Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY190054A
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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 00:19 Removing pain 00:24 Lord, Let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:46 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people. 01:11 Hello, and welcome to another 3ABN Today program. 01:14 My name is Jill Morikone. 01:15 And we're so glad that you have taken time 01:18 from your day to sit down and to join us today 01:21 or maybe you're driving in your car 01:23 and you're listening to this program just now. 01:26 I love the 3ABN Today program because we get to share 01:29 what God is doing in people's lives, 01:32 how He rescues us, 01:34 how He heals us and mends us and restores us. 01:38 And then how, in turn that many times 01:41 turns into ministry. 01:42 So the ministry that we are featuring today 01:44 is no exception. 01:46 Before I introduce our special guest today, 01:49 I wanna share a scripture with you. 01:51 I was gonna read Jeremiah 31:3, and you know that scripture. 01:55 "The Lord has appeared of old unto me saying 01:56 I've loved you with an everlasting love." 01:59 And that scripture is beautiful. 02:00 But we're going back a chapter to Jeremiah 30:17. 02:06 The prophet says, "I will restore health to you, 02:10 and I will heal you of your wounds, 02:13 says the Lord, 02:14 because they called you an outcast saying 02:16 this is Zion. 02:17 No one seeks her." 02:19 The ministry we're talking about today 02:21 helps people who might feel like an outcast 02:24 or might feel a little bit marginalized. 02:27 I'm speaking of Singles Ministry. 02:31 And we have two incredible guests with us today. 02:34 I want to introduce to you Brother Bob Merrills. 02:37 And it is a privilege to have you here. 02:40 I know that you are with the Singles Ministry 02:43 at the Georgia-Cumberland Conference, 02:44 and we're just so glad to have you here. 02:46 Thank you. Nice to be here. 02:48 I remember the first time we met, 02:50 I think it was at the 3ABN Camp Meeting. 02:53 And I remember you came up to me and said, 02:56 "I am Brother Bob, the Bookman. 03:00 So why do you call yourself Brother Bob, the Bookman? 03:02 I spent 40 years in the publishing work 03:05 in the States and overseas. 03:08 Oh, wow. 03:09 So by publishing work, you sold books? 03:10 I'm talking about colporteur work. 03:12 Okay. 03:13 I was a commercial photographer before that. 03:16 And I spent three years in it. 03:18 And God said, "Now you know what I can do with you." 03:21 My pictures were in Reader's Digest, 03:22 Sports Illustrated. 03:24 I had arrived as a photographer. 03:26 And God said, "I want you to leave it. 03:28 I want you to go back sell those books. 03:30 You were selling in college." 03:32 Oh, wow. 03:33 And I thought I'd be home in three or four years. 03:35 So I didn't think it was a big sacrifice, 03:37 but it's been over 50. 03:39 Wow. 03:40 And you answered the call of God 03:42 and stepped into that. 03:43 Well, we'll get more of your story in just a minute. 03:44 Sitting next to you is Brother Wes Tucker. 03:47 And you are also with the Singles Ministry 03:50 of the Georgia-Cumberland Conference, 03:52 and we're so glad to have you here. 03:53 And this is not your first time at 3ABN, is it? 03:55 No. 03:56 No, we had an interview 7 or 8, maybe 10 years ago, actually, 04:02 of our Singles Ministry and work that we were doing, 04:05 and now it's continued since then. 04:09 Amen. 04:10 And I know you'd served as the President, 04:12 is that right of the Singles Ministry 04:13 for Georgia-Cumberland Conference? 04:15 Yes, for many years. 04:16 Okay. 04:17 I've been involved with the Singles Ministry 04:19 about 20 years. 04:21 And Singles Ministry is important to me. 04:23 Amen. Amen. 04:25 It is important to me. 04:26 So let's take it back just a little bit. 04:29 Tell me how you first became involved 04:31 in Singles Ministry. 04:32 We'll start with you, Brother Bob. 04:34 And maybe just a little bit. 04:35 I know you told us you were a colporteur and stuff, 04:37 but tell us just a little bit of your story from the past. 04:39 And then how you first even became involved 04:41 in Singles Ministry. 04:43 Well, probably my Christian walk started 04:46 when I was in the army. 04:48 It was right up the road here 04:50 in 101st Airborne Fort Campbell. 04:53 And I was a prodigal, running away from myself. 04:58 And it was there that God got a hold of me, build up. 05:03 It's Kentucky town secretary mentored me 05:07 and brought me into a living relationship 05:11 with Jesus Christ. 05:12 And it's been with me ever since. 05:14 Wow. 05:15 No, I'm not saying I was perfect. 05:16 I'm saying that I love Jesus and wanted to walk with Him. 05:20 Amen. 05:21 And as that went on, 05:22 after I went to college and got married, 05:27 went full time into the colporteur work. 05:30 Like I mentioned, I spent a number of years there. 05:33 When I came back from Africa, 05:37 my family was traveling through Oklahoma 05:41 and we had a terrible automobile accident. 05:44 One of those accidents you hear about that you think 05:47 never would happen to you. 05:49 But it killed my 15 year old son, 05:53 put my 20 year old boy's eye out, 05:57 took my wife's nose off. 06:00 It's been 25 years and you can see the emotion. 06:03 Yeah. 06:05 And I don't talk about it in a long time 06:07 that comes back. 06:09 And my baby... I'm so sorry. 06:12 Which was Bethany Joy, 06:16 was the one that crawled out of the ditch 06:18 backup under the highway, early in the morning, 06:22 right at dusk, 06:23 and laid out on the freeway. 06:25 And somebody saw her and thought it was a doll. 06:29 How old was she? 06:31 Seven, eight. Oh, wow. 06:33 And... 06:34 So she was crawling out for help or...? 06:36 Yeah, we were down. You couldn't see us. 06:37 You would have drove by us all day long. 06:39 You wouldn't have seen us down there 06:40 if you really weren't looking. 06:42 But because she crawled out and lay down on the highway, 06:45 that's what brought the helicopters 06:47 and help and everything. 