Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY018004A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:10 Hello, and welcome to 3ABN Today. 01:13 We want to thank you for joining us today. 01:15 And you're going to really enjoy 01:18 this wonderful testimony. 01:20 It's to see what God can do to gain someone's attention. 01:26 And then once they've surrendered control 01:29 of their life to Him, 01:31 how God can use them in such a mighty ways. 01:34 We just want to thank you 01:36 for your prayers, and your love, 01:38 and your financial support of 3ABN 01:40 because by teaming with us you're supporting 01:44 our worldwide evangelistic outreach. 01:47 So thank you so much. 01:49 Our guest story today reminds me 01:51 of 1 Corinthians 15:31. 01:54 And there Paul says, 01:56 "I die daily brothers, I mean it." 01:59 Paul had learned to deny self, pick up his cross, 02:05 and let God guide his life. 02:08 And Paul found that life was so much more satisfying 02:11 when God was in control. 02:13 And you're going to find out that's the same thing 02:15 that happened with our special guest 02:17 who is Sergio Bellino. 02:20 And, Sergio, we're so glad you're here today. 02:23 Thank you for having me, Shelley. 02:24 You're with the 02:25 Munguluni Adventists Mission in Mozambique. 02:29 And I said that correctly. 02:31 That's perfect. Wonderful. 02:32 Tell us just a little of how long you've been there. 02:37 Just give us a short little intro to your life? 02:41 Well, my family and I arrived in Mozambique 02:45 at the mission in April, 2017. 02:49 And it's been just a few months 02:53 but it feels like we've been there 02:54 for a very long time. 02:56 We've enjoyed it. It's been challenging. 02:58 But we really, I was talking to my daughter yesterday. 03:03 She was a little bit sad and I said, 03:04 "Andrea, what's going on?" 03:07 And she missed Munguluni, I couldn't believe it. 03:10 I mean, we felt like that's home for us. 03:15 Wonderful, well, we can't wait to hear your story. 03:18 But before we do, we have some special music. 03:21 And we just want to thank Gale Jones Murphy 03:27 who is going to play the piano for us today. 03:29 And she's playing "I love the Lord". 07:42 Well, we want to thank Gale Jones Murphy 07:44 for dedicating her talents to the Lord 07:47 and sharing with us. 07:49 If you're joining us just a little later, 07:51 our special guest today is Sergio Bellino. 07:55 And, Sergio, I know you told me 07:57 that you were born into an Adventist Christian family. 08:02 That's right. 08:03 But when did God become real to you? 08:08 That's a great question. 08:09 I mean, growing up in an Adventist home, 08:12 took a lot of things for granted. 08:17 I didn't really have a relationship, 08:19 a genuine relationship with Christ. 08:21 It wasn't until I actually left Peru. 08:27 And I went to the United States to pursue, 08:29 you know, to improve my English. 08:32 And a lot of things started happening. 08:35 And I found myself having 08:38 to depend on exclusively on God. 08:41 It's almost like I got to a point in my life 08:42 when I realized that all I had was Jesus. 08:48 And then I realized that those really all I needed. 08:51 Amen. 08:52 But I just want to back up for just a moment. 08:54 Tell us about your life in Peru, 08:56 where you grew up in a cultural atmosphere 09:00 of the Adventist Christianity? 09:03 But what was life like for you? 09:06 Were you ever rebellious or did you, 09:09 what was your life like? Yeah. 09:11 Well, you know, my parents are from Argentina, 09:13 so I grew up in a culture within another culture. 09:17 So and many years later, I learnt that God was in a way 09:22 preparing me to be adaptable 09:26 to many different cultures later on in my life. 09:28 But yes, I have some Italian, 09:32 you know, DNA there and the heritage. 09:36 And I am very impulsive at times. 09:41 And, you know, back in the day a lot of tradition was involved 09:48 when I was being raised in the church. 09:51 And we rebelled, you know, I rebelled, 09:54 my sisters too, and many of my friends did. 09:57 So I left the church spiritually, 10:01 even though I was still going physically. 10:03 You know, I remember in my teenage years, 10:06 we would use the church 10:07 as a meeting place for my friends 10:10 and I to get together, 10:12 and then decide where we were going 10:13 to go next like playing pool or, you know, different things. 10:19 So that's basically what church became for me. 10:23 Very sad but, you know, I was into drinking, 10:27 and partying, and I smoked a lot. 10:30 I love to party. You know, I love to dance. 10:33 I was a really good dancer. 10:35 You know, we did the salsa and all those things. 10:38 But smoking was a major problem for me. 10:42 And then it became an addiction to me. 10:46 I came to a point where I would even smoke two packs a day. 10:51 I would even smoke in the shower. 10:52 I mean, I was really skilled at bad stuff. 10:57 Nothing to be proud of today, but it's amazing how it came 11:03 to a point where I thought... 11:06 I realize that health wise it wasn't a good thing to do. 11:09 So I tried to quit by myself just to realize that 11:13 I will go back and it will get worse. 11:15 So after the third time I kind of hit bottom. 11:18 I was doing some mixing heavy smoking with alcohol 11:23 and chocolate that I was addicted to as well. 11:27 And my liver said enough. So I had a liver reaction. 