Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY220071A
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00:04 ♪ I want to spend my life mending broken people ♪ 00:15 ♪ I want to spend my life removing pain ♪ 00:25 ♪ Lord let my words heal a heart that hurts ♪ 00:36 ♪ I want to spend my life mending broken people ♪ 00:56 ♪ ♪ 01:07 Hello and welcome to another 3ABN Today program. Thank you 01:10 for joining us as you do each and every day and thank you for 01:13 your love and your prayers and financial support of 3ABN as we 01:17 endeavor to take this great gospel into all the world. 01:22 (Danny Shelton) Today speaking of taking the gospel into all 01:23 the world, I am so privileged to be here with Castle Valley 01:28 Academy way out in the state of Utah. And so we have a bunch of 01:34 young folk on here and we got an old folk and then one in between 01:38 and then some young folks. Speaking of that we have the 01:41 President Craig Cleveland. We're so glad you're here. (Good to be 01:46 here) You're no stranger to 3ABN and our viewers I'm sure. And so 01:51 Well, why don't we got ahead, We'll introduce the students but 01:54 then what I'd like to do is for maybe you to give us some 01:58 background on Castle Valley. 02:00 Sure, sure. This is Alani Holcombe, a senior, and Emma 02:04 Driesen, a senior. And we have Nathaniel Livingston, a junior, 02:09 and then Ben Cowden, a junior. Kansas, Montana, Montana, 02:13 Montana. It's a little heavy on Montana this morning. 02:16 All right, glad you all are here And those of you at home, we're 02:20 glad that you're here. This is an incredible story that they 02:23 have, an incredible Academy and today if there were ever a time 02:27 that we need institutions, Adventist educational 02:31 institutions that are literally living by the Bible, not looking 02:36 to the left, not looking to the right, not worried about the 02:40 world and what the world is doing but concentrating on 02:43 taking the gospel to the world, this is the time, so you may 02:47 want to listen and watch and maybe you're a young person who 02:50 is watching, maybe even grandma or the parent or grandma and 02:54 grandpa, you're saying wow I think that's where I'd like to 02:56 send my student. We're going to find out if they've got room to 02:59 take anymore and I think we're going to find the answer is yes 03:02 here in just a little bit. But Mr. Craig tell us a little bit 03:07 about Castle Valley. 03:08 Well the most important thing about true education is knowing 03:11 Jesus. Making Jesus attractive to the students and letting them 03:16 find an exciting adventure with Him and then giving them an 03:19 opportunity to get out and share So we have so many stories we 03:22 just got to get on with that. We also are told on page 17 in the 03:26 book Education to train thinkers not reflectors of other people's 03:29 thoughts and so we want to share with you our plan to make that 03:34 happen. 03:35 Okay. Wonderful. The background of Castle Valley, how long... 03:40 It started in 1970 and had many different growth spurts you 03:45 might say along the way. We're excited to see a focus on media 03:49 and growth. We're rebuilding the boys' dormitory. We want to see 03:53 60 students as soon as we can. And the Lord's opened ways for 03:57 that to happen and we're excited about that. And we're also 03:59 building three new staff homes because we got new staff joining 04:02 us. So we're excited that God has a plan to see more young 04:07 people trained and soon. 04:09 Okay, now what we're going to do right before we get into the 04:13 rest of the interview I want somebody to explain maybe one 04:16 of the students scripture songs, about your scripture singers. 04:19 tell me a little bit about what we're getting ready to see. 04:22 Who's, where's Ben? You look like you know, you look like you 04:27 know everything so tell me...I think we got a smart kid here. 04:32 (Ben Cowden) Scripture singer is an app that you can listen to 04:37 many scripture songs the entire book of Matthew is on there, 04:40 the entire book of James and with many others. We also have a 04:43 YouTube channel on which we have many great videos. 04:47 Okay so we're going to go to one of those scripture songs right 04:50 now. Okay. 04:52 John 6:63 The words that I speak unto you they are Spirit and 05:02 they are life. The words that I speak unto you they are Spirit 05:08 and they are life. It is the Spirit that quickeneth 05:16 The flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you they 05:23 are Spirit and they are life. John 6:63 The words I speak they 05:31 are Spirit and they are life. 05:41 Hey everybody we're so glad you enjoyed this video. If you'd 05:43 like to enjoy hundreds more scripture songs just download 05:45 our free app Scripture Singer and thanks for watching. 05:48 All right beautiful that's great So now you're continuing to do 05:58 these videos right. (Yeah) Okay now I want to find out why you 06:03 all decided to go to Castle Valley. There's a lot of options 06:04 so Ben why don't we start with you. 06:06 Okay well I came to Castle Valley because of the music. 06:11 Music has been a huge part of my life since I was very little and 06:15 I was greatly inspired frankly when at Fountain View Academy 06:22 and when I 06:24 heard that he was at Castle Valley I jumped at the chance 06:27 to go. 06:28 Okay, where are you from? 06:30 I'm from Kansas. 06:31 Okay so that's a little bit of difference flat Kansas compared 06:35 to Utah, right? 06:36 The scenery is awesome. 06:38 It is absolutely fabulous. All right do we want to go on down 06:42 the line. 06:43 Last year I actually did attend Fountain View Academy. 06:48 (Nathaniel Livingston) But because of issues at the border 06:50 I was praying and God opened the way for me to go to Castle 06:53 Valley and it's been a huge blessing and I'm really glad I 06:56 was able to come here. Went into a lot of stuff with Craig and 07:00 with the curriculum and getting to work on the farm and in the 07:04 shop and those places. All the new friends and being able to 07:08 grow spiritually. I've never been as close to God as I have 07:12 here at Castle Valley so it's a huge blessing. 07:15 My name is Emma. I'm from Montana and I came to Castle 07:21 Valley Academy mainly because of the great program that they have 07:23 They have a different approach to learning that I really like 07:27 and also the music program. Also we do a lot of outreach and 07:30 evangelism and colporteuring so that was the reasons I decided 07:33 to come here. 07:34 Okay, Alani (Holcombe). 