06:49 And, but through that people told me, they said, 06:53 you know, after an accident like that, 06:55 you'll be lucky to hold your family together. 06:57 Even the Catholic sister in The Big Pink Hospital 07:01 there in Oklahoma, 07:02 told me that this kind of trauma 07:04 is hard on a family. 07:05 Oh, yeah. 07:06 And we were all carrying a lot of pain and hurt. 07:11 My daughter lost her twin brother. 07:14 Yeah. 07:16 Not really a twin, they were six years apart, 07:18 but they were always together. 07:20 She lost him. 07:21 So he was 13, your son who died? 07:23 Probably. No, well, he was 15. 07:25 So they were even wider apart. 07:26 Okay. 07:28 So she may have been eight, but whatever. 07:30 They were... 07:32 But long story short, was that, 07:35 that people saying you won't. 07:39 Ten years later my wife left. 07:41 And I remember Sabbath morning I went to church, 07:46 knowing that Sunday she was coming 07:47 with a U-Haul truck to move out. 07:50 And I went to the pastor and said, 07:52 "Can I tell the church?" 07:53 It was a small church 80, 90 people. 07:55 And I said, "Can I tell the congregation, 07:58 what's happening?" 07:59 He said, "Bob, that's family stuff. 08:02 You don't share that with the church." 08:03 Oh. 08:05 I said, "Pastor, and I looked right at him." 08:07 I said, "I don't have a family anymore." 08:09 Yeah. 08:11 And he was kind of taken back. 08:12 He excused himself. 08:13 He come back and he said, "Here's the mic, 08:15 go down to the platform, you can share." 08:17 And I started to share. 08:19 And as I started to share, I broke. 08:22 I got enough out that she was coming Sunday, 08:24 she was gonna move out, get her possessions. 08:28 And I couldn't talk. 08:31 There was a man in the middle of that congregation 08:34 that was a visitor from... 08:38 I've never seen him before, 08:39 he was out of his seat, 08:41 standing beside me put his arms around me. 08:45 And he said, "You don't have to go through this alone. 08:49 I'll be here with you. 08:52 I'll be there at 7 o'clock tomorrow morning 08:55 before they come. 08:56 And I'll stay until they leave." 08:59 I'm thinking, "Who is this? 09:01 Is this an angel? 09:02 Who are you?" 09:04 He was a man that was dating somebody on the mountain. 09:09 He had been a high government man himself. 09:13 And he had gone through a terrible divorce in Arizona. 09:16 And he knew the pain that I had. 09:20 My little church could not be with me. 09:24 You know, they just didn't know how. 09:25 But God brought him. 09:27 And that's the beautiful part of this story. 09:29 "I will never leave you," he says. 09:31 Yes. 09:32 And I believe that he had that man and that audience, 09:35 that day. 09:36 And I think that's the God we serve. 09:38 Amen. 09:40 And I think, as I think about us 09:42 being here and talking now 09:43 that no matter what we are, 09:46 if we're in a relationship with Jesus, 09:48 He's promised to go through it, 09:50 doesn't mean it's gonna be easy. 09:52 Yeah. 09:53 That's an incredible testimony. 09:55 You know, I've known you for several years 09:56 and I never knew all those details of that testimony. 09:59 But to think that God sent that man there to the church 10:03 just at that time, 10:05 when you need it as it were, the hands and feet of Jesus. 10:08 Amen. 10:09 Because we know that He says, 10:11 he never leaves us and He never forsakes us. 10:13 But sometimes you need Jesus with skin on it, 10:16 someone who would be there with you at that dark moment 10:20 and bring you through. 10:22 That's incredible. 10:23 What about you, Brother Wes? 10:25 What is your story? 10:26 Well, I was born in a small town in Arkansas. 10:31 We were raised Baptists, we went to church. 10:34 But I can't really say as a child that I had 10:36 a lot of thought about religious things. 10:39 And, but my mother was a prayer warrior. 10:45 And she studied her Bible, she loved the Lord. 10:49 And she was studying. 10:51 And Daniel and Revelation was... 10:54 She was having a hard time understanding Daniel 10:56 and Revelation. 10:57 And she wanted to understand. 11:00 Yeah. 11:01 And one day, she was at church, 11:03 she asked the pastor some question 11:05 that she had on something she was studying. 11:08 And for whatever reason and I don't know why. 11:11 But he told her, "Don't worry about those books. 11:14 They're not inspired anyway." 11:16 Oh, wow. 11:17 Well, that ended my mom going to his church, 11:21 needless to say, 11:22 because she wouldn't gonna go listen to anyone talk to them 11:24 think the Bible was inspired. 11:25 Right. You know. 11:27 And so for three or four years, we didn't attend any church. 11:31 But my mom continued to pray and my mom continued to study 11:34 and anybody that came by that talk about the Bible, 11:38 she would invite them in, you know, 11:40 'cause she was ready to talk about the Bible anytime. 11:43 And one day, a salesman comes by selling Bible story books. 11:49 Well, of course, she invited him in. 11:51 And I mean, really I think she would have invited 11:55 the devil in to talk about the Bible, you know. 11:58 She'd invite anyone who had to talk about the Bible. 11:59 But anyway, she comes in. 12:01 And of course, in the midst of their conversation, 12:04 she's starts asking him some of these questions 12:06 about Daniel and Revelation. 12:08 And he says, "You know, 12:10 our church is having a series of meetings. 12:12 And the whole focus 12:14 of that is on Daniel and Revelation, 12:16 you might like to come." 12:18 Well, we went. 12:20 And at the end of those meetings, 12:24 my mom and my older brother 12:25 joined the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. 12:28 And that next year, 12:29 he's there talking about Church school 12:32 and Christian education. 12:34 And mom bought into all of that, 12:37 and he's off to academy. 12:40 And during that next year, 12:42 my older sister and I were baptized 12:45 into this Seventh-Day Adventist Church 12:47 and the next year, 12:48 in the summer, we had to go, 12:50 we headed off to Highland Academy. 12:53 And of course, she told me that, 12:54 "If you don't like it, 12:55 you can come home after a couple of weeks." 