11:33 And my body was rejecting everything. 11:37 You know, food, I couldn't even smell cigarette. 11:41 And I figure "Well, this is God telling me, 11:44 given me an opportunity to really quick 11:46 'cause my body said I can't take anything." 11:49 So I figured, well, 11:53 thank You God for giving me this opportunity. 11:56 And I remember talking with my girlfriend back then. 12:00 We were having a conversation about religion. 12:04 I don't know how we got to that topic. 12:06 And she was Catholic back then. 12:07 And every question she would throw at me, 12:11 I would answer. 12:12 You know I knew my way around the Bible enough. 12:16 Head knowledge. Yeah, exactly, head knowledge. 12:18 And then she paused for a second and she said, 12:22 "You know so much about the Bible. 12:25 You know so much about God. 12:28 And you know so much about what to do, what not to do. 12:33 So why don't you practice what you know." 12:38 And, boy, that shook every fiber of my body. 12:41 I mean, I remember that night going home. 12:45 And I knelt down when I got to my room, 12:48 and I prayed for the first time in years. 12:51 And I cried like a baby. 12:53 And I remember telling God, "Well, God, what's next, 12:57 you take it from here 'cause I have messed up. 13:02 I had all this liver problem, you know." 13:05 I wanted to take advantage of this condition 13:08 to really make a change. 13:10 But I knew at that point I couldn't do it on my own. 13:13 I had tried and failed. 13:14 The next day I got a call from a friend 13:16 that invited me to a small group. 13:19 Says, Sergio, I'm starting a small group, 13:20 you and your girlfriend can come and join us. 13:23 And I knew that going back to the church 13:25 was going to be very difficult for me. 13:27 So you'd actually quit going to church. 13:28 Exactly, yeah. At some point I had. 13:31 So it felt like God was really giving me another chance. 13:36 And we started attending this small group. 13:39 And I tell you it's really the best thing 13:42 that happened to me. 13:44 We started learning about the Bible, 13:47 taking Bible studies. 13:49 I see if I was coming into the church 13:51 for the very first time. 13:53 And I started knowing, 13:58 you know, all these different doctrines 14:01 from a completely different perspective, 14:03 you know, with Jesus in the middle of it. 14:06 So my journey started kind of there. 14:10 But then things changed, I lost some opportunities 14:13 to pursue my career in other countries 14:16 because I didn't know English. 14:18 So I said, "You know, I'm going to take a year off, 14:20 I'm going to go to the States, 14:22 learn English well, come back, and continue. 14:24 And so I did, ended up doing the plans 14:27 to go to Union College in Nebraska for ESL program. 14:31 And what is the ESL? 14:33 It's English as a second language. 14:34 So I arrived, you know, in the heart of winter, 14:38 you know, snow everywhere. 14:40 And I have obviously a culture shock. 14:43 I didn't know how to speak English. 14:47 And I didn't want to speak Spanish either 14:50 'cause I wanted to learn. 14:51 And so I'm at a point in my life 14:53 where days what I found that well, 14:58 I really have nothing, you know. 15:01 I couldn't even communicate. 15:03 I thought I was going to lose my mind. 15:05 And in my relationship with Christ really started 15:09 to take a completely different turn. 15:11 Just the fact that I was in the States 15:13 at that particular point, 15:15 it was a miracle just because how God answer. 15:18 You know, 'cause I was supposed to go with a bunch of friends. 15:20 I was the only one that got the visa to go. 15:22 It was just a number of things. 15:24 So I'm here, 15:26 and then I'm running out of funds, you know. 15:28 I figured out I could spend a lot more 15:31 than I could actually make. 15:33 And so I'm praying. 15:36 And then people from my past 15:40 when I was in the world reach out to me, 15:43 they were in the States at that point. 15:44 They said, "Well, you can come to us, 15:46 you can do a master's degree in this and that, 15:49 and you would spend much less." 15:51 And I'm talking to God. 15:53 And I'm having this relationship with Him 15:57 to the point that I talk to Him. 15:59 And I could actually be in tune to 16:01 what He's actually replying to me. 16:04 And I knew that He hadn't taken me 16:06 to the States to end up in the world again. 16:09 I was way too fresh from it. 16:12 So I asked Him to show me what He wanted me to do 16:17 'cause I really wanted to continue 16:18 to pursue my studies in the States. 16:21 At this point I had decided I wanted to stay to continue 16:24 to work on my master's degree. 16:26 But I didn't really quite have the funds. 16:28 So God started showing me almost immediately 16:32 through a number of people, 16:34 how He really wanted me to continue this path 16:37 in Adventist education. 16:39 So people started showing up out of the blue 16:43 offering to help me financially. 16:46 And then "new programs", 16:48 you know, in the church started opening. 16:50 Oh, we have a matching program now. 16:52 So when somebody donates, 16:53 you know, the church will match, 16:55 and then anonymous donations will show up in my mailbox. 17:00 People will come, this friend of mine have bought 17:03 a brand new car, showed up at my dorm 17:07 where I was staying. 