Ernest got along well with people. He worked long hours at a plastics factory, so he enjoyed going with his two children and his wife, Carol, to the mountains on weekends. Saturday and Sunday were reserved for skiing, boating, bike riding, walking.
Weekdays were mostly work. Summer evenings he cared for the yard and talked to the neighbors. Winter evenings included occasional indoor romps with the children—but mostly lounging in front of the television.
One evening Ernest watched a pro gram about hospital life. Since he had spent two periods in the hospital, the character portrayals caught his inter est. He watched the program for several weeks and found that he was beginning to identify with some of the Westbrook Hospital personalities. Up to this point, Ernest had never thought it necessary to create for himself any value structure. But now good and bad began to acquire importance. It was as if his mind had received an outside impulse jolting him into reality.
Feeling that the people at Faith for Today were interested in him, he sat down and wrote to them: "I am not a religious person at all, but when I watched your show I felt relaxed and at ease. Not being a Christian, I do not attend church at all, but now I would like to get to know Jesus better."
Ernest is one of thousands of people reached by Faith—people whom we Adventists often call secular, or unchurched. Every week the program is seen on 110 stations; 25,000 viewers are enrolled in its Bible correspondence courses. The annual offering for Faith for Today is to be received in Adventist churches across North America on Sabbath, February 12. The goal is $500,000.
Please include an announcement in your church bulletin, and personally draw your people's attention to the opportunities. The theme this year is "Showing the Word to the World," featuring Faith's new symbol, depicting the Bible, the rainbow, the rising sun, and the television screen.
