Everyone in town was a non-Christian—until Merlin and JoAnn Fjarli came from Oregon to teach the people about Jesus.



The Fjarlis didn’t come alone. They brought along doctors and nurses, projectors, giant media screens, gospel songs, a movie about Jesus, and a team of Maranatha volunteers ready to build brand new Seventh-day Adventist churches.

“If that’s what the village people want,” said the Fjarlis.



The village people weren’t so sure that they wanted new churches. They were quite happy with their lives as they were.

But some came to the night meetings. and then went home telling everyone about the message, the Jesus movie, and the doctors. Someone told the butcher, and the butcher told the baker. The baker told the tailor and the tailor told the policeman.

The policeman told the farmers, and soon everyone knew about the meetings.
“You must come tomorrow night,” everyone in the village was telling their neighbors.



And the next night more village people came to the meeting. And more! And more!! And still more!!! Until nearly everyone in the village was singing the same Jesus songs and dreaming about worshipping in a new church.

The new Seventh-day Adventist members even selected a perfect piece of land for their new church.

But, there was a problem.

Two other people wanted the same piece of land and began arguing over who should have it. That’s when one of the village leaders stepped in.

“That’s not the right land for your church,” he said. “Instead, I will give you the piece of land right beside my house. Even though I am a Hindu, I love the Jesus songs and would like to have you singing them beside my house.”



Then the village leader added, “please also build a school near our village so our children can learn how to live the God life.”

The Fjarlis and Maranatha Volunteers International heard both requests, and began building on the land beside the village leader’s house.

First, they built the church. Second, they started building the school just down the road in Cuddapah—a big boarding school where more than 1,000 children can learn about Jesus.



When the village people came to open the doors of the new church, they blew off so many firecrackers that everyone’s ears buzzed with happiness.



This is the best thing to happen in our village EVER!" one villager said



“I want my family to have a better life,” one mother told us as she worked by her cooking fire. “I want them to live the Jesus way. Thank you for helping us to find His love.”

Brenda is a nurse and I am a pastor and storyteller. Neither of us is a scientist. So when we went to the Galapagos Islands we weren’t sure what to expect. After watching DVDs of the islands, we thought we’d be tripping over giant tortoises and walking carefully to avoid lectures from evolutionary scientists.

Instead, we found a virtual Garden of Eden. More desert than rain forest, but still an environment where animals and birds relate to humans the way the first animals and birds may have related to Adam and Eve.

Baby sea lions treated us like potential moms, humping across the sand and lava to stand beneath our camera tripods where they looked up longingly as if expecting us to provide milk and love.

On every island we met marine and land iguanas who stared at us as though we were exhibits in a moving zoo. Often they were more interested in our wandering legs and odd conversations than we were in their tie-died coats of armor.

The birds? Usually they ignored us, continuing on with their whistlings, cooings, blowings, parenting, and showing off of feet. Often their antics blocked the pathway, requiring detours across the lava to protect a family nursery. Occasionally they would stop preening to stare our way, wide-eyed at our alien presence.

Unfortunately, animals and birds in the rest of the world have been forced to adapt to humans is other ways – usually defensively with fear or anger.

Two weeks in the Islands, and we have some new understandings about evolution. No, not the evolution where humans evolve from snails, but the “evolution” where God designs the DNA of every creature so well that it can adapt to survive – and live effectively – in any environment.

The Creator knows exactly what challenges each of His creatures will face. And He created us to live the abundant life! Remember I Corinthians 10:13? Along with every challenge to successful living, God has built in a way of escape, a God-powered solution that defeats the devil.

For humans, He has gifted us with the ability to adapt in a crazy and sinful world while still living the life He has designed us for…as His dearly-loved children.


The sea life in the Galapagos Islands gets to live in some of the most beautiful water on earth.


The sand was littered with sea lions of all ages, colors, and alertness.


The iguanas -both marine and land versions - are among the ugliest and yet most fascinating of God's creatures.




Frigate birds raise their young in the bushes along many of the island trails.


Much of Darwin's amazement came from watching finches such as this one. They have adapted to each island uniquely. Some have even become "carpenters" to more effectively locate food.


We fell in love with the colors and demeanor of these swallowtail gulls.

Travels with Dick and Brenda

Loma Linda University used to have a biological field station on the Galapagos island of Santa Cruz. It was one small building off the main street of Puerto de Arroyo with direct access to the beach. Then the Seventh-day Adventists built a church on the same property right beside the road. Even though there was a nice wide sidewalk by the church, people would walk to the Adventist property and then walk across the street to the muddy track on the other side, “because we didn’t want to be close to the crazy cult of Adventistas,” they said.

Then the church turned the field station into a school, “Colegio Loma Linda,” and began recruiting elementary school students from the community. The first year there were 16 students, about half of them from Adventist families. This year there are 276 students in the school, and its graduates are recognized as the finest on the islands.

When we asked parents why they pay tuition at the Adventist school when the public schools – and even most of the Catholic schools – are free, we got only one answer:

“We want our children to grow up to be like the Adventist teachers at Colegio Loma Linda.”

We are here with the second of four volunteer groups that are building a brand new campus for the Loma Linda school. Thirteen classrooms, a library, computer center, auditorium, rest rooms, offices, playground, and maybe even a bakery!

“This is more than I had even dared to dream,” says principal Esmeralda.

We've fallen in love with the people of the Galapagos, and with the wildlife, flowers, and sea that make this such a special place in the world. Attached are 8 photos that depict the 7 days of creation as represented in the Galapagos - and one more that summarizes the offer of the Creator "I am waiting for you. Please do not pass by without visiting me."


Day One - Light


Day 2 - Water divided from water,


Day 3 - Land, vegetation.


Day 4 - Sun, moon, stars.


Day 5 - Birds and Fish.


Day 6 - Mammals.


Day 7 - Rest and Love.


The rest of our lives!