Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY018079A
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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 00:29 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! I'm Shelley Quinn, and we welcome 01:12 you once again to 3ABN Today! We're so glad 01:15 that you've tuned in. I just want to take this 01:18 opportunity on behalf of all of us here to 01:21 thank you for your prayers, your love, and 01:25 your financial support of God's Mending 01:28 Broken People Network. Boy, am I excited today, 01:32 because we have three people on the set with 01:37 us who have all been broken people who God 01:41 has mended, and He is using them in exciting 01:44 ways! So, we're going to first consider a 01:49 scripture- and I know I use this a lot, 01:51 but... Daniel always says that the gospel is 01:56 about coming to the foot of the cross, accepting 01:59 Christ, and in going, and the blessing is 02:02 on the go. Matthew 20:19 says this; this is Jesus' 02:07 own words: "Go." In other words, "This is a 02:12 ministry of presence- a ministry of compassion. 02:17 Go and make disciples of all of the nations, 02:22 baptizing them in the name of the Father, the 02:24 Son, and the Holy Spirit," then, of course, He 02:27 says, "teaching them to be obey all things I 02:29 have commanded." But He's saying, "Don't just make 02:32 converts; make people who understand that there 02:37 is a path of life and a path of the righteous! 02:40 You're going to be in the presence of the Lord 02:42 forevermore." So, it's exciting; it's a wonderful 02:45 scripture. Our three guests today totally 02:50 understand that, so allow me, without further ado, 02:53 to introduce our special guests. First, we have 02:56 Cal Thrash. Cal, thank you for being here today. 03:00 I am tempted to introduce you as the president of Uchee 03:05 Pines Institute; but tell us about your new position. - Okay. 03:09 Well, I am the development director at Uchee 03:12 Pines. I was the president for 16 terms-16 years- 03:16 and retired from that position in 2015. Actually, 03:21 much of what I'm doing is somewhat similar, 03:24 because I'm still teaching and I still do some of the 03:27 behind-the-scenes work that needs to be done, 03:30 and things like visas and that kind of thing 03:32 for people who are oversees need to come 03:34 to our student programs, to our worker programs, 03:37 and that kind of thing. So, still doing those 03:39 kinds of things, too, but of course, the 03:42 title "development" would kind of imply that you're 03:45 developing something, so we're hoping to 03:47 expand our ministry as we go along at Uchee 03:50 Pines, and also in our local area. - Praise 03:52 the Lord. And speaking of what's going on in 03:55 the local area, we also have Amy Pershin 03:58 with us. Amy, you are the personal ministries 04:03 director at Uchee Pines; is that correct? 04:05 - Not the director, but I'm a part of the team. 04:08 - Okay. Well, we're glad to have you 04:10 here. Last, but certainly not least, 04:13 is Pastor Christopher Atkinson. Pastor, 04:18 what do you do? What is your title? Are you 04:21 the pastor at Uchee Pines Institute? - I am 04:24 blessed to be the pastor of the Uchee Pines 04:26 Seventh-Day Adventist Church. I'm also pastor 04:29 of two other churches in this 3-church 04:32 district which consists of the Phenix City 04:35 Seventh-Day Adventist Church and the Eufaula 04:37 Seventh-Day Adventist Church. God has richly 04:40 blessed me to be pastoring at Uchee Pines for the 04:43 last 4-and-a-half years. - Amen. I tell 04:46 you what-in just a moment, we're going to 04:48 come back and get your personal story. You'll 04:50 understand just how much God has richly 04:53 blessed him. But before we do that, we know 04:56 you love music-and we all love music here, 04:58 as well-so we have a very special song by 05:02 Scott Michael Bennett. He is such a precious 05:07 person, and very talented on the piano 05:11 and as a singer. He has a beautiful voice. He's 05:15 going to be singing "How Deep the Father's 05:17 Love." 05:32 How deep the Father's love for us 05:38 How vast beyond all measure 05:44 That He should give His only Son 05:50 To make a wretch His treasure 05:56 How great the pain of searing loss 06:02 The Father turns His face away 06:09 As wounds which mar the Chosen One 06:15 Bring many sons to glory 06:24 Behold, the Lamb upon that Cross 06:30 My sin upon His shoulders 06:35 Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice 06:42 Call out among the scoffers 06:47 It was my sin that held Him there 06:53 Until it was accomplished 06:59 His dying breath has brought me life 07:05 I know that it is finished 07:14 I will not boast in anything 07:20 No gifts, no power, nor wisdom 07:25 But I will boast in Jesus Christ 07:32 His death and resurrection 07:37 Why should I gain from His reward 07:43 I cannot give an answer 07:49 But this, I know with all my heart 07:56 His wounds have paid my ransom 08:02 Why should I gain from His reward 08:07 I cannot give an answer 08:14 But this, I know with all my heart 08:20 His wounds have paid my ransom 08:26 But this, I know with all my heart 08:34 His wounds have paid my ransom 08:56 Scott Michael Bennett, thank you for blessing 08:59 our hearts. I know you were blessed at home, 09:01 as well. Well, before we get into what's 09:05 going on at Uchee Pines Institute, that 09:08 song, "How Deep the Father's Love," has touched 09:12 each one of us sitting here on set, because 09:16 none of us have lived that pristine, perfect 09:20 Christian walk. Just take a few minutes, Cal, 09:23 and tell us about your personal experience 09:27 with the Lord. - Well, it's been a growth 09:30 experience, of course, all along. My parents 09:33 became Adventists when I was about 5, so I grew 09:37 up in the church. 