07:36 I'm also from Montana and I came because his mama told me that 07:40 there's a cool school at Castle Valley. Okay, I'll check it out. 07:43 And then I found out they have a really big canvassing program 07:46 and I'd canvassed this last summer and I had such a blast 07:50 I said if I can get a school, learn in a new way and also go 07:56 canvassing that sounds fun, let's do it. 07:58 That was a great testimony I mean honestly. I think we have a 08:03 video. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Have you 08:05 heard that. I don't know what a video would be, maybe a hundred 08:08 thousand words, but let's go to the video right now. 08:11 Our school is surrounded with the iconic beauty of the red 08:15 rock mesas, hyasol mountains and the Colorado River. Here on 08:21 earth we all can tell time won't last much longer, Jesus soon 08:27 come. So we ask the question what is important to our young 08:31 people right now. We believe the answer is they need an 08:34 experience with the amazing love of Jesus for themselves. They 08:39 find that in the study of the Bible. They need to share this 08:44 experience with others. But to share with others they need to 08:47 understand everything they believe and to understand 08:50 everything they believe they need time to deeply study God's 08:54 Holy Word. Our program trains our young people to share Jesus 08:59 wherever they are. In music, meeting people in the community 09:04 and selling truth-filled books door to door, through Bible 09:07 studies, furthering their education. It's all exciting. 09:10 But to do this we need to take a new approach to learning that 09:13 puts our young people into the mode of thinking for themselves. 09:17 As they discover the ever expanding deep truths of God in 09:21 science and inspiration. 09:23 Luke Cook Industries Director 09:27 Anyone who has seen what is happening in our world today 09:31 knows that we need hope now more than ever. What if there was a 09:35 place where young people could come and be trained so that when 09:39 they left they would know how to rapidly establish gardens, grow 09:43 food, preserve food and be a blessing for life in any 09:48 community where God takes them. It's so fun when young people 09:51 know how to make healthy soil and then grow organic veggies 09:55 potatoes, melons, etc., and then take that food and can it, 10:00 dehydrate it, freeze dry it. Young people who are trained in 10:06 CPR and first aid. It's like sending out community survival 10:10 experts into any place to be leaders. This is our vision and 10:15 this is what is happening here at Castle Valley Academy. 10:18 (Anita Cook, girls dean) Our desire here is to create a warm 10:22 loving atmosphere, a home away from home in which every student 10:26 is heard, valued, and appreciated Here students and staff depend 10:31 on one another as we work together. We realize the 10:36 importance of staying in close contact with parents and as a 10:40 dean, I consider it a great honor and privilege to be entrusted 10:43 with your most precious treasures. I do not take this 10:46 responsibility lightly. By God's grace I will be their mom away 10:50 from home. 10:51 (Jason Strack, principal) There is a saying that if you give a 10:54 person a fish you'll feed them for a day. But if you teach them 10:58 how to fish then you'll feed them for a lifetime. Well it's 11:04 also true in education. If you teach someone some facts they 11:09 learn for the test. But if you teach them how to learn for 11:14 themselves, to think for themselves, they learn for a 11:18 lifetime. At Castle Valley Academy we train thinkers, not 11:26 thinkers of the worldly sort but thinkers that gain their reason 11:32 from the Bible. There is no curriculum calculated to lift 11:36 men higher than the word of God. With the Holy Spirit as our 11:41 teacher the wisdom of man becomes foolishness and we 11:46 become wise unto salvation. We are seeking that highest of all 11:51 educations and we have the most incredible classroom, the 11:58 exquisite outdoors. We study from God's book of nature first 12:01 hand. Learning becomes connected to reality instead of just 12:06 theories, a book. Biology becomes alive in the garden. 12:11 Physics is experienced when repelling on the mountains, 12:15 riding dirt bikes through the desert and rafting on the rivers 12:19 God's presence seems nearer while enjoying the views from 12:25 the mountain tops. Math is real when you plan how much mulch you 12:30 need to cover the flower beds. The water cycle becomes 12:35 practical when you see how much less water those flowers need 12:38 when they're mulched. Chemistry is applied in the kitchen. 12:42 English is real when you preach that sermon that you wrote. We 12:48 don't measure students' learning by the time they spend in class. 12:52 No. We evaluate our students by the competence they show in real 12:58 life skills and knowledge. To reach targets that we have hand 13:03 selected to train students for true greatness. 13:09 ♪ ♪ 13:12 Amen, boy what an incredible video. Who put that together for 13:16 you? My son Ethan. 13:18 Oh wow, let him know I thought he did a great job on it. No 13:23 it's amazing some of the stuff that y'all do there. It's not 13:25 not like your normal when I think Academy. Way back, you 13:31 probably haven't even hear dates this far back in 1967 to 1968, I 13:35 went one year to Wisconsin Academy. It was very cold up 13:38 there because we're several hundred miles south of there. 13:40 It gets cold here but not like that and I worked on the farm. 13:43 But it was 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. We didn't have any of that stuff 13:48 you know that you have there. So you've got recreation that looks 13:51 like it's out of sight but your farming is incredible with what 13:55 you do. I mean Craig what an incredible place. I have a 14:00 feeling there's a lot of students right now watching this 14:01 that say I think I'm going to take a closer look at Castle 14:03 Valley. 14:06 Yeah well we hope they do and we do have a beautiful farm and God 14:09 has blessed us a lot. In fact, we just had funds come in to put 14:12 irrigation on 70 more acres of that farm. And Alani tell us 14:17 about it. You guys, what do you like about the farm. 14:19 The farm is really cool. So it has about 320 acres or our whole 14:26 property for the farm. We have potatoes about 33-37 varieties 14:33 of potatoes. We have a student greenhouse where we grow all 14:38 different veggies of our choosing. We get to choose. 