Our delivery date is Sunday, May 28. We still need people willing to help assemble the beds in the homes of recipient families on May 28. Even if you don't have a large vehicle, you can help a team who does! Please let us know you can help by texting BEDS to 269-281-2345 to register or go to pmchurch.org/beds to check out the schedule and sign up.
In Exile: Cadences of Home
Really, Really Faithful Under Fire
Speaker
Dwight K. NelsonSince 1983, Dwight Nelson has served as lead pastor of the Pioneer Memorial Church on the campus of Andrews University. He preaches on the “New Perceptions” telecast, teaches at the theological seminary and has written some books, including The Chosen. He and his wife, Karen, are blessed with two married children and 2 granddaughters.
Offering
More In This Series
“In Exile: Cadences of Home—
Really, Really Faithful Under Fire”
www.newperceptions.tv
»Four very short stories
»Four very simple reasons
• #1—Persecution is the expected modus operandi of the devil (“evil”
with a “d”) in his “great controversy” warfare to the divine allies and exiles on earth.
• 2 Timothy 3:12—“In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be .”
• #2—Trials and tribulations character and dependency
on God.
• John 16:33—“‘I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have . But take heart! I have the world.’”
• 1 Peter 4:12-13—“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to you [as gold purified in the fire—1:6-7], as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”
• #3—Persecution keeps the line of demarcation between the exiles and the culture of the captor .
• Walter Brueggemann: “The great problem for exiles is cultural . The primary threat to those ancient Jews was that members of the community would decide that Jewishness was too demanding, or too dangerous, or too costly, and simply accept Babylonian definitions and modes of reality.” (Cadences of Home: Preaching among Exiles 41)
• Lee Beach: “While integration with culture is necessary, to it in all aspects is not.” (The Church in Exile: Living in Hope After Christendom 89)
• #4—Persecution actually the Kingdom of God on earth!
• Esther 8:17—“And many people of other nationalities became because fear of the Jews had seized them.”
• Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar’s dream—the king at Daniel’s feet in obeisance to Daniel’s God (Daniel 2:46).
• Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and Nebuchadnezzar’s image—the king their God above all other gods (Daniel 3:29).
• Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar after his insanity—“I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and the King of heaven, because everything he does is right” (Daniel 4:37).
• Daniel and Darius the Great—“I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of .” (Daniel 6:26)
• Tertullian: “The blood of Christians is .”
• Frederick Dale Bruner: “In Matthean and biblical teaching the tribulation of the latter days is a Christian experience and ‘runs from the first advent to the second.’ We’re in it! . . . The tribulation of persecution is the essence of Christian . . . . A winnowed, persecuted, purged, minority church—paradoxically,
evangelically— .”
(Matthew: A Commentary 2:483-484, 292)
• Acts 8:1, 4—“On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were throughout Judea and Samaria. . . . Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”
• Ellen White: “The two armies [faith communities] will stand distinct and separate, and this distinction will be so marked that many who shall be convinced of truth will come on the side of God’s commandment-keeping people. When this grand work is to take place in the battle, . . . many will be imprisoned, many will flee for their lives from cities and towns, and many will be for Christ’s sake in standing in defense of the truth.” (Maranatha 199)
• Jesus: “Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute also.”
(John 15:20)
• Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and .” (Cost of Discipleship 99)
• Frederick Dale Brunner: “Though the church is winnowed down, betrayed, arrested, and martyred, nevertheless, like the betrayed, arrested, and executed Jesus himself, it experiences resurrection after crucifixion. The slaughtered lamb becomes a lion!” (492)
If persecution grows the Kingdom—
why not?
Update #6 for Renovate 2.0 (05/24/2023) The Project: It’s nearly done! Essentially, the only major piece of the Renovate 2.0 left to complete is the arrival and installation of the elevator itself. After the installation is the final finishing painting and flooring and its ready for use!!! Fundraising: As of 05/24/2023, there is $657,017.00 that’s been raised with $342,983.00 left to go. We are making wonderful progress. Thank You! Please remember Renovate 2.0 in your giving plans and pray for its success!