09:40 Unfortunately, when I 09:41 got to my late teens, I began to kind of 09:44 think elsewhere, and I left the church in my 09:49 early twenties. I was out of the church; I 09:51 ran a business and did some things during that 09:54 time. Sowed a lot of wild oats. If anything 09:57 about wild oats, they tend to grow. I don't 09:58 know if you noticed that. - Oh, yeah. - When 10:02 some of that came to fruition in 1992, I was 10:06 rebaptized. - So how long 10:08 were you out of the church? - It was almost 10:10 15 years. - Almost 15 years. - If you count the 10:12 time that I was still going to church but 10:14 kind of like, already gone, yeah; it's 10:18 definitely that long. Interestingly enough, 10:22 in coming back, even though I was raised 10:25 in the church, it's almost like a reboot- 10:28 and you know what I'm talking about, because 10:30 you forget so much when you're out of 10:32 the church! Waste so much time, and it's 10:35 just a cause of sorrow, all those years that I 10:39 lost. But then it's a brand-new experience 10:44 beginning again! So, that's been the experience 10:48 that I've had, that the Lord wakes me up every 10:51 morning with a brand-new experience, and that's 10:54 what I'm thankful for. - Amen and amen. And 10:57 we're so thankful that He did... Sometimes, 11:00 I'll talk to someone and they'll say, "Well, 11:02 I'm a third-generation Adventist." That 11:05 doesn't make you a Christian. God has no 11:11 grandchildren. He has children, so because 11:14 your parents were Christian doesn't mean 11:15 you're necessarily Christian, even if you 11:17 grow up in the church, right? We're so glad 11:20 that... One thing I do believe is, train 11:23 up a child in the way you should go, and 11:25 when he's older, he'll not depart from it, 11:27 so seeds were planted. - Definitely, for those 11:30 parents who have children that, maybe, have 11:33 left the faith and are wandering in the world, 11:36 don't give up, because whatever you put in 11:39 there, it's still in there! - Amen. - That's 11:42 true for me. I've always thought that those 11:44 youth that were raised as Christians- they don't 11:46 ever make really good worldlings, 'cause they 11:48 know too much! [laughter] - They try sometimes. 11:51 - That's true. - Now, we have Amy Pershin. 11:53 Amy, you didn't grow up with any kind of 11:58 religious...or exposure to the Bible or Christianity, 12:02 did you? - No. - Tell us your story. - Well, 12:05 I was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. My 12:11 parents are precious people, so they did 12:15 their best to instill good values in us, 12:19 but I was also exposed to a very worldly 12:23 lifestyle that involved a lot of drugs and alcohol, 12:28 so I began these two things from a very 12:33 early age and developed an addiction. It really 12:39 caused my life- especially once I entered 12:42 college-to spiral out of control; but this 12:46 is what made me cry out to God one night, 12:50 crying myself to sleep. - So, you believed 12:53 there was a God, or were you just searching? 12:56 - I didn't know, and I wondered if He 12:58 existed. Because I had hit rock bottom, 13:02 so to say, I lost pretty much everything. 13:04 I mean, I flunked out of college, a suspended 13:06 driver's license, I lost my car, I was 13:09 living with whoever would take me in. I 13:13 said, "God, if you exist, why is there 13:16 so much pain in this world?" and, "I just 13:17 want to be friends with my mom again," because 13:20 they didn't know what to do with me anymore. 13:22 - Yeah. I know it's painful to even think 13:27 back sometimes, isn't it? But, when you lost 13:30 your car, you had to start riding a bicycle. 13:33 What happened? - That was the turning point. 13:37 It really changed everything. I can see 13:41 why the Lord gave us the laws of health, one 13:44 of them being exercise. They are each equally 13:47 important. All of that exercise over 6 13:53 months- I was in the best shape I had ever 13:55 been, and it really cleared my mind that 13:59 I went from not caring about my health 14:01 or what I ate to making the decision to become 14:06 a vegetarian because I felt sorry for the 14:08 animals. It also made me, begin, searching 14:15 religions. I was questioning my friends 14:17 who were going to churches about what they 14:20 believed and I wanted to go to church with 14:22 them; but my search, of course... The enemy 14:26 knows how to come in and try to direct that 14:28 search, so I bought a book on Buddhism. 14:30 I was very much going- I believe I went to 14:33 the New Age direction because of the way 14:35 I changed my appearance. I was a very much New 14:38 Age look. But the Lord, He came in at just 14:41 the right time. I was just window shopping 14:46 one day, and I came across an office 14:50 that was for natural remedies, because I 14:52 also started becoming interested in that 14:54 because my mom had some experience with it. 14:57 It was really the Holy Spirit to just put those 15:00 interests in my heart. I was just so open 15:04 at that time. Praise God He was able to get 15:07 me. I walked in and there was a flyer 15:10 on the desk. No one was there. The flyer 15:13 talked about natural remedies AND God. I 15:15 remember thinking, "Wow!" because I 15:17 wanted to learn about both. - Amen. - The 15:19 man came out, he took me back to his office, 15:22 and we talked for a long time. I asked 15:24 him, "Can I volunteer here before my regular 15:28 job? Because I really want to learn more." 15:30 He turned out to be a Seventh-Day Adventist, 15:32 so he knew what he was doing, and the 15:34 rest is history. - God was directing. You 15:36 remind me so much of a precious friend of mine. 15:38 You have such a sweet and caring and loving 15:41 spirit. She just is the picture of purity. 