12:57 I don't really think she was telling me the truth in that, 12:59 because I don't think she expecting me 13:00 to come back home. 13:02 But at any rate, that decision was a turning point in my life. 13:09 The road I was going down was not a good road 13:12 and that decision made a total change in my life. 13:16 Amen. 13:17 And I met my future wife at Highland Academy. 13:23 After school, we were married 13:25 and totally involved in the church, 13:27 and she was a Sabbath School Teacher, 13:31 I was an elder in the church. 13:35 Anything that had to do with outdoor activities, 13:38 church campouts, or whatever, 13:40 we were involved in planning or helping to plan 13:43 that because that's something that we really enjoy doing. 13:46 And after 27 years, 13:49 our marriage ended in a divorce. 13:52 And after our break up, 13:56 about a month, maybe afterwards, 13:57 I come to church one day 13:59 and a lot of people were not there. 14:02 I'm thinking, "Where's everybody?" 14:04 And I asked, "Oh, they're camping over in the Smokies." 14:08 And it hit me like a ton of bricks. 14:10 I was speechless. 14:11 Here for... 14:13 Over 20 years, I've been a member of this church 14:15 who was always been involved in outdoor stuff camping 14:19 and what have you. 14:20 And I wasn't even asked if I'd like to attend. 14:25 I totally felt, left out and forgotten. 14:29 Yeah. 14:32 And the pain that I've felt through that experience 14:39 has really shown me 14:42 what a lot of Singles experience. 14:45 Yeah. 14:46 And this has really been the catalyst that develops 14:51 this desire in me for Singles Ministry, 14:54 and to be a blessing for Singles. 14:58 And I'll have to say to anyone, 15:03 we all need to be involved in ministry. 15:07 Some way, somehow, 15:10 if we're wanting to be like Christ, 15:11 we need to do what Christ does. 15:13 And He ministers to people every day. 15:15 Amen. 15:17 And that's why I'm here. 15:19 Amen. 15:20 Well, that's an amazing testimony. 15:22 As you both were talking, 15:23 I was thinking of what Paul says 15:25 in 2 Corinthians 1, that God comforts us, 15:29 so that then we can extend that comfort to someone else. 15:35 Not that we have any comfort of ourselves, 15:37 but God works to heal us. 15:40 And then it pours through us, to minister to someone else. 15:44 So whether you're sitting at home and you're saying, 15:46 I'm single, I've never been married, 15:48 and I always wanted to be married, 15:51 or I just lost my spouse to a divorce, 15:54 or a death, or we are separated. 15:58 There's lots of pain in this world. 16:01 And this Singles Ministry is an incredible ministry 16:05 that God uses to work to bring healing. 16:08 You all have a video that you brought with us. 16:11 Elder Ron Smith is the President 16:14 of the Southern Union. 16:15 Dr. Ron Smith is the President of the Southern Union. 16:19 And let's take a look at that video right now. 16:29 Is it possible to be single and happy? 16:33 Perhaps you as I have noticed the bumper sticker entitled, 16:37 happiness is being single. 16:40 If happiness is being single, 16:42 why do these people look so sad? 16:45 Many display that bumper sticker logo, 16:47 but have miserable and unhappy written on their faces. 16:51 How can this unhappiness really be minimized among singles? 16:55 Preferably, some suggestions might be helpful. 16:59 Firstly, change church attitudes. 17:02 You know something is wrong with the church that sees 17:05 single adults as misfits, 17:07 has no place in the body for unmarried people, 17:10 or lacks programs to meet the needs of singles 17:12 and shows no understanding whatsoever, 17:15 or desire to understand their struggles, 17:18 especially if the single person is divorced. 17:21 These attitudes can be challenged 17:23 from the pulpit. 17:24 Married persons gonna be encouraged 17:26 to welcome singles into the church 17:28 and into their homes. 17:31 It might be helpful to remind people 17:32 that Jesus and Paul were single. 17:35 They might not be welcome in some churches today. 17:39 Certainly they would be unacceptable to many 17:41 who maintain a strong prejudice against single pastors. 17:45 As Christians, we find ultimate security in Christ 17:48 and not in local congregations. 17:50 But believers do need one another. 17:53 Many would agree for singles especially 17:56 our home is the church. 17:57 Our family is the body of believers. 18:00 No definition of family can be called Christian, 18:03 which does not include single people. 18:06 There may be a place in the church for Valentine's 18:08 or Sweethearts banquets, 18:10 couples clubs, 18:11 and family related church programs. 18:13 But too often, these exclude, overlook or put down singles. 18:19 Probably most organizers of these activities 18:21 have no intention of excluding the unmarried. 18:25 More often there is non-awareness of the singles 18:27 in the congregation. 18:29 Pastors, elders, other church leaders 18:32 and members of the congregation should all remember 18:35 that single people are significant 18:37 and equal members of the body of Christ. 18:40 Unmarried adults should have full acceptance of the church. 18:44 Secondly, I wanna suggest that we ought to seek to build 18:47 stable marriages and families. 18:48 You know many singles are afraid to marry 18:50 and others live difficult lives as single parents 18:53 and divorced people 18:55 because believers often have distorted 18:57 and non-Biblical views of marriage. 19:00 Teaching about healthy marriage and families may be an indirect 19:03 or effective way to prevent problems 19:06 that singles' and married people both face. 19:09 To reduce the increasing incidence 19:11 of divorce among believers, 19:13 to cut down the number of unfulfilling 19:15 status quo marriages, 19:17 and to help singles 19:19 get a more balanced perspective on family, 19:22 the church can do a few things. 19:25 Restate its commitment to the family 19:27 and to the institution of marriage. 19:30 The church can give strong, clear, 19:32 Biblical teaching and preaching on marriage, 19:35 the family, as well as singleness. 19:38 Encourage fathers to be more active in parenting, 19:42 and couples to be more involved in marriage building. 