DARE TO BE A DANIEL
BY DAVE NELSON
In April, the worship service at the Paradise Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church was taken over by an “eyewitness” account of Daniel’s confrontation with the lions. The focus of the program was to engage the children of the church in the worship service.
The service began with children’s praise songs and a puppet show. The nature story for the program was based on the Ring-Tailed Cat that frequents the deserts of Arizona. Then Shadrach from the time of Babylon and King Darius walked out on stage and began to tell his story.
Pastor Paul Blake as Shadrach gave his first-hand account of the events that led up to Daniel being placed in the den of lions. Then much to everyone’s surprise a lion loudly roared and interrupted the story. The author of this article walked out on stage dressed in a lion custom and stated, “He was very hungry and was looking for something to eat.”
Shadrach handled the situation calmly and told the lion to lay down and listen to the rest of the story and there might be a meal coming. When the story reached the point of Daniel being lowered into the den, Shadrach began to question the lion.
“What did you do when you met Daniel?” Shadrach asked.
“Daniel began to pray and then I didn’t feel it was right to eat a man praying,” replied the lion. “I realized that I was no longer hungry and was not interested in the man anymore.”
The reenactment of the story left a deep impression on the children in the congregation. The purpose of the program was to create a memory of the promises and faithfulness of God, even when we feel like everything is lost.
SAGUARO MAN OUTREACH
BY WILLCOX CHURCH COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT
While most people have heard of Burning Man which takes place in the desert of Nevada and attracts upwards of 80,000 people, few have likely heard of Saguaro Man. This regional ‘burning man’ takes place in the desert of Willcox, Arizona at the end of April and attracts over 1,000 people.
This year, the Willcox Seventh-day Adventist Church felt a call to reach out to the attendees who came not only from the local area but also from all over the United States.
A group of about 20 church members working in shifts, setup a free water booth about a mile outside of the exit of Saguaro Man. Since this was the only road out, attendees had to pass by as they departed.
Drivers exiting Saugaro Man were greeted by smiling faces wearing t- shirts that read “Got Water?” and holding bags that contained a bottle of water and a book entitled “Gems for the Desert Nomad.” The book was compiled, printed and bound by members of the Willcox church.
“Gems for the Desert Nomad” is broken into four parts. The first part lists random amazing facts about Arizona to get a reader’s attention. The second part contains amazing facts about health which are excerpts from the Amazing Health Facts Magazine. The church received permission from Amazing Facts to use the content for the book. The third part is the chapter from the Great Controversy entitled “The Origin of Evil” which is about the war in heaven. And the final part is the chapter entitled “What to do with Doubt” featuring excerpts from the book “Steps to Christ.” The back of the book contains a slip that recipients can mail back to the church’s PO Box to request free books.
Overall, nearly 450 books were distributed. There were several positive interactions with the people exiting the event. One lady stated that she was looking forward to reading the booklet and another shared that her grandparents were Seventh-day Adventist.
Members of the Willcox church praise God for His leading and guidance in this unique outreach project. They continue to pray for each person that received the book and hope that the Holy Spirit works on their hearts and draws them to Christ.
MARANATHA AT YAVAPINES
BY JEFF ROGERS
Every April a group of Marantha Volunteers from all over North America arrive at Camp Yavapines to work on the various projects that Camp Manager Scott Blake has identified. Spearheaded by project leader Carolyn Houghton and her husband John, the group of 70 to 80 volunteers start immediately on the projects.
“This project was blessed with many professional contractors, electricians, landscapers and painters,” Carolyn Houghton says. “As usual, the volunteers were willing to work at any task or to be moved around to another project as needed.”
At the banquet at the conclusion of the project, Scott Blake noted the efficiency of the volunteers. “I have projects lined up for the day and at noon the volunteers are coming back to me asking ‘What’s next?’” he says. “Some days I had to make several trips back into town to get supplies.”
John Houghton joked with Blake, “I made six trips to Home Depot on one of those days.”
At the banquet the Houghtons were honored for their leadership. It was their tenth year being a part of the team and seventh as the project leaders.
The Houghtons are not sure they will be back as project leaders next year. Arizona Conference Ed Keyes presented the them with a special cactus statute and Scott Blake presented the Houghtons with a plaque to honor their commitment to Camp Yavapines.
“As John and I are getting ready to leave beautiful Camp Yavapines, bittersweet emotions overwhelm us,” Carolyn Houghton writes. “I praise God for giving me the energy to do this one.”
There were over 20 individual projects completed around the campground. Several were major projects including the construction of a new entrance to the camp and painting the dining hall, Alaska, Registration, Office and Arizona buildings, and installing swamp coolers in the dining hall.
