Week of Prayer speaker challenges church workers in the new year

A favorite tradition of the workers of the southern Asia-Pacific regional headquarters (SSD) is to start a new year with a week of prayer.

On January 2, Pastor Robert Costa introduced the week of prayer with the theme of "Christ (as) my Lord" to over 80 employees at SSD. Subsequent meetings focused on Christ's lordship in life, failures, body, thoughts, possessions, impossibilities, forgiveness, love, and the future. Throughout the week Costa emphasized Revival and Reformation as the Adventist church's theme and challenge for the members. With two sessions each day starting with a morning devotional and a mid-day worship, SSD workers gained inspiration from the many stories Costa told from his wide experience in evangelism and from his travels.

The Friday morning devotional featured one story which captivated the group. Costa shared details about the Adventist connection to the 33 Chilean miners buried for 69 days underground near Copiapo, Chile  beginning on August 5, 2010. The story became worldwide news and attracted numerous reporters and rescue operations. At the conclusion of his story, Costa showed a small Bible the size of a man's palm. It was among the many Bibles given by Pastor Carlos Parra Diaz, an Adventist minister who happened to be at the site. Diaz collected the small Bibles which were sent through a tunnel to reach the miners 700 meters underground. Diaz was the unofficial chaplain of Camp Hope and worked untiringly to encourage the miners' families. At the conclusion of the story, Costa unveiled to the awe-struck audience one of the two Chilean flags signed by the 33 miners and given to Diaz.

The Friday evening communion service with the employees and their families was a highlight of the week and brought a renewed sense of connectedness to the group. Sabbath featured a Sabbath School program by the children of SSD employees and a memorable church service followed by fellowship and a delicious lunch.

Pastor Robert Costa has served as a pastor since 1980 in South America and North America. A native of Uruguay, he received his higher education in Argentina and the United States. He is the Speaker-Director of the telecast It Is Written in Spanish which is broadcast via satellite, cable and local channels in more than 11,000 stations and reaches 138 countries. With his passion to share the good news of God's Word, he has had the privilege of conducting 185 evangelistic series in the last ten years in the three Americas: Europe, Africa, and Asia. He and his wife Nancy reside in Maryland where they both serve God, she as an Associate Trust Service officer for It Is Written Television in the North American Division, and he as a Ministerial Associate of the General Conference responsible for coordinating the world evangelism for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. [AND]