Featuring: Medical Missionary Work

Devotional: ………………………… “The Serenity Place (My Mission Field)” ………………..……… Lillian Javellana Editor’s Thoughts: ……………..… “The Right Hand? Or the Right Arm?” ….……. Ardys Joy Caballero-Gadia

Featured Items: (special thanks to Jesse Colegado for items #4-5)

1. Crowds Line Up for Free-Mega Clinic in Los Angeles …………………………………………….. Adventist Review 2. San Antonio’s Free Clinic Changed Me As A Surgeon ……………………………………………. Adventist Review 3. Anna Knight, Educator & Medical Missionary ……………………………………………………. Adventist Heritage 4. Magic Johnson Shows Gratitude To Adventists ………………………………………………….... Adventist Review 5. Four Patients Share Remarkable Story ……………………………………………………………….… Adventist Review 6. Spiritual Feeding During The Pathway to Health Los Angeles ……………………….……………..….. The Editor 7. Opportunities To Volunteer For Medical Missionary Work …….……………………….……………… The Editor

SULADS Corner: ……………………………………….… “ Datu, Don’t Die” ……...………… Joseph Penticase. South Cotabato

Patch of Weeds: …………………………………………………………………………….……………………………………….. Jesse Colegado LIFE of a Missionary: …………….……...… “Sunday – The Sabbath of Tonga” …………….….…………. Romulo M. Halasan

CLOSING: Announcements |From The Mail Bag| Prayer Requests | Acknowledgements Meet The Editors |Closing Thoughts | Miscellaneous

Photo credit for banner photo: Mike Caballero. MVC … road from DXCR going towards the tennis court.

Devotional: “The Serenity Place (My Mission Field)” by Lillian Javellana, BSN’81

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27 KJV

aking care of patients, or residents as we call them in the long term care, can be very stressful and demanding physically, mentally and emotionally. We meet demands from our residents, their families, the doctors, our coworkers, as well as accrediting and

government agencies. In order to prevent us from reaching our breaking points, it is necessary to escape to a quiet peaceful place from time to time, allowing us to re-focus and recharge. During a stand-up meeting one morning with our facility administrator, it was announced that room 419 would be the designated place. Our department heads quickly named the room the “serenity place." I remember thinking quietly to myself, “Perfect! That is close to my office!” Unlike many of our patients, Mr. Peter* is alert, oriented, and young, but he is not an easy person to work with. He has had a troubled past and had served some time in prison for killing someone. He came to our facility because he requires hemodialysis regularly due to kidney failure and 24-hour nursing care. He also developed a disease where his fingers and toes became gangrenous and had to be amputated. In constant pain and already having a myriad of medications, he says he thinks God is punishing him for his sins. He verbally abuses the staff, calling them names and complaining about everything that they do for him. Shortly after that stand-up meeting where the “serenity place” was born, I discovered that the social services department had decided to move Mr. Peter to room 419, to the “serenity place” itself! His skilled days, where he was to receive a high level of medical and nursing care, was now exhausted. There was nothing more that could be done for him. He has to be moved to the back stations where the long-term care residents are located, and he needed a room. “Wait a minute! What happened to our ‘serenity place’? Our ‘serenity place’ will turn into an obscenity place!" I inwardly protested thinking of the foul language he constantly uses and the room’s close proximity to my office. But suddenly my thoughts turned around 180 degrees as if guided by an Unseen Hand. In my mind I heard this question, "Haven't you asked the Lord to give you this healthcare facility as your mission field?" I was rebuked. The verse in Romans 8:28 came to mind. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." I realized God has given me the opportunity to witness to Mr. Peter for Him. I know God has a plan for him. He brought him close to my office because I must have a part in God's plan. My duty was to obey.

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In my office, I have some songs printed and taped on the wall under my phone. One of the songs is the song "Do you know my Jesus?" Two weeks prior, I was impressed to take that song off the wall and I took it to Room #208 in Station 2 where Luke*, a young cancer patient, was. Earlier that morning he was crying and was asking for prayer. He was depressed and anxious. Mr. Ed, our patient relations officer and a Christian, and I were with him when Luke requested prayer. He said it calms him. So Mr. Ed prayed. Luke's tears were just streaming down freely on his cheeks as he called out to Jesus. I suddenly realized how much he hungered for Jesus. That evening as I was leaving for home I told him, “Luke, I have a song I want to give you, it goes like this," and I started singing the song “Do You Know My Jesus.” The charge nurse who was working at that time happened to be an SDA. (The only one in our facility aside from me.) Hearing me singing, she came to join me and we sang a duet. Luke’s tears were flowing down his cheeks as he closed his eyes, praising Jesus. He was very grateful. I made copies of the song and gave it to him and to Marcia, the charge nurse, who by this time was also crying and hugging me. She herself was facing some struggles in her life and the song had touched her also in a special way. It amazes me, how God will just lead me to a location in the facility, to a person, and at the right time. My prayer is, "Lord, cause me to be attentive to the promptings of Your Holy Spirit and cause me to obey." I realized that God really does give the Holy Spirit to those who ask as He promised. (Luke 11:13) The following morning, I met Luke in the hallway and asked how he was doing. He looked calm. He grinned, "I am okay, and it must be the song." He further added, "When your voices blended, I felt like I was lifted up." He was discharged that day and I was privileged to pray for him before he left. I continue to pray for him that in his journey with Jesus, He lead him to the Bible truth. Back to Mr. Peter. I decided to bring him a copy of the same song "Do You Know My Jesus?" The call light to his room was on so I went to answer it. I asked him how I can help him. He told me he needed some pain medication and needed to be changed. I told him I would tell the charge nurse about his pain medication and ask a CNA to clean him. He made some sarcastic comments to which I did not respond. However, before I left his room I turned to him and said, “Oh, the reason I came was to give you this. It is a song called "Do You Know my Jesus?” The tune goes this way, and I started singing the song. As I sang I could see the change in him. He closed his eyes, raised his tattoo-covered arms, and started waving them and praising Jesus. When I finished singing the song he started praying thanking Jesus for me and for God’s love. It was amazing. He asked me if I was a Christian, and I answered, "I am." He responded "Praise God!" Few days later I came back and sang for him a few more songs. Now, he has a folder on his night stand with copies of the songs. There was a song I sang which he said he had learned in prison (Thank God for Prison Ministries!). Since then I have not heard any complaints from the nurses or anyone else about his behavior. He has not given anyone a hard time. He has changed. It is amazing how Jesus can change a person’s life. How the misery, the anger, and the bitterness disappear when Jesus is allowed to come into the heart.

Our “serenity place” had turned out to be a real “serenity place” after all! Not just for us staff, but especially for a precious soul whom Jesus has died for. I continue to pray for these precious souls that God has placed in my path. The Lord indeed has given me this nursing facility as my mission field. I realized that the songs about Jesus are a very powerful tool in ministry. They remind people of our Loving Savior and they soothe souls. It allows those who have trouble sleeping to have a restful night sleep after I sing them a song. I can see my residents eyes sparkle when I start singing as I go into their rooms or as I walk in the hallway. Jesus has blessed me with a very rich experience in this journey and ministry. So many precious souls, so many wonderful stories to tell. There is so much power in the name of Jesus. I have seen it, felt it, and experienced it. It opens the way. He is the Way. ”Assuredly, I say to you today, you will be with Me in Paradise." Luke 23:43. (*not their real names) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: A graduate of MVC School of Nursing class of ’81, of MVC-Academy, and MVC’s Faith Elementary School, Lillian Caballero- Javellana understandably grew up surrounded with an appreciation for good music. Morning and evening worship in Papang Moises Caballero’s house (her parents) at MVC campus included joyous singing of 2 to 5 hymns rendered prayerfully in a blend of many voices. Today, she Shines On! from Palmdale, California, where she lives with her husband Bill and their two sons.

