Rosa Aguilar was depressed. She says, "I had no hope, I had no peace; I felt empty, alone, rejected. I was in love with Jesus but had many doubts. I could not accept that it was so easy for Him to forgive. I thought I deserved to be punished and then forgiven."
During March 2006, she and her family drove from Colorado to Mexico and stopped at a scenic overlook in New Mexico. Looking down she saw a sun-bleached book in a plastic bag. The book was Steps to Christ. She took it, read it and decided she needed a real conversion experience in her life.
After the family moved to Boise, she started watching 3ABN on channel 31, where she saw a program on the Sabbath which made sense to her. She started searching for a church which taught the truth, finding her way to the Boise East Seventh-day Adventist Church. She studied a lot on her own and with others and then made her decision to be baptized on Monday night, at the "God So Loved" meetings.
Boise's Cloverdale Church was the host for the eight-night series "God So Loved," Oct. 20–27. "God So Loved" was videotaped in high definition and was shown on The Hope Channel during the week of Nov. 10–17. Many congregations throughout the Northwest and beyond presented this "God So Loved" in their respective churches to reach out to their communities.
Hosted by Mike and Marilyn Armayor, Cloverdale Church pastoral couple, each night's program featured a variety of music, a testimonial from a recent convert and the main message from speaker Jere Patzer, North Pacific Union Conference (NPUC) president, interspersed with colorful graphics.
This was truly a collaborative project, involving not only the union conference, but also the Idaho Conference along with pastors and members throughout the Treasure Valley. Musicians such as Rollyn and Angie Betts, Stacy Piontek, Wanda Vaz and the Gospel Brass came from around the Northwest to add their talents to other nationally known artists, including Jaime Jorge. The Pacific Press provided books and other materials for audience giveaways and resources.
In addition, a technical crew from the McMinnville (Ore.) Church joined with a group of students from Walla Walla University to help record the meetings under the direction of Todd Gessele, NPUC director of new media. Oregon conference member, Tim Adams, added his talents for lighting.
"God So Loved" is the second in a series of twice-a-year reaping meetings sponsored by the NPUC to help Northwest churches develop the concept of Momentum—an evangelistic philosophy that creates an ongoing cycle of bringing people to Christ. Ron Halvorsen's "Snapshots of the Savior," recorded in Auburn, Wash., in the spring of 2007, was the first. During 2008, two more series will be provided to Northwest churches via the Hope Channel. The first, on April 19–26, will originate from Anchorage, Alaska, and feature speaker Jac Colon. The fall series, also provided via the Hope Channel Nov. 8–15, will have Byron Corbett speaking from Spokane, Wash.
After her baptism, Rosa said, "That was a significant day because now I know in my heart that Jesus is my Lord and my Savior. Now I can see that God has the power to change our lives." She is sharing with her family, sending them Steps to Christ and the Desire of Ages. Her husband Crispobal is studying and has accepted the Sabbath. "I am so excited! The way God works in our lives is amazing."
Hosted by the Cloverdale Church in Boise, Idaho, Jere Patzer, NPUC president, spoke for the eight-part satellite evangelistic series, " God So Loved."
During the final meeting of the series, Jere Patzer shared his story of being a cancer survivor in terms of the great cosmic controversy.
Mike and Marilyn Armayor, Cloverdale Church pastoral couple, welcomed the people to the meetings.
Rollyn and Angie Betts from Salem, Ore., and Jaime Jorge, a violin soloist from Chattanooga, Tenn., were some of the musicians who provided meaningful music for the meetings.
From left: Win Wheeler of Light Stream International (McMinnville, Ore., Church's media ministry), Alex English, a Walla Walla University double major in Communication and Engineering, with Todd Gessele, NPUC new media director, calling the shots for the taping of the meetings for broadcast on the Hope Channel to churches and homes around the world.
Tasha O'Neill, a Walla Walla University senior mass communication major, operates a camera for the meetings.
Each evening Dan Serns, NPUC ministerial director, tells the story of the spiritual journey of an individual who is joining the church through baptism or profession of faith.
