Chesapeake Conference

Nationally Certified STEM Campus, Spencerville Adventist Academy

Story by Paty Serrano

Spencerville Adventist Academy (SAA) recently earned the National Certificate for STEM Excellence (NCSE), a Campus Certification from the National Institute for STEM Education (NISE). SAA is one of only 56 schools in the nation to have earned this national certificate.

NCSE provides a research-based support system for campuses and teachers seeking to strengthen STEM instruction and outcomes. NISE STEM leadership coaches worked with SAA’s educators and instructional leaders to refine the school’s operations and curriculum instruction to further strengthen STEM practices and the campus’ overall STEM culture.

Story by Evan Knott/ Chesapeake Conference

When families from Afghanistan arrived in the United States following their rapid evacuation from the war-torn country, Adventist Community Services (ACS) stood ready to serve.

Chesapeake Conference’s ACS team first responded to the crisis by meeting evacuees at the airport to offer emotional and spiritual support. Three months later, ACS Chesapeake has shifted its focus to providing 340 Afghan families resettling in Chesapeake territory with food and essential supplies as these families attempt to rebuild their lives in the United States.

Image from iStock

“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night” (Exod. 13:21, NIV).

I was wrestling with a difficult decision. I knew what I wanted to do, but I had no peace. As I was lying in bed weeping over my decision, a friend called me up and said, “Janesta, I was having my devotions, and God told me I should call you.”

“Now therefore, our God, we thank You and praise Your glorious name. But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, and of Your own we have given You” (1 Chron. 29:13–14, NKJV).

Near the end of his reign, King David assembled the people of Israel for what was one of his last public appearances. It was a praise service in which he recounted God’s providence and all the preparations made for the great work of building the temple of God. More than once, the Bible records that David and Israel’s leaders “offered willingly” to the Lord.

image by hudsoncrafted on pixabay

Editorial from Jerry Lutz

Let’s admit it, shall we? Sometimes it’s hard to be thankful, especially when we find ourselves amid difficult, faith-stretching circumstances, particularly ones that threaten life and limb. When in dire, physical danger, we naturally, instinctively go into survival mode. It’s the fight-or-flight response, also known as acute stress response—a condition that refers to a physiological reaction that occurs in the presence of something that is terrifying, either mentally or physically.