Address:
9705 Patuxent Woods Drive
Columbia, MD 21046 USA
Contacts:
Email: contact@asiministries.org
Phone: +1 (443) 391-7235
How to Live and not Die:
Is it really that simple?
by Debbie Wallace
Iwas only six years old when my grandfather had a massive heart attack and was sent home to die. Just before he left the hospital, his doctor told him there were some things he couldn't eat anymore, including meat, milk, eggs, and white bread. This was no small order for my grandfather; he raised chickens and would normally eat six eggs in one sitting. If just one egg per day is too much for a person’s body to process, imagine what six eggs per day for 72 years had done to his arteries! Without any surgery or intervention to unclog those arteries, the doctor estimated he would not live more than six months. The doctor also told my grandfather that he needed to walk every day. From that day forward, my grandfather decided he would rather starve than eat any of the things his doctor said not to eat. He also walked every day. A year later, my grandfather was still alive.
My grandfather kept living and 15 years after he was supposed to die, he came to live with me. His experience inspired me to become a preventive doctor and help others learn to do what he did. Due to basic lifestyle changes, my grandfather lived 20 years longer than his doctors predicted. When he died, it was not from heart disease but pneumonia. My grandfather taught me so much, but I would never have had this legacy to share if he had not changed his lifestyle. His story inspires my work as CEO of the TV station True Health TV. For almost five years, we have been providing health programs 24/7 via online streaming at www.TrueHealth.tv, on local free-to-air TV channels, and on Roku! According to independent polls, our TV programs have been viewed by millions and we have now been offered the opportunity to go on cable.
Knowledge is indeed power, but not without implementation. Making changes can be challenging, but the challenge is worth it to live and feel great! Take the wise counsel that embracing a vegan diet can be good for living a long and healthy life. Unfortunately, not everything that is vegan is good to eat! We must read food labels. Many Adventists are dying of cancer while research has now proven that a vegan diet can help fight cancer. Could it be that God meant for us to stick to the original diet He created for Adam and Eve? Research shows that when we are obedient to God, eat only a plant-based diet, drink water, exercise, get adequate sleep, reduce stress and trust in God, we live a longer, healthier life. It is really that simple. That is what my grandfather did. If there is only one factor we can change, it should be our diet. What we eat contributes more to quality of life than all other lifestyle factors.
Recently, after much prayer, God led us to open a vegan restaurant called "A FULL TASTE" that provides great tasting food. We coined FULL as an acronym.
F is fiber-rich foods (only plants provide fiber that fills you up)
U is unprocessed
L is low in fat and calories
L is low in sugar and salt
The restaurant is located in the same building as our TV station; inside the North DeKalb Mall Food Court. It is not open on Saturdays which has led to countless witnessing opportunities as people always ask, “Why is your restaurant closed on the busiest day of the week?”
We teach people how to cook cheap vegan food which saves them money. We don't use any meat analogs in our restaurant. It is cheaper to do this, so we are the lowest-priced vegan restaurant in Atlanta. We are humbled that God would allow us to be part of prophecy fulfillment. Indeed, "It is the Lord's design that the restoring influence of Health reform shall be part of the last great effort to proclaim the gospel message" (Medical Ministry, p. 259). We all can be a part of this last great effort. Together we can teach people how simple it is to live a healthy life. We welcome your prayers and support in finishing this work.
A Catalyst for Witnessing
by Amithy C. Smith
If you had said to me, “Amithy, you are going to talk about Jesus with the cable guy in your bedroom,” I would have said, “You are crazy.” Yet, our cable problem was the catalyst to my witnessing journey.
When the technician came to fix our cable, he saw our LLBN (Loma Linda Broadcasting Network) box and asked about it. He continued to ask spiritual questions as he checked the cable in each room. I knew it had to be the Holy Spirit who gave me scriptures to answer his questions. “The Holy Spirit…will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you” (John 14:26). We discussed several topics for over an hour while he held onto one bedpost and I held the other, thinking, “Lord, this is crazy.”
The utilities in our home have proven that nothing lasts forever. Half of them have undergone repairs, but our refrigerator has been our worst problem. Three years ago, I was in Ohio when my husband, Keith, phoned me to listen to the noise coming from the refrigerator. It sounded like a small airplane taking off. Eventually, we called someone to repair it. We assumed it was actually fixed—but nope. Our refrigerator nightmare would become my witnessing adventure.
When I was a teenager, I was very shy. Even as an adult, I still cringe at the thought of witnessing. I still have a desire to witness though, so years ago, I asked God to open doors for me. Now I wish He would close this one, the refrigerator door, that is.
For two years, the technicians passed through our front door to “fix” the refrigerator. They diagnosed, they thawed, and they replaced multiple parts—sometimes the same parts! They requested second opinions, they Googled, and eventually they announced that the refrigerator was fixed.