17:08 And said, "Sergio, I just bought a new car." 17:10 I said, "Well, it's good for you." 17:11 And he said, "Well, you know, I have this other car 17:14 and I don't know what to do with it, 17:16 you can use it, you know." 17:17 So I had a car. 17:19 You know, I had all the tuition being paid. 17:21 I kept on working. I have five jobs. 17:24 And it's amazing how God was showing me... 17:27 And so I was feeling like God hugging me 17:30 in many different ways and telling me, 17:32 "If you would let Me be in control, 17:37 you know, I'll take care of you. 17:38 So I end up later on at Andrews University 17:41 working on my master's degree... 17:43 And your master's degree was in? 17:45 In engineering management. 17:47 Okay, now I just want to put the pause button on you 17:51 because two things I don't want to leave out is that 17:55 when you were still in your home country, 17:58 the girlfriend who went to the Bible classes with him 18:02 ended up being baptized, becoming an Adventist. 18:05 She's still in the church today. 18:07 And so I know that you are very supportive 18:11 of small groups because you said 18:13 it would've been difficult for you to go back to church. 18:18 But to go to someone's home you knew, it was easy. 18:22 And there were a myriad of things 18:24 that happened back in his home country, 18:29 where he's a great student, great grades. 18:32 But God closed the doors for him 18:35 to go to the university there. 18:37 His mom's a great cook. His grandmother's a great cook. 18:39 And his degree, 18:41 he was interested in food engineering. 18:44 That's going to play a very important part 18:46 in just a moment. 18:47 So God opened the doors, brought you here. 18:53 And now He's proving to you as you said 18:56 with all these hugs that He was going 18:59 to supply your needs while you were here. 19:01 That's right, so it is truly a miracle 19:03 that I finished my master's degree 19:05 at Andrews without a debt. 19:08 And it's incredible because scholarships, 19:10 you know, this is the first year 19:12 were scholarship for international student 19:15 is being offered, and I would get it. 19:17 So it was just being a miracle after miracle. 19:21 And Andrews is just a very special place for me 19:26 because there's where I met Sally, my wife. 19:29 And we were both working on our grad studies. 19:33 And from there, you know, 19:34 we've begun a very interesting journey. 19:37 We've been married for 16 years. 19:39 And we've moved 13 times. 19:42 And we've lived in different countries, 19:45 different cultures. 19:46 And where I finally made my way to corporate America 19:50 to work for the food industry. 19:52 And you've worked for some major companies. 19:54 Yeah, I worked for ConAgra Foods 19:57 for a number of years as well as Chiquita, 20:00 in a division of Fresh Express in California. 20:03 And I learned a lot, you know. I grew so much professionally. 20:09 And we were very much involved with the church, 20:13 church activities, church leadership, 20:15 strategic planning. 20:16 We had a ministry where we will travel 20:18 all over the US to help churches, 20:20 you know, develop different plans for growth. 20:24 But it's amazing how, for somebody remember 20:28 when we lived at a time in North Carolina. 20:31 I happened to be on the road all the time. 20:34 You know my commute was actually on a plane every week. 20:37 And I did that for a number of years 20:39 until our first daughter, 20:41 you know, we were expecting our first child. 20:44 And I remember driving one day, and I was talking to God, 20:47 I said, "God, I think I'm done with the travel. 20:49 I would really like to be home. And we had no family around. 20:53 So I really wanted to be in the process of, 20:56 you know, delivery." 20:58 And after that and I made a covenant with the God. 21:01 I said, "Okay, God." 21:02 The first formal offer that I get, 21:05 I'm going to take it, 21:06 just make sure it's not California 21:08 'cause at that particular time 21:11 I remember real estate was really high, 21:12 it was almost impossible to get anything. 21:15 Cost of living was high. 21:17 And I said, "I'll go anywhere but California." 21:20 In a week later, we got a formal offer 21:23 from Gilroy, California. 21:25 And God has a sense of humor that many times 21:29 we don't understand or want to even laugh at, 21:33 at that particular moment. 21:35 But, you know, His ways are the best ways. 21:38 So we took it. 21:40 We went there and spend a few years there. 21:41 And my son was born in California. 21:45 And then we took an offer to go to Puerto Rico. 21:50 And that was the second place 21:52 I had told God I did not want to go. 21:56 Yes, we ended up in Puerto Rico for a couple of years. 21:58 And we were able to see God's hand 22:02 in an amazing way working with some churches 22:06 that we were involved with. 22:07 And how He worked through us, it was amazing. 22:09 Yeah, people that were that had left the church. 22:12 And we had a really strong small group ministry there. 22:17 So people will come to our house, 22:18 we would eat together, 22:20 kind of like the back to the primitive church, 22:22 you know, from Acts 2:42. 22:25 And some people were actually going to churches 22:30 from different denominations on Sundays. 22:34 They didn't believe in a lot of our, 22:36 you know, the things we believe. 22:38 And today they are leading that church. 22:42 Praise God... They got baptized and... 22:44 So, Sergio, here you are, 22:46 and you were at the top of your career 22:50 if you were, you were making great money. 