14:39 And the students get to learn how to grow the food. We each 14:43 have like our own sections and we can choose what we want 14:47 to plant and they teach us how to grow it and how to take care 14:49 of stuff. And then we also work in the bigger greenhouse to 14:54 Produce, produce that we actually we sell for the school. 14:56 Not only do we work in the student greenhouse and the main 15:00 greenhouse. We also do micro greens which is a lot of fun. 15:03 And then we have our orchard. 15:05 And don't forget the cucumbers too. They're like in the back of 15:09 of the greenhouse where we have the tomatoes. We have cucumbers 15:12 and they get like huge like... Some of them we save for seed 15:14 and some of them like you don't see them because they're under 15:18 like all the leaves and then you find them like two days later 15:19 and they're like literally this big. I like that for a monster 15:23 size one. 15:25 You're out in the desert I understand. Where do you get 15:27 your water from? 15:32 Yeah we actually have three ponds on campus and then we have 15:33 an artesian well that supplies all our water. 15:35 An artesian well? 15:37 Several, several. We also have first rights on the creek as we 15:41 have a huge supply that comes more than three miles down the 15:44 mountain, that's 12-inch pipe. 15:46 The water's not a problem. 15:48 Yeah and it's really good water too. (Oh it's the best) 15:51 Through a real miracle, we have actually become the largest 15:56 organic seed potato farm in North America. Somebody talked 15:59 about 37 varieties it's not just a couple of potatoes here and there 16:03 It's acres and acres of seed potatoes. It's a real miracle. 16:07 So what do you do with all those potatoes? 16:09 Sell them as seed. (Okay) Yeah. 16:11 And we just recently got a really big harvester that we're 16:14 going to harvest potatoes and that's going to be a lot of fun. 16:16 Talking about fun. Maybe I should tell them about some of 16:20 of the things we like to do when we aren't busy in class or out 16:23 on the farm. 16:26 So we have lots of activities at the school. We're never really 16:28 bored. We do lots of things. We have rafting. We have a rafting 16:33 launch by our school and we have quads and dirt bikes and horses. 16:36 We have a really neat horse program. You can bring your own 16:38 if you have a horse. I brought my own horse, yes. I love horses 16:41 Also, bring your own quads and dirt bikes. And if you have a 16:45 trike you can bring that too. And unicycles are also an option 16:46 and bikes too. You can bring you own bike. 16:49 Often times we use quads and dirt bikes just to ride around 16:54 campus. There's different like trails and jumps around campus 16:57 that we can use. We have Castleton Trail which is 16:59 close to our 17:01 school that we can take our quads and dirt bikes on and 17:02 mountain bikes too if that's what you're into. 17:04 We also have like a really cool thing and we live like in 17:08 a beautiful area with lots of red rocks that we do rock 17:11 climbing and repelling. So that's another cool thing. 17:13 And you know what was really fun is for the boys campout that we 17:18 we went up to Recapture Reservoir and then we had 17:19 everybody have like a quad or dirt bike and then we'd go up 17:24 into the mountains and we'd literally, go for like miles and 17:26 miles of trails and we'd just keep going and going. It's a lot 17:30 of fun especially if you run out of gas or pop tires. You lose 17:33 your way on the trail and then you have to go to the highway 17:36 and you have to go to the station and then you have to 17:37 find your way back home. It's a lot of fun. 17:39 Yeah it's a lot of fun being a student there. A lot of wake 17:43 boarding that we do too. It was still nearly a hundred degrees 17:46 We're in a very desert, warm, warm area. But it is exciting 17:51 I think though even more exciting that getting out in 17:56 nature, repelling, or rafting like we've talked about, camping 18:00 out there is learning about Jesus and sharing Him with 18:04 others. And we love to do that in music. We love to get out 18:09 on the road. 18:10 We're booked for concert tours all over California, Washington, 18:12 and Idaho and all the way out to Washington, D.C. up to Minnesota 18:15 and so on and we're excited about that. The kids that really 18:22 the Lord sent us a very talented group, four of them are sitting 18:23 right here. But even on tour more than sharing the music we 18:29 like to get out and go door to door. And it was something we 18:33 planned to do but then our industries director Luke Cook 18:37 and I were out fundraising with our wives back in April and we 18:41 asked a donor if they would help us expand our bakery because we 18:44 have a beautiful bakery, we grow grow (laughs) make lots of sour 18:50 dough bread and specialty bread and so we were talking about 18:53 that, the needs there, and this donor said well wait a minute 18:56 do you like the book The Great Controversy and I'm like ah yes 19:00 I've read it many times. It's wonderful. He said well how 19:03 about a semi-load of those and it's worth twice what you 19:04 asked me for. So anyway with all those books we have one goal 19:07 and that's to get rid of them all and I think we should talk 19:10 about some of those experiences because we've seen miracles. 19:14 door to door. 19:15 Yeah canvassing is always fun because it's a way to not only 19:18 get to know the fellow student you're working with and go 19:21 through you know fun experiences kind of scary experiences 19:25 with them but also to be able to experience Jesus moments 19:29 with them and make relationships with the people at the door. 19:35 That's so much fun. 19:36 We really enjoy going outdoor to door because it's a way that 19:41 we as sinners can be really grounded in our faith and you 19:44 know just believing something having gone out sharing about it 19:48 and actually sharing it with somebody. It's a totally 19:51 different experience when you can share your faith it 19:54 strengthens you and it helps you to gain strength in many ways. 19:56 There's a lot of divine appointments too. Like you pray 20:00 something, Lord help this to happen, help me to be able to 20:04 connect with this person and then it seems like it's not 20:06 working out at all and then it just totally turns around and 20:09 God just leads and it's amazing how He just goes forward