At home, we usually study all the Sabbath School lessons during morning worship. And it's interesting how we draw incredible applications from the girls' lessons, partly because we have to interpret the subject in their language and partly because their own questions make us think more deeply about what we're studying. And certainly, the Holy Spirit uses these moments to impress us with ideas that benefit everyone.

The most interesting part is when the two lessons somehow complement each other and teach us something. One day, Sarah's lesson told the story of when Paul and Silas sang in prison in Philippi, and the jailer accepted Jesus and asked for baptism after hearing the apostles' testimony. Anna's lesson told the story of when Nebuchadnezzar exalted himself and ended up spending 7 years in the fields living like an animal, until he finally recognized God and was once again recognized as king of Babylon.

What do the Philippian jailer and Nebuchadnezzar have in common? They were two completely different men, two contrasting experiences that taught us a great lesson.

The jailer apparently didn't know much about Jesus, but within hours, or more precisely, one night, he met Paul and Silas, and the next morning he was baptized. Paul and Silas had cast out a demon from a slave girl who practiced divination, and her owners, realizing they would no longer profit from her, incited the people to arrest them. The jailer had been impressed by the attitude of Paul and Silas, who, even after being beaten, chose to praise God in prison. In the middle of the night, there was a great earthquake, and fearing the prisoners had escaped, he considered taking his own life, but Paul stopped him and said everyone was still there. Even more impressed, the jailer took them to his house, cared for their wounds, and as Paul and Silas witnessed to him, he and his family promptly accepted Jesus and were baptized.

Nebuchadnezzar, on the other hand, had already witnessed many of God's miracles in his life: the way God strengthened and gave wisdom to Daniel and his friends when they arrived in Babylon, the revelation of the statue dream, the miracle of the fiery furnace, and many others. Yet, he still did not recognize God as Sovereign. Through another dream, God, in His goodness, warned him that he was in danger of exalting himself, and shortly after, he ended up taking all the glory and splendor of the kingdom for himself and had to spend seven years living like an animal until he recognized God as Lord of the universe and of his life. But you know, the point is that he did recognize Him, and from that day forward, he began to exalt God and accepted Him as his God. What one recognized in a few hours, the other took years to recognize.

Sometimes we encounter these two types of people: people who accept Jesus and allow themselves to be transformed in a very short time, and people who take years and years, with changes occurring slowly in their lives. The most wonderful thing is that God never tires of seeking His children, even if they are slow to accept Him, but how do we act towards such people?

Often we want everyone to make radical life changes overnight, perhaps the same changes that took us years to achieve. And when we encounter someone who is "slow" to accept God's love, we quickly become discouraged and withdraw, judging that they will never accept God. We need to be patient and never give up, for God promises great things for the final moments of this world.

“Thousands of the eleventh hour will see and acknowledge the truth. …These conversions to the truth will take place with a rapidity that will surprise the church, and only the name of God will be glorified.” Selected Messages, p. 16.

May God help us to be persistent in our prayers, and instead of giving up, to intercede for those who may take longer to accept His love. May we learn from our great Teacher to show true love to all of God's children.

‍