Romans 8:28 is True
[Regarding Let's Talk, October 2011] Almost six years ago, we lost our 28-year-old son in a motorcycle accident. A "sympathy card," made especially for us, haunts me to this day. The person wrote that it was good we had experienced this tragic loss because it would remind us of the "sinfulness of sin."
I am able to look back at events at the time of our son's death and since, and say with confidence that God has kept his promise in Romans 8:28.
But I think it is unfortunate that it always seems to be individuals who have experienced some miracle of deliverance or healing that are asked to tell their story in church, especially when they are known for their religiosity. It perpetuates the belief that if we are "good enough," God will prevent bad things from happening to us.
Jeanne Powell, Merlin, Oregon.
An Early Morning Dive
[The October GLEANER Archival Photo] was taken at a North Pacific Union Conference (NPUC) teachers' convention at Camp MiVoden on Hayden Lake, Washington, during the summer of 1956. Front and center is Joe Porter, NPUC educational superintendent at the time. His son, Tom, was an elementary school teacher and the father of Mike Porter, current president of The Quiet Hour.
On Porter's right, our left, is M.L. Andreason, the guest speaker at the conference and a well-known preacher, administrator and author. At the convention, he had some health problems, but the "brethren" found him diving off the dock early every morning. They advised him to take care and not go diving in the cold lake. He replied, "Gentlemen, I plan to die standing up, with my boots on."
Wes Parker, Goldendale, Washington.
