Follow the Bible
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News
6 May 2009
Mary Kivo, Solomon Star (Solomon Islands):
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Honiara yesterday witnessed the arrival of one of the biggest copies of the bible.
The 18-inch long and 12 inch wide Bible arrived at the Henderson Airport from Vanuatu.
It was welcomed by Adventist Pathfinders and church members at the airport and was taken on a float parade through Honiara.
Pastor Luke Narabe of Fiji brought the Bible and handed it over to the Solomon Islands Mission (SIM).
The bible's worldwide journey is part of a campaign initiated by the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church called "Follow the Bible."
The campaign is to allow Adventists to go back to their bibles and study God's word as the world continues to witness unfolding events.
The journey started in Philippines in October last year.
The bible contains nearly 1500 pages and is bound with a padded leather cover.
Each of its 66 books has been translated into a different language representing that God's message is for all people.
The bible's two-year journey will end in 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia.
It will be presented to President Jan Paulsen at the 59th General Conference of the Adventist church in Atlanta.
Pr Luther Taniveke, Personal Ministry Director of Solomon Islands Mission, said the members of the Adventist Church in the country are happy to promote the study of the word of God.
He said only about 50 per cent of people around the world are reading their bible.
"It is important people are encouraged to study the word of God," he said.
A float parade to Kukum Adventist Church and evening church service was held to encourage members to go back to the bible and study the word of God.
The bible leaves for Gizo and Kukundu School in the Western Province today.
On Friday it will be taken to Adventist schools in Honiara and leaves for Samoa the same day.
The bible is produced by Pacific Press Publishing Association.
27 April 2009
Semi Francis, communication department, Seventh-day Adventist Church in Fiji:
Citizens of Suva, Fiji were caught by surprise this morning when thousands of Seventh-day Adventists marched through the city "Following the Bible".
Led by the Fiji Police Brass band, office workers and shop owners stood in awe as church leaders, pastors, children and church members from around the country marched and sang hymns.
The chief guest was Mr. Solomone Duru, the general secretary of the Bible society of Fiji. He commended the Seventh-day Adventist Church for this wonderful "Follow the Bible" initiative. He added, "the Bible is the only identity for Christians around the world."
Fiji Police Commissioner Commodore Esala Teleni who approved the permit to march, under the new public order act, was also present and spoke highly of the "Follow the Bible" initiative.
One the highlights of the day was the presentations by children sharing lessons from studying the Bible.
Follow the Bible event coordinator Pr. Tiko said, "The support from church members has been tremendous. We are also grateful to the Police Commissioner for approving the public march considering the current situation in the country."
Retired church worker, Wapole Talemaitoga said, "The bible reminds me of our amazing Creator, it gives me peace during this time of uncertainty and it also teaches me how to live according to God's will."
Local media covered the event much to the delight of church members who missed out on this special day for Adventists in Fiji.
The bible will leave Fiji tomorrow morning for Samoa.
25 April 2009
North New Zealand news, Auckland, New Zealand
At the Auckland Prayer Summit hosted by the North Harbour Church, a group of young people ushered in the multi-language Bible in a moving ceremony, accompanied by the powerful song "Ancient Words" by Lynn Deshazo. It was a moment of deep impact, with every heart giving thanks for the Word of God.
Eddie Tupa'i, lead pastor for the Adventist Church in North New Zealand, drew from the Word to challenge all to "eat" the scriptures, taking them deep into life for spiritual nourishment and power. Michael Mardon, from the Bible Society in New Zealand, offered a prayer of adoration and commitment surrounding the Word of God. Jerry and Janet Page, in their Prayer Summit message, drew heavily from the Word and testified about its power.
After the service, many adults, youth and children came forward to lay their hands on the Bible and renew their commitment to the scriptures. In the afternoon, a Fijian young man-Joji Chute-presented the Bible to Michael Jones, who conveyed this precious package to Fiji the next day, for the next stage of its journey in the Trans Pacific region.
23 April 2009
William Arama, pastor, Palmerston North Adventist Church (New Zealand):
On April 21 the Multi-language Bible arrived in Palmerston North, by the hands of Pastor Daniel Herrera. The timing of the Bible's arrival coincided with the lower North Islands cluster meetings held at Palmerston North Church, which gave time for all ministers present to reflect on how the Bible throughout history has changed many lives.
On the evening of April 22, a special service was conducted to celebrate the Bible's arrival. A good crowd of curious adults, youth and children were eager to touch and read from this Bible knowing that it was traveling the world over. But all had to wait as Pastor Errol Singer encouraged each person to renew their love for God's Word, and to make a serious commitment to spend time in reading the Bible.
After Pastor Ed Gallagher gave opportunity for anyone to share what the Bible means to them, and gave people of different ethnic backgrounds an opportunity to read portions of the Bible. Some read in Papua New Guinea, Pidgin English, Swahili, Maori and English. After participants where invited around the Bible and were encouraged to touch it as a prayer of commitment was conducted.
Everyone was challenged to make the word of God a more important part of their lives, to live by God's word, and let it effect every area of their life. It was thoroughly enjoyed by all.
Source: North New Zealand news
19 April 2009
Melanie Sergent, leader, Powerhouse Community Church (New Zealand):
The Follow the Bible program has made a mark on Wellington Christians! We used the Bible's arrival as a time for fellowship prayer and friendship.