19:46 Discourage thinking that creates unrealistic ideals 19:50 about marriage, as well as the family, 19:53 or encourages child centered marriages. 19:57 The church can also teach communication 19:58 and conflict resolution skills. 20:01 These are a few things that we can think about. 20:04 We can encourage singles as well 20:06 to make decisions and to be active. 20:09 Singleness problems can be prevented 20:11 when unmarried people are helped to trust God 20:14 for their present and future needs, 20:16 to honestly face and attempt 20:17 to deal with their personal problems and struggles 20:20 to reach out to others 20:22 in a spirit of giving and friendship, 20:24 to evaluate their life goals periodically, 20:27 and to work on developing a balanced life 20:29 that combines worship, work, play, rest, 20:33 and periods of both socializing and solitude. 20:37 Often when people are active and involved 20:39 in meaningful ministry to others, 20:41 there's less time or reason to dwell on problems. 20:45 I wish to express my acknowledgement 20:47 and appreciation for Bob Merrill's 20:49 for his unswerving dedication 20:51 and commitment to Singles Ministry 20:54 and the Southern Union Territory. 20:57 That's a great video. 20:59 Special thanks to Dr. Ron Smith for that. 21:04 It seems like the issue of singles, 21:07 especially within the church, 21:09 would be something that we could say 21:11 is largely overlooked. 21:12 Would that be accurate? 21:14 I would think so. 21:15 Okay. 21:16 I would think so. 21:18 Through the years talking to a lot of singles, 21:23 we... 21:25 Many talk about basically of being overlooked. 21:32 How can we work to change church attitudes? 21:34 I was taking notes since he was talking 21:36 and it seemed like that was his first point, 21:38 was to change church attitude. 21:40 So how can we even begin that process? 21:43 Or what does that look like? 21:44 I think that most people would say what, 21:51 we don't have an attitude against singles. 21:54 But actions speak louder than words. 21:58 And we can say a lot of things. 22:00 But the actions that come through, 22:03 as singles are in some sense ostracized and overlooked. 22:09 I don't think that the church... 22:13 You know, there's a lot of people in the church 22:15 that are single. 22:17 Yes. 22:18 And Dr. Ron Smith told me that something like 22:22 half of his constituents 300,000 people are single. 22:27 Now that includes no doubt, college kids. 22:30 Right. 22:31 But even if you took off 50%, 22:33 and said that 25% are adults, 22:38 30 or 40, and up, that's a lot of people. 22:42 And if you took half of that, 22:45 and said that 22:48 they're very comfortable, 22:49 they're very contented, they're solid. 22:53 But if you just took that half of that, 22:56 and said those people are crying inside, 22:59 they're lonely. 23:00 How many times I have gone to church, left. 23:05 I do a lot of visiting, 23:07 out trying to spark up interest in this. 23:10 And so I tell my own church, I pay my tithes and offerings, 23:12 but I'm not here every week. 23:15 But I've been there the last couple of weeks, 23:18 because I wanted them to know, 23:19 I'm gonna be here 23:20 and I want them praying for this. 23:22 Wes and I are really concerned about this subject. 23:26 And that... 23:27 But there's a lot of people 23:32 that lot of families all go off, 23:35 they go to each other's home, they go home for dinner, 23:37 we know about that, because we used to do it. 23:39 Right. 23:41 But as a single people, a lot of times 23:43 that doesn't happen. 23:45 And so there's loneliness. 23:47 And it's those things that the Singles Ministry 23:50 reaches out to. 23:52 Let Wes go on, he's all down here. 23:55 Even when we talk about Singles Ministry 23:59 and talk to somewhat, "Oh, that's a dating thing." 24:02 And that seems to be the concept. 24:05 You know, I mean, there's Women's Ministry, 24:07 there's Men's Ministry... 24:09 There's Family Ministry. 24:11 When you talk about Women or Singles Ministry, 24:14 oh, that's a dating thing, we don't do that. 24:17 We know, we can be a ministry for Singles, 24:21 to help hurting people. 24:23 And our goal is to be a family type setting 24:28 where people can come and feel safe 24:30 and not feel threatened. 24:32 And yes, people do date. 24:35 And yes, people do get married. 24:38 That's something that happens with single people, you know, 24:40 from time to time, and that's okay. 24:42 Right. 24:43 But we can be a ministry to minister to hurting people 24:47 and be open to the needs. 24:52 And I think that our church at large 24:55 could be more open to the needs. 24:57 And I think that's what Ron Smith is saying. 24:59 That, a lot of times, they're not invited maybe 25:02 because they're not even recognized in the church. 25:04 Right. 25:06 Overlooked. 25:07 And sometimes it's not even purposeful. 25:09 I don't think it's where people are saying, 25:10 "Well, we're gonna marginalize or push single people aside." 25:13 It's just everything in our society 25:15 is geared toward the family. 25:16 So you might not even think of that. 25:19 When we think of how many churches 25:21 are small... 25:22 Now we're from the... 25:24 We act... 25:25 We are active in the Chattanooga area, 25:27 and there's probably at least 25:30 40 churches in a 25 mile radius, 25:33 at least 30. 25:35 But they're small. 25:37 And where do they go if they're single? 25:40 Their little church, 25:41 there's probably not somebody you know that... that's... 25:45 But God has given me the idea of... 25:49 I've done a lot of research online, 25:51 called a number of conferences, unions across North America, 25:55 the Adventists of what they're doing 25:57 with singles. 25:59 I've called Baptist, Moody, 26:01 and I've been to Methodist churches, 26:05 Baptist churches to see what they're doing. 