Stories & Commentaries

Rockefeller Ludwig Twyman, known to many as “Rocky,” was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and currently lives in Rockville, Maryland. A public relations consultant, Twyman describes what he does this way: “I bring about positive stories, promote positive stories about churches and social organizations in the media.” In addition to this role, Twyman is an accomplished musician and choir director, activist, and prayer warrior.

Back when I was operating a college radio station, a caller said he appreciated the music and message on the radio station one particular evening. He went on to describe how he had been contemplating suicide, even coming to the point of deciding to end his life—that evening. But just before doing so, something grabbed his attention. As he listened to the radio, the power of the music and the message spoke to his heart and altered his decision. He called the radio station to tell me about it. That was a life-changing experience for me.

In December, the Center for Youth Evangelism hosted the 2021 Cruise With a Mission to Mexico. This is a trip for young adults that combines vacation with mission trip to provide a unique experience that is like no other. Here, Cruise with a Mission director Nathaniel Sevilla gives a personal account of the 2021 cruise.

Make no mistake, while Nicole and Victor Broushet run two restaurants in Massachusetts, with the second one opening in July 2021, they are involved in so much more that they hesitate to define their cafés — and their career paths — as traditional. “We consider what we do medical missionary work,” said Nicole. “And it’s about creating community. We’re not just a restaurant. I always joke about how I actually forget sometimes that we are a restaurant, because we have all of these other aspects.”

The phone rang late on New Year’s Eve. The call relayed the worst news.  The Smiths* had not returned from their trip to Kotzebue, Alaska. Edna and Jose, Arctic Mission Adventure (AMA) workers, sprang into action. As members of the Selawik search and rescue team, they knew that they’d be working against the clock.

G. Alexander Bryant: “Here we are again, the end of another year, 2021. And as we look back on this year, we can see that there have been challenges, there have been COVID restrictions, there have been vaccination mandates — there have been all these challenges that we've had before us.”

One morning while shaving, Rich Reiner made a discovery that proved to be a wakeup call. “I found a bump on my neck,” he said. “That shouldn’t be there.” At the age of 39 with three young children, he was shocked when a barrage of medical tests determined he had Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma with a less than desirable long-term prognosis. That was more than 30 years ago. Reiner and his wife placed greater emphasis on their health and now will continue encourage healthful lifestyle habits through their support of a new fitness center at Union College.

In Greene County, Tennessee, only one-third of a mile separates Riverview Community Seventh-day Adventist Church from Victory Church of God. And now, the two congregations are sharing a single worship space! Here’s the story behind how two churches of different denominations have allowed the love of God to perpetuate uncommon grace between their congregations.

Angel, with the blue eyes, lurked on the outskirts of our Chester, Pennsylvania, Message Community Infusion in July 2021. I don’t blame him for being wary of our enthusiastic bunch. How desperate do you have to be to clean up an empty city park, trim the trees, set up the praise team and band, bring in free food and give away free COVID shots — all so we can attract a potential contact who needs Jesus?

“God, if You want me to go down there, I have no problem with it. If You want me to leave everything I know, ... and move to Texas, away from everyone—to take on a job that I’ve never done, that I’m not quite sure about—I’ll do it.” This was Robert “Bob” Allen’s prayer eight years ago as he and his wife contemplated leaving their lives and jobs in New York for camp ministry in Texas.