15:47 My friend, likewise, came out of drugs 15:50 and alcohol. It's so astonishing to me how 15:55 God can totally change us. 2 Corinthians 5:17 16:00 says, "We are new creatures in Christ 16:04 Jesus." I know you made a statement when 16:08 we were in the green room. What did you say? 16:10 - I often think about where I have come from 16:16 and how many times the Lord has saved my life 16:20 because I put myself in so many dangerous 16:23 positions because of the drug and alcohol 16:26 life. I'm just grateful that He saved me from 16:34 the enemy to destroy me. - I think what you 16:37 said in the green room was, "I'm so grateful 16:39 to be alive." If YOU are going through 16:43 something right now where you look and 16:45 you think, "Man, I ought to be dead. With 16:50 what I've done, it's amazing..." but you're 16:53 not sure God's in your life, let me tell 16:54 you something: He has been protecting you. 16:57 He's trying to lead you; and just like Amy, He 17:00 can give you a new life. That's the beautiful 17:04 thing about God. All right, Christopher. 17:08 Now, you're a pastor. Surely, you grew up 17:11 on the straight and narrow. - I only wish. 17:16 I give God thanks and praise for His goodness 17:19 and His mercies as my salvation is only 17:22 through Him and because of Him. I grew up in 17:24 Kingston, Jamaica, Aldistom to be 17:27 exact, and I grew up amidst gang violence. 17:32 I like to say I came from the gang to the 17:36 ministry. What happened was that at the age 17:40 of 17 years old, I was on the verge of just 17:44 wasting away my life. I either took prison 17:47 or to death, to the grave, like many of 17:51 my friends. I remember sitting in the front of 17:54 my mom's front yard one summer after a 17:59 horrible high school experience. I was 18:02 there, wondering what else is going to happen 18:04 with my life. I heard... This is Jamaica now, 18:09 so the preachers can preach outside. They 18:11 put up loud speakers. It's kind of just going 18:14 everywhere in the community; praise God 18:16 for that! So, that hit me and my mom, 18:19 sitting there at my mom's. For two weeks, 18:23 I sat there, listening to the gospel. - Over 18:26 a loudspeaker. - Just me and God. Two weeks- 18:30 and Pastor Steele was the preacher's name; 18:34 East Jamaica conference- and he was speaking on, 18:38 I remember the topic that gripped me was, 18:41 the mark of the beast and the Sabbath. I 18:43 said, "I've never heard this truth before." 18:45 So, I took my little blue Bible from my mom's 18:48 bedside table and I started thumbing through 18:52 it for two weeks with this preacher from 18:54 wherever in the community. God gripped my heart; 18:58 but sometimes, you need a little push, a little 19:01 help, to get from where you are to 19:03 where you need to be. So, a friend came to me 19:05 with the best of intentions and he 19:09 said, "Hey, Chris. I've heard there are some 19:11 good-looking Adventist girls over there!" What 19:15 did I do? I said, "Oh, yeah! I'm going to go 19:17 do that." Anyway, after kind of- they 19:21 were struggling with God through the 19:23 scriptures, we went down there. I had a 19:26 conviction in my heart, but the wrong impulses, 19:29 still. God still used that. I got there 19:34 and I sat for another week, wrestling with 19:37 this preacher's voice in my ears and the 19:41 Holy Spirit in my heart. I spent two 19:43 sleepless nights going through my life and the 19:47 different mistakes and sins that I'd committed, 19:49 just repenting to the Lord and saying, "God, 19:51 I'm sorry." The Holy Spirit kept on saying to 19:54 me, "That's not enough. That's not enough. 19:56 That's not enough." I was wondering, "What 19:59 else can I do, Lord?!" He said, "Baptize. You 20:04 need to be rebaptized." So, I walked in amidst 20:07 lots of friends, lot of folks who were 20:11 part of gangs and different criminal 20:13 activities. They were at this canvas cathedral 20:17 meeting for their own purposes and reasons, 20:20 but I walked through and the devil wouldn't 20:22 let me go. I gave myself to the Lord and 20:26 I went into that little change room that night 20:29 to change into that baptismal robe to be 20:32 baptized. As I sat there with all intention 20:36 and purposes to go and do this, I sat, changed, 20:39 sat there, and all of a sudden, my body 20:42 couldn't move. My mind was still working; 20:46 I wanted to get up. They were knocking 20:48 on the door. "We're ready for you." I 20:49 couldn't get up. Pastor Steele was in the 20:51 baptismal pool. Couldn't get up. I prayed in my 20:55 mind. I said, "Lord, if you will give me 20:58 the power to move from here to there, I'll 21:01 never leave you again." I felt when my body 21:03 just freed up, and I started making little 21:07 moves towards the pool. It has been the best 21:11 experience I ever had, and God has been 21:13 leading me ever since. After that, my ministry 21:17 became a very public ministry. Matthew 28:19... 21:24 I turned back to the gangs and I became a 21:28 street preacher, so I preached everywhere- 21:30 on every corner- wherever. - With a 21:32 loud speaker? - With a loud speaker and without. 21:35 - I love it. - So, it was like John the Baptist 21:38 saying, "Repent." I did that and I preached 21:42 to the same folks that I was with. Sad to say, 21:47 I buried many, many of them. Today, I only 21:50 have two childhood friends who are still 21:53 alive. - Well, I'm just saying... Praise 21:56 God. He got a hold of you. - God be praised. 21:59 - God has brought you together at Uchee Pines 22:03 Institute. Give us just a brief history of Uchee 22:06 Pines, 'cause many of you, if you've been 3ABN 22:11 viewers for a long time, will remember 22:13 Dr. Agatha Thrash from Uchee Pines Institute. 22:18 She had a program called, "Help Yourself to Health." 