(photo credit top photo: Requel Legaspino)

Editor’s Thoughts: The Right Hand? Or the Right Arm? by Ardys Joy Caballero-Gadia, BSN’91

smirked to myself. I had just managed once

again to over-simplify things. Why didn’t I

just simply state name and title of the newly

hired deputy chief nurse? Instead, I had managed

to tell a room full of nurses that she is the newly

hired right hand of the chief nurse, the boss of their

boss’s boss. Whoa! Seriously? The right hand?

Would that make her like an AO (administrative

assistant)? A program manager? Or an intern? And

if she were the right hand, who is the elbow? The

shoulder? Would the hand be effective without an

elbow or shoulder? What gives the hand its strength? Its mobility? The ability to reach out and

touch? The ability to reach this way and that? Wouldn’t the movements of the hand be limited if

the elbow and shoulder were non-functional or non-existent? I covered my self-deprecating smirk

by taking a sip of punch. Then I turned to leave the conference room.

Author Ellen G. White refers to the medical missionary work as the arm and hand of the body. Her

precise words were, “Again and again, I had been instructed that the medical missionary work is

to bear the same relation to the work of the third angel’s message that the arm and hand bear to

body. Under the direction of the divine Head they are to work unitedly in preparing the way for the

second coming of Christ. The right arm of the body of truth is to be constantly active, constantly

at work, and God will strengthen it.” (ChS 134.4) That mental image made me smile happily. At

least this limb was an arm and not just a hand – meaning it had the muscles to lift, to push, to pull,

to block and to work. This limb had the elbow for multidirectional mobility. And it had the hand

for fine motor dexterity.

Medical missionary work. What exactly is that? Must you be a doctor or nurse working in the

savannahs of Africa or the Amazon jungles to participate in this? No, you don’t have to be a

medically trained person. You are qualified enough just as you are.

Today, we will browse through some concepts of what medical missionary work is like. It is our

prayer that this week’s issue of CyberFlashes will help you to realize that you have what it takes

to be part of the medical missionary work and that the possibilities of what you can do is

boundless.

Blessings! Joy Caballero-Gadia

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Crowds Line Up for Free Mega-Clinic in Los Angeles Adventist Review April 27, 2016

rowds lined up at the sprawling Los Angeles Convention Center in the U.S. state of California on

Wednesday for the opening of a Seventh-day Adventist-organized mega-clinic that hopes to provide

$30 million worth of free healthcare to 10,000 people over 2 ½ days.

Separate lines of people seeking dental, medical, and vision services began to form a day early, with several

hundred people staying the night to be among the first to enter the complex in downtown Los Angeles when

the doors opened at 7 a.m.

“My biggest concern, to be honest with you, was that no one was going to show up,” said Lela Lewis,

president of Your Best Pathway to Health, the main organizer of the event. “But, praise God, that is not the

case. We’ve got a full house outside.”

Organizers faced something of a struggle getting the word out about the mega-clinic, with local media

offering scant coverage in the days leading up to the event.

A total of 2,559 patients were treated on Wednesday, said Costin Jordache, communication director for the

event.

At least 4,000 patients had been needed for the mega-clinic to easily reach its goal of treating 10,000 people

when it ends at midday Friday.

But Jordache was optimistic that demand would surge after seven news trucks showed up early Wednesday

to prepare reports for all the major Los Angeles television stations. National media also was looking into

the story.

“Lots of media coverage today, so we're anticipating more patients tomorrow than today,” Jordache said.

People tend to be suspicious about accepting something at no cost, saying, “Nothing is free,” said Duane

McKey, a senior leader of the Adventist world church and a veteran participant at free mega-clinics.

McKey said he saw initial skepticism at mega-clinics that Your Best Pathway to Health organized in

partnership with the Seventh-day Adventist Church in San Antonio, Texas, and Spokane, Washington, last

year.

“But after they see the evening news, they realize that they really can receive free care with no strings

attached,” McKey said.

Support from the Mayor

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti also released a video statement encouraging city residents to visit the

mega-clinic.

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“It’s not uncommon for Angelinos to experience a gap in medical coverage, whether you are between jobs

or experiencing unforeseen financial hardships,” he said. “Pathways to Health’s mega-clinic provides free

dental and eye-care for Angelinos and their family members in need. … We hope to see you there.”

Some 700 people had already lined up for dental care by 5 a.m. Wednesday, organizers said. The other

lines were shorter. Dental care was also the most-sought service at previous mega-clinics.

About 4,400 volunteers, including 2,500 medical professionals, were providing a wide range of medical

and dental services similar to what Your Best Pathway to Health offered at previous mega-clinics. But

with homelessness a growing concern in Los Angeles, organizers expanded the services to provide more

free clothing, including shoes for the first time, and two new departments: free legal services and financial

services. A doctor was also providing tattoo-removal services.

Some 500 interpreters were assisting patients in 20 languages, including Chinese, Vietnamese, and

Spanish.

Several Adventist-affiliated organizations were assisting with the free clinic, including Adventist Health

West, whose White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles has made operating rooms available for

hysterectomies, gallbladder surgeries, and other procedures. Loma Linda University Health helped recruit

skilled volunteers.

A New Record

The previous record for turnout at a mega-clinic was set in April 2015 when Your Best Pathway to Health

cared for nearly 6,200 people over three days at San Antonio’s Alamodome stadium. Free clinics also

have been held in San Francisco and Oakland, California, in April 2014, and in Spokane, Washington, in

August 2015. Altogether, 12,400 people have received nearly $40 million in free services.

In Los Angeles, volunteers started setting up equipment in the 400,000-square-foot (37,160-square-meter)

convention center on April 25. A special worship service will end the event on April 30 with presentation

from three speakers: Daniel R. Jackson, president of the Adventist Church in North America; evangelist

Mark Finley, and McKey, assistant to the president of the Adventist world church for the Total Member

Involvement program and director of the church’s Sabbath School and Personal Ministries department.

McKey mingled with people waiting in the hot sun outside the convention center Wednesday, offering

encouragement and patting several on the back. He apologized for the wait of 60 to 90 minutes in the

dental line and jokingly suggested that a quick fix could be found with a pair of pliers, drawing smiles.

Many waiting patients thanked him for the opportunity to receive free treatment. Seeing a girl with

crutches and a bandaged foot in the dental line, McKey asked her parents whether she was in pain and

would like to sit down. With the parents’ blessing, he led the girl and her brother, both in their early teens,

to chairs at the front of the line inside the building, where they could wait for their parents.

Logistic challenges threatened to delay the opening of several departments of the mega-clinic.

Richard Beckermeyer, a dentist from Michigan who flew his staff to Los Angeles to participate in the

event, said he had struggled to set up equipment on the eve of the event.

“We didn’t have any suction, we didn’t have any electricity, and we didn’t have a multitude of other

things,” he said.

His team bowed their heads in prayer. As they prayed, three issues that they were praying about were

resolved, Beckermeyer said.

