News | Seventh-day Adventist Church

6 Ways to Deepen Your Prayer Life

Story by Michele Joseph

You don’t need any special gifts or abilities,” says Tamyra Horst, Prayer Ministries coordinator for the Pennsylvania Conference, on being a prayer warrior. “You just need a willingness, an honest heart and a tenacity to not give up.” Here are a few tips from Horst and other prayer warriors in the Columbia Union.

Make God first: You’ve got to remove self. If God’s not first, who is?—Saundra Austin

Pray Scripture: Claim God’s Word; pray it back to Him.—Tamyra Horst

Give fasting a chance: It deepens the prayer experience.—TH

Standing in the Gap

Story by Michele Joseph

Richard Klinedinst could not sit at home in retirement. In 2010 he started walking.

The 88-year-old member of Pennsylvania Conference’s York church says he was inspired by Ron Halversen Sr.’s book Prayer Warriors. He began prayer walking in his York neighborhood and then expanded across the city. Up until 2016, he walked one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half hours each day, and logged more than 1,000 miles. Last year he fell and discontinued his daily walks. But he continues to pray. Using index cards to divide the town into 90 sections, he prays for several neighborhoods each day.

I Cooked With God

Story by Visitor Staff

While serving as a volunteer at the Reach International Children’s Home in Santa Barbara, Honduras, Mandy Corea was in charge of cooking breakfast for about 70 people.

One morning she walked into the kitchen, like she did every morning, and couldn’t find matches to light the gas stove.

Corea, Campus Ministries director and English as a Second Language teacher at Chesapeake Conference’s Highland View Academy in Hagerstown, Md., looked all over the place, searched various storage rooms and went into people’s rooms to see if anyone had matches, she says. She continued looking for about 40 minutes, stressed because she needed to prepare breakfast before the kids left for school.

Middle States Commission on Higher Education Reaffirms Accreditation of Washington Adventist University

Story by Washington Adventist University Staff

At its November 2017 session, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) reaffirmed the accreditation of Washington Adventist University (WAU).

During the process that revised the Middle States Commission on Higher Education’s Statement of Accreditation Status, the body recognized WAU for progress to date on several recommendations and suggestions to address concerns and improve the institution in key identified areas. The University has been accredited by MSCHE since 1942.

It's All God

Story by Michele Joseph/ Photos by Norman Mitchell

Saundra Austin’s prayer life changed the day she got baptized in the late 1970s. On that day, she felt too sick to leave home. “I called my Bible worker,” says Austin, now prayer coordinator for the Allegheny East Conference (AEC). “She said to just go back and lay down, and we’ll pray for you.”

Hours passed, and each time a pastor or prayer warrior called, she still felt sick. However, no one gave up praying. By the time the baptism began later that day at AEC’s Dupont Park church in Washington, D.C., she was the first one in line to enter the pool.

It’s Not About the Yes, No or Maybe

Story by Michele Joseph

Sometimes it seems like you get answers to simple prayers [a parking space, things you need that are on sale]. Other times the things that mean the most to you seem to take the longest, only to find out later that He hasn’t been silent,” says Tamyra Horst, a departmental director for the Pennsylvania Conference whose many roles include Prayer Ministries. There were moments in Horst’s life when she was angry her prayers weren’t working for the people she loved, but she didn’t stop praying. “What else would I do?” she says.

Columbia Union Conference Enrollment Numbers Increase

Shenandoah Valley Academy students Cynthia Chavez-Moreno ‘19, Giselle Villatoro ‘20 and Bridget Moonga ‘19 gather. Photo by Laura Short

Story by V. Michelle Bernard

In the 2017-18 academic year, Columbia Union Conference pre-K through university-level schools reported a combined opening enrollment of 8,917 says Donovan Ross, the union’s vice president for education. Enrollment is up 90 students from last year, he adds.

Psalm 150: A Final Doxology

Blog by Rob Vandeman

Psalm 146-150 provides a fitting conclusion to the book of Psalms. Like Psalms 146-149, Psalm 150 opens and closes with the exhortation to Praise the Lord (Hallelu Yah), the simplest of all the expressions of exuberant praise.

Book Release: Success It’s Bigger Than Me

Roland Hill’s wife, Susie, was tired of hearing Hill complaining that there wasn’t a deep Christian book about success, so she encouraged the stewardship guru to write his own book.

Six months later, Hill, a pastor at Allegheny East Conference’s Maranatha church in Fredericksburg, Va., and Penuel church in Brandy Station, Va., noticed the prayer of Eliezer in Genesis 24:12—a prayer for success. His latest book, Success is Bigger Than Me, delves into all areas of success in Christian living.

The book includes an 8-week study guide designed to help readers ignite their lives and change their world, says Hill.

December 2017 Feature: Testimonies of Answered Prayer

Hannah’s Healing

The doctors had given their prognosis. Linda and Craig Johnson responded by calling anyone who had been active in their daughter Hannah’s life: their local Pathfinder director at Pennsylvania Conference’s Blue Mountain Academy (BMA) church in Hamburg, pastors, church members, family and friends. They needed everyone to pray. Now!