This humble “nut” is more of a hero than you might expectguidemagazine.org/pdfs/Guide-8-8-20.pdf · 8/8/2020 · This humble “nut” is more of a hero than you might expect

This humble “nut” is more of a hero than you might expect

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BATTLE OF THE VOICESJORDAN WAS

JEALOUS OF THE NEW GIRL

THE CASKETIN CHURCH

NOBODY KNEW WHO WAS INSIDE

THE GNARLY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN

To order, call 1.800.447.7377Guide phone: 208.465.2500

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AUGUST 8, 2020 • VOLUME 68 • NUMBER 32

Guide® (ISSN 0017-5226) is a Christian story magazine primarily for readers ages 10-14. It is provided by Seventh-day Adventists and is published weekly by Pacific Press® Publishing Association, 1350 N. Kings Road, Nampa, ID 83687-3193. Periodicals postage paid at Nampa, Idaho. Copyright © 2020 by Pacific Press® Publishing Association. Printed in U.S.A. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Order through your church’s Sabbath School secretary, or call toll-free 1.800.447.7377. Yearly subscription: $61.58. ADDRESS CHANGES: Supply old and new addresses eight weeks in advance to P.O. Box 5353, Nampa, ID 83653-5353. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Guide Circulation, P.O. Box 5353, Nampa, ID 83653-5353. Unless otherwise noted, Bible texts in this issue are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Texts credited to NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Unless otherwise noted, all prominent photos © 2020 Thinkstock.com.

E D I TO R Lori Futcher

M A N AG I N G E D I TO R Laura Sámano

D E S I G N E R Brandon Reese

CO PY E D I TO R Rhonda ChristianoC L E R I CA L S U P P O RT

Gricelda BlancoS U B SC R I B E R S E RV I C E S

Rebecca HildeW E B M A ST E R

Kim Peckham

Lift Ride to Death?

I t was our first time skiing the moun-

tain. As our chairlift slowly traveled

along the cables, Ginny and I looked

down to see skiers gracefully navigating

the bumps and dips, soaring into the air,

and landing with style.

“Did we get on the wrong lift?” My

voice trembled as I imagined my body

bouncing down the mountain like a load

of laundry on tumble dry.

We arrived at the top of the mountain,

where we were sure doom awaited us, yet

we were greeted instead by a large pole

with arrows of various colors pointing in

different directions. Some of those ar-

rows were green—the symbol for an easy

ski run.

Turns out we never were in any real

danger. There were many ski trails that

led off the mountain, but all we had fo-

cused on was the death trap below us.

How often do we see only one possible

outcome, when in reality God is ready to

show us another way, if we’ll trust Him?

2 | GUIDE | guidemagazine.org

Lori Futcher, Editor

3August 8, 2020 | GUIDE |

How do you feel about peanuts? Some folks

love them. Some are deathly allergic to

them. While peanut butter is super-

popular in America, in Europe people think it’s

strange.

Also, have you noticed that peanuts have a

dishonest name? They’re not really nuts after all.

They’re closer to beans, lentils, or peas. In fact, they

grow under the ground, which is a bit sketchy, don’t you think?

Furthermore, they are a cut-rate nut. They are cheap compared to fancy almonds or

walnuts.

But don’t look down on the humble peanut; it brings nutrition to millions of people.

Special foods made out of peanuts fight malnutrition for children in countries

struck by famine. And peanut flour is used in recipes for kids with gluten

intolerance.

The Bible says not to judge the people

around us (see Matthew 7:1). We shouldn’t

look down on anyone. Just as there’s good

in the peanut, there’s good in everyone you

meet—even those who seem a little nuts.

By Kim Peckham

In 1920 inventor George Washington Carver presented 145 products that could be made with peanuts.

The average American eats about 3,000 peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches during their lifetime.

John Harvey Kellogg helped make peanut butter popular in America by intro-ducing it as a nutritious food that could easily be eaten by people without teeth.


New Testament Trail Mix

By Melissa Yeagle

Trail mix is generally a mixture of different dried fruits and other snacks to make one sweet-and-salty snack. The New Testament is a mixture of books that together help us know God and Jesus better. Below is a recipe for a yummy trail mix. Each ingredient has to do with something from the New Testament. Can you guess what they are? If not, check the answers on page 27.

1. This modern-day snack might make you think of the two items the little boy had in his lunch in John 6:9.

To make the trail mix, simply add a cup of each ingredient to a gallon-size ziplock bag. Close and shake the bag, mixing all your ingredients together. Then it’s time to enjoy.

5. This snack item was featured in this week’s Kick-Start column (p. 3).

2. For the trail mix, we need gummy versions of what Galatians 6:2 tells us to do with one another’s burdens.

3. If you put together two of these, it can look like what Jesus died on for our sins (see 1 Corinthians 1:18).

4. These are a dried form of what Jesus said in Luke 6:44 that you don’t gather from bramble bushes.

THESE TRUE STORIES FROM GUIDEMAGAZINE ARE AWESOME!And now, many of the best ones have been gathered into collections. Love animal stories? Rescue stories? Mysteries? Prayer stories? Mission stories? There’s something here for everyone!SE

RIES

Mischief Stories Hope Stories Discovery Stories Friendship Stories Faith Stories Hero Stories Rescue Stories Mystery Stories Angel Stories Escape From Crime Stories Christmas Stories Change of Heart Stories Miracle Stories Funny Stories Sabbath Stories Prayer Stories Narrow Escape Stories Animal Stories Grace Stories Mission Stories

©2019 Pacific Press® Publishing AssociationPlease contact your ABC for pricing in Canada191577

For eBooks, go toAdventist-eBooks.com!Adventist-eBooks.com!


