She experienced the call of God
00:00:01.00\00:00:02.00
so powerfully in her life,
00:00:02.00\00:00:03.23
she was ready to run to
the river and baptize herself.
00:00:03.23\00:00:06.26
The Jordan River
is now a small stream
00:00:56.10\00:00:58.40
less than 50 feet wide.
00:00:58.40\00:01:00.36
Centuries ago it was a
little more impressive,
00:01:00.36\00:01:02.83
but now most of the
water feeding the Jordan
00:01:02.83\00:01:05.20
is used for irrigation.
00:01:05.20\00:01:07.56
It flows from the Sea
of Galilee to the Dead Sea
00:01:07.56\00:01:10.83
a distance of 70 miles.
00:01:10.83\00:01:13.56
Yep, because the
river slowly meanders
00:01:13.56\00:01:15.60
around the valley.
00:01:15.60\00:01:16.60
It travels a
distance of 110 miles.
00:01:16.60\00:01:19.46
Much of the area isn't
suitable for settlements,
00:01:22.26\00:01:24.86
so it is mostly farmland.
00:01:24.86\00:01:26.96
In the thick vegetation
along the river live the lions
00:01:28.63\00:01:31.40
that David killed
when protecting His sheep.
00:01:31.40\00:01:34.80
It was also a
strategic line in many battles.
00:01:34.80\00:01:37.90
As well as the river King David
00:01:37.90\00:01:39.43
crossed to
escape his son's army.
00:01:39.43\00:01:41.50
Stories of the
Jordan River abound,
00:01:43.13\00:01:45.56
the Syrian general Mammon
00:01:45.56\00:01:47.00
who felt he was
insulted by God's prophet
00:01:47.00\00:01:49.40
because he was
directed to bathe in river,
00:01:49.40\00:01:51.86
he considered greatly inferior
to those in his own country.
00:01:51.86\00:01:56.06
But upon swallowing his pride
00:01:56.06\00:01:57.76
and bathing seven
times as directed,
00:01:57.76\00:02:00.23
he was healed of his leprosy.
00:02:00.23\00:02:02.80
Elisha saved the day
for the school of prophets
00:02:02.80\00:02:05.10
by causing a
lost ax head to float
00:02:05.10\00:02:07.30
up to the surface of the water.
00:02:07.30\00:02:09.60
And we can't forget God stopping
00:02:09.60\00:02:11.53
the flow of the water,
00:02:11.53\00:02:12.53
so that children of
Israel could cross over
00:02:12.53\00:02:14.83
to take
possession of Canaan land.
00:02:14.83\00:02:18.13
And it is known the
world over by Christians
00:02:18.13\00:02:20.60
as the place
where Jesus was baptized
00:02:20.60\00:02:22.43
by John the
Baptist, as our example.
00:02:22.43\00:02:25.03
Jesus came to the river
Jordan to be baptized by John,
00:02:29.53\00:02:32.93
not because He needed it
00:02:32.93\00:02:34.53
but for an example
for you and for me.
00:02:34.53\00:02:36.96
In this fresco on
the side of the church
00:02:36.96\00:02:38.86
however we see
John sprinkling Jesus.
00:02:38.86\00:02:41.93
Not the way
because the Bible said
00:02:41.93\00:02:43.90
that Jesus came
up out of the water,
00:02:43.90\00:02:46.03
signifying the manner
in which he was baptized.
00:02:46.03\00:02:49.00
Still it's a beautiful painting
00:02:49.00\00:02:51.23
on the side of a
beautiful church.
00:02:51.23\00:02:53.36
Tonia, we drove today
for at least six hours
00:02:54.83\00:02:58.50
and I thought,
when are we ever going
00:02:58.50\00:03:00.23
to get to our location,
00:03:00.23\00:03:01.46
and it seemed
like there was nothing
00:03:01.46\00:03:02.63
just field after
field after field.
00:03:02.63\00:03:05.00
And then we arrived here,
00:03:05.00\00:03:06.43
your home is like
a beautiful Mecca.
00:03:06.43\00:03:09.20
It's truly a beautiful corner
00:03:09.20\00:03:11.36
that's what I
like the most about it.
00:03:11.36\00:03:14.50
Did you do all of
this yourself? Yes.