22:52 But you're working 15 hour days a week. 22:56 How satisfied, I mean, even though 22:58 you're working six days a week in the corporate world. 23:02 And because you're so active in church, 23:04 even the Sabbath was a very busy time for you. 23:09 But how did you balance 23:15 or you didn't have balance, really did you? 23:17 If you're working 15 hour days, 6 days a week, 23:23 how did you approach God to say, 23:25 "Hey, enough is enough 23:26 'cause even though we can afford anything we want, 23:30 this isn't what we want." 23:31 Yeah absolutely, I mean, my life was out of whack, 23:34 and therefore my family's. 23:36 So our quality of life was not where, 23:38 you know, I would have hoped it to be, 23:41 I mean, like you said, I worked really long hours. 23:44 I would get home, 23:45 the kids sometimes would be asleep. 23:47 I would leave home, they would still be asleep. 23:49 So I hardly ever got to spend time with them. 23:52 And during the weekend I mean, 23:54 Sundays I had to go to the work. 23:57 And then on Saturdays we were so busy, you know. 24:01 So I felt at one point, I was so stressed out. 24:06 Of course, you couldn't tell I spend an entire year 24:10 going to a chiropractor, just for that doctor to help me 24:14 with my some back pains I had, it was so severe. 24:19 And it was all because of stress. 24:21 And so I felt at one point that I was going to have 24:24 either a stroke or a heart attack. 24:28 I'm 40 years old at this time. 24:31 And I said this is not a way to be a 40, you know. 24:36 And we know what we know and we're living like this. 24:39 This is not right. 24:41 This cannot be God's plan for me. 24:44 So again I cried out to God and said, 24:47 "God, would You get me out of this." 24:50 And I don't mean out of the place or the work 24:57 but the tender line of business, 24:59 you know, to completely do a radical change. 25:03 And I felt a burden to even though 25:08 I was really busy at church, 25:09 I really wanted to get involved into 25:12 something a little bit more meaningful, you know. 25:14 So God closed all the doors for us 25:17 to go back to the mainland 'cause we were in Puerto Rico. 25:20 And open all the windows you can imagine 25:24 to go to Argentina 25:26 where my family was at that point. 25:28 And that had been the third place I had told 25:32 God I did not want to go. 25:34 So here's a pattern. 25:36 And I tell my wife this is the last time 25:40 I say I am not going to that particular place. 25:43 So she told me, "Why don't you say 25:45 you don't want to go to Hawaii, so we end up there." 25:48 But we actually ended up going to Argentina. 25:53 And God gave us the opportunity to start from scratch. 25:56 We had some savings. 25:58 We sold everything we had, that could be sold. 26:02 But then ended up taking 26:05 a 40 foot container to Argentina. 26:07 So we took a lot of things with us. 26:10 And we realized at that particular moment in Argentina 26:16 there was a big opportunities to start a health food company. 26:20 And that had been my dream for a very long time. 26:23 So we said, "This is it. Let's do it." 26:26 So we put all of the eggs in one basket, 26:29 all of our savings, everything we had, 26:31 and time, and effort. 26:33 And we begin this ministry. 26:36 It was a company, but also a ministry. 26:38 And we ended up doing a lot of health talks 26:42 in many different cities in Argentina. 26:45 We even went to other countries. 26:48 We showed up at national TV news. 26:49 And it was amazing how God was using us 26:52 in the little knowledge that we had. 26:55 You know, we of course had to learn 26:56 a lot about health 26:58 because I knew it from a scientific standpoint. 27:01 But I realize I didn't know it practically. 27:05 And I realized that 'cause many people would tell 27:07 "Well, you know all that 27:09 because you're a food engineer." 27:10 And people would talk to me in our lecturers 27:15 and thought that, well, 27:16 you have to be a medical doctor, 27:19 or a nutritionist, or a food engineer, 27:21 or something related to health 27:23 in order to live a good lifestyle 27:25 and I said, "You couldn't be further 27:27 from the truth because if it comes from God, 27:29 it has to be simple. 27:31 We are the ones that make it complicated. 27:33 So I came to like a full circle to realize that 27:38 it brought me back to the basics, 27:40 you know, to the natural remedies, 27:43 to how God cares so much about us 27:46 that not only created us, but also sustains us. 27:50 But He wants a partnership with us. 27:53 And He wants us to trust that He will provide, you know. 27:58 And that's something that in my lectures 28:01 I remember the first few lectures 28:04 in few years in Argentina were very scientific, 28:07 you know, a lot of it. 28:08 Let me tell you what the bio chemistry 28:10 is telling us. 28:12 And when I look at my lectures, and my power points, 28:14 and all the material that I've prepared 28:16 towards the end of my time there like 3, 4, 5 years later, 28:20 there are about 90% Bible base, 28:24 and faith base, 28:25 and then a little bit of science 28:26 for those who, you know, 28:28 are having a hard time as a final punch line. 28:31 But it's incredible how God has this amazing plan for us. 28:35 So our time in Argentina was the life full of challenges 28:40 having our own business. 