with 20:11 that. 20:14 We have a few stories of how God has led. (Absolutely) 20:16 Which shall I tell first, the one about the food or the one 20:20 about the (Unclear) 20:23 So two of our students were canvassing out in Moab which 20:27 is just 20:29 outside of where we live in Castle Valley. Two students went 20:30 up to a house, a trailer park I believe it was and they went 20:35 and knocked on the door and the lady they got to talking and 20:39 they said this is our last meal today because we don't have 20:42 enough food. And one of the young ladies said hey can we 20:48 pray with you? And the woman at the door says sure. And so 20:50 during the prayer one of them, her name's Isadora, she had this 20:57 urge to go get food for them. And we had produce with us from 20:58 our farm and they gave them what they had at hand. So we all got 21:03 in the van, our leader picked us up and Isadora said can we go 21:08 get food for them? Yeah, let's go get food. So we did it, we 21:11 went and bought food for them and we went back. And Nathaniel 21:18 and myself and Emma canvassed in Montana this summer and we sang 21:19 at doors. So we said, (gasps) we should sing some of our choir 21:21 songs for them at the door. And so we went to her house and gave 21:26 food that we had bought for her and she was crying and we prayed 21:29 with her and we sang one of our songs. And we went back that 21:32 same I think two weeks, a week or two weeks for her (two weeks) 21:38 and sang for her again and gave her some more produce that we 21:39 had and it was really, really great experiences for them and 21:43 for us. 21:44 Incredible. 21:46 One of the really neat things about the person who was 21:49 selling Great Controversies that have the commission to get them 21:51 out before Jesus comes back. And so that's our goal, just to 21:54 get these books into the community and then another thing 21:58 about having books that are donated is that we can give them 22:00 away to the people who can't afford to buy them from us 22:02 because they're broke. So we have lots of really neat 22:06 experiences 22:08 with that. One of the one that I would like to share with you 22:10 actually happened when we were on music tour because when we go 22:13 on tour we actually take books with us and we go canvassing 22:16 in the towns that we stay in which is really great because we 22:20 get Bible study interests for the churches that we're staying 22:23 in. And so this particular day we were canvassing near Rifle 22:29 and we were just walking to the doors like we do always and we 22:32 kept on hearing this loud music coming from somewhere around 22:35 town. 22:36 The interesting thing before that we were originally supposed 22:38 to stay at a church in a different town but for some 22:43 complications we weren't able to stay there so we had to go back 22:45 to Rifle where we had already canvassed. We'd already done our 22:49 thing but now we're back here even though we weren't supposed 22:51 to be. God brought us back there and then we figured out why 22:53 later. 22:55 Yeah so we were in this town that we'd already canvassed in 22:58 and we decided to canvas We said hey let's go and see where the 23:03 music is coming from. Let's canvas the party. And so we 23:05 drove to find where the music was coming from and it turned 23:07 out to be this big concert and so our canvassing leader was 23:11 how about I drop 23:12 two teams off and you guys can canvas just the people that are 23:15 going in or the people that are inside and so... 23:18 Why don't we hold it and I think we ought to maybe...this is an 23:24 awesome story and maybe can build some suspense by showing 23:30 another...Maybe we can show another video from Scripture 23:32 Singers and just say you know that it is true. It is really 23:36 awesome you know as we go touring you know we love to make 23:38 every concert a way to reach the community for every church. And 23:43 now...you know I've done that for all my life...but now to be 23:46 actually able to go knock on doors in the town selling truth 23:51 filled books and handing out flyers inviting people to the 23:53 concerts and then working with the church because we're 23:57 finding people who want to study the Bible. And so these kids ask 24:00 do you want to study the Bible? And so when we come tonight 24:04 we'll sing you about Jesus and there's people in this town that 24:06 want to study the Bible with you So it's just an awesome package 24:09 and it kind of exploded this one time in Rifle, Colorado, and I 24:14 think before we go on why don't we show another video because we 24:16 love to memorize the Bible too. It's just a big part of what 24:19 we do. 24:21 ♪ ♪ 2 Corinthians 5:21 Mark 8:34-36 24:25 He hath made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might 24:35 the righteousness of God, the righteousness of God in Him. 24:42 2nd Corinthians 5:21 He hath made Him who knew no sin to be 24:55 sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God, the 25:03 righteousness of God in Him. ♪ ♪ 25:19 Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself and take up 25:28 his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life 25:37 shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for My sake 25:48 and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it 25:59 profit a man if he shall gain the whole world but lose his 26:07 own soul? Mark 8:34-36. 26:20 Hey guys thanks so much for our video. If you want to 26:27 continue to memorize God's word then please check out our free 26:29 app. There are hundreds more scripture songs there and if you 26:32 aren't already subscribed to our channel then just please hit the 26:34 subscribe button and again thank you so much for watching our 26:37 video. 26:42 Amen, I love it. Now that's amazing that piano, I'm assuming 26:46 that's not a big heavy piano. That would be tough to get it 26:49 out there. But what an incredible experience to look at 26:53 all the scenery around you. You have to think about God. You 26:58 cannot help it. What a great way when you all go out and do these 27:00 scripture songs. Are most of these done outside, the videos. 27:04 (Yeah) It's just incredible because like I said when you see 27:08 all of that beautiful nature around you, I mean that puts you 27:12 right in the mood to worship. Then you hear these songs. 27:15 Incredible! But we were in a story about...we were going back 27:19 to Rifle, right Utah. Want to hear the end of this story. 