00:03:14.50\00:03:18.10
It's beautiful. Thank you.
00:03:18.10\00:03:21.10
So, how many years have
you lived here? Ten years.
00:03:21.10\00:03:24.93
And where did you
live before? Kazakhstan.
00:03:24.93\00:03:28.40
And how long did
you live in Kazakhstan.
00:03:28.40\00:03:30.40
Foreign Language
00:03:30.40\00:03:33.36
I lived in
Kazakhstan for the thirty years
00:03:35.53\00:03:38.46
and worked many jobs.
00:03:38.46\00:03:40.50
Foreign Language
00:03:40.50\00:03:43.46
I first worked
for hemming factory.
00:03:48.10\00:03:50.80
Foreign Language
00:03:50.80\00:03:53.80
Then as an engineering manager.
00:04:02.70\00:04:05.56
Foreign Language
00:04:05.56\00:04:08.56
Now tell me you lived
during the time of communism.
00:04:11.30\00:04:15.80
Yes, of course.
00:04:15.80\00:04:17.53
Can you tell me
what that was like?
00:04:17.53\00:04:19.46
Foreign Language
00:04:19.46\00:04:22.46
To tell you the
truth, everything was good.
00:04:26.96\00:04:30.83
No one were
forceful, nobody bothered us,
00:04:30.83\00:04:34.73
we lived a beautiful home.
00:04:34.73\00:04:37.03
We had amazing jobs.
00:04:37.03\00:04:39.46
Foreign Language
00:04:39.46\00:04:42.46
But then
everything started shifting
00:04:43.96\00:04:47.20
and we got a notice
that we have to leave
00:04:47.20\00:04:51.06
everything and go.
00:04:51.06\00:04:52.76
Foreign Language
00:04:52.76\00:04:55.76
I thank God that
I had opportunity
00:04:57.83\00:05:01.36
to take all my belongings
00:05:01.36\00:05:03.56
leaving Kazakhstan behind me.
00:05:03.56\00:05:07.06
Foreign Language
00:05:07.06\00:05:10.03
I even had the chance to
grab all my needles and thread.
00:05:11.43\00:05:16.46
There were a lot of nice people
00:05:16.46\00:05:18.66
that helped me carry
all my belongings out.
00:05:18.66\00:05:22.20
Foreign Language
00:05:22.20\00:05:25.20
Can you share with me
what exactly caused the reason
00:05:26.70\00:05:30.10
for the loss of
your home and everything?
00:05:30.10\00:05:32.40
Foreign Language
00:05:32.40\00:05:35.40
I can't really answer
that question. I'm not sure.
00:05:37.50\00:05:42.83
Foreign Language
00:05:42.83\00:05:46.63
People seem nice, always polite.
00:05:46.63\00:05:50.20
We didn't feel uncomfortable,
everyone talked in Russian.
00:05:52.70\00:05:58.30
Foreign Language
00:05:58.30\00:06:01.30
Everything was fine but then
everything started changing.
00:06:02.83\00:06:08.83
Here in the Jordan River,
this is a traditional site
00:06:17.96\00:06:20.43
where people from all over
the world come to be baptized.
00:06:20.43\00:06:23.86
They say the place
where John was baptizing,
00:06:23.86\00:06:26.30
calling people to repents.
00:06:26.30\00:06:29.23
Remission of their sins, be
baptized in the watery grave
00:06:29.23\00:06:32.00
and come up as a new
believer in Jesus Christ.
00:06:32.00\00:06:35.50
One day, John looked and said,
00:06:35.50\00:06:37.73
"Behold, the Lamb of God
00:06:37.73\00:06:39.13
which taketh away
the sins of the world.
00:06:39.13\00:06:41.50
There's one among you he said,
00:06:41.50\00:06:43.60
who shoes I'm
not worthy to untie."
00:06:43.60\00:06:45.53
And people looked.
00:06:45.53\00:06:46.66
They said, "where, where?"
00:06:46.66\00:06:49.40
Please don't miss this point
00:06:49.40\00:06:50.63
because Jesus was
standing among the church,
00:06:50.63\00:06:54.06
the leadership, the
people of the church
00:06:54.06\00:06:56.00
of that day, and they didn't
00:06:56.00\00:06:57.90
recognized the
Savior, their Creator.