28:42 I ended up teaching classes for nutrition department 28:45 at a medical school as well in the UAP, 28:48 which is the Adventist University there. 28:50 And all the time this is happening. 28:52 And I'm going to just fast forward it 28:54 just a little bit here. 28:55 You didn't realize that 28:57 God was preparing you for Mozambique. 28:59 So they were very successful. 29:02 But all of a sudden at the peak 29:06 of the success of this business, 29:08 God brings an opportunity before you, 29:12 and tell us what that is? 29:13 Right, so at this point our nets are full. 29:18 We are finally enjoying the, 29:20 you know, the results of all this labored fruits 29:23 of all this labor and effort. 29:25 Building a new home. 29:27 Yeah, we're building a new home. 29:29 And we're finally, you know, 29:31 on the go with all kinds of plans 29:34 and projects and, you know, for the business. 29:37 And then somebody comes along from ADRA from Mozambique, 29:42 looking for a business developer 29:44 because it seems like at that particular time. 29:46 This is, you know, back in 2016, 29:50 first, second quarter. 29:51 They wanted somebody that could take 29:54 raw materials in this case, it could have been peanuts 29:57 or something of that sort. 29:59 And do a transformation process and perhaps implement 30:03 a peanut butter plant and turning to peanut butter. 30:07 So they went to this particular city 30:09 where we were looking for a business developer. 30:12 So every person she would ask, they would say, 30:16 "Well, you got to talk to Sergio." 30:19 So she finally got to us. 30:22 And, you know, she wanted to get to know our facilities 30:25 which we did, and she liked it. 30:27 And right on that spot, she offered it to us. 30:30 She's like, "Well..." 30:33 And I said, "Well, tell me about your project. 30:35 And she told me about her project. 30:36 Well, that's an amazing project, you know. 30:38 I'm an innovator, I'd like change. 30:40 And it's almost like I could see 30:42 my name written all over it. 30:46 But I said, but maybe in some other time but now. 30:51 And she said, "Well, why not you." 30:52 So she offered right on the spot. 30:54 And I said, "Can't do. 30:56 You know we have all these things going on. 30:58 And I said but if I know somebody else 31:01 I'll let you know." 31:02 So I went home, I told my wife what had happened. 31:05 And the look on my wife's face changed everything. 31:11 And I looked at her and said, 31:13 "You cannot possibly be serious about 31:17 thinking about this opportunity." 31:19 And I don't think she said a word. 31:22 It was just... The look on her face. 31:24 Yeah, her expression, and she asked me, 31:26 "What's the name of this place?" 31:30 And I could barely remember 31:31 and, you know, hard to pronounce. 31:34 And we finally found it on the Internet. 31:35 And we were watching some videos 31:37 and some information. 31:38 And we got really, I mean she got really excited. 31:41 and at that point I realized, well, could it be that 31:46 God is calling us to leave everything 31:51 we've worked so hard for, 31:54 to go to this place and work for Him. 31:58 And I say, "You know I had learned 31:59 at that point not to get in the way, on God's way." 32:05 So I said, "Well, God, if this is from You, 32:09 I'm going to make it a little difficult for You. 32:13 I don't want this company of ours, 32:16 this ministry to die. 32:18 You know we want it to continue on. 32:20 So if you find a way to figure out 32:24 how these could move on 32:26 and continue to help as many people as it has, 32:29 then I'll consider to go." 32:32 And I thought that was pretty tough. 32:34 And a difficult economy were, you know, the only chance 32:37 we had was to basically sell the business, 32:39 there's no way we could, 32:41 you know, give it to somebody else. 32:42 It doesn't work well that way. 32:44 And within days, He found the person, 32:47 and things started working out. 32:49 And I realized, "Wow, God really doesn't call us 32:56 to be successful. 32:58 He calls us to be faithful." Amen. 33:02 And, you know, when you have, 33:05 I don't know three, four, five things 33:08 and God asks you to give one away, 33:11 it's not too difficult to do. 33:15 But when you have one thing and that's what He asks, 33:20 which means for you to give everything you have. 33:24 You know, it's almost like you're burning your ships, 33:27 and you're going away, 33:28 and there is nothing for you to go back to... 33:32 Burning the bridge behind you. Yeah. 33:35 It's a completely different story. 33:38 And it's almost like God is standing back 33:40 and say, "I want to see where your faith stands." 33:44 And so we arrived with 40 foot container. 33:47 And now we take the offer, and we're leaving Argentina 33:53 with eight suitcases, 33:55 and nothing behind us, you know. 33:57 But God pulled an interesting... 34:02 I shouldn't say He pulled a trick on you. 34:04 But there was a swap let's just put it this way. 34:08 You were offered a food engineering opportunity 34:12 to start a plant. 34:14 And suddenly what happened? Right. 34:16 So right when we were about to do all the formalization, 34:20 you know, I accept the offer formally. 34:24 Some of the leaders in this country 34:26 and they're like main donor, 34:29 the ADRA director at that time for Mozambique. 