22:20 She was on for many, many years. I know when 22:23 I first started watching 3ABN, she was on. Tell 22:27 us a little about Uchee Pines. - Well, most 22:30 people know somewhat now of our international 22:32 kind of influence, but you know we didn't 22:34 start off that way. We started, basically, 22:39 just looking for a piece of property out 22:40 on the country so we could move out of the 22:42 city and have a place to grow some food and 22:43 that kind of thing. It has become Uchee 22:46 Pines. The ministry began in 1970; started 22:54 with just our family. So for a while there, 22:57 everything that happened was in our home. We 23:01 had- from the start, Mom and Dad had 23:04 patients that they were helping that just lived 23:07 with us in our home. And of course, that 23:09 grew into: we needed a lifestyle center and 23:12 so forth, but the first building that we had on 23:14 campus-and I have a slide of that, too- 23:16 that building was, what we call now, the 23:20 chapel. You see Mom there talking to one of 23:23 the builders. They were building that 23:25 building and it was the first building. Well, 23:26 we didn't call it the chapel then; we called 23:28 it the 'cafetorium,' and the reason we called 23:30 it that was because we ate there and we had 23:32 educational functions there. The first thing 23:36 was a day camp for overweight girls, so 23:39 we trucked them out there and they'd eat 23:43 with us and pray with us and sing with us and 23:46 go out and exercise with us, and they 23:48 lost weight! It was an amazing thing that 23:50 happened there. That building has been kind 23:53 of our all-purpose building now for all 23:54 these years. The lifestyle center is the... 23:59 - Now, explain that, because we have some 24:01 people that are watching or listening on the 24:04 radio that may not understand what a 24:06 lifestyle center is. - Okay. It's a little 24:10 bit difficult, in a way, to describe, because 24:13 it's not one thing. I used to tell people 24:16 it's like a glorified wellness center, but 24:18 some people say, "Well, it's more like a med 24:20 spa." Not really. We practice natural 24:24 remedies at our lifestyle center where people 24:26 can come and stay with us for the 17-day 24:28 program, but the unique part of it is 24:32 that we bring the spiritual element into 24:35 it. We really believe in the prayer of faith. 24:36 Without prayer, there is no real healing. 24:39 So, even if a person is physically healed 24:42 by, oh, exercising, and maybe changing 24:45 their diet and some of those things... There's 24:47 still the emotional and the spiritual side 24:50 that has not been really addressed. So, that's 24:53 the part that we are hoping people will 24:56 experience. Many people who have come from 24:59 all over the world said, "Yes; I am closer 25:02 to God. Even if I don't experience the level 25:06 of healing that I was hoping for, still, I'm 25:08 closer to the Lord." Really, it's up to God 25:11 as to when He wants to heal us. He always 25:12 wants to heal us. The question is, is it 25:15 right now or is it a little bit later? 25:16 That's what we have to find out. - I do know 25:20 that there's been many people who've gone to 25:22 the Uchee Pines Lifestyle Program, and perhaps, 25:26 they were diabetic or they suffered high 25:29 blood pressure...some, even, cancer patients 25:32 that I've met who've seen dramatic 25:36 improvement. So, it's a wonderful program; 25:39 but you also train people there, don't 25:42 you? Tell us about that. - The training 25:44 programs, of course, are both in the lifestyle 25:47 center, then we also have training programs 25:49 for younger individuals, or those of all ages, 25:52 really, who would like to learn how to do 25:55 this, so you can duplicate the program. 25:57 - So, massage therapy, hydrotherapy... 25:59 - Yes. Right. The types of therapies 26:01 that we use, that of course, the unique 26:03 combination is with the prayer faith and 26:06 with the Bible work... So, it's, in a way, 26:09 kind of like a Bible worker and a massage 26:12 therapist with a little bit of shoe leather 26:16 mixed in there, so all of that together is 26:20 the type of training that we're looking 26:22 for people to- and of course, the idea is not 26:26 just overseas (although there's a lot of call 26:29 for missions overseas that need people who 26:32 can look around and use whatever remedies 26:34 are available to them locally), but also here 26:37 in the United States- it's amazing how many 26:39 people are just so... There's so much need! 26:42 There's never a lack of need. So, if a person 26:44 knows just simple little things that they 26:46 can do there in their home, nothing 26:48 expensive, nothing that takes a lot 26:51 of training to do, but just something that a 26:53 person can do that's a simple and natural 26:55 thing, what we call lifestyle medicine, 26:57 right there in their home, that can make 26:59 all the difference in the world! - Amen 27:01 and amen. Well, it's a wonderful program. 27:03 We're excited that you're here today. 27:06 You're really doing some community outreach. 27:11 I think, Amy, this is where you are primarily 27:14 involved is in this personal ministries. 27:17 Tell us about what you're doing in the 27:20 community, because you can have an international 27:24 ministry where people are coming from all 27:26 around the world, and the people just right 27:30 across the field from you may not know 27:32 who you are and what you do. So, tell us 27:35 what the personal ministries is all about. 27:39 - It was about 2015 that I felt impressed 27:44 to do some outreach on Thanksgiving. 27:46 We stumbled across this ministry in the 27:51 local city of Columbus, Georgia. It turned 27:58 out to be a women and children's shelter 28:02 and a drug recovery center for women. So, 28:06 I spoke to the programs coordinator. I said, 28:10 "We could teach classes here!" I sent her a 28:14 list of classes we can teach, and the director 28:17 just really was very happy for this. So, 28:21 we have been teaching class there every 28:23 Tuesday evening. Also, we've been able to 28:27 teach on the weekends. The classes we teach 28:30 are Bible and health, cooking classes; we 28:33 do children's programs. Then, there was a time 28:37 that I thought, "I would like to be able 28:40 to maybe come and have us cook here for maybe 28:43 a week, a healthier diet, so the women 28:45 could experience it." The director said, "I'll 28:48 do something even better. I will let 28:50 you do a whole one-week camp at our campgrounds, 28:55 and you design it, you plan it: the 28:59 meals, the program..." I had never done 29:01 anything like this before! So that's 29:04 what we did. We had the students come out. 29:06 We stayed with the women and children 29:08 at the campsite, and it was an amazing... 