Every time they said the refrigerator was fixed, I prayed that it would be true. But only days after the supposed fix, the refrigerator would rev up its engine and make the same horrible noise for hours on end.
On April 15, 2019, the tenth technician came to our home. Another technician is scheduled to come in May. Some have come an average of six times already. During all of this, God and I chatted. I would complain that this is not fun anymore, and He would tell me, “But you are doing what I asked you to do.”
On one particular day, I was very close to lashing out at the technician because of my frustration. However, I was reminded that I have to represent God regardless of the circumstances. I kept my outrage to myself. He was a new technician from a new company. When I gave him a Christian Edition CD, he asked, “Are you Seventh-day Adventist?” I said I was. He said, “Christian Edition came to our church.” He was also a Seventh-day Adventist and knew people I knew. I am glad I kept my emotions under control. “Be angry and sin not” (Ephesians 4:26).
I know God is using my broken down appliances as a means to witness. I can’t do anything to thwart His plan. I am at home during the day, so since I don’t have access to people, He has to bring them to me. My house has become a witnessing center for anyone coming to fix anything. I give them Christian Edition CDs. We talk about Jesus, health, death, and relationships and I give them related literature. God is doing whatever it takes to reach people and my refrigerator and other repair needs seem to be the catalyst. Twice I have given CDs to technicians, jokingly saying, “I don’t want to see you again,” and they laugh.
Throughout this experience, my own perspective on sharing Jesus has changed. I have been blessed as I navigate the world of witnessing. Once, when I purposely stayed quiet so a returning technician could stay focused on his work, he asked, “Why aren’t you saying anything? I want to hear your wisdom.”
God is doing whatever it takes to reach people and my refrigerator seems to be cooperating. How can I be angry when God wants to use our situation as a catalyst for witnessing? How can I object to God using any means necessary to make a difference in someone’s life for eternity? I am thankful that I have become a willing vessel.
Rerouted
by Brenda Kis
“W
hat are you doing for your people, Bemnet?” The voice came out of the night and startled Dr. Bemnet Meried. He had been praying for God’s leading now that he was finally in the United States. He thought he was supposed to go to Loma Linda University for further training, but God redirected his ministry plans and indicated that he was to write a tract in his native language for the Eritrean people, something he could not have done while living in his home country.
Born into a faithful, fourth-generation Seventh-day Adventist family, Bemnet’s life suddenly changed when persecution began in Eritrea and the Church went underground in 2002. Bemnet was 17 years old at the time. A short time after the persecution began, he started medical school. The years of medical school and internship were challenging and Bemnet often fasted and prayed for help to avoid breaking the Sabbath and to face professors who were mostly atheists. He realized there was no future for him in Eritrea as long as he was a Seventh-day Adventist doctor and he began fasting and praying in earnest that God would lead him to the United States.
At that time, the borders of Eritrea were closed and even his ID card restricted his travel within the country. He had to be cautious when making contact with the outside world. Many times he cried and prayed in his discouragement and anxiety, and often God sent him encouraging dreams or beautiful heavenly music in the night to calm his fears. In 2009, he applied for a visa to the U.S. and was given an interview date at the embassy in Kenya. So began a series of miraculous escapes and harrowing adventures through risky border crossings, refugee camps, and the desert during long night walks to avoid the scorching sun and greedy kidnappers looking to profit from escapees. The journey cost Dr. Bemnet thousands of dollars, but funds always seemed to show up at just the right time. God oversaw every step that led him, at last, to Sacramento, California. From there, each move took him closer to the ministry God was laying on his heart.
Today, Dr. Bemnet is translating Spirit of Prophecy books and Bible studies as well as writing spiritual books and tracts in the Eritrean language. He is also involved in media evangelism, sharing the Gospel through DVDs, YouTube, Viber contacts, Facebook, and more. Advocates for Southeast Asians and the Persecuted (ASAP Ministries) supports his Eritrean evangelism and humanitarian projects around the world and recently facilitated his visit to the Simple Updates studio in Berrien Springs, Michigan, for a special project funded by ASI. Through an ASI grant, ASAP Ministries is helping Dr. Bemnet and other speakers produce quality sermon DVDs in their heart languages. These sermons can also be put on flash drives and travel far and wide to Eritreans and other least-reached people groups scattered around the world.
If you know of any Eritrean people and would like to connect them with Dr. Bemnet, you can reach him by email at hope1844ministry@gmail.com or by phone at 530-353-5983. May God bring many precious Eritreans into His kingdom!
9705 Patuxent Woods Drive
Columbia, MD 21046 USA
Email: contact@asiministries.org
Phone: +1 (443) 391-7235
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