26:07 And something that I think is beautiful, 26:10 but it's hard for our people to see it. 26:14 And that is, I would like to see a Central Church 26:18 in a large area, like Nashville, Atlanta, 26:22 Knoxville, Chattanooga, 26:25 where there's a Mother Church 26:27 that has a Sabbath School Class, 26:29 a small groups class, that... 26:32 If I'm from Timbuktu, 26:35 I know that I can go there and there will be something, 26:38 there will be fellowship, 26:40 there can be something that I can work with 26:42 and identify with. 26:44 That's gonna be a hard thing to move from the people 26:48 that I've been talking to. 26:49 But I think God would like to see 26:51 something like that. 26:53 And if anybody's out there, that's got interest, 26:56 I would love to encourage that. 26:59 But that goes along with what I think he's talking about. 27:02 You're changing our attitude towards single. 27:07 And it's true, there's a lot of us 27:09 that would like to get married. 27:10 But more than being married, 27:15 is that we are like... 27:17 I like what Wes says, 27:18 we're there to help those that are hurt. 27:20 Yes. 27:23 So would you say that is the purpose 27:24 of Singles Ministry? 27:26 If I were to ask you to distill down, 27:29 and what is your purpose for the Singles Ministry, 27:31 the Georgia-Cumberland Conference, 27:33 and by extension, it could be spread around the world, 27:35 I guess. 27:37 But what would be that purpose? 27:40 To be that, that place 27:43 that people can come and feel safe... 27:46 That's good. 27:47 Not feel threatened, 27:49 not feel like they have to be in a dating situation 27:52 to date somebody. 27:54 But they can if they like to, you know, that's fine. 27:58 But they don't have to feel that... 28:01 They don't have the stresses of going to a function 28:04 and interacting with people, 28:07 other single people from a friendship basis, 28:10 instead of from a dating situation. 28:12 Right. 28:13 And that makes it easier for a person, I think. 28:19 And I hope so anyway. 28:21 Absolutely. 28:22 You know. 28:24 God created us to be in community. 28:25 Yes. 28:26 And so if you create a community of friends, 28:29 a community of that ministry together, 28:32 what are some of the things that you do 28:33 with the Singles Ministry there? 28:35 Can I just... Please, yeah. 28:36 Before we'd jump into that, 28:38 going back to what Dr. Ron Smith said. 28:41 He said that the home is the church 28:46 to a single person, 28:47 that's our family, it's the church. 28:50 And if we can't identify there, if we can't fit in... 28:55 Now, you know, single people, they're all over the church. 29:00 And they operate and they come with smiles, 29:03 but they... 29:04 they may not... 29:07 They may not be functioning. 29:08 So these activities that we go... 29:11 I think you're gonna go into will help us to identify, 29:16 and this is where that church structure 29:18 that I'm talking about provides that. 29:22 It becomes like a home, 29:23 your church family that becomes like a home. 29:25 The church family becomes family. 29:26 Yes. 29:27 I know through Singles Ministry that I have friends 29:31 that are closer to me 29:33 than actually my immediate family 29:35 in some instances. 29:36 Through the years I've developed a relationship 29:39 and a friendship and they're very close to me. 29:43 And I praise God for them. 29:45 Amen. Amen. 29:47 That's wonderful. 29:49 Do you have anything else, Wes, 29:50 before we move on to the activities? 29:52 I don't want to cut off. No, go ahead. 29:53 Okay. 29:54 So moving on to some of the activities, 29:56 what are some of the activities that you're involved in, 29:58 in the Singles Ministry and to create that family 30:00 or that home as you say? 30:02 We do a lot of things, but I miss you... you jump in. 30:06 Go ahead. 30:07 But you know, we have a game night. 30:09 We've had Friday night, worship time together. 30:13 I love it. 30:14 We've had special nights where we may go through 30:18 some special character development videos 30:23 and things that help us to improve, Gary Smalley tapes, 30:27 key to a golden relationship and stuff like that. 30:30 And those have been good. 30:33 And we have... 30:36 But I think there's room for a lot of things. 30:39 I'd like you, Wes, 30:40 to go in and share some of the more, 30:45 some of the activities. 30:47 Yeah, we generally have a retreat once a quarter. 30:51 Nice. 30:52 Like a weekend, weekend retreat. 30:55 And we bring in a special speaker for the weekend. 30:58 And we're all at some place, 31:00 you know where just singles coming. 31:02 And singles come from all over 31:03 to come to some of these functions, 31:05 Sturty Lodge is one 31:06 that has always been a big deal. 31:10 It's up in... 31:11 in a wreck close to the Appalachian Trail 31:13 up in the North Carolina, Tennessee border. 31:16 And October, 31:20 I don't have the date right at hand. 31:22 I don't either but in the fall of every year. 31:23 In the fall? Okay. 31:24 If you have an interest in something along that line, 31:27 send us an email, 31:29 we can send you a brochure that has our activities, 31:31 things that are coming up. 31:34 This year here in just a couple of weeks, 31:36 we have the 50 plus camp 31:39 at Indian Creek Camp that we're gonna be a part of, 31:43 those are on a quarterly basis. 31:45 We have local events, 31:46 but then we have the special events 31:48 that are quarterly type things. 31:50 And we have a camp out at Cage Cove in spring. 31:54 You know, just the things to, 31:58 where singles can get together and socialize. 32:01 And Wes has even taken us backpacking. 32:05 Wes likes to backpacking 32:06 and I've gone on a couple of them with him. 32:08 And we've, we have a fun time. 32:12 Can people come in from... 32:13 Excuse me a second. 32:14 Can people come in from other areas 32:16 or do they have to live in Tennessee or... 32:17 We would love them... 32:19 Anywhere. Anywhere. 32:20 We've had them out, you know, 32:21 I've invited folks from California to come. 32:23 So I've talked with a lot of folks 32:25 and they're saying let us know when it's happening. 32:27 Michigan, we've invited them down. 32:30 And we're hoping that through this, 32:32 it will stimulate a national increase in it. 32:36 We realized that with singles, as they get married, 32:40 the whole leadership may fall apart. 32:42 But if it's in these church structures, 32:43 like I'm thinking... 