29:12 - I think you've got a picture of that, 29:14 didn't you? - Not for here, I guess, but 29:17 I do have several pictures. We have 29:20 a picture of doing a cooking class there 29:22 with the women. It's been a wonderful 29:28 experience, because my background with 29:30 drugs and alcohol. So, for the Lord to give me 29:31 this ministry... When they find out that I 29:34 come from that, they can relate to me. They 29:36 open up. They have come to Uchee Pines 29:38 to two of our seminars; the women come and 29:40 have sat and listened to the seminars. They 29:44 have been so exposed to so much without 29:47 us having to preach to them the doctrines- 29:49 just showing them the love of Jesus. - You 29:52 know what, I think that's when, like a said, 29:54 Jesus said, "Go." It's a ministry of presence 29:58 and compassion. This is the way He ministered. 30:03 So now, you also began ministering in somebody's 30:08 home. Tell us about that. - With our 30:10 neighbors, I've always loved outreach and 30:15 ministry, so I'm always thinking of 30:17 ways. "How can I do it?" I thought to do 30:21 a food drive where we would go 30:24 door-to-door to our neighbors to collect 30:25 the non-perishable foods and bring them 30:27 to the human resources of the local city. We 30:31 came across one family who was actually 30:34 really in need right in our neighborhood. 30:38 We were able to donate the food to them, 30:41 and it opened the door for so many ways 30:45 to minister to other people. So, we have 30:48 been able to do children's program 30:49 in their home (and there's a picture of 30:51 that). The little boy, that night, said, 30:56 "Daddy, will you pray with me?" The father 30:58 had never prayed with the boy, and that 31:01 was just so precious. As a result, the 31:03 mother, who's seen the picture on the chair 31:07 holding her son, calls me often, saying, "Can 31:13 you help this friend?" or "Can you help that 31:15 friend?" There's a picture of one of the men. 31:19 He was living in very poor conditions-no 31:23 electricity, he had a burn accident, fire 31:26 accident-so we went to him and we helped 31:30 him as much as we could and we brought 31:31 him to our lifestyle center. There's my 31:33 husband and one of our medical personnel at 31:36 the lifestyle center, cleaning him up with 31:38 aloe and bandaging him. We've been able to 31:43 also- she called me again. "I have a friend 31:47 who's handicapped. He needs his yard cleaned 31:49 up, because otherwise, the city is going to 31:51 fine him a lot of money." So we were able to 31:55 get several people together. There's a 31:57 picture of that. We went and we just 31:59 cleaned up his yard. When we went inside 32:02 to pray with him, he said, "How much can I 32:04 pay you?" We said, "Nothing." He just 32:06 cried. There's been many other experiences 32:11 where she has called us and we've been able 32:14 to help the people in the community as 32:16 a result. - That's wonderful. Then, 32:19 Christopher, I know that... They're at 32:24 Uchee Pines. It's interesting, 'cause 32:25 we're seeing this at several lifestyle 32:27 centers that God is working the same 32:29 thing where, suddenly, it's, "All right. We 32:32 need to have involvement in the community." I 32:36 think that's... People can hear- you've got 32:40 a wonderful reputation. They hear about this, 32:42 but it's not until you can touch their lives 32:45 personally that you can see that change in 32:49 your own backyard. So, you started a 32:51 citywide day of prayer. Tell us about that. 32:54 - Yes. Similar to what Amy just said, there 32:59 is a Spirit-a sweet, sweet Spirit-moving 33:04 through the church. The Lord laid on my 33:07 heart what sister White said-that the 33:10 arm and the body of the church must work 33:12 together. Right arm, which is the medical 33:15 missionary work, and the body, which is the 33:17 church itself. We ought to do that work with 33:20 compassion for the people. So, we started 33:24 the whole process of needs-oriented ministry. 33:27 So, we canvassed the community. "What are 33:31 the needs in the community?" One of 33:34 the needs that were there was that 33:37 the teachers needed somebody to say they 33:40 are special. We started speaking to the city. 33:44 As we were working on that, there was a 33:48 special day coming up with the city. This 33:50 was a prayer day, and all the other churches 33:54 were involved. We sat with the church members, 33:56 with my district, and we said, "What can 33:58 we do as Seventh-Day Adventists to impact 34:01 our community?" The long and the short of 34:05 it is, we got three different areas in 34:09 the city. Our church was reorganized to be 34:13 a prayer station so people could drive in, 34:16 get prayer, get somebody praying for them, get 34:22 Bible passages, get literature... And also, 34:24 we would give them a gas card for needy 34:26 families who needed some gas, so we'd 34:29 give them gas cards. That was going on. 34:31 We ended church a little bit early that 34:33 Sabbath, and that is what we were doing 34:35 all day. Before noon that day, we had already 34:40 ministered to over 500 people. Now, this 34:45 was happening in three different locations in 34:47 the city, so we were also asked to be in 34:50 the park with all the other churches. - I 34:52 just want to hit the pause button, 'cause it 34:54 just hit me. You ministered to over 34:56 500 people in one day? - In one day. 35:01 - And they were driving up to you! - Yes. 35:03 - That's amazing! - The amazing part about it 35:07 was the response of the people, because we 35:09 would be inviting people and their 35:12 members standing on the roadside. 