00:06:57.90\00:07:01.76
My friends, we need to
be careful of ourselves
00:07:01.76\00:07:03.90
if we must know Him.
00:07:03.90\00:07:05.56
Not just about
Him, we must know Him.
00:07:05.56\00:07:09.70
And Jesus went
down into the water
00:07:09.70\00:07:11.70
as an example
for you and for me.
00:07:11.70\00:07:13.86
Although His official ministry
was only six months long,
00:07:22.76\00:07:26.20
John the Baptist
was considered by Jesus
00:07:26.20\00:07:28.46
to be the
greatest of all prophets.
00:07:28.46\00:07:30.80
He lived and
preached in the wilderness
00:07:30.80\00:07:32.73
around the Jordan valley
00:07:32.73\00:07:34.30
and was known throughout Israel.
00:07:34.30\00:07:36.40
The Apostle John was one
of Jesus closest followers.
00:07:41.06\00:07:44.76
He recognized the
prophetic significance
00:07:44.76\00:07:46.60
in John the Baptist and began
the First chapter of his gospel
00:07:46.60\00:07:50.10
narrated by speaking of
John as one sent from God,
00:07:50.10\00:07:53.73
a witness to
testify concerning Jesus,
00:07:53.73\00:07:56.53
the light that was to
light the whole world.
00:07:56.53\00:07:59.43
The apostle also speaks
of John the Baptist denial
00:07:59.43\00:08:02.53
that He was the
Christ, instead saying
00:08:02.53\00:08:05.33
that He was the voice of
one crying in the wilderness.
00:08:05.33\00:08:08.16
Where there is no
voice, there is no hope.
00:08:11.76\00:08:14.43
But AWR is bringing
that hope, stay tuned.
00:08:14.43\00:08:17.96
Through the radio waves of AWR,
00:08:19.73\00:08:21.76
God is reaching
people around the world.
00:08:21.76\00:08:24.03
We'd like to offer you
an edition of Making Waves.
00:08:25.46\00:08:28.03
It's four of our
episodes brought to you
00:08:28.03\00:08:30.00
from around the world.
00:08:30.00\00:08:31.70
God speaking to hearts,
00:08:31.70\00:08:33.60
the hearts of the listeners
of AWR, exciting stories.
00:08:33.60\00:08:36.56
We hope that you'll
share those with friends
00:08:36.56\00:08:38.26
and neighbors, acquaintances,
00:08:38.26\00:08:39.83
anyone you come in contact with.
00:08:39.83\00:08:41.36
Join us to make
waves, it's completely free.
00:08:41.36\00:08:44.76
Right now the
information is on your screen.
00:08:44.76\00:08:48.30
For your free,
no obligation DVD,
00:08:48.30\00:08:50.66
write to Adventist World Radio,
00:08:50.66\00:08:53.23
12501 Old Columbia
Pike, Silver Spring, Maryland,
00:08:53.23\00:08:57.53
or log on to www.awr.org/MWDVD.
00:09:04.66\00:09:11.70
Be sure to
request offer number 10,
00:09:11.70\00:09:14.33
that number again
is 1-866-503-3531.
00:09:14.33\00:09:19.96
Here is another story of
hope from Adventist World Radio.
00:09:22.30\00:09:26.66
My name is Benjamin Schoun
00:09:26.66\00:09:27.93
and I'm the President
of Adventist World Radio.
00:09:27.93\00:09:30.60
Let me tell you
about our work in Vietnam,
00:09:30.60\00:09:32.93
the communist country,
00:09:32.93\00:09:34.20
where Christianity
is severely controlled
00:09:34.20\00:09:36.63
and public
evangelism is outlawed.
00:09:36.63\00:09:39.26
However programs broadcast
by Adventist World Radio
00:09:39.26\00:09:42.70
effortlessly reach Vietnam
and large numbers of people
00:09:42.70\00:09:46.60
listen secretly to
our message of hope.
00:09:46.60\00:09:49.10
Many of these people risk arrest
00:09:49.10\00:09:51.03
and severe punishment to gather
00:09:51.03\00:09:53.00
in small house churches
to listen to the programs
00:09:53.00\00:09:56.10
called Peace and Happiness.
