| | | | | E-Newsletter of the Ohio Conference of Seventh-day Adventists | October 2010
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It's a pleasure to introduce to you our first iss ue of Faithpoints, sponsored by the Ohio Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It's our desire that we can here share our common faith, and encourage one another in well-doing and evangelizing the world. If you have a local outreach event you'd like us to announce here, please tell us about it!
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| | | | |  Why I Want Jesus to Return Soon
By Raj Attiken
I travel to my home country of Sri Lanka about every other year to visit my mother and family. I always look forward to the visit, both because Sri Lanka is a stunningly beautiful tropical island, and because it is where I grew up and where many people I love still live.
Each time I visit Sri Lanka and India I am struck by how millions there are forced to live. A shack covered in cardboard from packing boxes might be a home for an entire family. You walk around people sleeping on the street. Men and women work grueling, backbreaking labor for a few rupees a day. In part of my homeland, rival groups have spent decades at war, and the marks of that still remain in military presence and ethnic tension. Sometimes the poverty is set against the backdrop of incredible wealth: a family lives under a tarp on a sidewalk in the shadow of a mansion.
No matter how often you've seen it, even if you've grown up with it, you never get used to it. Suffering is suffering, whether those who suffer are Hindus, Buddhists, Moslems or Christian, whether brown or yellow, black or white.
The problem of human suffering is a perplexing one. Our faith offers us some answers. One is that we can have a part in relieving human suffering. We can be involved. We can make a difference.
Another answer is that suffering is for the "present time," as Paul called it (Romans 8:18), and won't last forever. When Jesus comes - and not until then - all suffering will be fully eradicated. Jesus promises a new heaven and a new earth where there will be no hunger, pain or suffering. No war, either, and no terrorist bombs. No malaria, no cancer, no HIV/AIDS. Never again will a baby be born into a family living under a tarp. When Jesus makes all things new, there won't even be the tiniest pocket of pain left anywhere in the universe.
I want Jesus to come so that I can meet and worship the One who saved me from sin and gave me eternal life. I want Jesus to come so that I won't be separated any longer from loved ones by land, ocean, or death. I want Jesus to come so that no infant, no child, no man or woman will have to suffer pain, hunger, or disease any more. I want Jesus to come so that peace and harmony can be restored to this universe. I want Jesus to come!
The hope of His coming is one of the reasons I'm a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, and why I want others to know our message of hope. We Adventists don't have our roots in this world. Our home is in heaven, where Jesus has already prepared a place for us!
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Ohio Conference Begins Ministry to Secular Campuses
Did you know that 65 to 75% of Adventist students study at secular or other non-Adventist schools? That may pose a real challenge to those who want to hold on to their faith. The Ohio Conference has launched a pilot ministry to reach out to secular campuses, starting with three: Ohio University in Athens, The Ohio State University in Columbus, and Wright State University in Dayton.
 Darrin and Christine Thurber have taken the campus ministry position in Athens. They come here from California. Darrin is a musician and ministerial student, and Christine (known to all her friends as Beamy) is a social worker. They've created an active student group, and are already reaching students on the campus.
Gina and David Helbley are working at The Ohio State University. They have just returned from mission work in Kazakhstan. Gina is a ministerial graduate from Walla Walla College, and David is an engineer. Together they're setting up a campus Christian center near our state's largest campus.
 Sabrina Araiza joins the Kettering team to begin a ministry on the Wright State University campus. Sabrina comes from Arizona, but is well known in Ohio from her years working at Camp Mohaven. Sabrina will be assisted by Kettering team members Brittany Culpepper, Logan Stout, and Associate Pastor Elliot Smith.
What can you do to help?
1. Pray for these young people as they work on campus!
2. Visit their blog, where you can learn more about what they're doing, and send them notes of encouragement.
3. If you know college or university students in any of these areas, give us their contact information! Send name, phone number, and (if possible) address to faithpoints@gmail.com.
4. Can you support this ministry financially? A few churches have already done so, but we need more. If we could get each church in the conference to take the salary of one team for one month, we'd could do this easily! Individually, check out our PayPal contributions page.
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 New Conference Secretary-Treasurer
Doug Falle (pronounced FAWL-ay) is our new conference treasurer, replacing Andy Sutton. He also picks up the role of conference secretary held previously by Hubert Cisneros. Doug comes to us from the New York Conference. He's worked in conferences across the division, including Dakota, California, Manitoba-Saskatchewan and Oklahoma. Doug's wife, Ursula, is a registered nurse, who works at a nursing home. The Falles have 4 children, and 3 grandchildren. Doug is cheerful, helpful, and always ready with a story. Doug also enjoys preaching, so do call upon him should you need a speaker in your church! Doug says, "Thanks so much for receiving us so graciously here. I just want to be of service to the people in Ohio. Don't hesitate to call or email me with questions." Doug can be reached at the conference office 740-397-4665, or email him.
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| | | MVA Update
 We're pleased to let you know that thanks to vigorous recruitment by our principal, Rob Stevenson and his staff, Mount Vernon Academy has rebounded to 129 students! They've kicked off a great school year. Will you remember to pray for MVA?
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| Thank you, Ohio Conference Faithful!
Church giving depends on people having jobs, so it's no surprise that in a down economy, church giving may also be affected, and especially in a manufacturing state like Ohio. That's why it is a pleasure to see that our Ohio people continue to give faithfully. Even in this much reduced economy, our tithe is only about 2% behind last year's! Thanks so much for your faithfulness. And don't forget your local church budget in your giving!
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| Inspiration
"All true obedience comes from the heart. It was heart work with Christ. And if we consent, He will so identify Himself with our thoughts and aims, so blend our hearts and minds into conformity to His will, that when obeying Him we shall be but carrying out our own impulses. The will, refined and sanctified, will find its highest delight in doing His service. When we know God as it is our privilege to know Him, our life will be a life of continual obedience. Through an appreciation of the character of Christ, through communion with God, sin will become hateful to us."
- The Desire of Ages, p. 668
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| | | Upcoming Events | - All-Power Week-end with Life Coach and Evangelist Leo Schreven at the Portsmouth SDA church, October 29-31, followed by Jim Gilley of 3ABN November 5-7. Contact Cindy Ferguson for more information.
- Ohio Ministry University, March 19-20, 2011, in Columbus. More details later!
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"The Heavens Declare"
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Sunset over Sandusky Bay, taken by Loren Seibold. Share with us your favorite photo of the Ohio sky!
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| Sales at your Ohio Conference ABC!- Book of the Month: The Wise Men by Trudy J. Morgan-Cole. (The 2nd book in the "That First Christmas" series.) Save $3.00 off the cover price! $8.99
- November is Chapel Music Month. Save 15% off nearly all Chapel Record CD's.
- November Food Specials: All Loma Linda & Worthington canned food: buy 3 cases and get the 4th case (equal or lesser value) for free! Through 12/31/2010
| Specials for November, 2010
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