35:13 I think we had some pictures of 35:15 us praying with the policemen. I said 35:21 this at the meeting: we were praying for 35:23 police to clowns, because clowns would come up 35:26 to us and they were crying, "My family's 35:27 broken, and so forth and I would have to hold 35:30 the clown?" I'd pray for them. 35:32 The police would come- the same thing. We 35:33 had that going on. We ministered in- that 35:38 was one location; 500 people! Other 35:41 locations, we couldn't count. Just prayer. 35:44 We weren't selling anything; we weren't 35:45 doing anything. We were just praying for our 35:47 city: prayer for teachers, prayer 35:49 for policemen, prayer for firefighters, prayer 35:52 for the city. They knew us by how we 35:55 cared. - Amen. Amen. And how precious. Now, 36:00 you did something for... What was it? A back-to-school 36:03 school project? - Yes. The back-to-school 36:06 project and what we have been doing is 36:09 that we are called by God again, Matthew 36:14 28:19, to go. If we go, they'll come. Now, 36:19 when we go, they have their things that we 36:22 have to answer-their questions to answer- 36:25 their needs that are there. With the back-to- 36:28 school program, we went into the poor areas 36:33 of the community where people had some real 36:37 needs. They're unable to find dinner that 36:44 evening; unable to send their kids to 36:46 school; real needs. So, initially, we did a 36:49 citywide health expo. My Uchee Pines church 36:53 and the other churches, we grouped together. 36:54 We did a free citywide health expo with doctors 36:57 and everyone. So, while I'm there, this was 37:00 coming onto school. I said, "A lot of these 37:02 parents are asking about school stuff." 37:04 So we said, "Let's do something about that." 37:06 - The school stuff they're talking about... 37:08 Affording school supplies. - Affording the 37:10 supplies for school coming up. So we 37:13 said, "We will do a back-to-school program." 37:16 We grouped together and we gave away 37:19 a hundred backpacks and school supplies to 37:22 100 needy families. God was richly blessed. 37:26 The parents were blessed. - Here, we 37:30 see all your backpacks stacked up. I bet that 37:34 was a real blessing. How wonderful that 37:39 you're doing all of these things in the 37:41 community and that people know Uchee 37:44 Pines is really a ministry that's an 37:48 ambassador for the Lord. We're talking 37:52 about the history since 197... - 1970, coming 37:59 up on 5 decades now. - Are you still in 38:03 the cafetorium? [laughter] - Well, 38:06 we still have worship there, but it's been the 38:11 dream, of the Thrash family, anyway, the 38:15 father had this dream. Since the beginning 38:17 that we would have a church either on-campus 38:20 or close to campus. We have been worshiping 38:24 there in...it's now called the chapel. 38:27 But, you know what's interesting is, the 38:29 history... For a long time, we did not worship 38:32 in that building, because we have the 38:35 school in that building also. So, we've thought 38:37 that in order to really have a place of 38:40 worship, we actually were able to work out 38:42 with Oswichee Baptist Church over 38:44 in Fort Mitchell. We would walk there 38:45 every Sabbath morning, five miles over to 38:48 Fort Mitchell. At that time, there was 38:49 no traffic. In fact, if a car came along, 38:51 Dad would say, "Oh, my. We have a traffic 38:53 jam." There was a period of time where 38:56 we worshiped there, I believe, several months 39:00 before we could move our school out of that 39:02 building. So, the idea is that we need to 39:05 have a building that is dedicated to the 39:08 worship of the Lord. Also, something that 39:11 is enough removed from the campus that 39:14 we can use as a community center and 39:17 a center of outreach, and sometimes, people 39:19 are intimidated coming to campus for services. 39:21 - You're right. - If we have something 39:23 that's right there on the road where they're 39:25 at, it helps to do the outreach that they're 39:28 hoping to do. Before I forget it, too, I 39:31 wanted to mention our radio station. We've 39:34 had a radio station, now, for... Oh, my. 39:36 It's been well over 10 years. - Hopefully, 39:38 it's a 3ABN... - It is a 3ABN affiliate! So 39:41 I thought you would like to know that we 39:43 have had many stories of outright conversion 39:46 stories from the radio station, from the 39:49 programming. When you can't do anything, 39:52 when it's late at night or whatever time it 39:55 is, you know the broadcasting ministry 39:57 is still preaching and still talking to people 39:59 and still reaching people out there. 40:01 - It is so amazing. The local pastor here- 40:03 we have, of course, 3ABN radio in the 40:05 area. Probably once a month, he's writing 40:08 me, saying, "Somebody came in ready to be 40:11 baptized! They've been listening to 3ABN 40:13 radio." Even if they don't really even 40:14 know about 3ABN TV, they've got the radio. 40:17 - They say, "I'm ready. I'm ready to join 40:19 your church!" - So, what are you going to 40:21 do? I know you're here to talk about... 