00:09:56.10\00:09:57.80
These groups
continually send us letters
00:09:57.80\00:10:00.30
asking how to
bring others to Christ.
00:10:00.30\00:10:02.86
Time and again,
we are encouraged
00:10:02.86\00:10:04.80
by making contact with
another group of believers
00:10:04.80\00:10:07.73
brought to Christ
through the radio.
00:10:07.73\00:10:11.26
Adventist World Radio
shares the hope of Christ
00:10:11.26\00:10:14.96
with millions
of people everyday,
00:10:14.96\00:10:17.63
for more
information visit awr.org.
00:10:17.63\00:10:22.00
The Apostle John
after his exile to Patmos,
00:10:24.96\00:10:28.46
settled in Ephesus, or
modern day Selcuk, Turkey.
00:10:28.46\00:10:31.76
Where He fulfilled
his promise to Jesus
00:10:31.76\00:10:33.76
on the Cross to
look after his mother.
00:10:33.76\00:10:35.90
Walking among the
ruins of the ancient cities
00:10:39.60\00:10:41.70
I've read about in the Bible
00:10:41.70\00:10:43.10
is truly an
experience of a lifetime.
00:10:43.10\00:10:46.23
Reading the text at
home in my easy chair
00:10:46.23\00:10:48.53
will never be the same again.
00:10:48.53\00:10:50.50
It is truly for real.
00:10:50.50\00:10:53.33
Christian ruins
in and around Ephesus
00:10:53.33\00:10:55.63
includes several churches.
00:10:55.63\00:10:57.93
One is said to be the burial
place of the Apostle John,
00:10:57.93\00:11:01.20
the disciple of Jesus also known
00:11:01.20\00:11:03.20
as John the Revelator
and the one whom Jesus loved.
00:11:03.20\00:11:07.80
The church of Saint John
00:11:07.80\00:11:08.96
was built on a hill
overlooking modern day Selcuk.
00:11:08.96\00:11:12.43
Just below this hill once
stood the temple of Artemis.
00:11:12.43\00:11:15.60
One of the Seven
ancient wonders of the world.
00:11:15.60\00:11:18.20
The church was built
in the shape of a cross,
00:11:21.76\00:11:24.33
at the center
is what is believed
00:11:24.33\00:11:25.80
to be the tomb of John.
00:11:25.80\00:11:27.73
By the 6th century,
the building was suffering
00:11:30.13\00:11:32.43
from great
neglect and disrepair.
00:11:32.43\00:11:34.73
So Justinian the
Great, erected a new
00:11:34.73\00:11:36.93
and larger church upon the site.
00:11:36.93\00:11:40.00
On one side of the sanctuary
00:11:40.00\00:11:41.73
can be found the
remains of a baptistery
00:11:41.73\00:11:43.73
dating back to the 6th century.
00:11:43.73\00:11:45.56
So during that
time you were an atheist
00:11:49.76\00:11:52.93
or were you a Christian?
00:11:52.93\00:11:55.10
Foreign Language
00:11:55.10\00:11:58.06
You know I was raised
with my grandma and grandpa.
00:12:01.63\00:12:06.13
Foreign Language
00:12:06.13\00:12:09.13
They were Orthodox Christians
and I grew up Christian.
00:12:12.36\00:12:17.70
Foreign Language
00:12:17.70\00:12:20.70
You know everyone
loved me and I loved them.
00:12:29.13\00:12:33.43
Foreign Language
00:12:33.43\00:12:36.40
When I was going
through hard time
00:12:40.40\00:12:43.30
I remember of God and I prayed.
00:12:43.30\00:12:46.23
Foreign Language
00:12:46.23\00:12:49.20
During good times
I forgot about God
00:12:56.16\00:12:59.60
and didn't
really read the Bible.
00:12:59.60\00:13:03.03
Foreign Language
00:13:03.03\00:13:06.03
When my husband passed away
00:13:10.46\00:13:13.86
I questioned where God was.
00:13:13.86\00:13:17.23
Foreign Language
00:13:17.23\00:13:20.20
Did you really have
a strong faith in God
00:13:22.73\00:13:25.26
all of that time or did
it kind of go up and down
00:13:25.26\00:13:28.66
or tell me little more? No.