27:22 Okay just to refresh everything we're in a town, weren't 27:27 supposed to be there. Supposed to be somewhere else, but anyway 27:29 and we're in the middle of canvassing and our leader pulls 27:31 up. 27:34 So our leader drops us off outside this big concert and 27:36 we're two teams. Me and Nathaniel were a team and 27:39 then another team got 27:40 dropped off with us as well and so we had to try to get in the 27:45 concert to try to canvass people inside. But we found out that 27:48 it was $100 per person to get in. (Have mercy) Also everybody 27:52 at the concert spoke Spanish. The band that was playing was 27:57 singing in Spanish. So me and Nathaniel, all our friends, 28:01 decided to see if they could get in to canvass people. So me and 28:05 Nathaniel walked away and started talking to some of the 28:06 people and then we turned around and they were inside 28:11 and we were like well how did they get inside. So I tried to 28:13 radio my friend but the music was loud and we couldn't hear 28:14 anything. And so we're standing outside the gate and Nathaniel 28:17 turns to me and he's like I have the best idea in the world. And 28:20 I was like Oh no what is he going to say now? And he's like 28:24 we should go up to the people backstage and ask them if we 28:26 can sing. We have a song that we sang called It Is Finished. And 28:31 it's just a really great song that talks about Jesus coming 28:32 back and the hope that we have. And so he's like we could sing 28:35 it up front and witness to all these people. The speakers were 28:39 loud everybody could hear us from like half way across town. 28:41 Imagine how many people we can reach. And I was like No way, 28:44 that's not going to happen. 28:49 At that point we eventually did get contact with the other team 28:53 again and we were like, How did you get in, what did you do? And 28:56 he's like We just asked someone We're like Oh okay, Well let's 28:59 just do that. So we go over the the entrance and walk up to 29:03 people and we're like we're here for the event and our friends 29:06 are already inside and they're like, Oh sure yeah come on in. 29:08 So he's like bring us on in, so it's like okay that works. So we 29:13 get inside and the other team they had vanished and we had no 29:17 idea where they were. So we went to try and find them. He brings 29:22 _ Eventually we did find them. And I walk up to one 29:27 of them, because It is Finished has a guy and a girl singing 29:29 it. And I 29:32 wasn't too sure if Emma would want to do it and I was like 29:35 Oh maybe she'll want to do it so I walk up to the other girl 29:39 and I'm like hey you want to do this with me. Like I know you'd 29:42 want to do it. You'd be willing. You'd go up there and then right 29:46 then Emma walks up and she's like Oh this guy is crazy, he's 29:48 out of his mind or whatever and she's like well what do you want 29:52 to do? Oh I just want to go up and say we'll sing to them. You 29:54 what!? So I'm like yeah I mean come on you should do it and 29:57 he's like no way I'm doing that! Okay fine then I'll do it by 30:01 myself. So I gave her the books that I had and then I walk over 30:04 to where the DJs, where the MCs were at the back right by the 30:08 stage and I don't speak Spanish The only thing I can say in 30:12 Spanish is actually that I don't know how to say it in Spanish. 30:15 So I walked over to them and in English I say Hi, I have a 30:20 question for you. And they were like yeah so. Could you do me a 30:25 favor, would it be okay if I went up on stage and sang for 30:28 my best friend? And he was like well I'm not the person to ask 30:30 for that. So I have to go over to these other people and...It 30:35 was like almost 10 different people that I had to ask and I 30:37 just kept asking and asking. Finally, I got to the point where 30:40 they were like Okay after this band's done then you can go up 30:43 and sing your song. 30:45 So me and the other team sat, we were watching him and just 30:48 wondering what was going to happen. And we saw him talk to 30:51 one person and talk to another person and finally he leaned up 30:53 against the gate that they have for back stage and he had 30:57 in his hand like I don't know they probably gave him water or 30:59 something. And so we just sat there. We were just praying and 31:02 like if this is Your will, please help it to be able to happen. 31:04 And then all of a sudden we hear the MC on stage speaking in 31:09 Spanish and they started talking about this boy who wants to sing 31:12 a song for his friend. And we're like no way, they're not going 31:14 to actually let him sing. And then he walked up on stage 31:16 And he doesn't speak Spanish so they were talking about him in 31:20 Spanish, no clue what they're saying. And so they handed him a 31:23 mic and he started singing the song It Is Finished, a Capella, 31:26 no backup music or anything. And the who stadium was dead 31:31 silent. There was at least 2000 people there. Everybody was 31:34 quiet. People stopped dancing and started watching. And my 31:36 friend and I were sitting in the bleachers and she said, we 31:40 gotta go, we gotta go and so she stands up and she told Billy 31:43 that she felt that God was just pulling her up there and she 31:45 couldn't stop it. And I love singing but I wasn't just about 31:48 to walk out and sing for all those people but I felt like God 31:52 was just pulling us up there. So we ran through the crowd and got 31:55 up and started singing and somebody handed us a mic and we 31:59 sang the whole song and people were just like watching us and 32:02 people even pulled out there phones and were taking a video. 