WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:04.249 --> 00:00:07.157 Megan Skene: In the early days of the Adventist movement, the leaders weren't 00:00:07.157 --> 00:00:09.197 just seasoned preachers or church elders. 00:00:09.497 --> 00:00:12.047 They were young, sometimes barely out of their teens. 00:00:12.047 --> 00:00:15.557 They preached in tents, sang in choirs, printed tracks, and 00:00:15.557 --> 00:00:17.057 carried books from town to town. 00:00:17.057 --> 00:00:19.217 They didn't wait to be asked or to feel ready. 00:00:19.217 --> 00:00:21.017 They just believed and their faith lit. 00:00:21.017 --> 00:00:22.607 A fire that changed the world. 00:00:22.874 --> 00:00:26.564 In the mid 18 hundreds, revival was sweeping across the United States. 00:00:26.818 --> 00:00:30.834 Across small towns and big cities, people packed into canvas tents to 00:00:30.834 --> 00:00:34.374 hear preaching about Bible prophecy, the second coming and the Sabbath. 00:00:34.374 --> 00:00:36.354 It wasn't just religion, it was a movement. 00:00:36.677 --> 00:00:39.640 And under those tents you didn't have to look for a church, you 00:00:39.640 --> 00:00:40.930 just had to follow the music. 00:00:41.050 --> 00:00:44.800 And what's easy to forget is that so many of the people leading the way we young. 00:00:45.174 --> 00:00:46.674 Let's go back to one of those tents. 00:00:46.974 --> 00:00:48.564 The wind is snapping at the canvas. 00:00:48.594 --> 00:00:49.644 There's a buzz in the air. 00:00:49.644 --> 00:00:53.034 Dozens, sometimes hundreds of people are packed into folding chairs, 00:00:53.034 --> 00:00:56.604 listening as a young man, maybe barely 20 stands at the pulpit. 00:00:57.042 --> 00:00:59.862 His preaching with conviction about hope, prophecy, and 00:00:59.862 --> 00:01:02.172 Jesus's soon return behind him. 00:01:02.172 --> 00:01:05.202 A group of young women lead hymns with harmonies that carry outside 00:01:05.202 --> 00:01:06.522 the tent and into the night. 00:01:06.912 --> 00:01:08.502 They're not just waiting to be asked. 00:01:08.592 --> 00:01:09.912 They're not waiting to be ordained. 00:01:10.332 --> 00:01:11.617 They're not waiting until they know enough. 00:01:12.237 --> 00:01:14.547 They just believe, they show up and they serve. 00:01:14.960 --> 00:01:18.170 One of the most powerful voices in the early advent movement was a 00:01:18.170 --> 00:01:22.280 17-year-old girl named Ellen Harmon when the great disappointment hit, she 00:01:22.280 --> 00:01:25.430 was just a teenager, brokenhearted, but still faithful and not long 00:01:25.430 --> 00:01:27.560 after she received her first vision. 00:01:27.560 --> 00:01:29.960 That vision helped guide the movement forward When most 00:01:29.960 --> 00:01:33.147 people had lost direction, she didn't think she was qualified. 00:01:33.447 --> 00:01:34.737 She didn't even want the role. 00:01:34.737 --> 00:01:37.227 She said yes to God and that yes, shaped history. 00:01:37.857 --> 00:01:40.167 Another young leader was John Nevins Andrews. 00:01:40.167 --> 00:01:44.577 He became the Adventist Church's first official missionary to Europe at just 36. 00:01:44.627 --> 00:01:47.627 , But he had been active in ministry and writing since his teens. 00:01:48.017 --> 00:01:51.287 He was studying prophecy editing publications . And speaking at 00:01:51.287 --> 00:01:54.527 gatherings when most young adults today are still figuring out their path. 00:01:55.937 --> 00:01:57.347 And then there were the canvases. 00:01:57.407 --> 00:02:01.097 Young men and women, often just 18 or 19, traveling from town to 00:02:01.097 --> 00:02:02.447 town with books in their bags. 00:02:02.837 --> 00:02:05.537 They sold literature about health Jesus and the Sabbath. 00:02:05.927 --> 00:02:09.557 Many walked, miles, slept rough, faced rejection, but 00:02:09.557 --> 00:02:10.727 they believed in the mission. 00:02:11.177 --> 00:02:14.237 And let's not forget the musicians, the tent meetings were full of 00:02:14.237 --> 00:02:16.217 life, not just sermons, but music. 00:02:16.622 --> 00:02:19.352 It was young people who carried the harmonies, led the choirs, 00:02:19.352 --> 00:02:20.492 and played the instruments. 00:02:20.882 --> 00:02:22.052 They weren't background noise. 00:02:22.112 --> 00:02:23.282 They were part of the message. 00:02:23.522 --> 00:02:24.902 Worship was part of the movement. 00:02:25.712 --> 00:02:27.302 What made this generation so bold? 00:02:27.902 --> 00:02:30.842 They didn't have much, most had no formal education. 00:02:31.172 --> 00:02:32.642 They didn't come from wealth or power. 00:02:33.182 --> 00:02:35.852 Some were still grieving the great disappointment, but 00:02:35.852 --> 00:02:36.812 they had something bigger. 00:02:37.142 --> 00:02:40.472 Conviction, courage, and a vision of what the church could be. 00:02:41.672 --> 00:02:44.612 They weren't just talking about truth, they were living it, sharing 00:02:44.612 --> 00:02:46.532 it, publishing it, singing it. 00:02:47.072 --> 00:02:49.532 They raised up churches, schools, and sanitariums. 00:02:49.982 --> 00:02:52.982 They planted the seeds of what would become a global denomination. 00:02:53.642 --> 00:02:54.482 And here's the thing. 00:02:54.872 --> 00:02:58.472 Church may not be in a canvas tent anymore, but people are still searching 00:02:58.472 --> 00:02:59.972 for truth, still needing hope. 00:03:00.512 --> 00:03:02.042 So here's the question. 00:03:02.582 --> 00:03:03.902 What if you are the one to carry it? 00:03:03.902 --> 00:03:05.882 Now, you don't need a stage. 00:03:06.152 --> 00:03:07.742 You don't need a theology degree. 00:03:07.982 --> 00:03:09.242 You don't need to be asked. 00:03:09.452 --> 00:03:13.712 You just need a willing heart, a steady hand, and a voice that says, I'll show up. 00:03:14.342 --> 00:03:17.402 . Because the fire that lit the movement still burns and it's looking 00:03:17.402 --> 00:03:19.112 for new lamps to carry the flame. 00:03:19.463 --> 00:03:22.588 Episode five, the Tender Fire Read by Megan Skene.