00:13:28.66\00:13:31.63
Foreign Language
00:13:31.63\00:13:34.63
I never really
stayed connected with God
00:13:38.83\00:13:42.60
unless certain
holidays came along
00:13:42.60\00:13:46.06
such as Easter or Christmas
00:13:46.06\00:13:49.43
that was the time
to remember Christ.
00:13:49.43\00:13:52.76
Foreign Language
00:13:52.76\00:13:55.76
But overall, going to church
or just remembering God, no.
00:14:02.73\00:14:08.86
Foreign Language
00:14:08.86\00:14:12.66
But something changed in
your life all of that change.
00:14:12.66\00:14:16.36
Can you share
with me that story?
00:14:16.36\00:14:18.86
Foreign Language
00:14:18.86\00:14:22.50
I became a believer
slowly by taking baby steps.
00:14:22.50\00:14:27.60
Foreign Language
00:14:27.60\00:14:30.60
Me and my son studied the Bible
00:14:36.26\00:14:39.90
and had many questions.
00:14:39.90\00:14:42.33
But no one to turn for answers.
00:14:42.33\00:14:45.83
Foreign Language
00:14:45.83\00:14:48.80
There was Jana and Ulia,
00:14:55.13\00:14:57.53
so we turned to
them with our questions.
00:14:57.53\00:15:01.40
Foreign Language
00:15:01.40\00:15:04.36
She had satellite and
told us about Voice of Hope.
00:15:09.40\00:15:13.66
So I started receiving lessons.
00:15:13.66\00:15:17.06
Foreign Language
00:15:17.06\00:15:20.06
I have never written poems
00:15:26.80\00:15:29.90
and here I was writing poems.
00:15:29.90\00:15:33.20
Foreign Language
00:15:33.20\00:15:36.20
I started writing
poems about the things
00:15:43.43\00:15:46.60
that bother me the most.
00:15:46.60\00:15:48.93
People told me that
Christ wasn't crucified
00:15:48.93\00:15:53.13
on a cross but on a pole.
00:15:53.13\00:15:55.80
Foreign Language
00:15:55.80\00:15:58.80
It makes no difference to me,
00:16:06.50\00:16:09.13
all I know is that
Christ spilled his blood for me.
00:16:09.13\00:16:14.50
And I believe
that's what really matters.
00:16:14.50\00:16:18.30
Foreign Language
00:16:18.30\00:16:21.30
I didn't know we
had churches around
00:16:28.93\00:16:31.66
but I did know that I
wanted to get baptized.
00:16:31.66\00:16:36.00
Foreign Language
00:16:36.00\00:16:38.96
In the past I never
really thought about it.
00:16:43.40\00:16:47.03
So, wrote to Voice of Hope
00:16:47.03\00:16:49.36
that I wanted to get baptized
00:16:49.36\00:16:52.06
but I didn't
have the opportunity.
00:16:52.06\00:16:55.86
And I told them
that I would wait until
00:16:55.86\00:16:59.60
we were by our home, but warmer.
00:16:59.60\00:17:02.90
And I would go,
stand in it and say,
00:17:02.90\00:17:06.83
God take me I'm yours.
00:17:06.83\00:17:09.90
Foreign Language
00:17:09.90\00:17:12.53
After a short while
I received a letter.
00:17:12.53\00:17:15.93
So you were going to
go baptized yourself,
00:17:18.36\00:17:20.96
what happened? Did you?
00:17:20.96\00:17:23.16
Yes.
00:17:25.06\00:17:26.66
Foreign Language
00:17:26.66\00:17:29.63
I've wrote a letter and never
expected anyone to answer it.
00:17:32.06\00:17:37.40
Foreign Language
00:17:37.40\00:17:40.40
Then I received a
letter and I had no idea
00:17:41.43\00:17:45.73
where it came
from and who it was.
00:17:45.73\00:17:48.90
Foreign Language
00:17:48.90\00:17:50.90
His name was Evan Putter.
00:17:52.80\00:17:55.63
He asked me what my
needs were spiritually
00:17:55.63\00:18:00.46
and that he
would come to visit me.
