For Marie Uele Hurrell and her husband Fa’asiusiu Taito, being part of Samoa for Christ has meant putting their business on hold, serving wherever needed—and even sleeping behind the stage.
The couple have been supporting the Falelauniu and Tafaigata church program during the campaign, taking part in visitations and 4am prayer walks, and leading the praise and worship team.
They run a small electrical business but have taken two weeks away from work to serve during Samoa for Christ. Mr Taito has also carried out electrical work at the meeting site, where a temporary structure has been erected to house the program.
At night, the couple sleep behind the stage to keep watch over equipment and other belongings.
Despite the sacrifices, they were keen to get involved: “We didn’t want to sit around and do nothing while God’s work is going on,” Ms Hurrell said.
“It’s not easy going through the work that we’re doing. But according to God’s will, we are happy and we are willing to support this great opportunity.”
Their experience is one example of the deep commitment being shown by church members across the nation during Samoa for Christ.
Samoa and Tokelau Mission president Pastor Afiipu Tuaoi said months of preparation had gone into the nationwide campaign, with local churches investing their own time and resources into connecting with their communities.
“I am not only excited, but also just really blown away by the commitment of the church members,” he said.
Long before the evangelistic meetings began, churches were reaching into their communities through food programs, home visitations and other activities designed to build relationships.
Prayer has been central to the preparation. Church members held early morning prayer walks around evangelism sites for months prior to the program and are continuing the walks while the program is running. There has also been a 150-day prayer initiative that included weekly fasting and prayer.
“We recognise that prayer is important, praying for the Holy Spirit,” Pastor Tuaoi said.
“It doesn’t matter who the speaker may be, without the presence of the Holy Spirit taking the message from the speaker to the hearts of the people, and bringing truth and conviction to them, there will not be a great reaping that will happen. So we’ve spent a lot of time in prayer.”
The commitment has also been evident in the physical preparation of churches and meeting sites. One church underwent a complete renovation, while others were repainted or had new pews and floor tiles installed in preparation for welcoming visitors.
“The commitment that the Samoan people have put into this campaign . . . sacrificing their time, their money, their families to bring people to this campaign so they can come to know the true God, know the truth of His Word and be ready for the second coming, is something that I’m very thankful for,” Pastor Tuaoi said.
For some churches, Samoa for Christ has also encouraged members to try new approaches to community outreach.
Vaitele Fou church elder Morris Molesi said members had previously tended to invite friends, work colleagues and neighbours to church evangelism programs; this time they also went out intentionally visiting families in the local community.
“It’s been a great opportunity for us to learn some of the ways we can approach [the community] and share the Word of God,” Mr Molesi said.
He said the experience had also deepened relationships within the church.
“It has strengthened us, the unity within the church, to provide whatever we can for God’s work,” he said.
Members have also contributed from their own pockets when available funding was not enough to cover everything they wanted to do.
The spirit of cooperation has extended beyond local churches to Mission departments and ministry teams.
During the first week of the campaign, an ADRA Samoa team working on a project on Savai’i—the largest of Samoa’s islands—volunteered to serve at Fa’ala church, a new congregation with only a small number of members. The team travelled two hours each evening from where they were staying to take part in the evangelism meetings.
ADRA Samoa associate country director Asiata Apineru Wright presented nightly health talks, while project officer Aidan Afamasaga helped with the singing.
Mr Afamasaga said the experience had broadened his perspective on service.
“Before I went there, I thought I would only be able to help out with my own church and my own people where I’m working,” he said.
“But since we went to Savai’i and I was exposed to other different churches and different environments, I kind of noticed that wherever the Lord has called us, He will always give the strength and the courage and also the wisdom to deliver. Wherever He shows us to go, He’ll be there with us.”
Other Mission teams have also contributed to the campaign. The media team, led by Pili Afamasaga-Asiata, has organised digital billboards at the airport and in the city centre, established livestreams from three meeting sites and helped generate wider publicity for Samoa for Christ, including an appearance on national television.
Another key focus was to ensure that the children were well catered for while their parents attended the meetings. Ahead of the campaign, training was provided for all the children’s program leaders.
“When we look at the different sites, they are all on fire, the children’s ministry,” said Samoa-Tokelau Mission children’s and women’s ministries leader Pelenatete Siaki.
“There are so many non-Adventist children attending these meetings. Not only we prepare the series for the children . . . we try our best to let the children understand Jesus so that they can make their decision . . . [to] accept Jesus to be their Saviour. And the most important thing, we pray for them.”
Health ministry has also formed part of the outreach, with health teams and 10,000 Toes campaign ambassadors providing checks at some sites before the evening meetings. Dozens of community members have attended the wellness checks, which include weight, height, blood pressure and blood glucose measurements.
Mr Apineru Wright’s health talks have also been produced as short video clips, which are being screened before the evening program at many of the sites.
For Pastor Tuaoi, the collective effort, unity and commitment being demonstrated across the Mission has been one of the most encouraging aspects of Samoa for Christ.
“We definitely see how God’s hand has been on the campaign,” he said.