“God is reminding us that it is not our power, it is His,” Beckermeyer said.

San Antonio’s Free Clinic Changed Me as a Surgeon Adventist Review April 27, 2015 (yes, last year!)

Commentary: I wasn’t prepared for the effect that the three days

would have on my view of my practice and my church.

By Stephen Waterbrook, general surgeon, Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital

’d never been as unprepared for a “mission” trip as I was for the Your Best Pathways to Health

event that provided $20 million in free Adventist healthcare to 6,192 patients at the Alamodome

stadium in San Antonio, Texas.

I put “mission” in quotation marks because I figured ahead of the April 8-10 event that if I wasn’t leaving

U.S. soil, I wasn’t really engaging in missions.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The demographics of the patients who came to me for general surgery surprised me. About 60 percent of

the patients only spoke Spanish. Another 30 percent were bilingual, probably preferring Spanish, while

the remaining 10 percent were native English speakers.

This immediately struck me. No matter what you may think about the U.S. government’s healthcare

policy, many people remain in the shadows of the government’s reach to provide access to healthcare.

This explained the long lines of people around the stadium. The need was overwhelming.

Almost every patient I saw simply had no means to visit a health professional in their own country or in

ours, legally or otherwise. Without a social security number or some other form of identification, they had

little hope of receiving treatment.

About half of my patients required surgery, which I gladly would have offered for free if I had had access

to an operating room.

The surgeons who volunteered at the stadium were able to perform bigger operations under general

anesthesia at the Adventist-operated Central Texas Medical Center located 45 minutes north of San

Antonio. But patients who received surgery had to sign up in advance in order to undergo pre-surgery

screening.

I asked many patients: “Is there any way you could see a surgeon? You need surgery soon.”

They looked at me incredulously.

I found myself thinking: “Of course they can’t see a surgeon! If they could, why would they be here?”

This circular conversation in my mind made me feel discouraged. Jesus was right in Mark 14:7. No matter

our attempts in society, we will always have the poor. Still we managed to perform 60 surgeries at the

hospital and another 300 simpler procedures at the stadium. This was the tip of the iceberg, but it did

make a difference.

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The Formula Excited Me

What really excited me about Your Best Pathways to Health was the formula. I have often participated in

free clinics and in evangelistic series, but this was the first time that I have seen free healthcare and

evangelism merged, beautifully incorporating the love of Jesus by both serving and teaching. In other

words, I saw comprehensive health evangelism in practice.

Some of the 1,700 volunteers arrived grumpy, indifferent, antagonistic or just unaware. But all left

changed and blessed. The event changed the lives of everyone.

Many volunteers were so proud of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and of engaging in an activity so in

line with the ministry of Jesus. The free clinic was practical and much needed. I’m certain we would see

the church grow rapidly if the concept were replicated across North America and in other developed

countries.

No patient left the San Antonio stadium without prayer, education, love, literature, and an invitation to the

many local programs that are being held in various churches after the event and leading up to the General

Conference session in San Antonio in July. Patients can attend cooking classes, depression recovery

programs, diabetes classes, creation health classes, and evangelism seminars.

The free clinic was more than a three-day event. Extensive and well-planned follow up was put in place.

As a surgeon, I sensed part of something that could meet every need I saw in each patient, whether they

had a surgical issue or not. This was an opportunity to introduce people to the love of Christ through a

comprehensive method that I don’t have the manpower to do in my office on a regular and intense basis.

“This is the gospel in action!” I remember thinking to myself.

Each department contributed equally at the event, addressing physical, emotional, social, and spiritual

components. From a new haircut and suit to a new smile, some patients felt like they were told to pick up

their mat and walk. “Hope” was the resounding feedback as the patients left, along with the question,

“When are you coming back again?”

Real World Meets Jesus’ World

I live as a physician in a world of ever-increasing government regulation, meaningless computer work,

fitful insurance companies, declining reimbursement, increased demand, and underserved people all

around. At Your Best Pathways to Health, all of those worries disappeared. It was pure joy to do what I

could with the limited resources that I had. If I received the appreciation from every patient like I did in

San Antonio, I would keep working for free. This is part of the reason I believe Jesus healed people:

purity of practice.

I don’t think that the church could have been more relevant, hitting at the core of what it means to be

Christ-like. It felt quite different compared with the everyday practice in the real world.

The “real world” has changed me in some ways. But my perspective about mission has changed after San

Antonio. Each patient in a multitude represents an opportunity to introduce Jesus, the Physician with the

greatest compassion.

I didn’t think I was going on a mission trip before San Antonio. But I realized when I returned home that

the mission trip had only started. I wasn’t prepared for the effect that the free clinic would have on my

view of my practice and my view of my church. I now have so much more appreciation for Adventist

Church leader Ted N.C. Wilson’s emphasis on comprehensive health evangelism. Efforts like these bring

to a culmination the love of Jesus with a prophetic end-time movement that shows its “works” by

providing for those who can’t provide for themselves.

Jesus was no stranger to a multitude of people: “Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching

in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease

among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because

they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest

truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into

His harvest’” (Matthew 9:35-38).

In an age of ever-increasing divide in the United States and the church, comprehensive health evangelism

served as a uniting force among those who volunteered in San Antonio. If more people would join such

efforts, I think we would find ourselves going home a lot sooner than we thought.

Anyone can help, and to that I know Jesus would say, “Well done.” Jesus is coming again very soon, and

this is the work that I think He would like to find us doing.

Anna Knight, Educator & Pioner Medical Missionary Adventist Heritage

nna Knight stretched her sun-bronzed limbs out from under her cotton sheets. Although the night had been pleasantly comfortable, hot Mississippi summer nights were just around the corner.

Not far off, Anna could hear her mother scuttling about in the kitchen. Soon Anna would be called on to do her morning chores. Work on the family's 160-acre farm was a never-ending struggle to keep the land productive and the family secure. As an eight-year old, part of Anna's responsibilities included feeding chickens, fetching water, and tending the garden. Today was no different, except for the fact that she would be starting to work for some of the white neighbors that lived nearby, in exchange for learning how to read and write. Remembering that thought, Anna sprang out of bed and rushed to her mother. "Mamma, I'm a gonna have my first real job, ain't I?" Beaming proudly, Anna announced that she was going to learn how to read and write, just as well as any of the white friends she played with on Sundays. Almost 20 years had gone since the Emancipation Proclamation had been passed, and still Blacks felt the oppression of the White man. Children of African heritage were not free to go to school with Caucasians. At breakfast, Anna's legs kicked excitedly up and down under the table as she ate her wholesome grits and piping hot cornbread. Dashing off, she kissed her mother, and wished her brothers and sisters a good day. Many thoughts juggled in little Anna's head. She wondered about the work she'd be doing, and hoped that it would be easy enough for her to handle. Slowing her rapid pace, Anna widened her blue eyes to take in the grandness of her neighbor's house in comparison to her humble home. The white-washed fence, the elegant flowers, and the huge door she knocked on made her feel very small. When the door opened, Anna met one of the maids who then brought her before Mrs. Williams, the owner of the plantation. Before the day was over, Anna had met the butler, cook, courier, animal caretaker, gardener, and other workers. Besides that, Anna had swept and scrubbed the floors and by evening, Anna had helped with the laundry and learned how to press clothes. Tired though she was, she was determined to have her first lesson in reading and writing. Pleased with Anna's work, Mrs. Williams called her over, and started to teach her the ABC's. Taking the pencil given to her, Anna slowly wrote out the alphabet. Slightly biting her lip, she carefully tried to make her letters look similar to Mrs. Williams’. When she had finished, she broke into a radiant smile. Day by day, Anna learned to read and write better. At home, in the evenings, she would practice writing on the earth with her fingers or a small stick. Within a few years she had educated herself with an equivalent of a country school elementary education. Always eager to learn more, she submitted a request from a magazine for reading materials. Of those who responded to her were two Adventists. As a result of the SDA reading materials on the wonderful