00:18:00.46\00:18:03.20
Foreign Language
00:18:03.20\00:18:06.16
I called him and
we'd a discussion.
00:18:08.83\00:18:11.90
Foreign Language
00:18:11.90\00:18:14.86
He promised to visit on the
17 of that month to baptize me.
00:18:17.36\00:18:23.93
Valara and Tatiana all
wanted to get baptized.
00:18:23.93\00:18:29.00
So it seems like God
led you step by step,
00:18:29.00\00:18:31.86
in Bible study and studies
and listening to the radio,
00:18:31.86\00:18:36.50
till you're saying, this is it.
00:18:36.50\00:18:41.23
Yes, exactly that.
00:18:41.23\00:18:43.80
Here is another story of
hope from Adventist World Radio.
00:18:45.13\00:18:49.53
Berhanu could
not believe his ears,
00:18:49.53\00:18:52.53
a radio program in
Oromo, his native language.
00:18:52.53\00:18:56.30
It was so rare yet there it was,
00:18:56.30\00:18:59.53
from a station called
Adventist World Radio.
00:18:59.53\00:19:02.83
Berhanu was so happy
with his new discovery,
00:19:02.83\00:19:05.80
that he traveled to Addis Ababa
00:19:05.80\00:19:07.50
to see the station for himself.
00:19:07.50\00:19:10.30
After arriving,
Berhanu hadn't a clue
00:19:10.30\00:19:13.63
where to find Adventist
World Radio in the massive city.
00:19:13.63\00:19:18.00
Miraculously
though, a stranger offered
00:19:18.00\00:19:20.63
to guide Berhanu to the station.
00:19:20.63\00:19:23.26
He couldn't believe his eyes.
00:19:23.26\00:19:25.40
Berhanu kept asking, is
this really the station.
00:19:25.40\00:19:29.10
Are you really the
people who speak about Christ?
00:19:29.10\00:19:34.00
Adventist world Radio
shares the hope of Christ
00:19:34.00\00:19:37.80
with millions
of people everyday,
00:19:37.80\00:19:40.46
for more
information visit awr.org.
00:19:40.46\00:19:45.40
As you can see AWR is
frontline mission radio.
00:19:45.40\00:19:49.13
Our first priority is to travel
00:19:49.13\00:19:51.13
where missionaries cannot go.
00:19:51.13\00:19:53.30
We broadcast thousands of hours
00:19:53.30\00:19:55.70
each day in 70 major
languages of the world.
00:19:55.70\00:19:59.43
AWR has the capability
and capacity of blanketing
00:19:59.43\00:20:02.50
almost 80 percent of
the world's population.
00:20:02.50\00:20:05.63
Not only do we
broadcast via shortwave radio,
00:20:05.63\00:20:08.66
but our signal is on
over 1,000 FM and AM stations
00:20:08.66\00:20:12.66
around the world as well.
00:20:12.66\00:20:14.86
Our podcast
subscribers, Internet users
00:20:14.86\00:20:17.63
satellite downlinks
are growing rapidly,
00:20:17.63\00:20:20.30
evidenced by the
hundred thousand plus
00:20:20.30\00:20:22.50
emails, letters, and phone calls
00:20:22.50\00:20:24.80
we receive each and every year.
00:20:24.80\00:20:27.16
Yes, AWR is your mission radio.
00:20:27.16\00:20:30.33
No walls and no borders.
00:20:30.33\00:20:32.03
For AWR that means changed lives
00:20:32.03\00:20:34.10
and changed
hearts around the world,
00:20:34.10\00:20:35.90
because God is
using the airwaves of AWR
00:20:35.90\00:20:39.36
to reach people everywhere.
00:20:39.36\00:20:41.26
The house of the Virgin
Mary is just a few miles
00:20:46.16\00:20:48.63
up in the
mountains from Ephesus.
00:20:48.63\00:20:50.50
Tradition says that
here, in these mountains,
00:20:50.50\00:20:53.13
John cared for
Mary until her death.
00:20:53.13\00:20:56.00
The stories of Mary
00:20:56.00\00:20:57.16
say that she often
visited the Holy Land.
00:20:57.16\00:20:59.70
In one of her
visits, she became ill.