32:45 Yes. They will... 32:47 And I don't think it would be bad 32:49 to have married couples 32:51 leading those small groups and Sabbath school classes 32:55 to give a more permanent fixture 32:58 so that it'll be there year after year. 33:02 I would like to... 33:03 We did a couple of years ago, I was feeling lonely myself. 33:08 And I just felt like there would be enough people 33:13 that would like to come to a Christmas Day function. 33:17 And yet, that means that most of us as singles 33:22 are traveling off to families and we weren't able to do it. 33:26 But I was able to get 33:28 Jamie Jorge and Steve Darmody 33:33 to come and put musical concert on 33:36 at the first Chattanooga church. 33:38 And we invited everybody to come in. 33:41 We had probably 100, 150 people that came. 33:46 And I've got a little video of that. 33:48 Yes. And I would... 33:50 Can we play that video? Let's do that. 33:52 Absolutely. Let's take a look at that video now. 34:44 I feel privileged to have been here 34:46 and put on this concert 34:48 for the Singles Ministry group of this conference. 34:52 And the reason is, all of us go through challenges in life. 34:56 All of us would like to be able to spend a time of year 34:59 such as this with friends 35:01 and loved ones and family especially, 35:04 but some may not have that opportunity. 35:06 And so putting on this program was really a wonderful idea 35:10 ministry and outreach. 35:12 And for me to be a part of it, it was an honor. 35:15 I remember the days when I was single. 35:18 I remember the days when I was divorced. 35:20 And so to know that people are thinking about those 35:24 who have gone through challenges, 35:26 makes it a little easier to get through. 35:29 So may the Lord bless this ministry 35:31 and everybody involved. 35:34 Thank you so much, Jamie. 35:36 What a powerful testimony to know that he's giving back 35:39 of his time and his talents to the Singles Ministry there. 35:45 It's wonderful, the activities that you have. 35:47 I know they are also involved in mission trips 35:49 and we wanna get to that right away. 35:52 Before we do, you referenced all these different activities 35:55 that you're involved in, people can come from all over, 35:57 is that all on a certain website 36:00 or could people email you and find those activities? 36:03 Or what's the best way at the very end of the program, 36:05 we will put up your contact information. 36:07 But is it on a website 36:08 or how can people access that information? 36:11 The best way would send an email 36:13 to our email address 36:14 and request our calendar of events. 36:17 And we update those every three months. 36:19 Okay. 36:20 So we plan activities for one quarter at a time 36:23 or three months at a time. 36:25 And anyone can request that information 36:29 and we'll send it to them. 36:31 Perfect. Okay. 36:32 So we will put up your emails here at the end of the program 36:34 and people can contact you for that. 36:36 So let's transition to mission trips. 36:38 Not only do you do activities like going outside or camping 36:42 or Christmas concerts, but you go on mission trips. 36:45 So tell us about that, Wes. 36:47 Well, actually, we have several ministries 36:49 within our Singles Ministry that we do. 36:54 And we have sort of started by accident, 36:58 a Food Ministry that started in 2009. 37:04 And one of our singles was collecting food 37:08 from a grocery store dumpster for singles 37:12 that were having a hard time having food. 37:15 And she ended up getting more food 37:18 than she could give away or than she could use. 37:21 So we started giving food away and that developed 37:25 into Heavens Bounty. 37:29 And that has developed to the point 37:32 that we're a member of the Chattanooga Food Bank. 37:36 And we have distributed 37:37 pounds of food in a year 37:41 through that ministry. 37:43 700,000 pounds of food? 37:45 700,000 pounds of food. 37:46 That's a lot. That is. 37:48 Now does that food all go to singles 37:49 in particular or no? 37:51 Okay. 37:52 That goes to anybody in the community. 37:53 We have a storefront, people come in, and, but, 37:58 now it is grown to the point that it's beyond the scope 38:01 of what our ministry can oversee. 38:05 And... 38:07 It involves, if I can interrupt you, Wes, 38:09 it involves, I think, 38:11 is it three churches or two other churches? 38:13 I think it's two other churches... 38:15 Other denomination. 38:16 Other denominations that come in and help. 38:19 And we were hoping that one of our local 38:23 Seventh-Day Adventist Churches 38:24 would step up and oversee the... 38:28 they have the oversight of Heavens Bounty. 38:31 But it doesn't look like that's going to happen. 38:33 But one of the other churches is going to step in 38:35 and have the oversight of that ministry. 38:37 And we praise God for it. 38:39 It's been a blessing through the years, 38:41 but its 10 years in the making and it has truly grown. 38:45 And now this year, 38:48 will be my 18th year to take a mission group to Ecuador. 38:53 Oh, wow, before we go to Ecuador. 38:55 I just wanna go back. 38:56 So for 10 years, the Singles Ministry there 39:00 has provided oversight and has worked in conjunction 39:03 with other churches for this Food Ministry? 39:06 Yes. That's an incredible ministry. 39:09 I mean, we could talk a whole program 39:10 just about that 39:11 and the stories and the outreach 39:13 to the community 39:14 be in the hands and feet of Jesus. 39:16 I love that. 39:17 Okay, Ecuador. I'm sorry. 39:19 So this is your 18th trip to Ecuador? 39:21 18th trip to Ecuador. 39:23 Actually, no, some years we did two trips. 39:27 And, but we've been going for 18 years. 39:32 And 39:34 the years ago, 39:39 there was a lady called me, 39:41 one of our singles and said, 39:42 she would like to go to Ecuador. 39:43 And I asked, "Well, what do you want to do?" 39:46 "Well, I'll do pedicures." 39:49 Why do people in Ecuador need pedicure? 39:51 I mean, that was a thought that came to my mind. 39:53 You know, but Linda was, that's what she wanted to do. 39:57 And she got the equipment and all together 39:59 and we went 40:00 and she would search out the older people. 