40:24 This is your dream, this is your vision, 40:26 and this is what they have. Already, you're 40:30 laying a foundation for this. Where will this 40:33 new church building be? - It's amazing how this 40:36 worked out. Right there on the corner, we thought 40:41 about putting a sign for Uchee Pines. I 40:45 was thinking, it'd probably be good if 40:47 we could actually buy a little piece of property 40:48 there that wouldn't change owners and 40:51 somebody'd say, "Move your sign." - So when 40:52 you say, "On the corner," how far is that 40:54 from Uchee Pines? - It's a couple of miles 40:56 off-campus at the main road that runs 41:00 in front of Uchee Pines Rd. I went to see 41:04 the owner. The owner said, "It's amazing 41:08 that you would come to talk to me, because 41:09 we had just decided- we don't have any 41:10 children-we just decided to sell that 41:12 property! You're the first one- we JUST 41:15 made the decision and we wanted to sell the 41:17 property!" Well, long story short, the church 41:19 was able to purchase that. - Isn't God's 41:21 timing perfect? - That property has been there, 41:25 purchased and ready to go. Well, this time, 41:29 now- it's now time for us to move forward, 41:32 and we're seeing that things are really picking 41:34 up steam. In fact, we've got some video 41:37 of what's happening right now. There's 41:41 been some earth moving around and site 41:46 preparation, I guess you could say, that's 41:48 been doing- it's exciting for us to see 41:51 that there's actually something happening, 41:52 because I can tell you: after having years 41:54 and years of thinking about it and praying 41:58 for it and actually giving to the project, 42:00 to see that there are things actually 42:02 happening there has been a real blessing. 42:05 - And to think that this was your father's 42:07 vision, as well; right? - That's true. - When 42:09 you see how exciting- wait a minute. Where 42:12 is Uchee Pines? What city are we talking 42:14 about? You're outside of... - We are 100 miles 42:16 southwest of Atlanta, right outside of Columbus, 42:19 Georgia, over on the Alabama side. So, we're 42:21 on the Alabama-Georgia line. - Okay. - Real 42:26 close to Columbus. And, of course, our 42:27 city mission is Country Life Restaurant and 42:30 the health food store over in Columbus, 42:32 Georgia. - Praise God. - We can talk about that 42:33 for an hour, too. [laughter] The closest you 42:38 would think-and it's probably very similar 42:41 to your campus here- you would think, 42:43 looking at it, "Well, there's not very many 42:45 people here." But if you draw a circle 42:46 and look at the number of people that are 42:49 in this, you're talking tens of thousands 42:51 of people that are in the 5-mile or 10-mile 42:54 circle, including Fort Benning and Fort 42:57 Mitchell and all of the surrounding area 42:59 there; it's just exploding with growth. 43:01 We're doing things here in our local 43:04 area that no one else is doing. There 43:05 are many churches around, but we're 43:07 doing things that no one is doing. So... 43:09 - You are so right to think that, "If this 43:12 is on the main road- I mean, if people 43:14 see an advertisement for some kind of a 43:17 health expo or something- the community-if 43:20 they know that they've got to turn and go 43:22 up two miles to that institute there, 43:24 they're not as likely that if it's a building 43:27 that they're passing on a daily basis, see 43:30 this big church that's all so influencing... 43:35 It does become a center of influence if 43:37 people feel comfortable going there! - So, 43:39 Maranatha volunteers are going to be 43:41 coming. - You're breaking ground; we 43:46 saw that. - Actually, we have another 43:48 video. In fact, Maranatha wants to have the 43:51 foundation already done, so we've actually 43:53 been able to pump in that concrete and 43:56 get that foundation ?. - That's not 43:58 inexpensive, is it? - No, it isn't! And 44:01 a little bit frightening, I guess you could say, 44:03 because my challenge is to really rest in 44:06 faith that the Lord can take care of these 44:08 things. You'd think that after being the president 44:11 of an organization like Uchee Pines for 16 44:13 years that that would all be just a given 44:16 that you just rely on the Lord for all your 44:18 needs. - Let me back up and explain that, 44:21 because I know as a self-supporting ministry, 44:24 even here at 3ABN, from month to month, there's 44:27 so many times, I'm sure for you, it's like, "How 44:30 are we going to make payroll? What are we 44:31 going to do?" So your faith is tested from month 44:36 to month, but one thing we've always found is 44:39 when God says, "Go forward," He will bring 44:41 in the funds. - That's right. I've never seen 44:44 Him fail yet. - But have you learned not to stress 44:47 yet? [laughter] - Now, that's the challenge. I do 44:50 admire when Peter was arrested and he went 44:54 to sleep between those two soldiers- just trusted 44:56 the Lord that everything was going to work out. 44:58 I'm thinking, "I think I probably would've 45:00 been having a stress dream at that moment," 45:02 or something, but he didn't. So, to be able to 45:06 trust the Lord- and He gives us these 45:09 faith experiences in our past so that we can 45:12 trust Him for our future, as well. 45:14 So, we're looking forward to the time here that 45:19 Maranatha can come. They're going to raise 45:21 the church for us, so we'll need a lot of people 45:24 to help do that, too. - Wonderful. So that's 45:26 going to happen in the next month. I think 45:27 we've got an artist's rendition of what this 45:30 facility is... Oh, that's beautiful. - It 45:34 is the Maranatha plan. - That is going to be 45:36 a beautiful church... A beautiful facility. 45:40 I believe the Lord will really bless. 45:43 Does this mean that- Pastor Christopher-will 45:46 you be moving your church now there for...? 45:49 - This will become the Uchee Pines church home, 45:53 so as Elder Kyle Wrightly said, "We are 45:56 presently worshiping in one of the general 46:00 buildings on campus, and we have been doing 46:02 that for 20 odd years... 