00:20:59.70\00:21:02.60
Conflicting
stories now circulate,
00:21:02.60\00:21:04.93
some say she died in Jerusalem
00:21:04.93\00:21:06.90
and some say that she recovered
00:21:06.90\00:21:08.56
and returned to Ephesus
and eventually died here.
00:21:08.56\00:21:11.83
In 1891, Lazarus of Smyrna
00:21:13.80\00:21:16.33
identified this
place as the house of Mary.
00:21:16.33\00:21:18.83
As seen in a dream
by Catherine Emmerich
00:21:18.83\00:21:20.83
in the early 19th century.
00:21:20.83\00:21:23.53
Although there
is no hard evidence
00:21:23.53\00:21:25.50
there are many
traditions dating back
00:21:25.50\00:21:27.10
to the third ecumenical
council in Ephesus in 431
00:21:27.10\00:21:30.70
that say that this
was indeed her home.
00:21:30.70\00:21:33.80
The one thing we do
know is that John took Jesus
00:21:35.66\00:21:38.60
at his word and
cared for his mother.
00:21:38.60\00:21:41.10
We also know that John
00:21:41.10\00:21:42.50
was the pastor of
the church in Ephesus.
00:21:42.50\00:21:45.40
John, Mary and the
other Christians living here
00:21:45.40\00:21:48.30
frequently experienced
persecution by local residents.
00:21:48.30\00:21:52.00
But the love of
God is like a magnet
00:21:52.00\00:21:54.00
calling to even the
most hardened hearts.
00:21:54.00\00:21:57.10
Those who hated
the Christians most,
00:21:57.10\00:21:59.06
once touched by the spirit
00:21:59.06\00:22:00.90
often becomes
Christ's most ardent followers.
00:22:00.90\00:22:04.46
This was seen in the
life of the Apostle John
00:22:04.46\00:22:06.53
and His brother James,
00:22:06.53\00:22:07.83
who were once known
as the Sons of Thunder.
00:22:07.83\00:22:10.40
What does the AWR
Voice of Hope programs
00:22:13.53\00:22:15.96
mean to you now?
00:22:15.96\00:22:17.80
Foreign Language
00:22:17.80\00:22:21.03
I read the Bible and at
times I don't understand it.
00:22:21.03\00:22:25.56
Sergey Kuzmin opened up my
eyes to those difficult areas
00:22:27.70\00:22:33.43
that I had a hard
time understanding
00:22:33.43\00:22:36.46
and Voice of Hope
helped me understand them.
00:22:36.46\00:22:40.43
You know I had an
opportunity to meet your son
00:22:41.96\00:22:45.00
before we came over the porch,
00:22:45.00\00:22:47.23
and he told me that you got him
started listening to AWR also.
00:22:47.23\00:22:52.40
Foreign Language
00:22:52.40\00:22:55.36
You know,
Valara actually painted
00:22:59.50\00:23:02.60
and wrote poems
back in Kazakhstan
00:23:02.60\00:23:05.86
relating to the Bible.
00:23:05.86\00:23:07.80
But he did that as a hobby.
00:23:07.80\00:23:10.86
Foreign Language
00:23:10.86\00:23:13.86
It was only after
his father passed away
00:23:16.40\00:23:20.60
did he start studying
00:23:20.60\00:23:22.70
and going deeper
into understanding it.
00:23:22.70\00:23:26.23
Foreign Language
00:23:26.23\00:23:29.50
And what did that
mean to you as a mother
00:23:29.50\00:23:32.06
to see your son studying
and coming closer to God?
00:23:32.06\00:23:35.06
It's a blessing when the
whole family is Christian.
00:23:37.60\00:23:42.50
Foreign Language
00:23:42.50\00:23:44.36
We sit down on Saturdays
00:23:44.36\00:23:47.40
and read our Bible assignments.
00:23:47.40\00:23:50.60
Foreign Language
00:23:50.60\00:23:54.26
Together we praised the Lord.
00:23:54.26\00:23:57.30
Our discussions
are always about God
00:23:57.30\00:24:01.63
and I thank God for that.
00:24:01.63\00:24:04.80
It is truly a blessing.
00:24:04.80\00:24:07.30
So you now hold church
right in your home? Yes.
00:24:07.30\00:24:11.70
And you're the instructor
the teacher and the pastor?