32:04 And as we finished and walked off the people on stage started 32:10 talking about us in Spanish and they were like did you see that 32:12 they just evangelized us all. And Nathaniel had a bag of 32:18 garlic hanging off his pants because when we're colporteuring 32:21 we take produce from our farm to hand out to our people. Yeah 32:24 we had garlic, we had (multiple voices) that we grow it all on 32:28 our farm. And so they were like did you see that he had garlic 32:30 on his pant? He's an evangelist and a farmer. Yeah it was just 32:35 amazing and we were really thankful to see how God can lead 32:38 and one of the things that I just really learned from that 32:40 experience is that God can do so many things with us if we're 32:43 just willing. Because I'm not brave. I didn't have enough 32:47 faith but He just wanted us to be willing so He could use us. 32:50 Also going back a little bit into the story, when I was up 32:54 there singing, if you're familiar with the song It Is 32:57 Finished there's a part in it that says the earth shakes with 33:01 the force of the conflict. Because of how loud those 33:03 speakers were the earth literally did shake. I talked to 33:07 some other friends of mine who were canvassing somewhere all 33:10 the way across town, at least a mile or two away and I was 33:14 talking to him and he said yeah just out of nowhere, I hear 33:19 (sings) It Is Finished and I'm like Oh well that was pretty 33:21 cool because you know the speakers were so loud. And it 33:24 was just amazing. And I'm the type of person that I'm not 33:28 afraid to go up to someone and just say hi and just like start 33:30 talking to them. But you know something about going up on 33:33 stage in front of 2000 people singing a song a Capella that 33:37 was kind of daunting. But I just prayed Lord just give me peace 33:41 and give me strength and I wasn't even afraid at all. It 33:44 was like I was just singing to my family and it was amazing 33:47 It really strengthened my faith in God. 33:49 Right after that, we went out into the crowd and we just got 33:53 out our books in Spanish, we had Steps to Christ in Spanish 33:57 And we started canvassing people we made up a canvas for the 34:00 book in Spanish. And we just got out all our books. So that was 34:04 really amazing. 34:07 You see that's a great lesson for all of us for those at home 34:08 because when Jesus says go ye into all the world sometimes we 34:13 pick and choose what part, well we can't go here or okay this 34:17 looks good, let's go over here. But when you get out of your 34:21 comfort zone like you all were literally out of your comfort 34:24 zone but you said okay Lord and you kind of feel impressed to do 34:29 something and you do it, God will open the doors. And so you 34:34 know you weren't unkind, you didn't force your way, you asked 34:37 and you asked and you asked and you went through all the proper 34:41 channels and the Lord was just you know...Basically, I think 34:45 that's a challenge for each and every one of us. Oh well I can't 34:48 I have people say you know I just not good. You know you talk 34:52 a lot but I'm too quiet, I can't you know I can't witness to 34:56 people and one guy, a friend of mine, I said you told me all 35:00 about your new car but you can't tell me about Jesus. You know in 35:05 other words people we do what we want to do. So thank you, this 35:07 is great. So we got to hear some more. I want to talk a little 35:11 bit about your building projects but whatever else we got here 35:15 this is good. 35:17 Yeah, we definitely want to keep those stories going but God is 35:19 blessing and we are building three brand new staff homes 35:22 which is a 35:23 real miracle and a real blessing that God has put that there. 35:27 Also both Build and Restore came back in July and Maranatha 35:31 Volunteers International will be there in November to ramp up the 35:36 remodeling of the old boys dormitory which has been 35:39 abandoned and that will let us have 60 students on our campus 35:42 and that's our goal. And we're excited about the volunteers 35:46 that have made this possible with people that have given 35:48 funds. Our ongoing needs are for a bus. We don't mind driving a 35:54 school bus but we need...You know right now we're driving 35:56 four different vehicles to get the group around. 35:58 How did you all get here to Southern Illinois? 36:00 We drove the van. 36:01 How many hours? 36:03 It was 22 hours. 36:05 Whoo! Twenty-two hours! You got to know each other very well. 36:10 Kansas seemed to go forever, so. And Missouri. 36:15 So you need a bus. 36:17 That's right. And just the support that it takes to keep 36:20 these kids knocking on doors and to keep the vans going and to 36:23 keep the books in their hands and...That's something that we 36:27 just praise God that He's provided for. We ask that, that 36:30 go forward because we love to see the young people spread the 36:33 good news of Jesus' love. We're out every Tuesday afternoon 36:36 sharing in the community helping in practical ways. We're 36:39 knocking on doors and selling books and as we tour we like to 36:42 do that in each community so that churches have the 36:45 opportunity for us to personally invite people to the concerts 36:47 offer them these truth-filled books and also see if there's 36:51 interest in studying God's word. 36:53 Absolutely. What I'd like to do is talk to our viewers at home 36:56 for just a minute. And there are projects and then there are 37:00 projects and there's the things that you really want to support. 37:03 I'm very impressed today with what you all are doing and 37:06 praise the Lord for you Craig and your staff and for the 37:12 students that are there because you're not what I call and I 37:16 lift up to Jesus and you're not you know you personally but the 37:19 the Jesus in you. It shows that the education that you're 37:22 getting which starts sometimes with the parents and sometimes 37:26 not but through Christian Education when it's really 37:30 Christian Education. It makes a difference. It's life-changing. 37:32 So I want to do two things. One is if you're interested and want 37:36 to know more about Castle Valley we're going to put up an address 37:40 in just a moment. Maybe you're a student and you want to go or 37:43 maybe you're that grandma or grandpa who says boy I wish my 37:46 grandson or granddaughter would go there. But secondly, I want to 37:49 talk about the projects and financially...I know it's a 37:52 small school, I know they don't have a lot of support in that 37:57 area but also I want to put up the address and we want you to 38:00 pray and ask the Holy Spirit what He would have you to do 38:03 in support. This bus is nothing. If we get all of us together and 38:08 you gave $10 and somebody gave $100 and somebody $50 there are 38:13 literally potentially millions of people here in the states. 