23 years." - I hesitate 46:07 to tell you I was wrong. - As you rightly 46:10 said, "Now is God's timing, and we're 46:12 rejoicing. We're rejoicing for the help that we 46:14 have been getting so far. But above all, I 46:16 am rejoicing for the fact that God has given us 46:18 a promise. He has said through His councils 46:22 that those that are believers must have 46:24 an intention or a heart to raise up churches. So he said, 46:29 "He will give us the means." So, we're going forward, 46:32 believing by faith that our God will do what 46:34 He has promised to do, so we are here just 46:38 rejoicing in that and inviting others to join 46:41 with us. I want to send a message out, also, to 46:45 local churches, small churches, that you can 46:50 do mighty work- GREAT work for the 46:53 Lord. The Pen of Inspiration says, 46:55 "Make your vision large, because your God is 46:58 large." So, we're inviting folks to join 47:01 with us in this end-time mission of sharing truth 47:05 and love with others. - I think it begins with 47:07 praying outside the box. Sometimes, we 47:10 pray these little, bitty, tiny prayers. I love it 47:15 when somebody just says, "Lord, what do you 47:18 want me to pray?" If you ask, the Holy Spirit 47:20 will help you in your prayer. But ask Him! 47:23 "What should I be praying for?" And 47:25 God will enlarge your vision. I mean, it is just 47:29 amazing to me how God will do that. Then when 47:34 you start praying for that, if you get the 47:36 faith in your heart, He will bring it to 47:39 pass. I'm sure you're not here just to tell 47:45 us the update; you're looking for funds to 47:50 complete this. You're looking also for volunteers. 47:53 So, what we want to do, 'cause I know 47:57 you've got a story I think you want to tell 47:59 us about a baptism. What we'd like to do... 48:01 We've got the address roll, how you can get 48:04 in touch with Uchee Pines Institute. Many of you 48:08 may have been there before as the Lifestyle 48:10 Center, and you've been in their cafetorium, 48:14 now chapel, and realize how greatly needed this 48:18 facility is. But it's not just for the institute; 48:21 it is to become a center of influence for the 48:25 thousands in the area. And perhaps, the Holy 48:28 Spirit is impressing upon you now that you can 48:31 give something to help this dream that's been 48:35 in the making for a long time; but it's God's 48:38 timing. You know our experience, and I'm 48:40 sure yours has been is when it's God's 48:43 timing, He's going to bring the funds in. 48:45 And that's the good news! He's got all the 48:49 funds. Of course, the rest of that story 48:51 is some of them are in your pocket! [laughter] 48:54 So, what we want to do... If you maybe would like 48:56 to volunteer in some way or support this 49:00 project, here's how you can get in touch with 49:03 Uchee Pines. 49:07 Uchee Pines Institute is committed to assisting 49:09 people through the use of simple matro 49:12 methods, using exercise, vegetarian nutrition, 49:15 hydrotherapy, massage, and a firm faith in the 49:19 Divine Healer. If you would like to support 49:22 their ministry or offer financial support for 49:25 their church-building project, please visit 49:27 their website: UcheePines.org, 49:30 and click on their Donate button. That web address, 49:33 again, is UcheePines.org. You may also call them 49:37 toll-free at (877) 824-3374, or write them at Uchee 49:44 Pines Institute 30 Uchee Pines Road, 49:47 Seale, Alabama 36875. - You know what I love 49:53 about supporting ministries? We're self-supporting; 49:57 that means that you're not funded by the 50:00 church, but we support the Seventh-Day Adventist 50:03 Church. What I love is it IS such a faith-growing 50:06 experience, and it's also one I'm sure you 50:09 all have found that everybody wears a 50:11 number of hats, right? Pastor, you wanted to share 50:15 a story about...a young man, is it? - A young man. 50:20 I am so passionate about seeing people give 50:25 their lives to the Lord. We're in the end of days, 50:28 and this is tying in with our local mission 50:32 of reaching souls; but also, 3ABN has a part 50:38 to play in this. We were doing organized 50:41 series-Uchee Pines, the Phenix City Church- 50:44 and we didn't have our auditorium, so 50:46 we were back in Phenix City at their church. 50:48 While we were doing this, we were at the end 50:51 of the series, and a gentleman walked through 50:54 the door. Now, I wasn't the one preaching, so 50:56 I'm sitting at the back just to see the entire 50:58 congregation. He walked through the door, he 51:00 was in cut-off jeans, slippers, his T-shirt, 51:04 and he kind of just struts straight up to the 51:06 front and he sat, and I kind of took note. 51:09 When the last altar call was made, he stood 51:12 up. He stood there for a little while, 51:15 then he was heading back out, so I kind of stepped 51:17 into his way and I said, "What's going on? 51:20 How are you doing? Did you like the series?" 51:21 "Oh, yeah. Pastor, I'm ready for baptism." 51:25 Now, I'm going to call his name, because he 51:26 knows who I'm talking about. His name is 51:28 Keith Cobbs. Now, this gentleman... When I 51:31 asked him, "How are you ready for baptism?" 51:33 He said, "I've been listening to 3ABN 51:34 Radio." - Praise God. - "I came to your series. 51:38 It's the same thing you guys are presenting. 51:40 I believe it's the word of God. I want to give 51:42 my life to the Lord." In that one week, he 51:45 was baptized, and he's now a member of our 51:48 church. God is amazing, and He wants to do 51:51 magnificent things through his work. So, 51:54 we're thanking 3ABN for the work that you 51:57 guys are doing in keeping with our local mission 52:00 as churches, so we want to give God thanks for 52:02 that. - I just want to thank you all. I mean, 52:05 we're not closing out yet; we're going to 52:07 come back for a closing thought. What I want 52:09 to thank you all is for when we're telling 52:11 all these beautiful truths on the television, 52:14 and people go and reach out to find an Adventist 52:18 church, I praise God when they find a church 52:21 that is filled with love- a church who has ministry 52:24 of helps because they know that our truth 52:28 and the way the church is are the same. The 52:31 sad thing is, not all churches are perfect, 52:34 and when somebody calls and says, "Well, I went 52:37 to the church and they're nothing like y'all." Now, 52:39 that's a sad situation. But we're going to come 52:41 back in just a second for a closing thought. 52:44 Right now, we want to go to our news break. |
Revised 2018-11-27