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Cebu City Seventh Day Adventist Church, in partnership with Adventist Hospital—Cebu, recently concluded a week-long evangelistic effort from Nov. 10-16, 2024. It led six individuals to accept Jesus through baptism on the culmination day.

The event, themed "Heart Reset: Journey of Transformation," was inspired by Psalm 51:10, which says, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me."

The nightly program featured inspiring messages from Pastor Methu Flores, AH-C chaplain, and Pastor Joel Aganan, AH-C Operations vice president. It also highlighted health lectures by various AH-C doctors.

Pastor Flores expounded on this theme — the need to reset one's heart. He hoped that after a week of feeding on God's word, studying His word, and daily communion with Him, one would experience a heart reset.

"A heart is like a phone's battery, which tends to lag when the owner fails to perform a regular software reset," Pastor Methu said.

The daily topics explored various aspects of spiritual growth and relationships and how these matters affect one's daily life. Pastor Flores elaborated on these and emphasized further the importance of building connections and reconciliation.

He went deeper in his discussion, encouraging everyone to cultivate patience while waiting for the answers to prayers, trusting in God's perfect timing. With faith in God, one can demonstrate humility, leading to deeper relationships with God and others.

Transitioning to a different perspective, Pastor Aganan led the final days of the series. His first session, "Love's Unspoken Language," explored the powerful ways love and compassion can be expressed through non-verbal communication.

Pastor Aganan emphasized the link between love, commitment, surrender, and forgiveness in relationships. He explained that when love is truly communicated and felt, it naturally leads to a deeper commitment and a willingness to surrender individual desires for the betterment of the relationship.

He said this foundation of love and surrender paves the way for genuine forgiveness when mistakes inevitably occur. These qualities allow individuals to create relationships where faults are readily forgiven, allowing for healing and renewed connection.

Pastor Aganan then bridged these principles of human relationships to the divine, drawing a powerful analogy between human forgiveness and God's boundless love. He said that while people forgive, God's capacity for love and forgiveness surpasses any human measure. Not only does He offer complete forgiveness, but He also provides the transformative power to overcome past mistakes and embrace a fresh start.

Furthermore, just as loving human relationships allow for renewal after forgiveness, a relationship with God offers an even greater opportunity for restoration and growth. Through His grace, He forgives and forgets, enabling His children to begin anew truly.

This evangelistic effort, streamed live on Cebu City SDA Church's official Facebook page and YouTube channel, culminated in a celebration as six individuals decided to dedicate their lives to Jesus through baptism.

As a closing highlight, AH-C held a medical outreach on November 17, offering free legal counseling with lawyers from the Cebu City SDA Church and friends.

The original version of this article was posted on the official page of Cebu City SDA Church.

By Lea Jane Salud