Banned from Church!

“I have a heart that wants to know more about God,” she said. “I feel very good when I hear something about God.”

To Sabbath School teachers: This story is for Sabbath, Aug. 18.

S

oyloo [pronounced: soy-law] lives in Mongolia, and she first visited an Adventist church when she was 11 years old. [Find Mongolia on the map.]

Soyloo’s friends told her about the crafts that they made in Sabbath School, and she wanted to make some crafts, too. Sabbath School was fun! But the sermon was another story.

“I felt very strange the first time that I came to a church service,” Soyloo said. “The sermon was very boring, and I felt very sleepy.”

Do you ever feel that way during the sermon? [Wait for children to respond.]

But Soyloo kept coming back to church because she loved Sabbath School. Then she learned that the church had a Pathfinder club that met for fun afternoon activities after the sermon. She learned to play the guitar in the Pathfinders club.

One Sabbath, Soyloo returned home after a Pathfinders meeting and found that her older brother was very angry. “From this moment, you are not allowed to go to church anymore,” he said.

Her brother was 23 years old, and he had heard a false report that the church members were giving drugs to children.

Soyloo insisted that nobody at church had drugs, but her brother didn’t believe her.

Soyloo had to obey her brother’s command not to go to church. Her father had died when she was small, so her brother was in charge of the family.

Soyloo cried the rest of the day. She also prayed to God for help.

The next day, she asked her mother to speak with her brother. But her brother didn’t change his mind. He only said, “Let me think about it. I need some time to think.”

Soyloo prayed every day for a week. “Please, God, soften my brother’s heart,” she prayed. “Please, give me another chance to go to church.”

When Sabbath arrived, Soyloo still couldn’t go to church, so she spent the day at home, praying and reading the Bible. As she read about how God created the Earth, she thought, “How great my God is!”

The next day, her brother called her over.

“Do you really want to go to church?” he said.

“Yes,” Soyloo said. “I really want to go more than anything.”

“OK,” he said with a big smile. “I’ll give you another chance to go to church.”

Soyloo was so grateful that God had answered her prayer! She thanked God that she could go to church on Sabbath. Do you ever thank God that you can go to church on Sabbath? [Wait for children to respond.] Let’s thank God right now that we could come to church today! [Ask a child to offer a short prayer.]

Soyloo no longer thinks that the sermon is boring or wants to sleep in church. She likes to learn about God, so the sermons are interesting.

“I have a heart that wants to know more about God,” she said. “I feel very good when I hear something about God.”

Today, Soyloo is 14 years old, and her favorite Bible verse is John 3:16. Can anyone tell me what this verse says? [Wait for a child to recite the verse.]

Soyloo said, “I like this verse because it says God gave His only Son just for me! Everyone who believes in Jesus will have eternal life.”

Soyloo doesn’t have to pray for God’s help to go to church anymore. But she still prays every day. She prays for God to increase her faith. She prays to know God better. And she prays for her mother, brother, and the rest of her family to become Christians.

Your mission offering helps churches in Mongolia share Jesus with people like Soyloo and her family. Let’s pray for Soyloo’s family and for Soyloo, too, after we collect the mission offering.

Watch Soyloo singing about her love for Jesus at the link: bit.ly/banned-from-church

Soyloo and 30 to 35 other people attend the Adventist church in Nalliah, a sleepy suburb of Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar. No Adventists lived in the area when the church was planted six years ago, and the church is now led by Global Mission pioneers Batzul Ganbold and his wife. Read about a 15-year-old boy who attends the church on page 18 of the Children’s Mission quarterly, and about Batzul Ganbold at the link:bit.ly/batzul-ganbold

For medium-resolution photos for this and other mission stories, visit the Facebook page for Mission quarterlies. New photos for the weekly story are posted the Sunday before they are to be presented in Sabbath School.

Download high-resolution photos and more for this story from the ADAMS photo bank

Download high-resolution photos of Thirteenth Sabbath projects for this quarter — and from the last time this division was featured for Thirteenth Sabbath Offering