Friday · Jan 2
Inside Story
The 13th Sabbath Offering
by Vania Chew
An Australian woman wanted to know how the Seventh-day Adventist Church planned to use the 13th Sabbath Offering worldwide. On the last Sabbath of each quarter, her church encouraged members to give whatever they could to the special offering.
Marilene Stevenson remembered a time when church members baked cakes and grew vegetables to sell. Then they gave the money they earned to the 13th Sabbath Offering. Marilene wondered what she could do to make money to give to the 13th Sabbath Offering, also named the Quarterly Mission Project Offering.
Marilene didn’t have time to bake cakes or grow vegetables. But she was interested in selling a throat spray she started using. The spray helped her throat to feel better when she was sick. Other people were interested in the spray. So, Marilene decided to buy the spray and sell it. She planned to give any extra money she made from the sales to the 13th Sabbath Offering.
Marilene’s sales were a success. So, she looked for more ways to make money for the 13th Sabbath Offering.
Marilene said, “I started with buying stuff I liked. Other people liked the same stuff. They wanted to buy these things from me because they didn’t have time to go buy them!”
Marilene worked with local farms and factories. She bought healthful supplies for a cheap price. Then she sold these things to family and friends at a cheaper price than they could buy at the store. Marilene sold fruit, tofu, and vegetarian food over the years. She also made flower bouquets and sold them for Mother’s Day and other special holidays.
Marilene said, “I like helping people and earning money at the same time for a good cause.”
Since Marilene started selling things, she earned 300 to 600 Australian dollars (that’s 200 to 400 dollars in US money). Marilene invested all this money to the 13th Sabbath Offering.
Marilene encourages all church members to give as much as they can to the 13th Sabbath Offering.
Marilene says, “I hope that my story will encourage other people to do something more than just give a few dollars as I was doing. God blessed me with a wonderful experience. I know that He is very wonderful. He is so good to me. I love sharing His love with other people.”
This quarter’s 13th Sabbath Offering will help support work in the South Pacific. This area includes Marilene’s home country of Australia. Thank you for your offering on March 28.
Provided by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission, which uses Sabbath School mission offerings to spread the gospel worldwide. Read new stories daily at www.AdventistMission.org .