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message of Jesus Christ, she became interested in Adventism. Excited with her new found faith, she shared the good news with her family. Mother was very displeased. In fact, she demanded that Anna choose to leave her faith or her beloved family. Each night, Anna prayed that her family would accept the loving message of Jesus' soon return but their hearts remained cold. Sadly, yet with assurance that Jesus stood beside her, she decided to leave home. Packing her few belongings she also carried the rich promises of Jesus' love. Anna found her way to Tennessee, where she was baptized and received the spiritual support she needed. From then on her formal education began to blossom when some older friends sent her to Mt. Vernon Academy. After that, Anna went to the Battle Creek School of Nursing. Desiring to help the underprivileged children in her home state, Mississippi, she opened up an industrial school. Patience and prayer kept her spirits high. Then came a call to go to India as the first Black woman missionary of any denomination. What a struggle to decide! What would happen to her little, impressionable ones who were just beginning to taste the joys of learning? Getting down on her knees, she cried and said, "Lord, You know all things, and all needs. The work is all Thine; the people are Thine in Mississippi, India, and in all the world. Lord, if You need me in India more than in Mississippi, then take away this sorrow out of my heart and stop me from crying all the time about it. If the sorrow and crying is taken away, then I'll know You are calling me to go to India . . . ." No sooner had she finished her prayer when she stopped crying. Off to India she went, along with another nurse. From pulling out natives’ teeth to teaching the Bible and English, Anna's experiences made her more dependent on the Lord, as she learned lessons of persevering service, and humility. Dangers unknown to her until later made the love for her Lord grow even deeper. One day, longing for some fresh vegetables, Anna stopped by at a big bazaar. Tall, native men followed her from a distance. They had big knives. Usually, these men killed foreigners in the market, but God had seen to it that her life was spared. Conditions in the school Anna had left behind in Mississippi were doing poorly. Again and again, she received letters begging her to come back. One student pleaded, "Why don't you come back and teach us yourself? You understand us, and you are not afraid. Why would you stay over there, trying to convert the heathen while your own people here at home are growing up into heathens?" Impressed that she needed to go back, she assumed her former responsibilities. As time passed, she moved on to other educational positions within the Adventist school system. Among her many achievements, Anna founded the National Colored Teachers Association. Also, she received the Medallion of Merit Award by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in 1972. She became the 12th person to receive this honorable award in the history of the church. Her full, vibrant, and devoted life to education in Christ ended in 1972, at the age of 98; however, her positive influence lives on. Her autobiography can be read in Mississippi Girl, published in 1952 by the Southern Publishing Association.

Magic Johnson Shows Gratitude to Adventists Adventist Review May 17, 2016

By Ramona L. Hyman, Oakwood University; and Andrew McChesney, news editor, Adventist Review

ormer U.S. basketball star Earvin “Magic” Johnson Jr. has donated more than half a million

dollars to Oakwood University and the Oakwood University Church in appreciation for the

influence that Seventh-day Adventists have had on his life.

Johnson, 56, who was raised in an Adventist family, retired from basketball in the 1990s and became a

wealthy businessman with interests in entertainment and sports. But he told the congregation at the

Oakwood University Church in Huntsville, Alabama, last Sabbath that he also is a Christian.

“And here I am,” Johnson said as he accepted the church’s 2016 Humanitarian Award on May 14. “I used

to be a point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers — had them little shorts on — and I was doing my thing. I

was happy, but I wasn’t fulfilled. So now I am the point guard for the Lord.”

Johnson announced that he was donating $50,000 to Oakwood University for student scholarships in

appreciation for the university’s contribution to his family’s education.

“My family has gone to this beautiful university,” Johnson said. “My mother made sure my sisters had no

choice but to go to Oakwood.”

He said the scholarships were in honor of his mother, Christine Johnson, a Seventh-day Adventist of more

than 45 years, who attended the ceremony. Also present in the church were his father, Earvin Johnson Sr.;

and his wife, Earlitha “Cookie” Johnson, a Huntsville native.

Johnson said he remembers his mother walking door to door to share her love for Jesus.

“Very few people would listen, but she kept going,” he said.

Johnson also said he was donating $500,000 toward the construction of a new Family Life Center at

Oakwood University Church.

“I believe in that man and the work he’s doing,” Johnson said of Carlton Byrd, senior pastor of the

Oakwood University Church.

Byrd presented Johnson with the humanitarian award for his work with underserved communities through

his Magic Johnson Foundation, which promotes HIV and AIDS awareness, distributes scholarships, and

runs Community Empowerment Centers that put computer technology into the hands of ethnically diverse

urban communities. The foundation spends $20 million assisting more than 250,000 people every year.

“Brother Magic and Sister Cookie have done so much,” Byrd said. “It is important for our young to be …

exposed to people who are making a positive difference.”

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Four Patients Share Remarkable Stories Adventist Review April 27, 2016

aul Kincaid, a 75-year-old retiree living

in the mountains of northern Idaho, never

stays in motels.

But he had no choice when he got stuck in a

snowstorm last February, so he reluctantly pulled

into a motel parking lot.

Kincaid never watches television.

But he was bored in the motel room, so he flipped

on the television set and saw Dr. Lela Lewis,

president of Your Best Pathway to Health, and

her husband, Chris, also a medical doctor, talking

on 3ABN about an upcoming free mega-clinic in

Los Angeles, California.

Kincaid rarely visits the doctor because of the cost, but this week he got a physical examination, an eye

test, and other services from five Seventh-day Adventist doctors at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

“It’s really unusual because I don’t usually stay in a motel, but I think God was leading,” said Kincaid,

who took a bus to Los Angeles. “It was just that one night that I watched 3ABN and heard about this

program. It’s awesome.”

Kincaid is among the thousands of people who have flocked to the sprawling convention center in

downtown Los Angeles to receive free dental, medical, and vision services at the mega-clinic organized

by Your Best Pathway to Health in partnership with the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Boosted by local media coverage, the number of patients swelled to 3,334 on the second day, Thursday,

after a total of 2,559 people received treatment a day earlier, organizers said. In all, 4,400 volunteers,

including 2,500 medical professionals, still hope to provide $30 million worth of heathcare to 10,000

people by the time the event ends at midday Friday, said Costin Jordache, communication director for the

event.

“We’re optimistic,” Jordache said. “Fridays have surprised us before!”

The mega-clinic, which was covered by Los Angeles media such as NBC television's local affiliate on

Wednesday evening, made national television news on Thursday. CBS television featured it

in a prominent report on its “CBS Evening News.”

Grateful patients, meanwhile, told of their faith being restored in both humanity and in God. At least one

woman said she believed in God for the first time.

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Long Trip From Idaho

Kincaid, a lean man with rough,

calloused hands and a white beard,

may have traveled the farthest to

reach Los Angeles for treatment.