34:31 And they said, "Well, listen, 34:33 we do need that business developer bad 34:35 because that business whatever profits we generate 34:38 from that is going to help us subsidize 34:41 and sustain the Mission Munguluni Adventist Mission, 34:44 which is about two hours away. 34:46 But what we really need is somebody to lead the mission. 34:51 We need some leadership there. 34:53 We've seen what you've done throughout your life." 34:56 And then it's when it click me I said, "Wow. 34:58 Could it be that God have been allowing for me to do 35:01 all these different functions 35:04 in and outside the church to take care of something 35:07 that I would have never thought I would do." 35:11 So they say, "Well, we would like 35:13 you to be the mission director for Munguluni." 35:16 And I said, "Oh, you've got to be kidding me." 35:19 For the business development 35:21 that something within my comfort zone, you know. 35:23 I'm all pumped up for that. 35:26 But to run this place that has a school, and a clinic... 35:31 And a hospital. Yeah. 35:33 And then all these farm. 35:35 And I said, "I know nothing about that. 35:38 I'm not the guy." 35:41 And they looked at me and they said... 35:42 We're all doing this via Skype. 35:44 They said, "Yes, you are." 35:47 And why don't we do this, 35:48 why do you guys come to Mozambique, 35:49 and then you pick which one you want to do? 35:52 And I said, "I figured... No, I know myself." 35:54 I don't like surprises. 35:55 So we prayed about it with my wife that night. 35:57 We even talked it over with the kids. 35:58 And the next day, we had made a decision. 36:01 We felt impressed that God wanted us 36:02 to go to Munguluni to do something 36:06 that was way beyond our comfort zone. 36:08 And I realized that God wanted me 36:13 to show the world 36:15 that He can use ordinary people like me 36:19 to do great things for His glory. 36:22 And I also realized that every day 36:26 that I would be in this mission, 36:28 under this leadership role, 36:31 I will have to depend so much on God. 36:33 If I try to do things on my own, boy, 36:36 I would do ridiculous things. 36:40 So everyday I am reminded that I depend on God 36:45 because it's almost like I don't know 36:48 what I'm doing, right? 36:49 But things happen. 36:52 So I am reminded if anything good comes out of this, 36:55 which there is great things happen in this place, 37:00 God takes the credit for it. 37:01 Amen. So I'm glad that... 37:04 You've learned to surrender to die daily. 37:06 I've learned to surrender to die daily. 37:08 Exactly. It's not a one time thing. 37:10 And then you look back, 37:12 and it's almost like all the jobs, 37:13 and all the activities, and all the different cultures 37:18 from all my stages in my life have come together 37:23 to be put into practice in this one place. 37:27 And you've never been happier, more satisfied a lot. 37:30 Exactly. The reward is incredible. 37:34 So you go, wow, this is one of these moments where you go, 37:40 God had been preparing me 37:42 all along for a moment such as this, you know. 37:46 Amen. Amen. 37:48 So I know you brought a video clip 37:49 of the Munguluni Adventist Mission in Mozambique. 37:54 And we're going to show it to you now. 37:59 The audio is in Portuguese. 38:01 So you're going to speak over it, 38:03 and tell us, explain to us this video now? 38:06 Absolutely. 38:09 Munguluni is a... 38:12 What does it mean? 38:14 Munguluni comes from, actually is back then 38:17 where the first missionary when arrived, 38:20 and looked at the locals, 38:23 they were making clothes out of bark trees, 38:26 and they were using this sticks to form these clothes. 38:30 And those sticks were called Munguluso. 38:32 So he said, "Well, we're going to call this place Munguluni." 38:34 But Munguluni was like a rest area for people 38:37 that would go to Malawi. 38:39 And it's incredible place that has an amazing story 38:43 because it was formed back in the, 38:45 you know, '35 by missionaries and a lot of locals. 38:49 And, but then it was built up to a really nice mission. 38:53 They were actually training missionaries. 38:55 But then in '75 they had a civil war, 38:58 and the government took over everything. 39:00 So the mission was closed for almost three decades. 39:03 And then it wasn't until, you know, late '90s 39:06 where it started being rebuilt. 39:08 But it was only the infrastructure, 39:10 it wasn't until 2012, 39:12 when the mission actually gets activated by local, 39:17 I mean donors that put 39:20 the Adventist church with ADRA, 39:26 you know, to run the place. 39:27 And here we're showing our areas of focus for, 39:31 you know, academic excellence, 39:32 vocational training in a missionary experience. 39:38 Because we truly believe in God's blueprint 39:40 for educational system. 39:42 So we have a holistic, 39:44 you know, approach in curriculum. 39:48 And... How many students do you have? 39:50 Well, this year we're going to pass 600. 39:52 Wow. Yeah. 39:54 We have from K-12, you know. 39:58 But 12 we're actually going to start next year. 40:01 But we are considered 40:03 one of the best primary schools in the country. 40:06 Praise God. Yeah, praise God. 40:08 And we are going to have our first graduating class 40:12 from high school in 2019. 40:14 So every year for us is like an additional class. 40:17 And really is, I mean, our vision for this mission 40:22 is to prepare youth to serve God 40:25 wherever God calls them to go. 40:28 So really it's a missionary school. 40:32 And, yeah... 40:33 And then your wife Sally is actually teaching there. 