Today’s story comes from Ghana. [Locate Ghana on a map.]

Audrey lives on the campus of Valley View University in southern Ghana. There is no elementary school on campus, so Audrey and the other children who live at the university attend school in the community.

Audrey was the only Adventist in her class. But a surprise invitation changed that.

The school held classes on Sabbath, and Audrey explained that she worships God on Sabbath and wouldn’t be in class. The teacher urged Audrey to attend the classes, saying it would help her do well on her exams. But Audrey explained that the Sabbath is God’s idea, and she wants to obey God. Even some of Audrey’s classmates teased her when she didn’t attend classes on Sabbath.

Surprise Invitation

Audrey’s religion teacher knew that she was Adventist, so he wasn’t surprised that she never attended classes on Saturday. But he was surprised that she scored well on all her tests. One day he asked her how she knew so much about the Bible. Audrey answered that she studied the same Bible stories in Sabbath School.

One day Audrey’s teacher was talking about a Bible test that several children had not done well on. Then he said, “If you want to do better in religion class, perhaps you should attend Audrey’s church. She knows the Bible very well.” Audrey was surprised and pleased. Some of her classmates asked her whether they could attend her church.

Audrey lived too far away to invite her friends to her church. Then she remembered an Adventist church close to the school. She invited her friends to attend that church, and several of them did.

The church was holding evangelistic meetings, and some of Audrey’s friends went to the meetings. Several of them were baptized.

One boy’s mother didn’t want him to take the bus to church, so she took him to church. She stayed for the worship service, and the sermons touched her heart. This boy and his mother still attend the Adventist church.

Cancelled Classes

The teacher noticed that the children who were attending the Adventist church were doing much better in religion class than those who didn’t attend. So he canceled Saturday classes so all the children who wanted to could attend the Adventist church. Audrey prays that one day her teacher will come to church, too.

God turned a difficult situation into a big blessing for Audrey and her classmates. Now everyone in her class knows about what the Adventist church teaches, and several of her friends are members.

Part of our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering this quarter will go to help build a new church on the campus of Valley View University so that more people who live on the school campus and in the community around the school can come and learn that God loves them.