My third "first talk"

With my publisher records having been officially transferred to the Sébaco congregation, the elders are now free to use me as they wish. Danielle* had already had two Theocratic Ministry School assignments by the beginning of July. For weeks I’d been joking that her consistent pep and energy was going to make me the Robin to her Batman in this congregation; the Kelly to her Beyoncé. My role in this assignment would basically be to facilitate her awesomeness. And as worn out as I’d begun to feel back at home, that was 100% fine by me. But I had begun to miss participating in the school. I was both excited and nervous to receive the assignment slip. But once I saw the word “arrebatamiento” (“rapture”) on the sheet, my brain went comatose. Didn’t matter that I’d been on the school 27 years-my first talk in THIS congregation was going to be on one of the biggest topics of controversy in our Evangelical-dominated territory, and something I had very little experience explaining. And I had no idea how to even begin to present it in a realistic setting. The prayers started well in advance.

Exactly one week before I was set to give the talk (I still had nothing in the way of ideas), one of my students, Lebia, asked me about the meaning of 1 Thessalonians 4:17. It had been discussed at her church days earlier. That is the very scripture that talks about being “caught away (” as in the “rapture”) and the principal basis of the Reasoning book’s information that would serve as the central theme of my talk. I always joke that I wished that my students would pull the “before-we-start-our-study-I-have-a-question” that has served as the introduction to many an assignment by sisters on the school for years. “That never happens to me, I don’t know who these sisters are studying with!” I’d say. But there it was. Lebia had virtually handed me my setting. “Make sure you are at the meeting next Thursday,” was my answer.

You can see a mediocre clip of the talk by clicking on or cutting and pasting the YouTube link below. The heads directly in front of the camera are those of Lebia and her 20-year-old son, Carlo, who is in town on vacation from university in the capital. At first he was basically being forced to sit in on the study since he was home. Now he prepares and participates, and plans to continue his study on the weekends once his normal school schedule resumes. (Side note: one of our ministerial servants saw Carlo at the meeting that night and admitted to me reluctantly that before learning the truth, he used to bully Carlo in elementary school. He said Carlo looked more than surprised to see him. He has offered to continue Carlo’s study once he goes back to school.) I am so thankful to Jehovah that I was assigned this particular topic. Not only was my student’s question answered, but the subject has come up a few times in the ministry since then, and I feel much more equipped to discuss it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WonUpCq42M

*Check out Danielle's blog at http://www.sebacojourney.blogspot.com