Dorie Panganiban – Farmington, New Mexico … “Your students did really well. Expect another invitation soon”; “So when are you coming back for the second part of the kids’ sermon? I hope it’s really soon.” These are some of the comments from church members at the Rio Rancho Seventh-day Adventist Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, where students and staff from La Vida Mission* (LVM) in Farmington, New Mexico, joined for a special Sabbath service, November 16.
“It was a very beautiful and memorable Sabbath because this was the first time during our church visitation program when our students preached and delivered the sermon during church service,” remarked Dorie Panganiban, La Vida Mission office manager.
La Vida Mission students Drevin Yazzie and D’artagnan Smith, eighth grade, and D’artagnan ‘s younger sister, Jasmine Smith, seventh grade, preached on the “Message of the Sanctuary.”
“A hard subject, I thought, for children to preach so I told our health and outreach director, Mr. VJ Panganiban, [to help prepare] the sermon for them and coach/train them on public speaking,” Dorie recalled. “I even volunteered to write a simpler, lighter subject message for the teen preachers, but VJ assured me that any message can be preached and understood by all age groups … When I read the sermon, I was touched and blessed by its simple and practical presentation.”
Those who heard the sermon commented that they were blessed by the experience, especially with it coming from the kids. They remarked on how well the students were able to deliver it in a way that can be understood by both children and adults.
The La Vida Mission student school choir provided the music for the service. Glet Franche, LVM music teacher and choir director, was devoted to the students’ training, and they sang and played very well. Among some of the instruments used were a recorder and tone chimes that were graciously donated by Pueblo Seventh-day Adventist Church and school, delivered to LMV by Cathy and Mike Kissner, November 6, when they came for their Annual Donation Drive to La Vida Mission.
“What a blessing indeed! We are grateful to Dr. Robert Gardner, our wonderful LVM Board president, and his very supportive wife, Ms. Kimone, who facilitated our visit to Rio Rancho Church. La Vida students and staff enjoyed the gracious accommodation and hospitality afforded to our group by all the church members and the bountiful lunch they served to all of us,” commented Dorie.
An LVM staff remarked, “I love that Church; they are very warm and truly welcoming,” while another said, “and they don’t mind if the service exceeds the time. They were very attentive and remained very engaged till the end.”
Dori concluded, “We left Rio Rancho truly blessed spiritually, emotionally, and physically. On our way back to the Mission, we stopped at the house of a lovely couple, Daniel and Sonia Cervantes of Rio Grande Church, to pick up their church’s generous donations of health and hygiene stuff, groceries and assorted goodies for the Mission. God is indeed very good and worthy to be praised. We can only sing, ‘Praise HIM from whom all blessings flow.’”
* La Vida Mission is a supporting ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist Church but is not affiliated with the Rocky Mountain Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.
—Dorie Panganiban is the La Vida Mission office manager. Photos supplied.
