AMI Building Report

The roof is officially on! We extend our deepest gratitude to everyone who has been praying for the safety and efficiency of the Amish crew. Watching them navigate beams twenty feet in the air—pulling up bracing and securing metal sheeting—was a testament to both their skill and God’s protection. As we celebrate this structural milestone, we are turning to our prayer team with a new, specific request: the right team of electricians. While we had a company lined up, they ultimately determined the scope of the project exceeded their current capacity. Before we can move forward, critical electrical and plumbing work must be completed. Additionally, the team is working on detailing the wooden part of the structure, the final floor leveling and compaction, and the setting of two I-beams in the office area. Once these elements are in place, we will be ready for the substantial concrete pour that will form the building’s floor. Thank you for your steadfast prayers for the workers and the project’s progress. With so many ministries and programs waiting for a home, we are eager to see this building reach completion. All able-bodied members of the Three Angels’ Church in Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina, are working together with their lay pastor and nurse practitioner, Brandon Palmer, to provide a 10-day health immersion program. Though the initiative marks a first for their church, the early results signal a resounding success. Pr. Kelly, Dr. John & Sally Kelly, Veronica Johnsen, and Toni Minikus traveled from AMI to the Three Angels’ SDA church December 5–7 of last year. The small congregation in South Carolina warmly received their testimonies and experience regarding church-based health immersion programs. The core leaders of the health ministry team asked questions and received more instruction at a Sunday gathering. Ambitiously, Pastor Palmer and his team set a goal to launch their program by May, leaving just six months for preparation. The logistical hurdles were significant. Transforming a fellowship hall into a functional medical missionary clinic required gathering specialized supplies, completing hydrotherapy training, and overcoming infrastructure challenges. A shower for hydrotherapy treatments was cleverly installed in an existing bathroom, which necessitated a larger hot water heater. Private treatment rooms were partitioned off of the fellowship hall with shower curtains hung from hardware. And treatment supplies, exam tables, white linens, and a mini-hydrocollator for conveniently creating moist towels for hydrotherapy treatments were purchased. In the kitchen, the work is a collaborative effort between generations. Sally Kelly traveled to Batesburg to assist a recent nurse practitioner graduate, who serves as the program’s head cook. All the food is carefully prepared “from scratch,” and there are seventeen people being served at any given meal by these two women and additional volunteers. The food is the most labor-intensive part of the health immersion program, but it is typically the greatest improvement factor in the lifestyle of most participants. The physiological impact is already evident: one guest, who arrived with a blood pressure reading of 184/102, saw it decrease to 105/68 after only four days! And the results indicated by blood work will be even more significant. Exercises appropriate to the fitness of the health guests are taken by the whole group. Hydrotherapy treatments are given, followed by appropriate rest periods. Lifestyle education is taught and cooking demonstrations given. There is something for every volunteer to do. The team gathers fifteen minutes before the program begins each day to pray for the health guests and the day’s activities. Each morning, a devotional thought is shared with the staff and guests, and every evening a thirty-minute Bible study is given, connecting the health principles they are learning with spiritual principles from the Bible. Of course, God is thanked for every meal and called upon prior to every treatment. Only halfway through the ten-day journey at the time of the writing of this article, a profound bond has already formed among the participants—a hallmark of medical missionary work. This connection, rooted in self-sacrificing love, is expected to leave a lasting impact on the guests’ physical healing and their relationship with God. This is just the beginning for the Three Angels’ SDA Church work in medical missionary lines. They plan to hold such a program twice a year for the people in their community, starting again in just six months!  (see the picture gallery at the end of this post) A delightful group is forming for the first AMI Travel trip. Forty people will join ten AMI associates for ten days, exploring Martin Luther’s Germany. Contact the office ([email protected] | 269-362-7678) for a one-page information sheet that includes an itinerary and describes some of the highlights of the trip. The trip participant list is not at capacity yet, but the sign-up sheet is filling fast with names of interested parties. If you are interested, please contact us soon to have your name put on the list. A deposit will be requested in the near future to actually reserve your spot. The first forty of those who submit a deposit will be accepted as this year’s trip participants. If you cannot go, you can be a part of the trip by praying for the outreach on Sabbath, October 31st. A large number of people will gather for the annual Reformation Festival, which is akin to a national holiday in that region–something like July 4th here. People celebrate the holiday regardless of their connection to its meaning. The majority of Germans are unchurched and unfamiliar with the character of God. Please pray that we will have divine appointments that Sabbath afternoon with people who are searching for meaning in their lives and open to knowing God. The next AMI Vespers program is this Sabbath evening, May 9, 7:00 p.m., at the local Methodist Church at 310 W. Mars Str. We will enjoy a song service, updates on AMI projects, and a sermon by Pr. Ron Kelly titled: “Tucker Carlson, Zionism, and Israel in Bible Prophecy.” All are welcome to join for an hour of worship together. Those who cannot be here in person will be able to watch the event at a later date on Pr. Kelly’s YouTube channel (@pastor-ronkelly).