38:15 There's tremendous amounts of people that are watching. So I'm 38:18 going to say a little prayer and I'm going to ask you to pray and 38:22 ask the Holy Spirit what He would have you to do to get the 38:27 gospel into all the world because what we're actually 38:29 doing here is some of us older folk we realize we're not going 38:33 to be around forever right, should the Lord tarry. But these 38:36 young folk these are the church of tomorrow and so what I see 38:40 that I respect and love is Jesus is the center of their joy. 38:46 That's the focus. When they're talking you can see that Jesus 38:49 is real to them. And we're not worried about all the things 38:52 happening here and there and around the world but just 38:55 sticking to the Bible, going out and doing evangelism, personal 38:58 evangelism, I mean at that age and not a lot of our schools are 39:02 doing that anymore. So we're seeing something here that I 39:05 think that this bus, they need a bus to travel. They're doing all 39:09 these concerts in California and wherever, west coast or Oregon 39:13 wherever, maybe Minnesota, all of that. So they need a bus so 39:16 we're going to pray. So who knows maybe you have a bus 39:18 We've had people donate us motorhomes or buses in the past 39:22 Maybe you have one you're not sure you know what to do with it 39:26 But other than that you say look I want to help support. I want 39:30 to support what they're doing in the community, I want to support 39:32 the farm. There's new building projects, faculty housing, the 39:38 boys dorm to expand it for growth. So I think right now, 39:42 I'm going to say a little prayer and then we're going to put up 39:44 this address. In fact, we'll give you an opportunity even 39:50 when the program's over that if you want to learn more and you 39:53 didn't get their address or email that you can always call 39:56 us here at 3ABN and we'll put you in contact. Right now let's 39:59 bow you heads with me if you would and let's pray and I want 40:02 you to pray too. See what the Lord would have you to do. 40:05 Dear Lord, we thank you for your blessings and your love and we 40:09 thank you for your plan of salvation. We thank you for 40:12 Castle Valley and for the leadership, for Craig and the 40:16 others that are literally here not only being mentors but 40:19 educators and their personal lives with these young people 40:22 that are there. We can see Jesus in them and they each are 40:27 becoming evangelists in their own way. Some may end up 40:30 actually in front preaching but we heard the stories today out 40:34 of nowhere, you opened the door and these kids are singing to 40:37 2000 people and then able to give them the books and able to 40:42 witness to them, to canvas. So we know that there are many 40:46 needs. We know the devil is not happy about this academy and 40:49 what's happening out there but Lord we know greater are you 40:53 that's in us than he that is in the world and so today we're 40:56 just praying that people literally around the world that 40:59 are watching this program today that each and every one of us 41:02 will do something to help them financially. We can do that. 41:05 Some of us can pray, some of us can help financially, some of us 41:10 can donate certain things, maybe vehicles, whatever it is Lord 41:14 I'm just praying for each of us to be open. We know that your 41:17 coming is soon and we realize this is our church of tomorrow 41:21 and I'm just asking again that each and every one of us listens 41:25 to your Holy Spirit and do what you would have us to do and 41:28 support the continuing education of Castle Valley Academy. I ask 41:32 and pray in Jesus' name Amen. 41:34 Now what I want to do is get the address up on the screen 41:37 for a little bit and it's okay to cover our face especially 41:41 mine. But I want to make sure it's up there long enough that 41:46 people can...and maybe you can read it for our radio listeners. 41:48 Castle Valley Academy, HC 64 Box 2201, Castle Valley, UT 84532 41:58 And our phone number is (435) 259-7719. The website is 42:06 CVA.School that's Castle Valley Academy so CVA.School 42:11 Or you can email us at Info@CVA.School 42:15 All right let's leave it up 42:17 there. Emma, you read it for us. Okay. 42:19 Castle Valley Academy, HC 64 Box 2201, Castle Valley, UT 84532 42:30 And our phone number is (435) 259-7719. You can reach us 42:37 at CVA.School or Info@CVA.School 42:41 All right. Thank you so much. Now we only have about eight or 42:45 nine minutes left so Craig where are we going? 42:48 Well you know the most exciting thing we saved for last. And 42:53 ultimately we believe that training thinkers takes a 42:57 different approach to school in the academics especially. And 43:02 so we like to focus on master learning. Master the grammar, 43:05 the math, 43:06 the science. Do it in little bits. Get it in for real. Have 43:10 it for life. But more than that the book Education also tells us 43:15 that the Bible as a textbook is better than all other books that 43:20 have ever been written. And so we figure look if the Bible is 43:25 and must be 43:26 the center of true education then we should know the Bible 43:30 and share the Bible. So tell us about You Choose. This is a 43:33 program that these kids run, this is a program they named, 43:36 I believe is the most exciting thing at Castle Valley Academy. 43:40 So we're really excited to tell you about a program called You 43:44 Choose. It's a Bible-based program where we as students 43:48 carefully study 43:49 the Bible and our ultimate goal is to be able to have a live 43:52 video, a program that people can send in any questions that they 43:55 have about the Bible and we can answer those in the Bible and 43:58 also, learn how to think about it for ourself. And we have a group 44:03 of singers that we have open our program with scripture songs 44:06 We bring a keyboard. We can do this from anywhere around our 44:09 school. We have beautiful red rock that we can film from or we 44:12 have this thing called Star Link Mobile which allows us to stream 44:17 live from anywhere and so yeah. 44:20 Another thing that's really amazing is our team behind the 44:24 camera that you don't normally see, they've put together what 44:28 we call a Bibliopedia, a You Choose Bibliopedia which is 44:32 basically like a Wikipedia of all the Bible topics that at 44:36 least we could think of and the amazing thing about this program 44:39 is the more questions that you ask and the more questions that 44:44 we get the more we can put into this Bibliopedia so if you think 44:48 of basically any topic on the Bible all we have to do is put 44:50 that in there. We can find all the verses on that, we can find 44:55 the references and everything there so we can put forward the 44:58 information. But the really amazing thing about this program 45:01 is that we're not just telling you what's going on. We're 45:05 giving you the information and we'll let you choose what the 45:09 answer is. So we're not just putting it in your face, oh this 45:11 is what you're supposed to do like this is what the Bible says 45:15 to do. This is what God has told us to do and you can interpret 45:20 that for yourselves. So it's really amazing. 