Watching 3ABN, he scrawled down

the telephone number that appeared

on the screen, determined to learn

more.

He said he lacked the money and

insurance to visit all the doctors that

he needed to see, so a visit to the

mega-clinic was just what he

needed.

“I felt like I was falling apart at the

seams,” he said.

Kincaid had to wait until his next trip down the mountain for supplies to find a phone signal that allowed

him to dial the number on his cellphone. The person who answered gave him the details and prayed with

him.

“I thought, ‘I got to find a way down there,’” Kincaid said. “I really couldn’t afford it.”

After making some more phone calls, Kincaid bought a roundtrip bus ticket for the 1,200-mile (2,000-

kilometer) trip to Los Angeles. He arrived a day early and slept outside the convention center. He was

among the first in line when the doors opened Wednesday.

Inside he met a nurse who had traveled even farther than him. While receiving treatment, Kincaid

marveled that the nurse, Sanja Kitevski, from Australia, had traveled so far to volunteer at the event. But

Kitevski, a soft-spoken woman with a kind smile, insisted that Kincaid was the real hero, making the long

bus trip to southern California and roughing it once he arrived.

“He’s lovely,” she said.

One doctor told Kincaid that he would need follow-up care and connected him with an Adventist

physician in southern Idaho who agreed to see him at no cost, Kincaid said.

He met Lewis and thanked her in person. Tears shone in his aged eyes as he praised God for the care that

he had received.

“God had to have impressed me to be in that hotel at that very time when they were talking about this

program,” he said. “Any other time I wouldn’t have been there.”

‘Angels From God’

irian Munguia, 34,

learned about the mega-

clinic on Facebook. But

her responsibilities as a

kindergarten teacher and single

mother to two small sons, the

younger of whom is deaf, seemed

to rule out the possibility of

getting away for long-delayed

dental work.

On Wednesday morning, however,

her elder son pushed her to go.

“Mommy, you always take care of

us. Take care of yourself today,”

the second-grader said.

Munguia wept as she recounted the conversation.

After arranging for her mother to watch the boys, she spent some time persuading her employer to give

her the day off. Then she drove to the convention center from her home in Long Beach, California.

Long lines of people greeted Munguia’s eyes when arrived in the late morning. The dental line was the

longest, and someone told her that no more patients were being admitted for the day.

Munguia headed forlornly back to her car. As she walked, sharp pains shot through her abdomen, a

reoccurring problem since a major surgery a decade earlier. She clutched her side.

A man wearing a white coat appeared at her side.

“Where are you going?” he said. “Look you are already here. You are in pain. Just go back.”

He led her back to the convention center and to a different waiting line. She didn’t see him again.

“I believe he was a doctor because he had a white coat,” Munguia said. “But I don’t know who he was.”

But Munguia wasn’t convinced that she should stay. The waiting lines looked so long. As she was led

from one line to another to register and then receive treatment, she resolved to leave as soon as she got to

the next line. But a volunteer appeared at her side each time she took a step to depart, offering

encouragement and conversation.

“These were angels from God,” Munguia said.

Doctors treated her and arranged for a follow-up procedure. Munguia planned to return the next day for

dental work.

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Air Ticket Cheaper Than Crown

ichael McKay, 64, bought a round-trip plane ticket from Spokane, Washington, to find a dentist

who would replace his temporary crown with a permanent one.

McKay, who heard about the mega-clinic from an Adventist friend, said he hasn’t held a steady job since

losing his home and ventilation-inspection business in the 2007 mortgage crisis. A military veteran,

McKay has government-supplied medical insurance but no dental coverage.

McKay, tall with glasses and a trim brown beard, determined to travel to Los Angeles.

The cheapest round-trip air ticket cost $177 — a fraction of the expense of a crown — and it brought him

to Los Angeles on Monday, two days before the mega-clinic opened. McKay, probably the first patient to

arrive, had no place to sleep and no money for a hotel.

“I thought, ‘When I get here, the Lord will provide a place,’” he said. “I actually just slept in the parking

lot the first night.”

The second night, on Tuesday, McKay slept in a waiting line of several hundred people seeking dental

services.

McKay received the permanent crown, and he hoped to also get a haircut and massage.

“I’m working very

hard to get my life

back together in

Spokane,” he said.

“It really feels good

to get away for a

while. I think that the

help that I received

here and the time

away will let me

restart my life with

new energy.”

He expressed

optimism that he

would be able to get

back on his feet after

he flies home on

Sunday.

“I lost my home and

a lot of hope,” he

said. “This has given

me a lot of hope.”

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‘I Can’t Stop Crying’

Nattha Chuangohawala, 29, raged as

she drove the 45 minutes from her home

in Orange County to the Los Angeles

Convention Center.

“I don’t believe that You exist, God,”

she said angrily. “If You exist, prove it

to me.”

Chuangohawala, a vacation-home

cleaner from Thailand, had learned

about the mega-clinic on Facebook and

immediately dropped all her plans for

the day. She desperately wanted to see a

doctor after living eight years in the

United States.

Raised in a Buddhist family, she didn’t believe in God. But she had sensed a connection with a Higher

Power in recent weeks, and she wrestled over the existence of God as she drove to Los Angeles.

Chuangohawala had no idea who was behind the mega-clinic when she arrived.

“I thought it was from the government to help people,” she said. “I never thought it was from a church. My

tears have been coming down all day.”

Chuangohawala, who received the sought-after medical assistance, said she was weeping over the

unexplainable kindness of the volunteers.

“When I wanted to drink, someone said, ‘I’ll get some water for you.’ And I’m like, ‘Why are people doing

this for me?’” she said. “When I was hungry, a wonderful lady brought me food.”

The mega-clinic provided drinking water and box lunches to patients.

“I have never had this experience before,” Chuangohawala said. “People have such kind hearts. It has really

touched me. I can’t stop crying.”

Chuangohawala said she now wanted to find a way to help others as well. She asked whether it would be

possible to volunteer at the mega-clinic. She said she wanted to learn about the God who had revealed

Himself through the kindness of the volunteers.

“I feel a good spirit around here. That is why I have been crying all day,” she said. “Just today I have

accepted God.”

Spiritual Feeding During The Pathway to Health Los Angeles

ABN and other Adventist Media services were on hand at Los Angeles during the Pathway to Health. Meals were provided for the volunteers. Worship services were also held. Thank you to audioverse, a ministry manned by Adventist young people, we found audio recordings of the

powerful messages shared during the Pathway to Health worship services. Click on the links below to avail of them and be blessed. (For those who are receiving CyberFlashes in its printed form, thanks to MVCian coworkers and friends who share CF with others, I am going to leave the hyperlink as they are so that you can type in the url to hear the sermons in their entirety.)

