The story most people think of when they think of the prophet Elijah is his great battle against the 450 false prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of the Grove (or Asherah) but there is a short prelude to that battle that some overlook.

The great lesson we learn from this prelude to the confrontation between Elijah and the false prophets is that sin and sinful nature are always looking to blame someone else when things go wrong. In the garden of Eden Adam blamed the woman for causing him to sin, Eve blamed the serpent for causing her to sin, and ultimately they were both blaming God for what He created. Adam and Eve are not the only Biblical example of the “blame game” or what we might call “rationalizing.” There is Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 16, Moses and Aaron in Exodus 32, Saul and Samuel in 1 Samuel 15, and of course Pilate and Jesus in Matthew 27.

When we stop taking responsibility for the things we've done wrong we are bound to blame others for the consequences that we deserve. Oh, what a tangled web we weave when we play the blame game.

The SDA Bible commentary (page 818) puts it this way; “Ahab sought to place the blame upon Elijah for the curse that had smitten the land. One of the greatest evils of sin is that it always seeks to confuse the issue. It refuses to bear the blame for the troubles it causes and tries even to make it appear that righteousness rather than iniquity is responsible for man’s woe.”

What impresses me the most about this prelude to the great battle on Mount Carmel is Elijah’s fearlessness when he walks into the court of King Ahab. Sometimes I wonder how he got past the guards, but regardless of how he got into the King’s presence, he was there to call the king out on his sin and deal with the backsliding leaders of the nation of Israel in a public challenge.

Elijah new the kind of numbers he was dealing with. He even counted out the 850 false prophets that he would have to confront. I'm not sure at the time if he knew how badly outnumbered he really was or maybe Elijah knew that one person, totally committed to God, is a majority regardless of how overwhelming his opponents may look.

There it is. The stage is set for one of the greatest battles in all history. I can't wait to see what God shares with us in our next installment of the “Arizona Connect.” But for today suffice it to say, if you have God on your side and if you're standing with him, regardless of what circumstances you are facing, you have no need to fear.

My overall take of the GC session was that there was a great spirit there, and most of the delegates were serious about seeing the Seventh-day Adventist church advance the work around the world. The one special presentation that brought tears to my eyes was the one from our Ukrainian delegation. The president of their conference came to me as I was lining them up to go on the stage and said, “thank you (through a translator) then he said “please tell your people (meaning the people from the USA) that we are so thankful for all that they have done to help our country in this time of need.” He took my hand with both of his hands and kissed it, I didn’t know what to say, it was all I could do to choke back the tears.

The week finished with a message by Elder Ted Wilson covering every doctrine of the Seventh-day Adventist Church along with a few other things that are not doctrines of the church but had an emphasis on the writings of E.G. White. The most wonderful part of the closing ceremony was to see the flags of all the nations represented there at the general conference. That was truly beautiful.

June 13 to June 19, I was at our own Arizona Conference Camp Meeting. We had a wonderful time together even though it was only five days instead of our normal nine-day camp meeting. I received several comments from the visitors saying they truly appreciated the wonderful messages presented by Lee and Gary Venden, Paul Blake, Alan Reinach, and Dr. Ugonna Woods. I was also told how blessed the people were by the music of our own Marilynn Venden, and special musician Tim Parton of 3ABN.

There was a beautiful baptism on Sabbath afternoon, a wonderful teacher commissioning program Sabbath morning. Our Camp Meeting Anthem Choir and Orchestra, directed by Dennis Marsollier, touched the hearts of so many, myself included, with their beautiful music on Sabbath morning.

But for me the highlight of the entire camp meeting was seeing a dear friend Eddie Turner ordained to the gospel ministry. I am so thankful for the commitment my dear brother has made to follow Jesus and serve Him as a minister of the gospel. God bless you Eddie, and your family, and of course your ministry.

At around 11:00 PM that night my wife and I packed up our stuff from our cabin, headed down the mountain to Phoenix to get a couple of hours sleep and then get on a plane at 5:00 AM to head to Lexington, KY for the North American Division Ministerial “Called” Convention.

About half of our English speaking pastors were there for this convention along with most of our Spanish speaking pastors. There were excellent seminars throughout the day, but I enjoyed the evening keynote message is the most. The highlight of this trip was watching our very own Pastor Mike Soto receive the second-place prize (10,000 USD) for his presentation at the “Shark Tank.” There were literally hundreds of applications received by the North American division for this event. Only 12 got a chance to present their ministry idea to the Shark Tank panel in front of the crowd at the convention. We are so proud of his (and of course his wife Arielle) ministry. God bless the Soto’s and all they do for the Lord’s work.

May God continue to pour out his blessing on the Arizona Conference family.

Without the volunteers and staff that worked long hours, the broadcast from both Arizona Conference Camp Meetings would not have been possible. Whether it was in the production truck, behind the cameras or part of the set up and take down of equipment, each member played a crucial part in the broadcast.

One crew began with the Spanish Camp Meeting and another finished with the English Camp Meeting. Some of the GNTV staff were up at Camp Yavapines for nearly three weeks. We took several days after Camp Meeting ended to prepare equipment and cables for an easier set up in 2023.

They will be shown again on Good News TV but if you want to have them accessible whenever you want or if is there someone who you think would benefit from viewing the messages that were presented at Camp Meeting 2022 then download the order form below and fill it out.

You can choose the programs in either a DVD format or Digital Thumb Drive format.

Thank you so much for being an important part of Good News TV and the many miracles God is doing! Contact us at 480-264-1116 or info@MyGoodNewsTV.com.

The Arizona Conference Education Department was delighted to celebrate five amazing teachers during a special Teacher Commissioning Service which took place during the last half of the Sabbath School lesson study time at Camp Meeting this year. The candidates had to meet very specific criteria such as a minimum of six years of successful teaching in Seventh-day Adventist Schools, hold current denominational certification, show a commitment to the tenants of the SDA church, amongst other items. They also had to be referenced by those that work closely with them and be interviewed by AZ Conference Administration. Last but not least, they had to be able to attend the service on June 18, 2022 at Camp Yavapines.

The service included special music selections by Glenview and TAA Alumnus Aerille Salamat, a Biblical connection to the Sabbath School lesson on Joseph by Pastor Van Bledsoe, introductions and a word of thanks by Nicole Mattson, a spiritual charge from Ed Keyes, a prayer of dedication by Pastor Ray Navarro, and a special gift of appreciation by Reggie Leach.

Many of those in attendance commented that they had never seen a commissioning service before and the overall feedback was extremely positive. Attendees and viewers watching the Livestream were blessed to hear about each candidate and be reminded of the dedication, commitment, and sacrifice that it takes to carry on the ministry of Adventist Education. We continue to thank our educators for their service and pray that God continues to bless them beyond measure as they serve our young people.

Those commissioned were:

           Brian Allison, Principal: Glenview Adventist Academy

           Teresa Greene, Teacher: Thunderbird Christian Elementary

           Jennifer Montalban, Head Teacher: Prescott Adventist Christian School

           Starr Schwinn, Head Teacher: Saguaro Hills Adventist Christian School

           Michael Tomas, Principal: Thunderbird Adventist Academy

.Sunday 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM