A Marked Man

By Marvin Hugley

I was one of four pastors assigned to a site for an evangelistic series in Livingstone, Zambia, as part of the “Share Him” program (formerly Global Evangelism). Pastor Adolphus Garnett, director of SCC’s Greater Los Angeles Region, was among those assigned to the site, as well.

After preaching on Sabbath, I learned that my grandfather had passed away. Shaken by the news, I went back to my hotel and had a shouting match with God. Before leaving the U.S., I learned that my grandfather had been hospitalized, so I asked God to spare his life while I was in Africa.

God had not answered my prayer in the way I expected, and I was upset. I audibly questioned Him, asking if He and the forces of evil were real; and are we really in a great controversy? God soon answered those questions.

Though upset, I went to the opening-night meeting and preached the worst sermon I had ever preached. I did not feel like preaching. I preached with very little passion.

While putting away my equipment, I noticed a man on the stage, waiting patiently. When I asked if I could help him, he asked me to pray for him. What he said next, shocked me.

“I came here to kill you. I am the highest-ranking official of a Satanist group. This morning the master (Satan) told me, ‘A powerful man of God is preaching in Maramba market. Go and kill him.’ So I came here tonight to kill you, but as I listened to you preach, I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.”

He continued, “You are a powerful man of God, just as Satan said. I have served him for 13 years and have not seen my family for that amount of time. I know the master will kill me because I did not kill you. Can you please pray that God will allow me to see my family before that happens?”

I was speechless. This man had traveled 2.5 hours from Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia, to kill me. I agreed to pray with him.

We joined the prayer team. When I started praying, the devil threw him to the ground. He began making screeching sounds and squirming. When I said Jesus’ name, he laughed in mockery. This went on for 20-30 minutes, until the demon left him.

God showed me during my stay that He is real, the forces of evil are real, and we are in a great controversy. I am alive to share my experience because God is real.

He protected me from Satan, who wanted to kill me so that I could not preach to the thousands of people who came each night for two weeks to hear the gospel. Satan wanted to prevent the baptism of more than 400 people from my meeting alone. I believe God allowed this experience so that I would never again question the supernatural world. There is power in the name of Jesus; and I’ve experienced that power first hand.

Marvin Hugley is the pastor of the Smyrna church.

Rousing Ghanaians to Hear the Word

By Lawrence Klutse

For my “Share Him” meetings held early in 2006, the site was an unlit, open field in Assin Bereku, Ghana, West Africa. It was not a rainy season, but God miraculously poured down rain three different nights during preaching, which was a blessing for the people, since farming is their industry.

On the last Friday night before the appeal, the rain came. So on Sabbath at 4 a.m. while the villagers were sleeping in their homes, we went to the meeting site. With the large loud speakers mounted high above the field, I preached through the microphone until 5:30 a.m. With this basic equipment, in the quietness of the morning, my voice reached a distance of up to two miles.

At the close of my message, the visitation team followed up immediately on this second baptismal day. They brought about 50 people who wanted to be baptised. These, with another 20 who had been preparing for baptism, met at the site for baptism after the 11 o’clock service. Another 30 had been baptized on the previous Sabbath.

Lawrence Klutse, a licensed evangelist from Ghana, is the treasurer of the Smyrna church and is employed as a caregiver in Los Angeles. As a Ghanaian evangelist, he said, “I was used to organizing evangelistic meetings, but doing so in a field was a new experience. Evangelism is my passion.”

Husband and Wife Team Share Christ in Mongolia

By Elaine Price

Words can't express the joy of being able to share God's love with the beautiful people of Mongolia. This being our fourth “Share Him” mission trip, we both were speakers and given different sites where nightly we shared a health talk followed by the evangelistic meeting.

The local congregations provided music. At my site, the Tosgon Ger church, which had a membership of about 30, we also had an informal ladies’ study group during the day. We studied Barbara Folkenberg's book, Falling in Love with Jesus.

My husband's site was the Darkhan Central church, which included a local pastor and about 100 members. The church in Mongolia is a young church, both historically and in membership. I was thrilled to have as my interpreter Davaakhuu Barbaatar, or Daagi, as she had us call her. She was the first baptized Adventist convert through the work of the Jolley family from Adventist Frontier Missions.

Daagi was much more than an interpreter. She became our personal protector and tour guide from when we first met her until she placed us on the plane to leave. At a river service, more than 50 people from the two churches were baptized on our last Sabbath there. I would love to return to Mongolia again; it was an experience that defies description!

Dr. Richard and Elaine Price are members of the Simi Valley church and the parents of four adult children. Richard Price is a retired family practice physician.