40:36 She's teaching English, and she also teaches music. 40:38 She has some choirs from flute. And our kids love it, you know. 40:42 We are home schooling because of the difference 40:45 in the level when we arrived and because of the language. 40:49 But they picked up the Portuguese really quick. 40:51 And they interact with the kids every single day. 40:54 You know, and they're part of a lot of the ministries 40:56 that we do there. 40:57 But, you know, we have about 40 staff members, almost 20, 41:03 it's about 20 professors. 41:05 And we have a number of hectares or acres 41:09 that we farm. 41:10 Vegetable gardens, everything we produce 41:13 we consume to lower the cost. 41:16 And we have, for example this year 41:19 we're opening different shops, 41:21 for example wood shop, and tailor shop. 41:23 And we're teaching the kids agriculture. 41:26 So one day they graduate from the high school, 41:28 you know, they have computer knowledge 41:30 which very, very few schools 41:31 in the nation offer computer classes. 41:34 And they know about agriculture. 41:35 They know about carpentry and... 41:38 So this is life changing for them. 41:41 It's incredible. 41:42 We estimate about 12,000-13,000 people 41:47 in the community that are being affected. 41:49 And we're giving them hope. 41:50 When this mission was closed for almost three decades, 41:56 people lost hope. 41:58 And you could see how when it was reopened back in 2013, 42:03 lots of challenges. 42:04 We still have challenges but nothing like back in 42:06 four, five years ago when there was 42:09 a lot of demon possessed people, 42:11 you know, in the classroom. 42:12 And the teachers had to leave. 42:14 Or to bring more teachers 42:16 so they can all pray around these kids, 42:19 they were demon possessed. 42:20 We're seeing for example our clinic is small, 42:22 but we see about 1500 people a month. 42:25 Two babies are born there every day. 42:29 That's an average. That's amazing. 42:30 So are you doing any kind of medical training 42:33 since you have that clinic there? 42:34 Are there some that are training 42:36 for that purpose or what? 42:37 We would like the clinic to be actually part of like 42:40 an extensive arm of the school, eventually. 42:43 Right now we have three nurses. 42:46 So we have some plans to bring 42:49 some medical doctors to administer 42:52 or manage the clinic for us. 42:55 And bring the healthcare to a different level. 42:57 You know, we have a number of projects for this year 42:59 to bring dentistry, you know, and to improve the labor 43:03 and delivery rooms, 43:04 and the waiting area for all the ladies. 43:08 But health is really one of the best ways 43:12 we have to connect with the communities. 43:14 And the people that are receiving 43:18 consultation are growing 43:20 because they are starting to trust less 43:24 on the witchcraft type of health that they do, 43:27 and they're starting to believe 43:29 and trust more in the type of service that we provide. 43:34 We still have a long ways to go. 43:35 But we can see so many people's lives being transformed. 43:40 I mean, just look at the education. 43:42 And, you know, it's interesting because I remember 43:45 when I was ministering in Africa. 43:47 And I asked... 43:49 To us when we talk about 43:50 somebody mentions demon possession 43:52 and we're here in United States, 43:54 you know, you'll even see 43:55 some people kind of raise an eyebrow like. 43:58 But I ask the conference president 44:00 while I was there in the treasury 44:02 and some others with him. 44:03 I said, "How seriously do you take demon possession?" 44:07 And they're all looking around at each other. 44:10 And I thought, "Oh, they're going to think 44:11 I'm a kook." 44:13 And then they said, "Let me tell you 44:14 how seriously we take it. 44:16 We fast and pray for three days 44:18 before we will even answer a call on demon possession." 44:21 So it's very real. 44:22 And when people are practicing witchcraft... 44:24 I mean, that would be the history, 44:31 the culture were not 44:33 for the influence of the Adventist mission. 44:37 Now you are under the umbrella of ADRA. 44:42 But how are you funded? Yeah. 44:45 The mission belongs to the church, 44:47 and the church gave governance, you know, full right to ADRA. 44:51 So ADRA is really governing the mission in a way. 44:54 But the funding comes from private donors 44:57 in the United States. 44:59 Especially there is a larger made 45:01 out of one corporation wishes to remain anonymous. 45:05 But they have been funding us... 45:08 And I tell you, it's every day and we have our worship service 45:12 at 6:30 in the morning, all of us together. 45:15 We talk about this, we'll say, 45:16 "Guys, don't take this place for granted 45:18 because every day 45:20 we're able to operate and function. 45:23 It's a miracle." 45:24 And because what happens is 45:29 if you start coming apart 45:31 from your relationship with Christ, 45:33 even the most amazing miracles could look ordinary. 45:36 That's true. 45:37 So that's why we have to keep this fresh in our mind 45:40 and realize that we depend exclusively, 45:43 in that way we could plan all we want. 45:45 And trust me, we do planning, right. 45:48 We're not just sitting there waiting for things to happen. 45:50 There's lot of work to be done. 45:52 It's a pretty decent size operation. 45:55 But we also realize that it's unconventional wisdom 46:00 that many times, you know, needs to be ruling. 