40:04 And down there they don't wear shoes a lot of times 40:06 or they wear flip flops or, 40:07 you know they had terrible feet. 40:09 Is this Linda here? 40:10 Where's Linda in the picture? Yes. 40:11 She is one in the back. 40:13 Okay. 40:14 And the girl in the front that's working on the feet 40:17 was one of the local nurses that Linda taught to do 40:21 what she does or what she did. 40:25 And for about seven years, Linda went with us. 40:27 Oh, wow. 40:29 And she developed cancer and she's no longer with us. 40:31 But because she had taught the girls there, what to do, 40:36 now every year our ministry has foot care. 40:39 And last year we had six student nurses 40:41 in the morning 40:42 and six student nurses in the afternoon 40:44 doing just foot care. 40:46 Really? 40:47 Yes, we had like 80 local volunteers working 40:51 with our group there. 40:52 It's just been awesome. 40:54 And the university students come and they work with us. 40:59 And it's just... 41:00 it's just a blessing. 41:02 That's all I can say. 41:03 But in that time we have helped remodel or build 41:08 eight churches in Ecuador. 41:12 And if... 41:14 Is this one of the churches here? 41:16 Actually, this is in Cuba. 41:19 Oh. 41:20 Okay. 41:21 Well, let's come to Cuba in a minute 41:23 and we'll come back to Ecuador. 41:24 Well, this year, we just went to Cuba, just got back. 41:29 Actually, the 1st of June we went to Cuba. 41:32 And we went there to help remodel a house church... 41:38 Wow. 41:39 ..in a little community there. 41:41 And we ended up... 41:42 I mean, we were doing knocking plaster and stuff off the walls 41:45 and that's what this picture is. 41:46 And but we help put in the foundation 41:48 and start laying the blocks for the rear of the church. 41:51 We just about double the size of the church. 41:53 Oh, wow. 41:55 And Cuba is different, much different than Ecuador. 42:00 How is it different? 42:01 Well, everything has to be permissioned 42:05 and what have you. 42:07 And we got there on Monday. 42:10 And we didn't get the permission papers 42:12 until Wednesday to actually go to work. 42:16 But we had that 260 people 42:20 that came through a health fair. 42:22 We had about 60 kids each night and a Bible school. 42:25 Oh, wow. 42:26 And I just got pictures and now they have all the walls up 42:30 and ready for the roof on the building. 42:33 And it was truly a blessing. 42:35 And if we had time we've got miracles 42:37 we could talk about there too. 42:39 But the... 42:40 So tell us at least one miracle story, 42:43 we wanna hear at least one. 42:45 Well, we were traveling in a van at night. 42:49 Now you have to understand in Cuba, 42:51 they have horse and carriages, they have motorcycles, 42:54 they have cars and trucks, you know. 42:57 Anyway, our van broke down, 42:59 in the middle of the road at night, 43:00 and there wasn't any place to pull off the road. 43:02 Wow. 43:03 So the truck is, the van is stopped 43:05 in the middle of the road and no lights, you know, 43:08 and the driver went back and pulled some boards 43:12 or some lambs and stuff off the side up onto the road. 43:16 So somebody is coming down the road, 43:18 they'd hit that before they'd run in. 43:20 But there was one fellow came down about half drunk 43:22 and he hit all that and it kept him 43:25 from running into the van. 43:26 Oh, wow. 43:28 But then the police come along and "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, 43:30 you can't put that stuff in the road." 43:31 So they move it all out the road, 43:33 but they don't stay with their flashing lights 43:34 to warn anybody and they drive off. 43:37 Of course we've prayed, 43:38 the God send us someone that can help us 43:40 and who shows up but a motorcycle 43:42 with a sidecar. 43:44 Now what help could they be? 43:46 Right. 43:47 They had a rope. 43:48 They tied to the van and pulled us two miles 43:50 down to a service station 43:52 where we could get off the road. 43:53 Oh, wow. 43:54 A motorcycle with a sidecar pulled you two miles? 43:57 Yes. Yes. 43:59 God works in mysterious ways. 44:02 But He provides for our needs. 44:04 Yes. He really does. 44:05 Oh, wow. 44:06 Praise the lord. Now that took place in Cuba? 44:08 That was in Cuba. Wow. 44:09 Wow. Yes. 44:11 In Ecuador... 44:16 Each year that we have done work there, 44:19 we have raised the funds, 44:22 we have paid for all the building materials 44:24 that we have used in Ecuador to do the work that we've done. 44:27 Oh, wow. 44:28 This year, August 29th through September 12, 44:32 we will be helping to build a church in San Rafael, 44:36 in the Chimborazo Province in Ecuador. 44:40 And if anyone would have an interest in going with us, 44:44 get in touch with us. 44:45 So people can come with you, you will invite people to come. 44:48 Yes, we have room for people to go. 44:50 Okay. We've had groups as 30, 40... 44:53 And we've had as many as five. 44:55 Wow. So... 44:57 And God provides when they had five, 45:00 that's when that university send all their, 45:02 and they just had more help and they knew what to do with, 45:05 God is so good. 45:06 So if someone's going, and they say, 45:08 I wanna go and I wanna come help, 45:10 but I'm not a builder. 45:12 Are there other qualifications? 45:13 What are your qualifications 45:15 for people to come and help volunteer? 45:16 Want to go and want to be involved 45:18 and willing to do whatever it takes to get 45:20 the job done at a time, 45:24 there's no requirements really, you know. 45:26 They've had, you know, that lady that did foot care, 45:29 they've had to do Vacation Bible School, 45:32 they've done all kinds of outreach in the community. 45:36 And they've... 45:37 So you can use medical people 45:39 because they will do some medical... 45:40 We do medical clinics. 45:41 Dental, eye clinics. Oh, wow. 45:43 We gave away glasses... 45:45 The last few years, because we haven't 45:47 had as many people going, 45:49 we can't take as much stuff with us. 45:50 Right. 45:51 And they've restricted now, it used to be 70 pounds. 45:53 Now it's 50 pounds, you know, all that kind of stuff. 45:56 But God has used. 45:58 He has blessed us beyond measure. 