00:24:11.70\00:24:14.73
Foreign Language
00:24:14.73\00:24:18.03
Valara is our home pastor,
he reads the assignments.
00:24:18.03\00:24:23.30
Foreign Language
00:24:23.30\00:24:24.96
I have a Bible in
hand and I read and yes,
00:24:24.96\00:24:29.70
that's how we do it.
00:24:29.70\00:24:32.83
Tonia, I can see
that you just glow for God
00:24:32.83\00:24:36.46
just like your flowers. Yes.
00:24:36.46\00:24:39.93
Come, you've to show
me, you've got to show me.
00:24:39.93\00:24:42.60
Tonia and her husband
had a good life in communism.
00:25:04.56\00:25:08.03
But after they moved back
to Russia, her husband died.
00:25:08.03\00:25:12.26
There's nothing like death
00:25:12.26\00:25:13.63
that turns one's mind
toward eternal things.
00:25:13.63\00:25:16.80
Tonia was ready to
listen to the programs
00:25:16.80\00:25:19.56
of the Voice of Hope.
00:25:19.56\00:25:21.43
She found Voice
of Hope on her radio
00:25:21.43\00:25:24.63
and she began to listen.
00:25:24.63\00:25:26.90
But that is the
thing that leads us
00:25:26.90\00:25:29.73
to the most
interesting part of her story,
00:25:29.73\00:25:32.63
after she listened to the
radio and took the Bible course,
00:25:32.63\00:25:36.00
she decided that she
needed to be baptized.
00:25:36.00\00:25:39.53
She wrote a letter to
the Voice of Hope offices
00:25:39.53\00:25:42.26
but they were far away.
00:25:42.26\00:25:44.30
She thought, well I don't think
00:25:44.30\00:25:46.13
anyone will come to baptize me.
00:25:46.13\00:25:49.50
And so she determined
that if someone did not come
00:25:49.50\00:25:53.63
within a certain period of time
00:25:53.63\00:25:55.50
she was gonna go to the
river and baptize herself.
00:25:55.50\00:25:59.10
That reminds me
of another listener
00:25:59.10\00:26:00.76
we had that
wrote in sometime ago.
00:26:00.76\00:26:03.53
He wanted to know if he could be
00:26:03.53\00:26:05.10
baptized by correspondence.
00:26:05.10\00:26:07.50
Well, that's an
interesting thought.
00:26:07.50\00:26:09.80
But, you know, I believe God
00:26:09.80\00:26:11.30
understands the hearts of people
00:26:11.30\00:26:13.13
like that and
what their desires are.
00:26:13.13\00:26:16.40
In the case of Tonia,
a pastor did write to her
00:26:16.40\00:26:20.50
and she had a very wonderful
and meaningful baptism.
00:26:20.50\00:26:24.50
I'm sitting here
by the Jordan River
00:26:24.50\00:26:26.86
and this is the very river
that John used to baptize Jesus
00:26:26.86\00:26:30.30
and many other people
who had come to repentance.
00:26:30.30\00:26:33.50
Baptism, you see, is the symbol
00:26:33.50\00:26:36.40
that Jesus chose to
symbolize conversion.
00:26:36.40\00:26:41.36
It symbolizes death
00:26:41.36\00:26:43.26
and burial to
the old life of sin
00:26:43.26\00:26:46.63
and resurrection to
the new life in Christ.
00:26:46.63\00:26:50.40
You can help many more
people create waves of baptism
00:26:50.40\00:26:54.60
through the ministry of AWR.
00:26:54.60\00:26:57.10
AWR is making waves of
baptism around the world.
00:26:58.20\00:27:02.30
If you'd like to
join us give us a call
00:27:02.30\00:27:04.70
1-866-503-3531 or you
can write us at 12501,
00:27:04.70\00:27:11.40
Old Columbia Pike,
Silver Spring, Maryland 20904
00:27:11.40\00:27:16.06
or log on to our
website www.awr.org.
00:27:16.06\00:27:21.90
Thank you for watching
and please join us again
00:27:21.90\00:27:24.16
for another
exciting gospel adventure,
00:27:24.16\00:27:26.33
because around the
world, AWR is making waves.
00:27:26.33\00:27:29.80