4/27/2016@7PM. Mark Finley. Assistant to President for Evangelism at the General Conference

Topic: “Healing Like Jesus Healed” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14344/healing-like-jesus-healed.html

4/28/2016@7PM. Taj Pacleb. Speaker/Director of Revelation of Hope Ministries

Topic: “Who In The World Would Want Us?” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14306/who-in-the-world-would-want-us.html

4/29/2016@7PM Don Mackintosh Chaplain/Pastor - Weimar Institute

Topic: “Medical Missionary Work” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14307/medical-missionary-work.html

4/30/2016@7AM Heidi Carpenter

Topic: “His Heart Was Different” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14308/his-heart-was-different.html

4/30/2016@11:30AM Daniel Jackson President, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists

Topic: “How Far Will God Go?” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14309/how-far-will-god-go.html

4/30/2016@7PM Sebastien Braxton Co-Founder, R3

Topic: “Extraordinary” https://www.audioverse.org/english/sermons/recordings/14345/extraordinary.html

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Adventist Opportunities for Medical Missionary Work

or some of us, we don’t mind who we go with on medical outreach with but there are also some of us who yearn for the fellowship and worship that comes along with doing outreach with fellow Adventists. My cousins love doing mission trips even they were still in high school. They often went

with their friends. Medical missionary work continues to be an activity our family enjoys.

Maranatha is one of the organized Adventist groups that have many misson trips. Some of them are local while many of them are internatonal. Some of them are for a few days while some are for 2 weeks or more. You can choose to bring your own group of friends or you can ask to join someone else’s group. Maranatha misson trips are often focused on building churches, digging wells, and other construction activities – construction experience is not required. However, many groups choose to do allocate a day or two in providing medical/dental outreach as well as Branch Sabbath School for children. For more information go to https://maranatha.org/ and select which country you want to serve at. Many people I know choose to go on mission trips like Maranatha during their summer or Christmas break.

Interested in joining the next Pathway to Health? Visit their website to see when the next one will be at and where it will be held. https://www.pathwaytohealthvolunteer.org/

Ask your church pastor about outreach activities or encourage your church’s health ministries department to organize a medical outreach activity. Dr. Jun Israel is one of the health ministries leaders in the Inland Empire SDA Filipino Church in Redlands, California. They often hold health screenings, feeding, handing out literature and reachinhg out to the homeless. At Loma Linda University Church, different Sabbath School classes plan different kinds of outreach activities often incorporating medical/dental/mental outreach. Ask your local conference if there are groups forming that you can join! Join or attend conferences like GYC to expose yourself to different kinds of outreach activities, learn some skills and network with like-minded individuals. The opportunities are endless!

Lastly, remember that when you ask God to show you the way He will. Faith without action is dead.

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Being a Medical Missionary, My Version Eddie Zamora

he year I got a taste of being a medical missionary was after my junior year at MVC

Academy. Our family lived In MVC for the past three years even though for one school

year, my sophomore year, I attended Mindanao Mission Academy in Manticao, Misamis

Oriental. That was the year when MVC did not offer the first two years of academy to save on

faculty salary.

I came back from MMA and enrolled for my junior year in academy. At the end of that school

year my father was reassigned to the Mindanao Sanitarium and Hospital in Iligan City. It was a

new environment for me but I soon had friends there. As the school opening drew near I looked

forward to meeting new classmates at MVC. But my father told me that since my three older

brothers were all in college, he did not have the funds to keep us all in school. He decided, with

misgivings, that I should quit school for a year until we could recover financially. Maybe by then

I could continue my schooling.

I had no specific job or assignment so I went around the hospital and helped with anything and

observed what other employees did. I saw the janitors scrubbing the hospital floors with a

coconut husk scrub on each foot, and a broom in each hand. It seemed efficient at that time, so I

learned to do it. I also observed a dead man being embalmed and I kind of learned that thing too.

But the most interesting thing I got into was taking dead people to their homes on the hospital

ambulance. There probably was a law against that procedure because we did it at night always.

We made a trip to Lala, Lanao with a body on a stretcher. The relatives sat with the dead while I

and another person sat in front with the driver who had to drive. The only reason we enjoyed

that macabre duty was we were allowed to drive some parts of the way home. The farthest place

we reached was Long Vine (Bagontaas). We arrived at midnight so after the dead, which

thankfully was in a casket, was taken to the house, we proceeded to MVC to rest for the night.

After a few weeks of my aimless life, my father told me that the hospital was going to have an

extension clinic in Marawi City. He told the planning committee that I, a fifteen year-old dropout,

was available to be the custodian or janitor for the clinic. The offer was accepted, and so that was

the start of my own version of medical missionary experience. It was medical because I would

work with medical people, and missionary of sorts as the place we would work at was Marawi, a

Muslim city.

My first assignment was to work the pedal of an ancient, old-fashioned dental drill for Dr. Ponce,

the MSH dentist. Once a week, Dr. Ponce and some other physicians and nurses would go to

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Marawi to help with the medical work. On other days there was skeleton crew of one physician,

a nurse, some attendants (there were no LVNs or CNAs then) and a janitor—me. My responsibility

was to keep the clinic clean, the floors shiny (with a coconut husk) and also to make sure the

outhouse or toilet was in acceptably clean condition. If one is familiar with the ways of the people

there, one would know that that could be a challenging responsibility.

Every day I would scrub and sweep the floor. Whenever a patient is discharged I would have to

make the room clean, a task that was not easy because when a Maranao patient is admitted,

visitors would be coming almost continuously. They seem to be eating all the time as there is an

endless procession of visitors bringing food. Aside from the food, their shoes and feet seem to

bring dust and mud into the room, and there was that ever-present metal jar into which they spat.

When they leave, the floor of the room may have a crust of dirt and stains from their saliva which

would take a lot of scrubbing to clean up.

Some of the things I learned as I worked there for several months are:

--If you are giving medicines, ask first who the patient is. There is a chance the person on the bed

could be a “distinguished” person. The patient may be lying on a mat under the bed.

--Patients prefer injections that hurt. The more painful it is, the more they like it. They think it is

a more potent medicine.

--Don’t judge people by their “outward” appearance. Some people who look poor pay their bills

in cash.

--When a patient is discharged, you better be there to check. Some people take stuff with them,

and this could include the bedpan, the kerosene lamp (electricity was turned off after 8 at night),

the sheets and mattress.

--If you are nice to the patient’s relatives and friends and they may share with you some of their

delicacies.

In my opinion my experience as a janitor at the Lakeside Clinic in Marawi City was a good learning

experience. I learned to speak the local dialect. I also learned the Muslim ways or traits. I even

wore the malong, an attire which provided warmth on cold nights. When water was scarce I

learned to wash or bathe in the Agus River, the outlet of Lake Lanao.

Many Maranaos call clinic personnel as “dokotor” (I was called that) and refer to Christians as

“Pilimpino.” I have observed weddings (from a distance) as well as funerals. I respect their

practice of refraining from eating or taking oral medicine during Ramadan, but when the sun went

down they stayed up and had a feast. I learned to respect the way the professionals (doctors and

nurses) cared for the patients, be they educated or partially illiterate. Those things are part of

what my experience as a “medical missionary” to Marawi City taught me.

Eddie Zamora

SULADS’ Corner: Datu, Don’t Die By Joseph Penticase, Lamfitok, Lake Sebu, South Cotabato

“The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me…”

Psalm 116:3 (KJV) (“The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me;

I was overcome by distress and sorrow.” Psalm 116:3 [NIV])

e were assigned at Lamfitok Literacy Center, a day's hike from Datal Ligao, another SULADS Literacy Center. Lamfitok is situated amidst the mountainous area under the Municipality of Lake Sebu. This village is composed of fifteen families, excluding those living in the hinterlands.