46:04 And God shows us, I mean we've had to kneel down 46:08 with our leadership team asking for donations 46:15 because we did the projection in, 46:17 you know, two months. 46:19 The money we had was going to run out. 46:21 And the next day we got, 46:25 in our bank account. 46:26 Glory to God. 46:29 We understand that 46:30 'cause at 3ABN it's the same way. 46:32 So, you know, but lot of people talk to me and they say, 46:37 "Well, you have to have a plan for self sustainability." 46:40 And we try, we do. 46:43 It's a place that functions under very harsh conditions. 46:48 And... 46:49 What kind of projects are you wanting to do now, literally? 46:52 Well, this year we would like to 46:55 'cause we don't have electricity, 46:56 I mean, we have a generator, 46:58 we have about 8-10 hours of electricity a day 47:01 that runs on diesel. 47:03 But that brings a lot of limitations, 47:06 you know, things that we cannot really develop 47:09 because of we don't have 24/7 47:12 and a good source of electricity. 47:14 So our biggest project and perhaps most important 47:18 is to put solar panels. 47:22 So we are talking to some people 47:25 that will be interested in funding this. 47:28 But we also have several projects 47:30 within the medical area, 47:33 you know, healthcare like dentistry, 47:36 and labor and delivery like we've spoken. 47:39 And putting up a lab to better diagnose malaria. 47:43 Malaria is a big problem for us. 47:44 I've had it twice already. 47:46 And I don't wish that to anybody. 47:49 It's miserable. 47:51 And so we're trying to develop ways 47:56 in which we can diagnose. 47:57 And I mean we do everything we can to prevent it. 48:00 But it's just the mosquito that, 48:03 you know, it's carrying it all over. 48:05 If there's no vaccine, 48:06 there's nothing to fully prevent this. 48:09 So we're trying to look for ways 48:11 to improve diagnose and the treatment 48:14 'cause a lot of people go on without treatment. 48:16 Or they treat themselves thinking 48:18 they have it and they don't. 48:19 So it messes up the liver. 48:21 So there are a number of problems related to malaria. 48:24 And then the mission is very difficult to reach area. 48:28 You know it's not very accessible. 48:30 So we need good vehicles, you know, to reach there. 48:35 Sometimes when it rains a lot, you can't even go there, 48:38 so you'll get trapped like in an island. 48:40 Sometimes I have to cross the river. 48:42 And the vehicle or bridges are washed away. 48:44 So this is challenge after challenge. 48:47 But you're making a difference. 48:50 God is using you to touch 48:53 and impact through the 600 children in the clinic, 48:57 you see 1500 a month. 48:58 You're impacting thousands upon thousands of people there. 49:02 And no telling how many lives beyond that. 49:05 Because one thing that I have learned is that 49:09 when God uses you and you can touch one life, 49:11 but He will exponentially grow 49:14 that influence to even generations. 49:18 So are you looking for people to, 49:20 do you need volunteers, 49:22 are you looking for more teachers? 49:24 What are you looking for? Yeah. 49:27 We are looking for people 49:28 that are willing to spend quality time. 49:33 It doesn't have to be for long periods of time, 49:36 that are willing to teach people 49:38 how to do things. 49:40 You know, for a long time we've had missionaries 49:43 that will go there, make an impact, 49:47 then go back to their countries, 49:49 but nobody was actually trained. 49:51 Nobody received this legacy of knowledge 49:54 and experience from them. 49:55 So we're trying to switch a little bit the focus. 49:59 And we do have a lot of qualified teachers. 50:03 So we're looking more towards professional arts, 50:07 you know, like tailoring or even wood shop, maintenance, 50:12 you know, a lot of technical skills. 50:14 If somebody could go there for a month, 50:16 you know, and work directly with our people, 50:19 and teach them how to do things in the right way. 50:23 In the medical field for example 50:25 somebody who is willing to be there 50:27 for around eight months. 50:29 You know, do a community service 50:31 or something, and help us run the clinic, 50:33 and train at the same time, those are the types of people 50:38 that we're actually looking for. 50:39 Well, you know, I totally believe 50:42 God sent you here today. 50:44 So that means that somebody who is watching, 50:47 the Holy Spirit is moving upon your heart, 50:49 and you're seeing as did Sergio and his wife 50:52 "Lord, is this where you want me to go." 50:55 If you are being impressed perhaps to go and teach, 50:59 or if you would like to support this ministry 51:02 that is having such an impact in Mozambique. 51:05 Here is how you can get in touch 51:08 with Munguluni Adventist Mission. 51:12 If you would like to support 51:14 the Munguluni Adventist Mission, 51:16 and their important work in Mozambique, 51:18 we urge you to visit their website Munguluni.org. 51:22 There you will see what the Lord has already done. 51:25 And find information and photo updates 51:27 on important projects. 51:29 You will find all their contact information 51:31 on their website Munguluni.org. 51:34 Or you may write to them at Munguluni Adventist Mission 51:38 Lugela, Zambezia, Mozambique. 51:41 That's Munguluni Adventist Mission, 51:44 Lugela, Zambezia, Mozambique. |
Revised 2018-01-31