Michigan Advance Partners
For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light. Psa. 36:9 At the First Flint church we are blessed with wonderful facilities to reach out to the community and provide a place to gather for worship of our Creator. When our new pastor and his family arrived, we were excited to have them join our church family. In our eagerness, we asked him what he thought of our facilities. His answer surprised us. He said, “it just seems a little dark in the sanctuary.”
The pastor was right! It was dark, even to the point of making it difficult to read our Bibles. But we had gotten accustomed to the darkness and hadn’t realized how much we needed to bring more light into the sanctuary. So, we began getting bids to redo all the lights for the sanctuary, fellowship hall, Sabbath school rooms, hallways, youth chapel, baptistry, and community service center. The best bid came to $22,000. This represented quite a large sum for a church that was still recovering, like many, from the challenges of attending members created by Covid.
We had previously received funding from Michigan Advance Partners for our parking lot, so to start the project rolling, once again we requested assistance for the lights.
Now, with the wonderful support of MAP, we have brand new LED lights throughout our entire church and community services center. Thank you for your kind contributions to MAP that help us to be blessed with physical light, so we can bring the spiritual Light to our community. North American Division Stewardship Ministries
—North American Division Stewardship Ministries
Nurture, interact, support and create a safe and inclusive environment for children grades 1-7. Responsibilities include managing a group of children Monday-Friday, supervising all aspects of the day, leading children through a weekly schedule and participating/teaching/assisting in all activities.
June 5-Aug 18, 2023. Various shifts available between 7:30 am - 5:00 pm Monday - Friday Must be at least 18 years old. Competitive pay. Lunch included! https://www.andrews.edu/admres/jobs/
You are invited to join the New England Adventist Heritage Tour. On this tour you will have the opportunity to walk the ground that the Adventist Pioneers walked, sing the songs they sang and learn what their passions were. As part of this tour, lectures will be given in which lessons from Adventist history will be applied to life today. Give yourself the chance to deepen your understanding of Adventist history and have an enjoyable time while doing so!
• Dates: July 16–23, 2023 (Sunday–Sunday)
• Cost:
o Students: MDiv and MAR students pay $385 in addition to their Summer Semester Tuition
o Spouses: There are 5 reduced rate spouse seats at $799, but if the number of spouses exceeds five, additional spouses will pay the full price of $1,725.
o Community members: $1,725.
• Applications Now Accepted: Applications will only be accepted via email at carclasses@andrews.edu.
• Brochure & Application Form: See online at www.centerforadventistresearch.org/netour/.
• Courses Offered: See www.centerforadventistresearch.org/netour/.
Video about the historical tour: https://youtu.be/bklPuhasb7I
Registration is open now and forms are due by May 30 for the Andrews University Summer Camp! Our camp is 10 weeks of Bible-based educational summer adventures for children entering grades 1–7 (June 12 – August 18), is held exclusively on the Andrews University campus and features Vacation Bible School-style programming and field trips. Each week of camp highlights a different theme and Bible adventure. https://www.andrews.edu/services/crayonbox/summercamp/
We are blessed to have 34 students graduating from 8th Grade on Thursday, June 1 at Pioneer Memorial Church.
Congratulations, Andrews Academy seniors! May the same Lord who got you here lead you into the uncharted adventure ahead! “I am with you always,” is His promise. Everyone is invited to attend graduation weekend events. Class Night May 25, 7 PM @ Andrews Academy, Consecration May 26, 8 PM @ Village SDA Church, Baccalaureate May 27, 11:45 AM @ PMC, Commencement May 28, 11AM @ PMC.
Each Sabbath morning at both 1st and 2nd services, people gather in "The Prayer Room" to pray for the church service, the participants, and the congregants, both in-house and online. We are in need of more volunteers for both services. We pray for the prayer requests submitted each week (which are anonymous). We participate in the congregational prayer and listen to the sermon on a monitor provided in The Prayer Room. If you have a heart to pray for others or are looking for more information, please contact Deb Montcalm at greengables75@yahoo.com.
Neighbor To Neighbor, Adventist Community Service Center is looking for an Adventist Administrator. Must be caring, flexible and have great communication skills with management and public relations experience. Must have an associate or bachelor degree. Duties include management of the Thrift Store, volunteers and facilities supervision. A full time position with benefits. If interested, have questions or want to submit a resume contact: info@n2nhelps.com