This is the first year of operation of this literacy center. My partner and I are the first SULADS assigned to this village. People living here are called Tasadays, and they practice polygamy. "Sir! Sir! There's a problem, Sir," came a call one misty evening just after we ended our devotional. We went to the door to see who was calling. We saw one of the wives of Datu Adug, the oldest datu in the village. She was panting as she came near us. “Sir, come with me quick! We need your help!" the woman said. "My husband is in great pain. We don't know what to do. Please help us." We went to their house as quickly as we could. It was not too far from our cottage so we were able to reach their house in no time. As I entered their house, I saw Datu Andug being cared for by his second wife. The datu was lying on his back, writhing from the excruciating pain in his abdomen. His wife told him that we had already arrived. He sat and faced us. "Sir, please help me. This is too painful. I cannot take it anymore. Please do help me," the datu pleaded. As he spoke, I noticed him holding his genitals. I became curious so I asked him, "Datu, why do you hold your private part?" “Sir, I can feel the swelling inside my abdomen. Holding it eases the pain. If I don't hold it, I think I will die,” the datu explained. Datu Andug told us to feel the swelling area. My partner refused, so I had to examine his groin and abdominal area. Pressing his abdomen I could feel something hard like a lump. I concluded that that was the source of the pain.

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While I was thinking of what I could do, his wife entrusted him to us. “Sir, do to him whatever you think will be of help.” I was in deep thought wondering what I could do. As my partner and I analyzed the old man's situation, we concluded this was beyond our capability and that we felt so helpless.

“Datu, I know you are a good man. I am not sure what would happen but I am sure we will meet in heaven,” this was what my teammate said as his parting words for Datu Andug. As I pondered his words, I remembered their cultural belief—that if you are the last person to hold the sick before he dies, you will be blamed for his death and will be buried with the dead! I could not help but mumble the words, “Datu, please don't die.” I tried to think of the best way to possibly extend his life. Then I was reminded that I serve the Great Physician, the Great Healer, and the Owner of all life. This would also true for the datu, so I requested him to close his eyes as I prayed to the God I serve and pleaded with Him about the datu's situation. A few minutes after we prayed, Datu Andug exclaimed, "Sir, your God is a very powerful God indeed!” He took my hand and placed it over his abdomen. "Feel it, Sir, feel it!" he exclaimed. As I felt his abdomen, I noticed that the hard lump was gone. "Sir, the pain is also gone. Nothing seemed to have happened a while ago, but thanks to your God I am now healed. I will tell my people about this and I will also serve your God because He really is the Living and Most Powerful God of all."

From then on during our Sabbath gatherings, we saw Datu Andug, laboriously walking with his cane, so committed to attending our worship service with his people. He was full of praises to the God of the SULADS, who became their God also, the Great Physician and Healer.

© SULADS International, Inc. If you would like to support this mission program dedicated to taking the Gospel to the people of Mindanao, please write a check to Gospel Outreach. Mark it for the SULADS and send it to: Gospel Outreach P.O. Box 8 College Place, WA 99324 You may also donate to the SULADS using your credit card by logging on to Gospel Outreach's donation site (http://www.goaim.org/) and follow the directions. Again, mark it for SULADS. If you would prefer, you may write your check to the General Conference of SDA and mark the donation for SULADS and send it to: General Conference of SDA Donations 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904 Thank you for your support of this very important project. If you do not want to receive any more newsletters, Unsubscribe To update your preferences and to unsubscribe visit this link Forward a Message to Someone this

Doctor’s Advise

octor: I see you're over a month late for your appointment. Don't you know that nervous disorders require prompt and regular attention? What's your excuse?

Patient: I was just following your orders, Doc. Doctor: Following my orders? What are you talking about? I gave you no such order. Patient: You told me to avoid people who irritate me. (From GCFL)

X-ray

four-year-old girl had to have an x-ray taken at the medical office where I worked. She had been in an accident with her bicycle and the doctor was afraid she may have broken her wrist. The girl, however, was very concerned about the procedure, and no matter how her

mother tried to calm her, she kept putting up quite a fuss as we led her into the x-ray facility. When she came out a few minutes later, however, she was calm and all smiles. "They just took a picture of my bones," she explained to her mother. "Yes, dear," her mom replied. "I told you it was easy. Did everything go well?" "Yup. It was great!" the child exclaimed. "I didn't even have to take my skin off or anything!" (From Doc's Daily Chuckle)

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Someone Stole My Wig

hile Patty was working as a receptionist for an eye surgeon, a very angry woman stormed up to her desk in the hospital.

"Someone stole my wig while I was having surgery yesterday," she complained. The doctor came out and tried to calm her down. "I assure you that no one on my staff would have done such a thing," he said. "Why do you think it was stolen?" "After the operation, I noticed the wig I was wearing was cheap looking and ugly." "I think," explained the surgeon gently, "that means your cataract operation was a success." (From Doc's Daily Chuckle)

Different Surgeon

surgeon was checking on a patient who had a hernia operation three days before. The doctor asked the man why he had not gotten out of bed.

"I hurt," the man said. "You don't know how it feels." "I know exactly how it feels," the doctor said. "I had the same procedure last month, and I was back at work two days later. There's no difference in our operations." "Oh yes there is," said the patient. "You had a different surgeon."

Expensive Doctor

young woman wasn't feeling well, so she asked one her co-workers to recommend a physician.

"I know a great one in the city, but he is very expensive. Five hundred dollars for the first visit, and one hundred dollars for each one after that." The woman went to the doctor's office and, trying to save a little money, cheerily announced, "I'm back!" Not fooled for a second, the doctor quickly examined her and said, "Very good. Just continue the treatment I prescribed on your last visit." (From GCFL)

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Sunday - The Sabbath of Tonga

onga, a country in the South Pacific known for its spectacular blow holes, is beautiful

country whose people are ardent church goers. Church service usually follows a call

(church bells ring on Sunday signaling the start of church services) and response

structure. Singing in the church is often done a cappella. Although a church attends primarily to

the spiritual needs of the population, it also functions as the primary social hub. As consequence

people who go to a church of another denomination are absolutely not shunned.

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Sunday in Tonga is celebrated as a strict Sabbath, enshrined so in the constitution, and despite

some voices to the opposite, the Sunday ban is not likely to be abolished soon. No trade is allowed

on Sunday, except essential services, after special approval by the minister of police. Those that

break the law risk a fine or imprisonment.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church of Tonga, or SDA of Tonga, (Tongan: Siasi ʻAhofitu) started by

Seventh-day Adventist missionaries from the United States who visited in 1891 and settled in

1895. They set up schools but made very little progress in conversion, handicapped by dietary

rules that prohibited popular local foods such as pork and shellfish, and that also banned tobacco,

alcohol and kava.

The church was revitalized in 1912 with renewed emphasis on evangelism. In 1922 it resumed its

strategy of providing education, which resulted in an increase in conversions. After keeping a low

profile during World War II (1939–45), the church grew quickly from 1950 to the 1970s. However,

membership subsequently declined due to migration and competition with other churches. The

SDA of Tonga is part of the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists. It operates several

schools in Tonga, and provides opportunities for further studies at Adventist institutions abroad.

Tonga lies to the east of the 180° meridian but to the west of the International Date Line (IDL).

Seventh-day Adventists typically observe the Sabbath on Saturday but in the South Pacific, there

are several countries (Tonga, Samoa and part of Kiribati) that observe the Sabbath on a Sunday.

This is due to their government decision to join the naming of the days of the week the same as

New Zealand and Australia name theirs. This was done to facilitate or simplify business

transactions. The day Saturday here in these countries is actually Friday in other countries around

them.

