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| FRIDAY | January 7 |
| “It is not work that kills; it is worry. The only way to avoid worry is to take every trouble to Christ. Let us not look on the dark side. Let us cultivate cheerfulness of spirit.”—Ellen G. White, Mind, Character, and Personality, p. 466. “If we educated our souls to have more faith, more love, greater patience, a more perfect trust in our heavenly Father, we would have more peace and happiness as we pass through the conflicts of this life. The Lord is not pleased to have us fret and worry ourselves out of the arms of Jesus. He is the only source of every grace, the fulfillment of every promise, the realization of every blessing. . . . Our pilgrimage would indeed be lonely were it not for Jesus. ‘I will not leave you comfortless’ (John 14:18), He says to us. Let us cherish His words, believe His promises, repeat them by day and meditate upon them in the night season, and be happy.”—Ellen G. White, Mind, Character, and Personality, p. 468. |
 As a class, go over your answer to Thursday’s final question.  Some, without any real immediate reason for concern, are afraid to suffer and die; others actually are experiencing a debilitating or terminal disease that will likely kill them. Others perhaps truly are facing another life-threatening situation. How can people in those circumstances be comforted?  Jacob showed “great fear and distress” (Gen. 32:7, NIV) in preparing to meet Esau. Joseph’s brothers were “terrified” (Gen. 45:3, NIV) when Joseph revealed his true identity. Discuss acceptable ways to deal with fears that come from our own wrongdoing. Is there a difference in dealing with fears that we have brought upon ourselves through our own wrong actions? If so, what is the difference?  Job affirmed: “What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me” (Job 3:25, NIV). Can our fears become real by the “self-fulfilling prophecy” effect? In other words, can a constant worry about something happening actually help bring about the thing feared? Discuss.  Think about all the things you have worried about that never came to pass. What lessons can you learn from these experiences that should, ideally, help you worry less about the future now? |
| I N S I D E Story | ||
| A Simple Invitation by NEDYALKA ANGELOVA Nedy listened patiently as her neighbor talked about a Bible study class she attended. Nedy is a science teacher in Bulgaria. She had tried several times to read the Bible, but even though she had a keen analytical mind, she couldn't understand it. So when her friend invited her to attend the Bible study class, she accepted. "I wanted to broaden my knowledge," she said. "I wasn't looking for God." Nedy went to the Bible class prepared to take notes. But as the speaker lectured, she was struck by the profound lessons this man drew from the Bible. She continued attending the class and soaked up God's love. She told her husband, Nikolai, a retired military officer, what she was learning. But he responded, "You may go if you want, but don't bother me with religion." Nedy knew that Nikolai wanted nothing to do with religion, but she continued to share with him what she was learning. Nedy's interest in the Bible grew, and she accepted her friend's invitation to attend the Sabbath worship services. When the church organized a health expo, Nedy invited Nikolai to go with her, but he made no promises. So she was surprised to see him there. She learned that a friend also had invited him to attend, and he had agreed to go. The expo and the church members who sponsored it impressed Nikolai, and the following week he surprised Nedy by saying, "I want to go to church with you this week." Nikolai stopped drinking and smoking and started attending church regularly. As their faith in God grew, they decided to be baptized together. "I never dreamed that a simple invitation to a Bible study class would change our lives so completely," Nedy says. "We're so much happier now than we were before we met Christ. I thank God for the faithful Adventists who invited us and who introduced us to God." Our mission offerings help fund health expos and many other outreach programs that reach people for Christ around the world. Thank you for giving. NEDYALKA and NIKOLAI ANGELOV (left) live in Yambol, Bulgaria. | ||
| Produced by the General Conference Office of Mission Awareness. email: info@adventistmission.org website: www.adventistmission.org |
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