Invited by an Angel

FRIDAY
December 21
Further Study:

Read Ellen G. White, "Eli and His Sons," pp. 575-580; "The Presumption of Saul," pp. 616-626, in Patriarchs and Prophets.

Submission to God's will comes as we die to our own desires and ambitions. This opens the way for true service to others. We cannot live for God without becoming a sacrifice and living in continual openness to God's voice. For us to truly submit our wills to our Father's will, we must recognize the dangers of relying on ourselves and on substitutes for God's Word and power. As submission to God's will is at the heart of a Christlike life, God may allow crucibles to teach us dependence on Him.

"The neglect of Eli is brought plainly before every father and mother in the land. As the result of his unsanctified affection or his unwillingness to do a disagreeable duty, he reaped a harvest of iniquity in his perverse sons. Both the parent who permitted the wickedness and the children who practiced it were guilty before God, and He would accept no sacrifice or offering for their transgression."—Ellen G. White, Child Guidance, p. 276.

Discussion Questions:

As a class, talk about the incredible condescension of the Son of God in coming to earth as a human being in order to die for our sins. What does it tell each of us about what self-sacrifice and self-denial for the good of others means? Though we certainly can't do anything like that, the principle is there and should always be before us. What ways can we, in our own spheres, emulate the kind of submission and self-sacrifice shown to us by Jesus at the Cross?

For many people, submitting to God without knowing what will happen next can be a terrifying thing. How would you counsel someone who is relying on themselves rather than God? What would you say to help remove their fears of not knowing—or being able to control—the future?

What can you do as a church, or a class, to help others who are in the crucible as they await God's timing for something?

As a class, spend some time praying for people you know who have difficulty in submitting to God's will, that they may see that trusting God's will is the only route to a lasting peace. At the same time, what practical things can you do for these people to help them see that they can surrender to God and that His way is the best? In other words, how can God use you to help others know of His love and willingness to provide?

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I N S I D E Story

Invited by an Angel
by BENJAMIN D. SCHOUN

In the Muslim country of Azerbaijan, one family of new believers is convinced that an angel guided them to the Adventist Church.
A young woman named Gunel and her family had just lost their grandfather. Her mother cried quietly as she rode the city bus to the family's grave site. A woman came to comfort her, saying that God is good, that Jesus will come again, and that there is hope for the future. Then the woman told Gunel's mother about a church where she could go to learn more about these things.
A month later Gunel's mother again saw the woman on the bus. The woman again encouraged her and gave her the address of the church. Gunel's mother asked Gunel to go with her one Saturday morning to this church. They had never been inside a Christian church before and hesitated to enter. Then one of the church greeters saw them arid invited them in, where they were welcomed with hugs and kisses.
Gunel and her mother enjoyed the worship. After the service Gunel's mother asked about the woman she had met on the bus. She described the woman in detail, but no one recognized the description. The pastor, who knew every Adventist in the city, listened carefully. He did not recognize the woman's description and suggested that Gunel's mother had met an angel.
Gunel and her mother continued attending church and studied the Bible diligently. First Gunel's mother was baptized, then Gunel and her brother and sister followed. Now they host a small group meeting in their home. Gunel's father, still a Muslim, is favorable to Adventists.
Gunel's Muslim friends harass her because she has become a Christian. But Gunel is not deterred. Recently she took an Adventist World Radio seminar to learn how to produce radio programs. Perhaps Gunel will be part of AWR's outreach into her homeland, where today just a handful of believers live.

GUNEL (left). BENJAMIN D. SCHOUN is president of Adventist World Radio.
Produced by the General Conference Office of Mission Web site: www.adventistmission.org