18 April 2009

Youths lead youths to Christ

God wants the youths to live a joyful life as He desires to partner with them in expanding His kingdom on earth.

Fired up by this thought, 12 young people provided the messages in the Week of Prayer, April 18-25, at Kellogg Mookerjee Memorial Seminary in Bangladesh, while five others led out in the program they called Journey to the Cross.

“These 12 boys and girls were preaching for the first time in their lives but they were delivering their messages devoid of fear and hesitation,” said the organizers. “And God blessed them and the school community for their powerful sermons!”

Their theme song, “Things are different now—something happened to me when I gave my heart to Jesus,” left hearts touched and revived for the Lord.

The Journey to the Cross (JTTC), a program adapted from the Adventist University of Philippines (AUP) that takes youth to experience what Ellen White envisioned in her book, Desire of Ages(page 83), saying: “It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross.”

This interactive journey on Jesus’ final days and His resurrection brought 460 young people and adults to experience life-changing events in their lives. “Now I love Jesus more than ever, I want to be baptized,” joyfully confessed Deepa Baroi, a young girl at Standard 10.

“Even though I am a baptized member, only now that I learned to know Jesus better. Indeed, I found new life in Him,” said Anik Bala, a young boy at Standard 8 class.

A heart-rending testimony was given by Sharon Quia, who said: “I used to curse Jesus. I stopped praying because the doctor said that one my one eyes will not be able see again. But this spiritual experience has made me a changed person. Now I learned that Jesus has suffered much more than the loss of my eye because He gave His life that I may have eternal life! I thank Him for my remaining eye by which I can see.”

An elder sojourner, Mrs. Bulbul Harder, said that her Journey to the Cross “brought me to realize that I will make prayer stations in my home so that many would come to know what Jesus has done for them.” [Milton Das]