SDALI - Maranatha Camp Meeting 2008

August 22 2008, Mongolia 

On August 4^th, work began on a large-scale evangelism project for the people of Mongolia. With a site selected in a natural environment away from city view, workers from Main SDALI facility in Korea and from Maranatha Church of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, united to provide a quality, fun-filled, Christ-centered program that would never to be forgotten. Over 80 people, over 40 of which were non-believers, participated in a wonderful time of sharing, Christian unity, and fellowship that would help several people choose Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Pastor Park Seung Ho from Korea gave a wonderful, awe-inspiring, and thought provoking message that illustrated how science proves the great power of God's creation while also showing that no other power could have created this universe other than the Christian God. With the assistance of 9 workers from Korea, wonderful nourishment, both physical and spiritual, was provided to each person great and small. This environment, though accompanied with angles of God, also gained the attention of the great enemy, Satan. On the very first day of camp, the wind blew a great tempest and shattered a large window. The debris of glass was tossed over several in attendance. But, God helped each one and not a single person was injured i! n the event.

One very special person, the husband of Davakhuu was also touched. Davakhuu just recently gave birth to a beautiful boy who has been struggling with many difficulties. The slightest sound or irritation seems to put him in tears, and lately he has been to the doctor on a regular basis. Davakhuu's husband noticed something though. Every time that they would bring the child to church, the child would be at peace. He recognized this, and knew that a Higher Power was at hand. They then decided to bring the child to the Camp Meeting after much deliberation. The child was at such peace that the father decided to dedicate his life to Christ for his child's sake. This heart-felt moment was greatly amplified by the other many great experiences, and simply shows how God loves us so dearly and wants to impartHis peace to us.

Even members of Pastor Park's Sports Club here in Mongolia, felt God's presence. Pastor Park had worked with this group for nearly a year, to see little progress out of them. But, on this special occasion, God's Holy Spirit moved upon them, and some of them even dedicated their lives to Christ.

Another special experience came on the last day of Camp Meeting, but the start of it was not as sweet as the end of it. Two ladies, Gerelzul and Altanboshig, who were students of the Language School, were beginning to contemplate baptism on Friday, Sabbath evening. They went to bed, not knowing what was about to happen to them. That night, Ashton, an Australian man who's wife was in the ger with Gerelzul and Altanboshig, noticed someone come to the ladies ger. The night had been disturbed earlier by drunkards partying near the ger, but now it was quite. The person open the door to the ger, and shined a flashlight inside. Ashton, believing it was one of the pastors checking up on the ladies, went back to sleep. The next morning, Gerezul and Altanboshig woke to the hor! ror to find most of their belongings stolen. Cameras, cell phones, local and international passports, money, and other important documents were all gone. The two cried in disbelief and searched to find their things to no avail. Altanboshig had been planning to sell both the camera and phone in her bag to bring up enough money to pay for rent. Now she most certainly knew that she would be on the street with no definite place to live in two days. Satan attacked these two who were near the point of decision for a life with Christ so harshly. Later, knowing that today would be a hard day, Pastor Park Seung Ho gave a touching and emotional testimony of his life that had nearly everyone in tears. It touched everyone's heart in such a  way, that even the two ladies, whom Satan had so viciously attacked, decided to give their lives to Jesus Christ, and valued His! cleansing blood over their lost valuables. Even in uncertainty, these two young ladies, accompanied by 8 others, including the father of the child mentioned earlier and members of the sports club, went to the nearby river to proclaim their faith in Christ Jesus by the ceremony of baptism. Visitors of the river who were not even a part of the camp were drawn to this special celebration.

As an update to Altanboshig, God later provided funds for her rent (the additional 300,000T ? about $250) through donations made from the pastors at the camp meeting, Grove Church of Liberty, KY, USA, and the Campbell family. Altanboshig, her husband, and child were able to stay in their home with the additional funds provided.

But, as nearly all of us know and have experienced, once you have made a decision for Christ, life doesn't get easier. Satan will attack these new members harder now than ever. We draw near to the end of this world's history, and Satan knows his time is short. So, please pray for each of the new members, for Maranatha church, and the SDA Language School of Mongolia as we follow Christ each day.