克里斯蒂（Christie）

寻找希望

克里斯蒂生长在亚洲一个没有任何宗教信仰的家庭中。 青少年时期，她问自己： “生命的意义是什么？” 她想，如果人只有一生可以活，那最好的活法就是吃喝玩乐。 但这样的生活对她来说似乎毫无意义。

一个夏天，克里斯蒂上了一门英文课。 老师是美国人，而且是位神学博士。 在开始上第一堂课之前，他通过分享上帝如何在车祸中拯救他的见证来介绍他自己。 他的车在车祸中严重损毁，但他当时感觉自己像是被一个巨大的杯子罩住了，使他毫发无伤。 克里斯蒂对这个神迹印象 深刻，课后她马上把这个故事分享给她的父母。

十年过后，克里斯蒂在加拿大旅游时再次想到上帝。 她住的旅馆在温哥华，附近有一间教会。 她看到一位男士站在教会大门边，举着一个牌子，上面写着：“回家。”当天稍晚，她又经过教会的大门时，见到那位举着“回家”牌子的男士还在那。 那天的风很大，她想知道为什么这么大的风这位男士还坚持举着那个牌子。 几个月后，那位男子拿着牌子的样子一直萦绕在她的脑海里。她觉得基督教一定有什么特别之处。

回到家后，克里斯蒂就去研究所读书了。当一位老师把一本灵修书送给她和她的同学时，她感到很惊讶。这本书给她留下了深刻的印象，因为它回答了关于生命意义的一些问题。 她给老师写了一封电子邮件感谢他，并表示她想更多地了解耶稣。老师把她介绍给另一位老师，这位老师每周会有一个的晚上，在她家里带领一个敬拜小组。克里斯蒂在这个小组中感受到了爱和接纳。此后她开始每天读圣经。过了一段时间后，她把心交给了上帝。

克里斯蒂去了许多教会也参加了许多教会活动，但她感觉到她与上帝的关系不太对劲。

两年过后，克里斯蒂去新西兰旅游的时候，偶然间在电视上看到了《希望电视台》。回到家后，她在YouTube上搜索到了《希望安息日学》。

 她看到《希望安息日学》节目后，就停不下来了。 看这个节目成了她一天中最快乐的时光。短短几个月内， 她看完了三年的《希望安息日学》——那是当时线上所有的集数。 班上的参与者使她更容易理解《圣经》，她也喜欢他们的笑脸。

在看节目时，她对上帝有了更清楚的认识。 她了解到上帝是一位充满恩典、渴望，呼召祂的子民们回到祂那里，得着救恩、且总是愿意饶恕的神。 她第一次感受到她与上帝亲密的关系。 她决定接受全身入水的浸礼加入复临教会。

“感谢上帝把《希望安息日学》带进我的生命，让我的属灵生命可以成长，”她说。 “现在我愿意把我的生命完全献给耶稣，也渴望过一个荣耀上帝的生活。 那是生命的真正意义。”

来源：本文译自《圣工消息》（社会青年季刊）2022年第四季

Finding Hope

Christie grew up in a family without any religious beliefs in Asia. As a teenager, she asked herself, “What’s the meaning of life?” She thought if a person only had one life to live, then the best way to live was to eat, drink, and be merry. But such a life seemed meaningless to her.

One summer, Christie took English-language classes. The teacher was from the United States and held a doctorate in theology. At the beginning of the first lesson, he introduced himself by sharing a miracle about how God had spared his life in a car accident. His car had been damaged badly in the crash, but he felt like he had been covered by an enormous cup, allowing him to escape the wreck unhurt. Christie was impressed by the miracle story, and she shared it with her parents immediately after the class.

A decade passed, and Christie thought again about God when she went to Canada on vacation. A church was located near her hotel in the city of Vancouver. She saw a man standing at the church gate, holding a sign reading, “Back home.” Later that day, she passed the church again and saw the same man still holding the sign reading, “Back home.” The wind was blowing strongly that day, and she wondered why the man was willing to brave the weather to hold the sign. The image of the man holding the sign lingered in her mind for months afterward. She decided that there must be something special about Christian beliefs.

Back at home, Christie enrolled in postgraduate studies. She was surprised when a teacher presented her and other students with the gift of a devotional book. She was impressed with the book because it answered some of her questions about the meaning of life. She wrote an e-mail to the teacher to thank him, and she indicated that she wanted to know more about Jesus. The teacher introduced her to another teacher who led a weekly evening worship group in her home. Christie felt loved and accepted by the worship group, and she began to read the Bible daily. After a while, she gave her heart to God.

Christie visited a number of churches and church events, but she sensed that something wasn’t quite right with her relationship with God.

Two years passed, and Christie happened to notice Hope Channel on television during a trip to New Zealand. Back at home, she searched online and found the Hope Sabbath School program on YouTube.

She started watching Hope Sabbath School and couldn’t stop. Watching Hope Sabbath School became the happiest time of her day. In just a few months, she watched three years of Hope Sabbath School — all the online episodes that were available at the time. The class participants made the Bible easy for her to understand, and she loved their smiles.

As she watched, she gained a clearer picture of God. She realized that God is full of mercy, eager to call people back to Him to save them, and always willing to forgive. For the first time, she felt complete in her relationship with God. She decided to join the Seventh-day Adventist Church and to be baptized by immersion.

“Thank God for bringing Hope Sabbath School into my life to grow my spirituality,” she says. “Now I am willing to give all my life to Jesus and desire to live a life that glorifies God. That is the true meaning of life.”

Please find the original article at: https://am.adventistmission.org/mqa22q4-04