Thirteenth Sabbath Program

This quarter featured the South Pacific Division, which includes the country of Australia and the island nations of Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and others.

If your division will present the Thirteenth Sabbath program for the adults:

• Prepare to present your theme song for this quarter, or choose to sing “Jesus Loves Me” in Pidgin.
• Review with the children the things they have learned about the South Pacific islands this quarter, and practice their parts in the program.
• Send home a note to remind parents of the program and to encourage the children to bring their Thirteenth Sabbath Offering the next week.
• If your division will not join the adults for a special program, make Thirteenth Sabbath special by inviting a special guest to speak to the children about life in the islands of the South Pacific. Encourage the speaker to bring items that will interest the children and help them to understand the culture and challenges of the people there.
• Remind the children to bring their Thirteenth Sabbath Offering. Make the offering appeal a big event in Sabbath School. Count the money and let the children know how much they have brought for missions during the quarter. Praise them for what they have done, and let them know that their offerings will make a big difference to children just like them who live in the islands of the South Pacific Division. 

Mission in the South Pacific Islands

Participants: A narrator and four children.

Props: Four flags (or pictures of flags), one each from the following countries: Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and New Zealand. A globe or map of the world.

Narrator: This quarter our mission focus has been on the South Pacific Division. We’ve heard many wonderful stories from the islands there, including the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and New Zealand. Let’s review what we’ve learned this quarter about this part of the world and the needs there.

Child 1: (holding globe or pointing to the map). First of all, we learned that there are many islands in the South Pacific.

Child 2: Many of the larger islands are lush with trees, greenery, and mountains.

Child 1: But some islands are very small. They are called atolls.

Child 2: Atolls are made out of coral and sand; they barely peek out of the ocean!

Child 3: [holds up flag of Fiji while narrator speaks]

Narrator: Fiji is a nation made up of more than 800 islands! More than 881,000 people live in Fiji, most of them on the two largest islands of the country. About half of the population is ethnic Fijian, and almost half are of Indian descent. Most of the ethnic Fijians consider themselves Christian, but most of the Indians remain Hindu—few have become Christians.

Child 1: This quarter we heard stories about how God answers prayer in Fiji.

Child 2: One story was about how a young boy prayed that God would send just one match so he could have a warm breakfast.

Child 3: God answered the boy’s prayer by sending a whole box of beautiful matches—that were all white!

Child 4: The boy and his mother were so happy because they knew God had answered his prayer.

Narrator: The Seventh-day Adventists in Fiji are trying to reach their friends and neighbors with the wonderful news of Jesus but it isn’t always easy. One area where they’ve had success is in health education. Diabetes and other non-communicable diseases are widespread in Fiji, and the government has asked the Adventists to provide more education.

Child 1: Part of our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering will help to build a Family Wellness Center in Suva, the capital city.

Child 2: Thank you for helping the people in Fiji to learn how they can be healthy and strong.

Child 3: (holds up flag of Papua New Guinea while the narrator speaks)

Narrator: Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a mountainous island nation. The main island lies just north of Australia. PNG shares the island of New Guinea with Papua, a province of Indonesia. Nearly 7.3 million people live in PNG. While the cities are modern, many people still live in small villages in the mountains. More than 700 different languages and dialects are spoken in Papua New Guinea!

Child 4: In PNG and some of the other islands, people speak Pidgin English.

Child 2: During Sabbath School we learned some Pidgin words and phrases.

Child 1: Let’s see if you can guess what they mean.

Child 3: MOH-ning.

Child 1: [Pauses] “Good morning.”

Child 4: AH-pee-noon

Child 1: [Pauses] “Good afternoon.”

Child 2: PEE-kihn-nee-nee

Child 1: Child

Narrator: There are thousands of children in PNG who love to come to Sabbath School, but in many places they have no place to meet except under a tree or even the open sky.

Child 2: Our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering this quarter will help to build Children’s Discipleship Centers—or “lamb shelters”—for children in PNG and many other Pacific islands.

Child 3: (holds up the flag of the Solomon Islands while narrator speaks)

Narrator: The Solomon Islands lie between PNG and Fiji. The country is made up of about 30 islands and many atolls. Because they lie near the equator, the islands are hot and humid. The main islands are volcanic mountains. English is the official language, but 80 local languages, including Pidgin, are spoken. And only half of the people there can read.

Child 1: The people were so happy a few years ago to receive the special children’s Bibles that have pictures in them!

Child 4: Those Bibles came from your Thirteenth Sabbath Offering!

All Children together: Thank you for giving to the Thirteenth Sabbath Offering!

Narrator: This quarter, we can help provide lamb shelters for the children in the Solomon Islands.

All Children together: Thank you for giving!

Child 1: (holds up the flag of New Zealand)

Narrator: Our final featured country from the South Pacific Division this quarter is New Zealand. New Zealand is a beautiful country that lies east of Australia. It’s made up of two large islands and several smaller ones. Only about 4.5 million people live in the entire country, and most of them live in the North Island. The largest city is Auckland, with just over 1.4 million people. The original settlers of New Zealand are Polynesians who came from other islands in the South Pacific. Today these people are known as the Maori and make up 14.6 percent of the total population.

Child 4: Our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering today will help establish a Hope Channel and production studio in Auckland.

Child 3: There will be lots of interesting programs for kids and adults!

Child 2: The programs will teach people many important things,

Child 1: such as how to be healthy,

Child 4: how to get along with your friends and family,

Child 3: how to manage your money,

Child 2: and how to know God.

Narrator: The Thirteenth Sabbath Offering really does make a difference in the lives of people all around the world. Today, let’s remember to pray for the people of the South Pacific islands, and to give generously as we partner with them for mission in the South Pacific Division.

Thank you.

[Offering]