Battle of theVoicesJordan was used to the spotlight.


By Eleni Garcia 0 Illustrated By Anna Bron

J ordan had been singing since she was very young. It was probably the only thing she was really good at. Since she had first started singing at church,

she had sung for special music every single Sabbath. This Sabbath was no different. She had chosen a song that she really liked, but she was having a hard time with part of it. She practiced that section of the song until she was satisfied with it, and was excited to show off her hard work.

“For the honor and glory of God,” she spoke into the microphone as a beautiful piano arrangement began to play. Jordan started to sing. Her soft voice swelled with the melody of the song. As the most difficult

part of the song approached, she hit the high note just as she had practiced. She smiled as she walked off the stage and sat down with her mom.

“ You sang beautifully, sweet-heart.” Her mom leaned over and gave Jordan a one-arm hug. “I am so proud of you.

“Thanks, Mom.” Jordan was proud of herself.

After church most of the mem-bers told Jordan how beautiful her voice was and how it was nice to see a young person using her talents to praise God. She felt good knowing that other people thought her voice was beautiful.

“ You have a very good singing voice,” said a stout girl who was around the same age as Jordan.

“Thanks,” Jordan replied. “Hey, you’re that new girl who moved here a few weeks ago, right?”

“ Yeah, that’s me. My name is Brenda.”

“I’m Jordan. It’s nice to meet you, Brenda. Are you staying for the potluck?”

“I think so.”“So am I!” exclaimed Jordan.

“ You could sit with me, if you want.”

“Thanks. That’d be great,” Brenda replied.

A fter lunch Jordan and Brenda joined the other young people hanging

out in the youth room. Someone

was playing the piano, while others played guitar or skimmed through the quarterly. Jordan gravitated toward the piano, with Brenda following behind.

“Do you play?” Brenda asked.“I took lessons when I was

younger, but they didn’t stick,” replied Jordan. “ What about you?”

“A little, but I mostly play the guitar,” said Brenda.

“Play something for us!” Jordan grabbed a guitar that no one was using, and handed it to Brenda. As Brenda played, her haunting voice mingled with the soulful tone that came from the guitar. When she had finished her song, everyone in the room was looking at her.

“ Wow, you can really sing,” said the piano player. “She should join us tonight for praise team. Shouldn’t she, Jordan?”

“I guess,” Jordan replied hesi-tantly. “But she doesn’t know the songs, and it’s really short notice.”

“ We have all afternoon to prac-tice,” he replied. “She has plenty of time to learn the songs.”

The afternoon passed quickly as they practiced the two songs they would sing that evening. The more Brenda sang, the angrier Jordan felt. Before practice was over, the other musicians asked Brenda to sing a solo during one of the songs. Jordan sulked off to one of the couches.


“Hey, Jordan.” Brenda sat down next to her. “Are you OK?”

“ Yeah, I’m fine,” snapped Jordan.

“OK,” said Brenda, getting up from the couch. “If I did anything wrong, I’m sorry. I hope you’ll still be my friend. Come sing with us.”

“I don’t feel like singing any-more.” Jordan sank deeper into the couch while crossing her arms.

D uring the evening service Brenda sat with the other youth while Jordan sat

with her mom. Brenda’s not that great of a singer,

Jordan thought, not understand-ing why the new girl had been asked to sing a solo. Her voice was very flat. I’ve been singing every Sabbath, and just because she can sing and play the guitar, she’s some-thing special? It was finally time for the praise team to sing their songs. After Brenda had finished singing with the praise team, she sat down with Jordan and her mom.

A church member who sat behind them leaned forward and gave Brenda a pat on her shoul-der. “God has blessed you with an amazing voice!” she said.

“Thank you,” whispered Brenda.

Jordan’s mom also reached over to congratulate Brenda. Giving Brenda’s hand a squeeze, she said, “ You have a beautiful voice.”

Jordan couldn’t believe her mom thought Brenda had a beau-tiful voice. Maybe she thought Brenda’s voice was better than hers! After the evening program, everyone told Brenda what a great singer she was.

Seeing Brenda’s parents nearby, Jordan and her mom walked over to introduce themselves.

“Brenda has a beautiful voice,” said Jordan’s mom before inviting the new family over for lunch the following week.

O n their way home, Jordan’s mom noticed that Jordan had been

very quiet in the back seat. Once they arrived at their house, Mom parked the car and unbuckled her seat belt as she asked, “Honey, what’s the matter?”

“Can you tell Brenda and her family not to come for lunch next Saturday?” Jordan asked.

Jordan couldn’t believe her mom

thought Brenda had a beautiful voice.


Continued on p. 27


T hree wheelchair athletes took their positions at the starting line: two in racing wheelchairs, long and streamlined, appear-ing to consist only of wheels and a seat (they reminded me of

dragster race cars) —and Allison.Allison sat there looking more like a cheerleader than an athlete.

Her chair was an ordinary, tubular steel-framed, leather-seat wheel-chair, the kind of sturdy wheelchair we’re used to seeing in a hospital

The cheering crowd didn’t know that the exhausted racer had another lap to go.

By Don Magiin


emergency room. Two timekeepers were assigned to each competitor: one to keep

time, and the other to count the laps. I was asked to count the laps for Allison. The race would be four laps.

This event was the only one in progress at the time, and all the spec-tators in the grandstands were loudly following the racers’ positions. As the race began, the two speedster wheelchairs were literally wheel-to-wheel.

First one would take a small lead, and then the other. The crowd seemed to be evenly divided; half would cheer as one took the lead, then their applause would dim and be replaced by a cheer from the rest as the lead changed. There was a tremendous amount of excite-ment, so much so that even I couldn’t help noticing, although I still


had the job of keeping track of Allison’s laps.Allison had moved to the very outside edge of the track so she

wouldn’t be in the way of the faster racers. She still wore the same cheerleader-like smile, although it was obviously harder to maintain. I noticed that not very many people seemed to be following her prog-ress. I also noticed that she didn’t seem to care. She held her smile, although I could tell she was wheeling as hard as she could.

Down the straightaway toward the finish line came the two speed-sters—first one leading by a hair, then the other. The crowd made it a very exciting finish, but to this day I don’t know which one of those two beat the other.

As the pitch of the cheers for the two others approached its climax, I looked back at Allison. She was a full half-track away, and only the woman timing her and I seemed to be looking at her.

Allison was moving rather slowly, or so it seemed after seeing the other two, who had just finished. But she was moving steadily. She was tired, but she tried to keep her pace constant. Her smile was still evident, but was being masked by distinct tiredness.

She was a quarter of the track away from the finish line when the crowd, which had finished celebrating for the others, focused on her and began a rising crescendo of cheers just as she came around the bend toward the straight stretch of track. The entire roomful of people was preparing to cheer for that one young woman as she crossed the line.

When she did finally cross the line, she didn’t stop. At first, all of the people watching thought she would just slow down gradually, but she didn’t slow a bit. Her timer and I exchanged knowing glances; she hadn’t finished four laps yet. She was more than a lap behind the previous finishers. Once the people in the stands saw that she was on her way to another lap, they started an encouraging cheer—not a rousing shout, but a lower, more deliberate sound, almost in unison with her rhythmic pushes on the chair’s wheels.

Her smile was now almost gone, as was the paper-doll-like frailty of a pretty young girl. When she was halfway around this lap, the determination that had always been in her heart began to manifest itself in her face. The two who had left her in their dust wheeled up beside her, one on each side, to lend their support. Allison looked neither left nor right, only at the track ahead of her, although she acknowledged the others with a nod of her head.

As she approached the finish line again, the two dropped off, so

Allison could savor the by-now delirious cheers of everyone in the building. All attention was on her, and everyone was sure she had now completed her tiring race. But there were three of us who knew otherwise. Allison and the two timekeepers. We knew that Allison had been lapped not just once—but twice—by her competitors. She had one more lap to go.

Would the tired girl stop and accept the cheers of the crowd that was ignorant to her actual progress?

With hundreds of people cheering, Allison could have coasted across that line, lifted her weary arms in a salute, and accepted con-gratulations from all.

She was moving very slowly as she crossed that line, but she kept moving. The puzzled crowd grew silent. Her hands seemed to barely be able to push the wheels, but they did. Her smile was gone, but her eyes blazed with determination. Except for her eyes, every part of her body looked exhausted. Still she wheeled around the track, this time to almost dead silence. About halfway around the lap, the track seemed to fill with people—other athletes in wheelchairs, on crutches, pushing walk-ers. There wasn’t the wild cheering of excitement, but the quiet surge of de-termination and admira-tion and love.

Allison’s smile reap-peared after she crossed the finish line—the real finish line—and I saw her eyes look heavenward.

Despite her noticeable fatigue, within a very short time she looked again like a typical teenager. Even her sparkling eyes gave no indication that she was courageous honesty per-sonified.


Allison’s smile reappeared as she

crossed the finish line.

By the time the hearse arrived, boys and girls, adults and the elderly, had

occupied every pew in the church until there was no room left to be seated. Even the balcony of the Mexican church was packed, and people stood in the hallways. There were lots of black suits and white dresses, and many people were wearing sunglasses; maybe they had been sobbing and were covering up their swollen eyes. But, believe it or not, except for a handful of people in the crowded church, nobody knew who had died.


The Casket in Church

The members were

invited to a mystery funeral.

By Bernardo Sámano

At the end of his sermon that morning, Pastor Ruiz* had simply announced there was going to be a funeral service later in the af-ternoon, and he had encouraged everybody to attend. After making announcements and offering the closing prayer, Pastor Ruiz had mysteriously disappeared.

“ Who died?” everyone asked.“Maybe Brother Juan or what’s

her name . . . Sister Mary?” A lot of hypotheses arose.

“Maybe Mrs. Rodríguez. She has been struggling with cancer for so long,” said someone.

“No,” somebody else chimed in. “I am sure that Mr. López died. He’s not been attending church for many months.”

“Let’s ask Pastor Ruiz,” some-body else suggested.

However, the pastor was no-where to be found.

That afternoon lots of sick members, shut-ins, non-attending members, and

backsliders received surprise visits from church members who were trying to figure out who had died.

What a day it was! Many church members’ confused faces now wore smiles as they were happy to see people they hadn’t seen in a long time.

Visits to those who were sick had to be cut short because everybody wanted to attend the

mysterious funeral. Soon doz-ens of people headed toward the church, curious to find out who had died.

The building was so full that it was as if the church was holding Sabbath morning camp meeting. Nobody wanted to miss the op-portunity of supporting a friend in a time of loss. Every choir member wore their black gown, and the choir director had them ready and warmed up before 3:00 p.m. This time even the talkative teenagers were quiet.

The deacons made sure all the lights and fans were in working condition. For the first time in many months, all of them were wearing their uniforms and badg-es indicating their office. With solemn gestures the deacons ush-ered everybody, silently making sure every space was filled.

Filled with floral arrangements, the platform looked as if the Garden of Eden had been trans-planted to the church. The fancy ribbons on the flowers indicated a variety of condolence messages from neighboring churches. On the floor, right below the pulpit, a bright bronze casket carriage awaited the arrival of the dead body. Around it, like soldiers on guard, four tall lamps stood, light-ing everything around them. The deacons organized themselves as pallbearers, for they knew not who was going to take the casket


out of the hearse into the church.The pianist’s crescendos and

diminuendos had never been played with such spiritual depth in the history of piano playing. The piano’s black and white keys’ melodies led every member to reflect on how fragile human lives are.

“Mmm mmm mmm mmm,” at-tendees hummed the melodies.

Finally, right on time, the hearse arrived. The deacons did a wonderful job! Eight deacons lowered the casket and walked with military precision into the church. As soon as the casket appeared in the lobby, the music director started to lead such songs as “Amazing Grace,” “The Old Rugged Cross,” and “Abide With Me.” Many tears rolled out of the eyes of those who were present. It was an unprecedented moving experience.

“Mommy, why are you crying?” a 10-year-old asked, tears welling up in her own eyes.

“Someone died, honey.”“ Who?”“I don’t know.” Mother hugged

her daughter and dried her tears.The very few who knew the de-

tails regarding the funeral service were scattered among the congre-gation, quiet, waiting. When the music stopped, Pastor Ruiz and some of the elders walked up to the platform.

“On behalf of the family of our brother who now rests in the Lord, we want to thank you very much for your presence and sup-port,” said one of the elders.

The congregation sang another hymn, an elder offered the open-ing prayer, and Pastor Ruiz stood and invited the congregation to stand and line up to offer their respects and see the dead church member for the last time.

The ones who knew who it was encouraged those around them to stand and go. Pastor Ruiz stood at the front of the line and opened the upper part of the casket so those coming up to the casket would be able to see the face of the deceased. One after another, everyone walked with heavy hearts, some dragging their feet. But most of them, curious, lined up single file and started to march toward the open casket.

When the church members peeked inside, some gasped, oth-ers shed tears, and younger ones, including 13-year-old Carlos and 10-year-old Juanita, covered

“Someone died, honey.”

Find the emoji that shows how people felt when they showed up at the church for the funeral. It’s hiding some-where in this magazine.

?


their mouths to prevent giggles from escaping or to mask their smiles. Others were surprised and upset as they saw their own face reflected in a mirror. There was a sign below the mirror that said, “ You are the dead one.”

When the viewing ended, Pas-tor Ruiz got up to speak. “Please be seated.”

There was a lot of talking.“May I have your attention,

please?” Pastor Ruiz requested gently. Finally, when everybody was quiet, Pastor Ruiz continued. “Open your Bibles to Revelation 3:1.” He paused to give the con-gregation time to find the verse. “ ‘I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.’ ”

During the months prior to the funeral, the church had been split in half.

There had been a lack of unity, es-pecially among the teenagers and the youth. All the youth programs were well organized, but when group A had prepared a program, the members of group B had not attended. And when group B had been in charge, group A had not attended. Young adults and adults were also guilty of this.

“ We cannot get to heaven this way,” Pastor Ruiz said. “How can we fulfill Jesus’ prayer when He said, ‘that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe

that You sent Me’ [John 17:21]? We will not make it, not this way. We must work shoulder to shoulder, with the power of the Holy Spirit, and share the good news with family members, our neighbors, classmates, fellow workers, friends, and the world.

“ We need to set our differ-ences aside, forgive each other, affirm each other, support each other, and follow Jesus’ march-ing orders to ‘go therefore and make disciples’ [Matthew 28:19]. If we aren’t united, if we don’t accept what the Spirit says to the churches, we all will perish. ‘Hold fast and repent’ [Revelation 3:3],” Pastor Ruiz concluded.

That was a turnaround mo-ment. The church accepted the invitation. The congregation cried, but this time they were tears of joy. They hugged, and lots of people prayed with and for one another.

Soon the youth of the local church became leaders and orga-nized a statewide youth federa-tion, and the elders organized the church into evangelistic groups.As a result the church was soon divided, but this time it was not because of differences among them, but because they had grown so much that they had to start another church a couple of miles away.

*Names have been changed.


DiscoveryMountain.com/Guide

Visit DiscoveryMountain.com/Guide for creative ways to share Discovery Mountain—and your faith—with others.

Fun Audio Adventures That Shine a Light on the Bible!

In the Spotlight!In the

Spotlight!

April Ad.indd 2April Ad.indd 2 4/14/20 1:36 PM4/14/20 1:36 PM

Grant swished across the smooth snow and glided to a stop at the bottom of

the ski run. “Theron,” he called out to his friend, “let’s try the other side of the mountain!”

Theron looked up at the moun-tain peak looming in front of them. The sky was getting darker, but he was ready for the adven-ture. “OK,” he agreed, and skied with Grant toward the lift.

“ You guys ever been up there before?” the ski lift operator asked as he lowered the lift bar for Grant and Theron.

“No, first time,” Grant an-

swered as he sat down. “It’s pretty gnarly,” the ski lift

operator said. “Have fun!” Grant and Theron locked eyes.

“Gnarly?” Grant whispered. “ What does he mean?”

“I don’t know,” Theron said, his eyes matching Grant’s worry.

The friends looked down at the terrain below them. The ski runs were steep, and they could see boulders and trees everywhere. This side of the mountain looked nothing like where they had started.

Theron looked up at his friend. “ We need to pray!” he said. Grant

THE GNARLY

SIDE OF THE MOUNTAINThe ski slopes would have been bad enough on a clear day, but with a storm rolling in,

Grant and Theron were in real trouble.

By Jean Boonstra 0 Illustrated By Marcus Mashburn


nodded in agreement.“Dear Jesus,” Theron prayed,

keeping his eyes open just enough to see the rocky terrain below their skis. “Please get us off this mountain safely.”

“Amen,” they said together. The wind whipped around

them as the ski lift clicked to a stop at the top of the mountain. The wind blew the snow into the air and turned the air white. The rocks and trees below them were almost invisible in the sea of white snow. Grant and Theron skied off of the lift into the wind and whiteout conditions.

“There’s the ski patrol shack,” Grant said, pointing. “Let’s ask if there’s an easy way to ski down this mountain.”

A concerned-looking woman wearing an official ski patrol jacket greeted them. “ We’re clos-ing all the ski lifts on this side of the mountain,” she said. “ You boys need to ski down and catch a lift back to the other side.”

Grant and Theron remembered the rocky terrain they’d seen on their way up. “Is there an easy ski run to get us down the moun-tain?” Grant asked.

“There’s a map on the other side of the shack,” she answered, and opened the door to step back inside the warmth of the ski shack. “ You’d better hurry.”

Grant and Theron skied over to the map. “Grant,” Theron said,

brushing the snow off of the map. “This isn’t good.”

Grant gulped as he read the map. Every ski run was labeled double black or expert double black. “Oh, no! These runs are all for expert skiers. What’ll we do?”

Grant and Theron felt the panic begin to rise in their throats when they heard a noise. Turning, they saw someone in an official ski patrol jacket with a name badge reading “Ben.” He held a snow-board under one arm and smiled at them.

“Excuse me,” Grant asked Ben. “ We’re not expert skiers. Would you be able to help us down the mountain?”

Grant and Theron held their breath. Would he help them, or would they be stuck?

“Of course,” Ben said. “Follow me.”

“Oh, thank you,” Grant said, relief pouring out of him.

“Stay close,” Ben added. “These whiteout conditions mean that you can’t see very far ahead.”

Grant followed Ben, and Theron followed behind Grant. Keeping his eyes fixed on Ben’s ski patrol

“Oh, no! These runs are all for expert skiers.

What’ll we do?”


jacket, Grant navigated the turns and slid across the snow and around the trees and boulders.

“Grant,” Theron called out, “I’m stuck in a snowdrift!” Grant stopped to wait for Theron.

“I’ll wait for you,” the friends heard Ben call out from up ahead.

Theron wriggled his skis out of the snowdrift, and he and Grant started down the steep ski run to catch up with Ben.

“All right, skiers,” Ben said cheerfully, “follow me.”

“ Whoa!” Grant called out as he slid around a turn. Falling into a snowdrift, he twisted his ankle. “ You guys, wait up!” he called.

Ben held his snowboard under one arm, and he and Theron waited while Grant brushed the snow off and tested his ankle. It hurt a little, but he could keep skiing. “I’m coming,” he called, pushing off on his ski poles and catching back up.

Slowly Grant and Theron skied down the expert ski run, and Ben waited for them at every turn. After what felt like hours, they finally reached the bottom of the mountain.

“ You guys did it,” Ben praised enthusiastically.

“ We couldn’t have done it with-out you,” Grant acknowledged, his relief spilling out with his words.

“Thank you, Ben,” Theron added. “ You got us off of this

mountain safely!” Ben smiled. “ You’re welcome!”

he responded. “Now hurry and catch the lift up to the other side of the mountain before it’s closed.”

Grant and Theron watched Ben hop on his snowboard and disap-pear into the whiteout. Quickly they skied over to the lift.

“Hurry,” the lift operator said. “I was about to close. You’re the last two I’m letting on.”

Grant and Theron experienced this faith exercise on a skip trip with Campion Academy their senior year. Grant is a voice actor for Discovery Mountain,

where he plays Judah. Listen to this story on the audio program here:

DiscoveryMountain.com/skipatrol.

Phot

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Vel

bis

Continued on p. 27

A lex Haley spent more than a decade tracing his roots on three continents. He patched together bits and pieces of his family history as passed

down through the centuries by word of mouth, census records, and family wills.

In time he discovered that in the year 1767 his ancestor had been kidnapped on the Gambia River in Africa, transported on a British slave ship to Annapolis, Maryland, and in 1768 sold to John Waller, of Richmond, Virginia. . . .

Our identity has its roots in the origin of life. Revelation reveals an amazing heavenly scene. Heavenly beings are praising God in the throne room of the universe. Their song of praise echoes throughout the heavens: “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and

by Your will they exist and were created” (Revelation 4:11).

We are not some genetic accident. We are not some freak of nature. We are children of God, fashioned by a loving Creator. “For in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

Life is a gift from God. Every breath, every heartbeat, every second of life flows from the heart of a gracious Father. We did not create ourselves. We did not will ourselves into existence. We exist by the will of God, who has a plan for our lives.

Today we can praise Him for the gift of life. We can praise Him as our loving Creator and kind Father. We are not homeless orphans or shackled slaves. We are children of God, and no one in this world can take that away from us.—Mark Finley, On Solid Ground, p. 316.

Discovering Our Roots

REAL-TIME FAITH STORY


Memory Text: “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth” (Psalm 33:6).

Our Beliefs, no. 6, Creation: “God has revealed in Scripture the authentic and historical account of His creative activity. He created the universe, and in a recent six-day creation the Lord made ‘the heavens

and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them’ and rested on the seventh day. . . . When the world was finished it was ‘very good,’ declaring the glory of God.”

Read Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 48.

SABBATH Read this week’s Real-Time Faith story above.

realtimefaith.netAugust 15, 2020

Lesson study for August 8-14

E A R L I T E E N S A B B A T H S C H O O L L E S S O N

LESSON 7: The Way the World Began

Real-Time Faith® is prepared by the Sabbath School Department of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists®..


From time to time people will sit down and debate in a formal setting. To begin the debate, each opponent has a long opening argument in which they outline their position and give support to their argument. Suppose that you were asked to defend the position on the Bible’s teaching about the literal six-day

Creation at a debate in your school. You want to show both the logical necessity of Creation and the beauty of God’s love. What ideas would you use to promote God’s truth regarding Creation? How would you combine God’s love with the facts described in the Bible account of Creation.

The idea that we have a Creator who loves us should impact every area of our lives. Moreover, God sent His Son to die for us and for the whole world. We look around us and see so much beauty. Even in a sinful world we are surrounded by God’s majesty and splendor. When we believe in Creation instead of evolution, we can be sure that we have a purpose on this earth; we are all part of God’s plan. We can think of God as someone who loved us enough to create us.

Genesis 1, 2 says everything started with God, and in Revelation (see Revelation 14:7) it will end with God. In Psalms we are challenged to wor-

ship God as our Creator. In the Ten Commandments we have a reminder to worship our Creator. In John 1:1-3, 14 the Creator is connected to the Savior who came to earth to live and die for us. For centuries believers have never questioned the origin of the earth or the belief in God—until lately. Why? Because many people today do not want to follow and obey God. So they put their hands over their ears and cover their eyes to hide from God’s truth. But we are not God, and it is He who knows the begin-ning from the end and what is best for each of us. Read Hebrews 11:3.

God is the Creator of the universe, of our world, and of humanity. Every other suggestion of how the world began is man’s way of denying and rejecting God. We must be careful to honor and worship God as our Creator. Beginning in Genesis, through the Scriptures, to Revelation, He calls us to be faithful to Him.

How do you recognize, honor, and worship God, our Creator?_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Separate the following two verses and write them on the lines below. Both are from the New King James Version. and in Him all things consist/”For thus says the Lord/And He is before all things/who created the heavens/Colossians/through Him and for Him/who is God/who formed the earth and made it/1:16, 17/All things were created/who has established it/whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers/Isaiah/visible and invisible/who did not create it in vain/that are in heaven and that are on earth/who formed it to be inhabited/45:18/For by Him all things were created/I am the Lord, and there is no other

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SUNDAY

TUESDAY

MONDAY

Read Genesis 2:4.

Read Psalm 148:5.

Read Genesis 1 and 2; Revelation 14:7.

26 | GUIDE | guidemagazine.org26

A. 1 John 2:20-22B. Genesis 2:4C. Titus 1:1-3D. Genesis 5:2E. Colossians 1:15-17F. Psalm 148:5G. Romans 1:25H. Isaiah 42:5, 6

_____ “This is the account of the heavens and the earth”_____ “He created them male and female”_____ “Let them praise the name of the Lord”_____ “This is what God the Lord says”_____ “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie”_____ “The Son is the image of the invisible God”_____ “Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ”_____ “But you have an anointing from the Holy One”

God couldn’t conceive of living in a world without you, and so He created you. You are the crowning work of God’s creation. The Creation story tells us not only how the world began, but also that God loved us enough to create a whole world for us, and to make us in His image. The Bible tells us that we are all the children of God, and the Creation story explains that thought in a literal way.

More important than what humans think is the message of God’s love that the Creation story brings. When we corrupted the perfect world God created for us, God had a plan that would save us: His own Son, Jesus, would die so we would not be lost forever. The beauty of the Creation story is found in God’s love for you.

There are many that choose to turn away from God’s Word—they are intent on doing what they want, and do not follow God. They come up with alternatives to what God’s Word says about Creation and His plan for us. See Romans 1:25. God has given us all we need to believe and follow Him, but He also allows us to choose. When we turn away from Him to do our own thing, we will have to suffer the consequences of those choices. God’s love and His law are perfect. See Psalm 19.

Suppose one of your friends comes to you questioning the biblical account of Creation. What can you tell them from your understanding of the Bible account?

Using your Bible, give your supportive reasons you believe in the biblical account of Creation.

Match each verse with a phrase. The verses are taken from the New International Version (available at BibleGateway.com).

Read Isaiah 40:26. Review the memory text.

Read Romans 1:25.

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY


“Battle of the Voices,” from p. 9

“ Why don’t you want them to come? I thought you and Brenda were friends.”

“She’s not my friend!” Jordan blurted out, crossing her arms. “Everyone says she sings really well. It’s not fair! Singing is my talent!”

“Jordan, sweetheart, it’s OK to have the same talent. It doesn’t mean your talent isn’t special.”

Jordan sat quietly thinking about what her mom had said. Maybe she’s right, Jordan thought. Brenda seems to be nice, and she wants to be my friend.

“But what if the pastor never asks me to sing again because Brenda is better?” cried Jordan.

“Do you think you might be feeling some jealousy toward Brenda?” her mom asked.

“No. Well, maybe,” Jordan admitted.

“It is OK to feel jealous sometimes, honey,” Jordan’s mom explained. “Both you and Brenda have very special gifts that God gave you. Don’t you think it’s great that you found a friend who also likes to sing for God?”

“I never thought about it that way,” Jordan admitted. After some thought, she had an idea. “Maybe Brenda and I can sing special music together! She does have an amazing voice.”

“The Gnarly Side of the Mountain,” from p. 23“Sorry it took us so long to ski

down the mountain,” Grant said as he and Theron climbed onto the lift bench.

“ Yeah, we never would’ve made it without Ben’s help,” Theron added.

“Ben?” the ski lift operator asked.

“ Yeah, the ski patrol who helped us,” Grant added. “He’s a snowboarder.”

“Huh,” the ski lift operator said, lowering the bar on the lift bench. “There’s no one who works here named Ben.”

Theron and Grant sat quietly on the ski lift, looking down at the gentle ski runs below them.

The words of the ski lift operator echoed in their minds.

“ You don’t think—?” Grant finally whispered.

“That Ben was an angel?” Theron asked.

“He could’ve been,” Grant said. “I guess we’ll never know. But one thing I do know.”

“ What’s that?” Theron asked. “He was the answer to your

prayer. God used him to get us safely off of the mountain.”

Theron nodded. “He did,” he said, and then added, “Grant, let’s stick to the easy ski runs from now on.”

Grant laughed. “I couldn’t agree more.”

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power points® story

T oday my life abruptly changed once again. Most people take transition slowly

and gradually; not me! Change drops in on me like a blinding flash and without warning. I’ve learned that God is the only constant in my life.

Let me tell you what I mean. Let’s start at the first jolting change. Miles from home and safety, my angry, jealous brothers threw me into an empty, unused cistern.

Originally planning to kill me, they instead sold me to an Ishma-elite caravan on its way to Egypt. I pleaded with them to have mercy, but their sneering faces held out no hope as they handed me over to the

Ishmaelites.In one instant I was no longer

a favored son—I was a slave! I watched the familiar countryside fade from my view. I had to decide how I was going to react to all this. I remembered the stories my father had told me about God—his God. I decided I would claim Him as my God. I would rely completely on God and serve Him to the best of my ability, whatever happened to me. After making that decision, I was able to get a little sleep.

In Egypt I was sold to Potiphar, captain of the guard. Even though I was only 17 then, the Lord blessed me, and for 10 years I served Poti-phar well. Everything prospered,

In Pit, Prison, or PalaceImagine how you would feel if someone took you away from your family with no time to say good-bye and no time to take anything you needed and

wanted for the journey. You believed you would never see them again. How would you feel?


and he treated me like a son rather than a slave. I valued his trust.

But once again my life changed in an instant. Because Potiphar’s wife raised false accusations against me, I went from favored slave to pris-oner in a dungeon. At first I felt hu-miliated to receive the punishment due to criminals, because I was innocent. But then I remembered my father’s stories and how I had promised to serve God no matter what happened. I had chosen integ-rity as a rule of life, and in spite of the challenges I was facing, I knew I could trust the God of my fathers to fulfill His promises in my life.

So even in a dungeon I looked around for others to serve. I began organizing the prison and encour-aging the prisoners. Eventually the guards put me in charge.

I’ll always remember when Pharaoh’s butler and baker were thrown into the prison. They both had dreams and asked me to inter-pret them. Unfortunately, the baker was going to be beheaded, but the butler was going to get his job back. I asked him to remember me when he would return to the palace.

Two years later I was still in prison.

I had my thirtieth birthday and wondered how many more birth-days I would spend there. But one day I saw the sunshine again. I was whisked into the royal salon and given a bath, a shave, a haircut, and new clothes. Then I was taken before Pharaoh.

It seems Pharaoh had had a troubl ing dream. Once again God

was giving me an opportunity to serve someone who needed help understanding what God was try-ing to communicate to him. I told Pharaoh about the years of plenty and the years of famine that were just ahead.

I told him that in order to sur-vive the famine, he should choose a wise man to oversee the collec-tion, storage, and later distribu-tion of one fifth of the food grown during the years of plenty.

After consulting with his advis-ers, Pharaoh chose me to be that man. “You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.” . . . “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt,” he said (Genesis 41:40, 41, NIV). Then he gave me his signet ring, a robe, a chariot, and even a wife—the beautiful Asenath.

In one day I went from favored prisoner to Zaphenath-Paneah, ruler of Egypt next to Pharaoh. I knew I did not deserve such great favor. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was once again at work in my life. This time He was calling me to serve Him at the palace.