46:02 And if you've never been on a mission trip, 46:05 and would like to go on a mission trip, 46:08 come go with us. 46:09 You will be blessed beyond measure. 46:12 Amen. 46:13 It just... 46:16 How does going overseas, 46:19 do we mission work with other believers, 46:22 we could say family, 46:24 we're talking about creating this unity of family, 46:26 how does that impact or change your life? 46:32 I know that, of course, 46:34 I've been going now for 18 years. 46:39 And I know that I have been, as I said, 46:42 blessed beyond measure. 46:44 And I always tell somebody, 46:45 you'll be more blessed for going. 46:49 And, you know, my brother just went with me. 46:51 First time he's ever going with me to Cuba. 46:55 And his comment was, you know, I've given up my mains, 46:59 but I've never given up myself. 47:02 And he was... 47:03 He said, "If you come back to Cuba next year, 47:05 I'm coming with you." 47:08 Praise God. Yeah, amen. 47:10 You know, but it's a blessing when we get involved 47:14 with people, 47:15 when we're ministering to people... 47:18 Yes. Doing the work... 47:20 God does every day, Jesus does every day. 47:24 But He's using us as His hands and His feet, His mouthpiece, 47:30 that's what it's all about. 47:32 We have a couple more pictures. 47:34 I think that we need to show from Ecuador, right? 47:36 Yes. 47:37 Let's see if we can put up those last couple of pictures. 47:39 This is a roof... 47:40 Last year this church was one of, 47:44 was the First Seventh-Day Adventist Church 47:46 built in the Chimborazo Province in Ecuador. 47:48 So we're 50 years ago. 47:50 The year before they had asked us 47:52 to come out there to look at the roof, 47:57 they asked if we'd be willing to help them replace the roof. 48:00 I asked her, "Are you willing to take 48:02 the whole roof off the church?" 48:04 Yeah. 48:05 Well, their church is a good hundred yards up the mountain, 48:08 no road to it. 48:09 Wow. 48:11 And I said, how you gonna get the materials here? 48:13 We'll get them here. 48:15 Well, they did. 48:16 They carried them right up that mountain. 48:17 I see that. Wow. 48:19 And we got there and the week before 48:22 they had taken the whole roof off the church. 48:26 So they trusted God that we were gonna get there. 48:28 Yeah. Yeah. 48:30 And in four days, 48:32 we had a roof put back on the church. 48:35 That Sabbath we had a meeting in that church, 48:38 let's have Sabbath services, had a baby dedication, 48:41 and four baptisms that we did. 48:43 Amen. 48:44 It was awesome. 48:45 Oh, that's wonderful. Bob? 48:47 Do we time for another miracle? 48:48 Please. 48:50 I mentioned to you before that I was a dyslexic 48:54 and went to Andrews University. 48:57 And in that process, they asked me to come up there 48:59 and coming up there was a special event, 49:01 I never would have made it but traveling home 49:04 I got double vision. 49:07 And as I traveled it got worse. 49:08 I stopped at a big hospital. 49:10 I was in the hospital, 49:11 in no time at all and they had double IV's in the both arms, 49:14 they had EKG all wired up. 49:17 They had me on the way for a CAT scan. 49:20 And I yelled and asked if we could have prayer. 49:23 They said, they think you're having a stroke. 49:25 They think we may, you have bleeding on the brain. 49:28 And being an older person they were really concerned. 49:31 Long story short, they put me in ICU. 49:34 I'm in ICU for three days. 49:36 I get real acquainted with a nurse. 49:38 And we're talking about family and stuff. 49:41 And she said, she went through a divorce. 49:43 She said, and as we talked, 49:46 she opened up and started sharing with me 49:48 and she had been through a divorce 49:50 but she had remarried a real nice guy. 49:53 And now she's... 49:58 going through a lot of stress. 50:00 And the stress was her husband's youngest son, 50:03 eight years old is dying of cancer in final stages. 50:06 And she said he's angry. 50:08 He's hard on the kids. 50:10 He's hard on me. 50:11 And he's not doing well. 50:12 And as we're talking, I said, "Is he like that?" 50:17 And she said, "No." 50:18 I said, "Put your arm around him," 50:20 tell him you love him, 50:21 that you're gonna be with him. 50:22 And that you understand this is not him. 50:25 And she starts tearing up. 50:29 She turns to me and says, "You know, 50:32 I believe God took you off that freeway 50:35 to come here to speak to me." 50:38 And she said, "To help us with what we're going through," 50:42 because she texted me two weeks later 50:45 and told me how valuable that information was. 50:47 The next day when I went for my MRI and went for the, 50:54 see the eye doctor, they said, there's nothing wrong with you. 50:57 They said, "Your vision is good, your..." 51:00 Thank You, Jesus. 51:02 And I'm thinking to what length will God go 51:06 to help one of his hurting children? 51:08 And that just happened in the last three months. 51:11 That's a miracle. That is. 51:12 That's and incredible miracle. 51:14 And it tells me that God is interested 51:17 in our single people wherever they are, 51:20 that He wants to be there for him 51:22 and He will be there for them. 51:24 That's right. Absolutely. 51:25 What we wanna do right now is put up contact information 51:28 for both Brother Bob and Brother Wes, 51:31 and the Georgia-Cumberland Conference, 51:35 the Singles Ministry there. 51:36 If you want to go on the mission trip, 51:38 if you are interested in getting out of yourselves 51:40 and helping other people, 51:42 if you are in pain and in trouble 51:45 and want to reach out for that help, 51:47 if you want to financially support what's going on here, 51:50 here is the way that you can do just that. 51:56 The Singles Ministry of the Georgia-Cumberland Conference 51:59 is working to help single people. 52:02 If you would like to support this important outreach 52:04 or have questions, contact them at Singles Ministry of the GCC, 52:10 P.O. Box 1361, 52:13 College Dale, Tennessee 37315. 52:17 You can call (423)322-2055. 52:22 (423)322-2055, 52:26 or you can email them at 52:27 SouthernSinglesMinistries@gmail .com 52:31 That's 52:33 SouthernSinglesMinistries @gmail.com |
Revised 2019-10-24