myself. 20:39 So let's go to that interview right now. 20:44 Share with people how important is evangelism 20:48 to the Central church. 20:50 Evangelism is very important to the Central church. 20:53 For the last 6 years or so we have had some type of 20:57 evangelistic effort like Daniel Seminar, 21:02 a Revelation Seminar. We keep that ongoing all the time. 21:06 And it has been fruitful. We have brought in 21:10 a few people this way. 21:13 We have had evangelism in some of the hotels around here 21:19 and we have been successful in bringing in some 21:24 people through our efforts. 21:28 Amen! We try to keep it going. 21:31 And we try also to keep prayer meeting going 21:37 as well and Bible study and things like that 21:41 so our people will be students of the Word. 21:46 Amen. Amen! 21:48 So I know... it's obvious being around you and Dolly 21:51 that you're in love with Jesus. 21:52 You've "sold out" to Jesus 21:54 and that you're always willing to do whatever it takes 21:57 to help make a difference. To help someone 22:00 to take the next step entering to His kingdom 22:05 on that wonderful day that He comes. 22:07 Yeah... we're committed. We are both committed 22:09 to doing whatever is necessary 22:13 you know to further the gospel in this area. 22:17 And whatever job it might be. 22:20 My... I'm like this: when someone said 22:25 "I don't care..." I mean if I'm doing something... 22:27 "I don't care who gets the credit... " 22:30 you know, "as long as we get the job done. " 22:33 And I think that that IS the right attitude. 22:36 Some people. they're responsible for sowing. 22:38 Some are responsible for watering. 22:40 And then there's some that are responsible for reaping. 22:43 But it's really through the aid of the Holy Spirit 22:45 that any of this takes place. 22:47 And here again, I just know how much you love Jesus. 22:50 I feel I'm just the instrument in His hands. 22:52 And I'm committed to Him because you know 22:57 I make sure I have my devotion in the morning. 23:01 And if I don't have His word... 23:03 I have to read something in His Word before I eat. 23:09 Amen! So I'm committed to that. You know what I mean? 23:10 You've gotta have... I have to have my physical food 23:14 and I feel I have to have my spiritual food as well. 23:17 Amen... and I totally agree with that. 23:20 In closing is there something particular that 23:24 I guess that we always would want to invite anybody 23:27 that's in the area. And what is the address here? 23:31 777 W. Montecito Drive 23:38 Yes! And it's a wonderful wonderful auditorium 23:42 and the leadership here "sold out" to Jesus. 23:47 And I'll guarantee you if you want lots of hugs 23:50 this is the place to come. Would you agree? 23:53 Amen! Amen! We are a hugging church. 23:57 Well here again, this is Norm, this is J.D. 23:59 And we just want to thank you for taking a few minutes 24:03 to just get an idea of where our hearts are. 24:09 Thank you J.D. Quinn and Elder Norm Johnson. 24:11 What a great report coming from the Phoenix Central SDA church. 24:15 Now where you see Jill and I standing 24:17 probably looks familiar to you. 24:19 And it should, because we're standing on the stage of the 24:21 Paradise Valley SDA church. 24:24 Just in a few more minutes we're going to start here with 24:26 Pastor John Lomacang on the stage. 24:28 But we have someone else here with us, don't we? 24:30 We do. We've had a great day visiting with the conference. 24:33 Such a blessing! Such a warm welcome that we've had 24:36 hearing the reports of what God is doing in the churches 24:39 all around this area. And now as Greg mentioned 24:42 we're back here at the church with Bro. Tim Parton. 24:44 Amen! Just a joy to have you here. 24:47 And we're getting ready for the music here tonight. We are! 24:49 You know, one of the things I've enjoyed about the past few days 24:53 is the trip actually from where we're staying 24:56 to the church. And we don't take the Interstate. 24:59 We take a lot of the side streets. 25:01 And we see a lot of people. 25:02 I've noticed people on the sides... on the sidewalks. 25:05 And we see people from all walks of life. 25:08 And just this afternoon when we were coming here 25:11 we noticed some people that looked like their day may not 25:15 have been going very well. Yeah, very true. That's true. 25:17 And, you know, the world is full of people like that. 25:20 We ourselves have days that we don't 25:24 exactly maybe wake up on the right side of the bed. 25:27 But we're blessed to wake up on the right side of the dust. 25:32 But I feel a little song because of some situations 25:37 that have gone on like with the equipment... 25:38 Yes... we're really praying. God put His hand over that safely. 25:43 Yeah. God doesn't promise that life will always go 25:47 exactly our way... the way we want it to. 25:50 But I just... I know that without Him 25:53 I would be lost, and the situations that I go through 25:57 that are frustrating and calamitous to me... 26:01 where would I be without Him? 26:03 You know, I think, Tim, it's in Isaiah that it talks about 26:05 Christ doesn't necessarily keep us from the storm 26:07 but He's with us through the storm. 26:09 And that is the important part. Yeah! Amen! 26:11 Through it all we can trust in Jesus. 26:13 You want to play that song and sing that song for us? 26:16 So we're actually going to say goodbye to you. 26:18 We're going to let Tim take us out 26:20 and then we're going to look for Pastor John Lomacang 26:22 here on this stage in just a couple of moments. 26:24 God bless you. 26:28 I've had many tears and sorrows, 26:32 I've had questions for tomorrow, 26:35 there've been times when I didn't know 26:38 right from wrong. 26:42 But in every situation 26:46 God gave me blessed consolation 26:50 that my trials come to only make me strong. 26:57 So I sing: through it all, 27:02 through it all, 27:05 I've learned to trust in Jesus, 27:09 I've learned to trust in God. 27:13 Through it all, 27:17 through it all, 27:20 I've learned to depend upon His Word. 27:27 So I thank God for the mountains 27:31 and I thank Him for the valleys 27:34 and I thank Him 27:36 for the storms He's brought me through. 27:41 For if I never had a problem 27:45 I wouldn't know that God could solve them; 27:49 I wouldn't know what faith in God would do. |
Revised 2018-06-05