God was entrusting me with the responsibility of preparing a nation for a time of crisis. What an honor it was to serve my God in a new field of responsibility!

God had been with me from the pit to the prison to the palace. I determined to continue serving Him faithfully for the rest of my life!

PowerPoints® is prepared by the Sabbath School Department of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists®.

In Pit, Prison, or Palace

.

juniorpowerpoints.org

J U N I O R S A B B A T H S C H O O L L E S S O N

Key References: Genesis 39-41; Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 213-223; The Bible Story (1994), vol. 2, pp. 40-46; 51-60; Our Beliefs,

nos. 11, 21, 17.

God blesses when we serve Him in spite of

Satan’s obstacles.

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is writ-ten: ‘For your sake we

face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaugh-

tered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him

who loved us” (Romans 8:35-37, NIV).

power points®

DO Do this week’s activity at guidemagazine.org.

READ Read Genesis 41:14-16 and this week’s lesson, “In Pit, Prison, or Palace.” Memorize the power text.

LIST List the ways Joseph served other people.

PRAY Ask God to show you ways you can serve.

READ Study Mark 9:33-35.

LIST List the ways God helped solve Joseph’s problems.

THINK How did Joseph’s willingness to serve provide solutions to many of his problems?

REVIEW Review the power text.

PRAY Ask God to bring solutions to your problems.

READ Study Matthew 20:25-28.

LIST List some characteristics of a servant that you think Jesus was talking about.

THINK How can I follow Jesus’ example of self-sacrificial service as I seek to serve someone today?


PRAY Ask God for the patience to be kind and considerate when you serve your brothers and sisters.

READ Study Galatians 6:2 and Romans 15:1.

THINK What does it mean to carry one another’s burdens?

LIST List ways you can help carry the burdens of a family member and someone at school.


PRAY Ask for strength to carry someone’s burden today.

READ Study Genesis 41:37-39.

THINK What impressed Pharaoh most in Joseph’s life?

IMAGINE Imagine that you are a reporter. In your Bible study journal, write an imaginary interview with Joseph.


PRAY Ask God not to allow anything to separate you from Him.

READ Study 1 Peter 4:12, 13.

REMEMBER Keep in mind that God blesses when we serve in spite of Satan’s obstacles.

ACT Act out the story of Joseph with your family members at worship.

PLAN Discuss a way that you as a family can serve those around you, no matter how difficult the circumstances.

SING Make up a verse to “Humble Thyself in the Sight of the Lord” or another familiar song that reflects Joseph’s experience.

REPEAT Repeat the power text aloud by memory. PRAY Thank God that He blesses your service in spite of Satan’s obstacles.

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Lesson 7 August 15, 2020Lesson study for

August 8-14

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THOUGH JOSEPH IS FALSELY IMPRISONED, GOD BLESSES HIM, AND HE IS SOON TRUSTED TO RUN THE PRISON.

ONE DAY IN PRISON JOSEPH MEETS THE BAKER AND CUPBEARER FOR THE PHARAOH, RULER OF EGYPT.

THE KING’S CUPBEARER DESCRIBES HIS DREAM—AND JOSEPH INTERPRETS IT.

THE KING’S BAKER DESCRIBES HIS DREAM.

THREE DAYS PASS. ON HIS BIRTHDAY, PHARAOH PUTS ON A GREAT FEAST.

WHAT JOSEPH PREDICTED COMES TO PASS, BUT THE CUPBEARER FORGETS ABOUT JOSEPH—UNTIL PHARAOH HAS A DREAM THAT WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING.

Why do you look so sad?

We both had dreams, but no one can interpret them.

Don’t interpretations belong to God?

Tell me your dreams.

I saw a vine with three branches,

which grew clusters of grapes.

I squeezed the grapes into Pharaoh's cup

and put the cup in his hand.

Friend, the three branches are three days.

Within three days Pharaoh will restore you

as his cupbearer.When he does,

please remember me, and show me

kindness.

I had three baskets on

my head, full of bread for Pharaoh—

but they were all being eaten

by birds.

Within three days Pharaoh will

have you executed.

The three baskets are three days.

MORE NEXT WEEK!

Lesson 7: August 8-14, 2020Written by Tompaul Wheeler + Illustrated by Mariano Santillan

BIBLESKETCHESA Visual Introduction to theSabbath School Lesson

To read or listen to this week’s Sabbath School lesson, go to juniorpowerpoints.org, or use your Bible study guide.

Skin in the GameA football (often referred to as a “pigskin”) is actually made from cows, not pigs. Wilson Sporting Goods, official supplier to the NFL, manufactures about 700,000 regulation footballs a year, requiring about 35,000 cow hides. —freakonomics.com

Deadly . . . or Delicious?

People used to think tomatoes were poisonous! One reason:

their early classification by botanists was within the nightshade

family—of which many species are highly poisonous. This made

many sixteenth-century Northern Europeans reluctant to try the

delicious produce. —history.com

Speed Reading

It takes about 70 hours and 40 minutes to

read the entire Bible at an average reading

speed. —amazingfacts.org

Master DiggerA mole’s powerful paddlelike claws help it dig surface tun-nels at a rate of up to 18 feet per hour. —blog.epa.gov

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A Holy MessageThe first telegraph ever sent was a Bible verse. On May 24, 1844, inventor Samuel F. B. Morse sent this message from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore: “What hath God wrought!” The verse is Numbers 23:23, KJV. —americaslibrary.gov

I DIG IT!

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