45:23 It's a way for us to learn the Bible better while also helping 45:28 other people learn. They're really great... 45:30 Even more than that if you know media, and Danny I know you do, 45:33 you know for every minute of run time on a great music video 45:37 there's probably 10 to 40 hours backstage, all that stuff, and 45:42 so we just feel like time's too short to spend all of our time 45:45 making music videos so but here's a way to basically have 45:49 enthusiasm and eagerness and all this scripture singing happening 45:52 live and between each song you know they're saying hey guys let 45:56 us know what song you want to learn from the Bible and send us 45:58 your questions and then these guys are ready for those 46:02 questions and diving in. And it's just...you know one of the 46:06 things that is so important for young people to learn is the 46:09 ability to communicate and have an enthusiasm and have energy. 46:13 And so then, I mean, you're going to make this thing fly 46:15 You know for people to really watch it, it's got to be 46:18 interesting. It's not just like oh here's the question. No. And 46:21 that's for me as a teacher it's so exciting to see that 46:25 happening, see that dynamic start to grow and to see that 46:31 their communication skills are going through the roof. And 46:33 praise God because the message has got to get out and every 46:36 question's got to be answered. 46:39 And any question that we get to answer is something that we 46:42 learned, we learned for ourselves a lot more than just 46:44 hearing it in a sermon and knowing it from since you were 46:47 little because we're good Adventists but actually sharing 46:49 answers straight from the Bible. It just really strengthens you 46:52 and your beliefs and it helps you know exactly where it's 46:54 found in the Bible and how to share them with people that are 46:57 wondering because there are a lot of people out there that are 46:58 just hungry for the truth and that's our mission to get it out 47:01 there. 47:02 The amazing thing about this is it's not just that all the 47:06 adults have put this thing in front of us to do. It's that 47:11 everything from thinking of a name, You Choose, everything 47:15 from actually studying there, from singing the songs, from 47:17 being backstage, the cameras, the tech support, everything 47:22 back there is all student-run. We do the Bibliopedia, we're 47:28 actually studying the Bible to find the questions, to find the 47:32 verses and answers and to be able to put it out there. Like 47:36 we have the privilege of being able to do this and it's not 47:40 just something that they've put for us. We're actually involved. 47:45 So the Bible is just really the textbook for our school. We're 47:48 studying the Bible. We're learning much more than you 47:50 would in any other school. 47:52 Nothing's more powerful than a personal testimony what we're 47:58 doing in the process. Oh say this is what we learned while 48:01 trying to answer your question. Here's how we kind of 48:05 interpreted it but here's the answer to it. And it's a really 48:09 good way for us to get to work with each other, get to know 48:11 each other better from the closer student body by having 48:15 you know worked with our friends in front of the camera and 48:17 with our friends off the camera. It's a really really great thing 48:21 to do. 48:22 Ben, you're kind of quiet over there. These folk are jumping in 48:25 Do you have any comments right before we close here. Somebody's 48:30 thinking about coming to Castle Valley and joining all of you, 48:32 what would you say to some student right now that's in the 48:34 valley of decision. 48:37 Well personally coming to Castle Valley has been one of the 48:40 greatest things that has ever happened to me. Just being 48:45 around other students that are focused on God and loving each 48:49 other and the music, the canvassing, the canvassing has 48:52 strengthened my relationship with God more than anything I 48:55 have ever done. And so if you have a chance please come. It's 48:59 an incredible experience on every front. 49:02 All right. Any closing thoughts? We've got two minutes left. 49:06 We know that Jesus is coming soon and we want to share it in 49:12 every way we can. And it's exciting to see miracle after 49:15 miracle. It's exciting to go out with these young people and to 49:18 pray for those Divine appointments, to pray, you know, 49:22 lead us to the home where there's a great need. Lead us 49:24 to the place where they want to study the Bible and then to see 49:27 those prayers answered is just proof that God is listening and 49:32 that He's willing to use us. 49:35 Do you have time for another quick story? 49:37 Be really quick. 49:40 During our music tour, we were in a Walmart parking lot and I just 49:45 happened to walk up to this guy that was at the back of his car. 49:46 And I gave him the books Great Controversy, Lessons of Love 49:51 and Steps to Christ. And it was so amazing because he said he'd 49:55 been searching, he'd been looking for the answers and just 49:59 trying to find God and it was just amazing that God put him 50:03 in our path and impressed me to just give him the books. 50:07 What's really great about this school is that we're doing 50:09 things that we've done before you know we've all probably 50:13 worked in the garden been to school in the classroom but 50:15 we're also doing things that kind of get us outside our 50:16 comfort zone, get us to experience more things than just 50:20 this little world we've been living in and that's what's 50:23 really good about canvassing, about you know music tours, 50:26 working on the farm and going everywhere else. 50:29 I love it. What we're going to do is we're going to put up your 50:34 address one more time for our folks at home. Then we're going 50:36 go to a news break. We'll come back for a closing thought. 50:40 We'll be back right after that. 50:43 If you would like to contact or know more about Castle Valley 50:47 Academy you can do so in the following ways: You can write to 50:50 them at HC 64 Box 2201, Castle Valley, UT 84532. You can call 50:58 them at (435) 259-7719 You can visit their website CVA.School 51:14 Or send them an email at Info@CVA.School |
Revised 2023-08-09