Jennifer Abbotsford-Smith, a member from Powerhouse Community Church, collected the Bible from Picton and jumped on the plane with the big book, presenting it to the Wellington church community that afternoon.
The first stop was Wellington Seventh-day Adventist church. Pastor Bob Larson led us into a time of worship and reflection... Many read in their native tongue; Chinese, French, Pidgin, Maori, Indonesian. Our next stop was the Parliament where we prayed for our country.
Later that night the Powerhouse Community Church hosted the Bible in one of the member's homes. Scriptures were shared by all and there was singing. The worship was brought to a close by nine year old Jordayna, leading out in the Lord's Prayer.
All those gathered felt God's love and power through fellowship and the sharing of prayers and food.
Source: North New Zealand news
11 April 2009
Clive Nash, pastor, Lakeside Seventh-day Adventist church (Australia):
"As one of the events in the Follow the Bible program, 15 readers shared Revelation 14:6 from various languages as part of the Easter service.
This verse speaks of the everlasting gospel going to all the world, including specifically every tongue. I chose this passage because of its multi-language significance. In this segment of the church service, I gave a slide show introduction to Follow the Bible, and then I introduced the readers.
Moira Irvine, one of the elders at Lakeside, had thought it would be good to promote the daily reading of the Bible by having a celebratory event at Lakeside Church. Moira contacted each reader and also arranged for the Bible to be brought to our area. I organised the printing of Follow the Bible reading guides for children and adults and these were given out at the end of the service.
The readers included Moira Irvine (English), Lara Kuivisto (Arabic), Daniel Kurzawa (Polish), Sylvio Michel (French), Asela Tawake (Fijian), Carine Kruger (Portugese), Katie Kuivisto (Swedish), and Jenny Neale (Dutch); (Front Row) Ingrid Kruger (Spanish), Heather Godfrey (New Guinea Pigin), Pr Bert Godfrey (Solomon Islands), Bruna Tawake (Albanian), Monica Nash (German), Ilkka Kuivisto (Finnish) and Ja-young (Janet) Kim (Korean).
The congregation were so impressed with the event that they applauded after the final reading of the selected passage. Many members and visitors came to the front of the church to look at the Bible after the service."
10 April 2009
Ken Bird, pastor, Oberon, Lithgow and Mudgee Seventh-day Adventist churches (Australia):
"We took the Bible to Mudgee today. It wasn't as successful as we had hoped despite having the central point of a busy shopping centre. Maybe it was because it was the last day before a public holiday and people were otherwise occupied. Lots of people looked from a distance, but relatively few were brave enough to come and have a good look. Those who did were impressed. We could have improved it by taking a computer and monitor and having a display of the journey so far."
8 April 2009
Ken Bird, pastor, Oberon, Lithgow and Mudgee Seventh-day Adventist churches (Australia):
"Another good day with the travelling Bible. Lithgow Valley Plaza offered us a premium place in the plaza with lots of people passing by. We displayed the Bible from 9am to 5.30pm. Many people stopped to look at the Bible and took away the reading guides. The reading guide for children was also popular. The multilingual Bible is a real talking point. Again, the event had the support of the churches in town, with most of them supplying readers and a number of the ministers involved. La Salle College brough some of its students down to read. We read the gospels of Mark, Luke and John. The backdrop to the Bible was a continuously cycling powerpoint of the Bible's journey so far. One of our members, Cindy Bird, has also painted the Follow the Bible logo onto an 1800 x 1200 board. We also distributed Bible software and audio Bibles."
7 April 2009
Ken Bird, pastor, Oberon, Lithgow and Mudgee Seventh-day Adventist churches (Australia):
"We had a good day at Oberon today. The churches of Oberon worked together on this project. The display was set up over the road from the town supermarket. Along with the display, the churches of Oberon combined to read the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. We started at 10.20am and read continuously till 6pm. We had people dropping in during the day to look at the display. St Joseph's primary school children came in to read as did students from Oberon High School."
6 April 2009
A giant travelling Bible that is on tour in the South Pacific is now in Australia after spending more than three weeks in Papua New Guinea.
Used by the Seventh-day Adventist Church to encourage members to read the Bible, the Bible arrived in Brisbane after receiving a big send-off from the Adventist Church in Papua New Guinea.
The Bible will be in Sydney over the Easter weekend and was on display in a shopping mall and the town's main street while travelling in Oberon, Lithgow and Mudgee this week.
It will be in New Zealand next.
About
"Follow the Bible" is an initiative sponsored by the Seventh-day Adventist world church (General Conference)to stimulate a deeper interest in reading the Bible. It features a multi-language Bible travelling to countries around the world and large international gatherings to recommit to a study of God's word.
South Pacific calendar
| March 9 - 28 | Papua New Guinea |
| March 29 | Brisbane, Australia |
| April 2 | Gold Coast, Australia |
| April 7 | Oberon, Australia |
| April 8 | Lithgow, Australia |
| April 9 | Mudgee, Australia  (184 kb) |
| April 11 | Sydney, Australia |
| April 12 | Christchurch, New Zealand |
| April 19 | Wellington, New Zealand |
| April 21 | Palmerston North, New Zealand |
| April 24 | Auckland, New Zealand |
| April 26 | Fiji |
| April 28 | Samoa |
| May 5 | Solomon Islands |
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