The SDA church in Tonga (with the approval from the Trans Pacific Union Mission, South Pacific

Division and the General Conference) determines the Sabbath as if the IDL ran along the 180°

meridian and the time zone were UTC−12:00, so observes the Sabbath on the day that is officially

Sunday.

Tonga Adventist Mission

SDA Church in Nuku-Alofa

On my first visit to Tonga, I was asked by the Mission president of Tonga to preach in the main

church in the capital – Nuku-alofa. I was uneasy because it was a Sunday. I was joked with our

church members here that if our SDA church members in the Philippines know that I preached on

a Sunday, I’m sure that I will be disciplined when I go back there. Saturday here in Tonga is still

the 6th day of the week and that is in reality still Friday in the Philippines or in other parts of the

world. It was really very unusual here in Tonga, for instance tomorrow is Saturday but I was invited

by the Mission president and several department heads of the Tonga Mission to play tennis with

them. When I called my family back at home, they were already in church worshiping whereas I

was in the tennis court playing tennis.

These countries in the South Pacific might again consider changing the names of the days of the

week but for the Seventh-day Adventists in these parts of the world, we always follow the seven-

day cycle and worship not on the particular name of the day because governments have the right

to call a day according to their wishes and needs.

The Seventh-day Adventists became active in the South Pacific in 1886 when the missionary John

Tay visited the Pitcairn Islands. His report caused the Seventh-day Adventist church in the United

States to build the Pitcairn mission ship, which made six voyages in the 1890s, bringing

missionaries to the Society Islands, Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga and Fiji.

There are four Seventh-day Adventist schools in Tonga: Beulah Primary School, the Hilliard and

Mizpah integrated primary and middle schools, and the secondary Beulah Adventist College.

Hilliard SDA School

Beulah Adventist College

Beulah Adventist College Church

A street in Nuku-Alofa on Sunday (Saturday to SDAs). Notice there are no cars on the street.

When it’s Sunday (Sabbath) in Tonga, all people are expected to be in church. Those who violate

with be fined or imprisoned. All shops are closed except the bakery. No buying and selling takes

place. The government is thinking to even close the bakery on Sunday. This is a taste of what

Sunday law is all about. After all the people are in the church, the streets of Nuku-Alofa is like a

ghost town with no cars on the road.

Please pray for our SDA church members in Tonga.

Romy Halasan Nuku-Alofa, Kingdom of Tonga

Additional pictures:

Island-hopping in Tonga

A Thanksgiving party in honor of the visit of the President

of the Trans-Pacific Union, a Tongan.

Tongan yam, we call it ube in the Philippines. It is huge, Romy.

Sunset in Tonga, as viewed through its spectacular blowholes.

When What Where Point of Contact

June 12, 2016 starting 9am

Alumni Independence Day Picnic: (Games, potluck, fellowship, etc)

Johns Park. 2101 Central Park. Glenview IL 60025

Nora Munda, Leslie Rosendo, Vicki Ybanez

July 29-31, 2016

Illinois Chapter Weekend Getaway (sign up! 8 families already signed up!)

Wisconsin Dells. River cruise, hiking, swimming…

Nora Munda, Leslie Rosendo, Vicki Ybanez

July 30, 2016 @7PM

Heritage Singers 45th Anniversary Reunion Concert (Advertised in their FB site as the last reunion concert they will be having)

4000 E. Ontario Center Pkwy Ontario, CA.

See Heritage Singers on Facebook.

Aug 4-7, 2016 MVCSN’s Zoarkes’91 Silver Anniversary Reunion

Northern California Annaliza Wilensky & Alison Sabanal

Aug 19-21, 2016

All Filipinos of Southwestern Union Conf FAMMANA Convention

Lone Star Camp, Athens, TX

Pastor Rolando Baysa rhomher@gmail.com

date tbd

MVC-SN Golden Jubilee

Anniversary Reunion Many classes are planning on coming

MVC Campus, Bukidnon Devaney M. Bayeta, president of MVCSN alumni association (homebase chapter)

Announcement from MVCiana: MVCiana is a budding museum of historical MVC items. Its MVC Yearbook

collection is almost completed except for two: Orchid 1960 and Orchid 1999. If you have a copy and are willing to

donate it to MVCiana, please contact MVCiana curator Kenji Madriaga. Thanks.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to thank the following individuals who contributed to this issue:

Lillian Javellana for the Devotional; Mike Caballero for the photo used in today’s banner.

Ed Zamora for the literary editng & for the article. Jesse Colegado for helping put this CF together, for the 2 Adventist Review articles and of course from the chuckles from “Weeds”

Romy Halasan for LIFE of a Missionary

MEET THE EDITORS

This week’s issue of Cyberflashes is a collaboration of Jesse Colegado, Joy Caballero-Gadia and Ed Zamora. Next week’s will be by Lily Lare. Please direct all entries to her or to any of the editors.

NAME: EMAIL ADDRESS: Eddie Zamora ezamora594 at aol dot com Evelyn Porteza-Tabingo etabingo at gmail dot com Jessie Colegado Cyberflashes at gmail dot com Joy Caballero-Gadia watermankids at yahoo dot com Lily EscaraLare Lily_lare at yahoo dot com dot ph Melodie Mae Karaan-Inapan melodieinapan at yahoo dot com Raylene Rodrigo-Baumgart raylene.baumgart at gmail dot com

If you wish to subscribe to Cyberflashes, to unsubscribe, or if you changed your email address and want Cyberflashes to be sent to your new address, please send your request via email to any of the editors. We spell out the @ and dot signs in the email addresses to prevent worms, viruses, and robots from harvesting them. If you would like to correspond, simply substitute the correct symbols.

PRAYER REQUESTS

Prayer for Healing

For Pastor Samuel Galarpe, his son and grandchildren, who were in a vehicular accident at

Laguindingan, Misamis Oriental. The children had to undergo surgery because of the

injuries they sustained. (Sent by MMA principal Mercader)

Roxie Pido, Jonathan Nasvales, Connie Asumbrado-Maquio, Demi Garduque, Elmar Bingcang,

Galileo Villaflores, Lola Ellen Sigue, Pastors Rudy Bermudez, Salvador Israel and Oseas Zamora.

Prayer for Comfort for the Bereaved Families of

Napoleon Cabatic , Carmelita Arit-Correces (mother of Mency Correces-Tojino and Boy

Correces), Chita Penola-Flores, Rachel Sacala, Alvin Romanes, Crisville “Cocoy” Jimenez, Eng.

Eugenio Porteza, and Jonathan Serenata.

Philippine Nursing Licensure Examinations

Please pray for the SDA nursing graduates from all schools especially from Mountain View

College who will be taking the Philippine Nursing Licensure Examinations (Board Exams) on

June 5 and 6, 2016. This is the only schedule that does not fall on a Sabbath. Let us pray for

them as they do their review in a very limited time. May God’s name be glorified as they take

these examination.

CLOSING REMARKS

Ellen White strongly urges for the medical missionary work to valiantly push onward. She says, “The right arm of the body of truth is to be constantly active,

constantly at work, and God will strengthen it.” (ChS 134.4)

What are you going to do to be part of this movement? Are you going to be part of the right arm?

Kudos once again to those MVCians who volunteered at the Pathway to Health Los Angeles!

Happy Sabbath!