1 00:00:05,361 --> 00:00:07,281 We've come to the Shetland Islands. 2 00:00:07,282 --> 00:00:10,663 The reason being, there's 23,000 people here, 3 00:00:11,186 --> 00:00:12,713 and not a single Adventist. 4 00:00:12,947 --> 00:00:14,759 We want to reach them with the gospel, 5 00:00:14,760 --> 00:00:18,210 and we'd love to see them ready for Jesus to return. 6 00:00:20,422 --> 00:00:22,375 The Shetland Islands are part of Scotland 7 00:00:22,702 --> 00:00:24,735 and the northernmost part of the United Kingdom. 8 00:00:25,311 --> 00:00:26,331 Anthony Kent, 9 00:00:26,332 --> 00:00:29,590 the associate ministerial secretary at the General Conference, 10 00:00:29,590 --> 00:00:32,758 put together a small team of pastors from Scotland and the UK 11 00:00:32,759 --> 00:00:34,991 to spend one week cycling through the islands 12 00:00:34,992 --> 00:00:38,145 to tell people about Jesus and hand out Christian literature. 13 00:00:39,017 --> 00:00:41,457 After an overnight ferry ride to reach the islands, 14 00:00:41,457 --> 00:00:44,357 the team prepared to set off to reach the unreached. 15 00:00:45,858 --> 00:00:46,938 As far as we know, 16 00:00:46,939 --> 00:00:50,485 there are no Adventist members on the Shetlands. 17 00:00:51,198 --> 00:00:54,974 And how do you approach trying to make contact? 18 00:00:54,975 --> 00:00:58,742 What would Paul and his associates do 19 00:00:58,743 --> 00:01:01,178 if they were doing a missionary journey 20 00:01:01,179 --> 00:01:02,967 and they landed in Lerwick, 21 00:01:02,967 --> 00:01:06,871 and they were to start in the Shetland Islands? 22 00:01:07,253 --> 00:01:09,021 Maybe Paul also would have used a bicycle 23 00:01:09,021 --> 00:01:10,790 to share Jesus with people today. 24 00:01:11,250 --> 00:01:14,169 The team set out to ride through every inhabited street, 25 00:01:14,169 --> 00:01:15,845 stopping with anyone they met. 26 00:01:16,522 --> 00:01:18,035 Much like the apostle Paul, 27 00:01:18,036 --> 00:01:20,022 Anthony and his team had to endure hardships 28 00:01:20,022 --> 00:01:22,402 in the form of wind, rain, and hills. 29 00:01:22,786 --> 00:01:24,200 It's cold. 30 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:25,557 It's cold. 31 00:01:25,557 --> 00:01:29,563 But this is still really good fun and people's hearts are open. 32 00:01:29,564 --> 00:01:31,820 The weather's cold, but the people are warm. 33 00:01:31,821 --> 00:01:33,254 Praise God for that. 34 00:01:33,255 --> 00:01:35,155 This isn’t the first I Will Go bike ride. 35 00:01:35,703 --> 00:01:37,446 Anthony has led a cycling ministry trip 36 00:01:37,446 --> 00:01:41,376 from Washington DC to St. Louis, as well as some in Australia. 37 00:01:42,408 --> 00:01:45,272 What we found is, it's a wonderful way 38 00:01:45,273 --> 00:01:49,918 to generate significant but brief conversations 39 00:01:50,178 --> 00:01:52,605 and an opportunity to share the gospel. 40 00:01:53,131 --> 00:01:54,911 So it's worked in the past, 41 00:01:55,978 --> 00:01:59,237 and we thought we'd give it a go in Shetland. 42 00:01:59,728 --> 00:02:00,768 There’s a special reason 43 00:02:00,768 --> 00:02:03,125 the Shetland Islands were chosen for this ride. 44 00:02:03,503 --> 00:02:04,863 A man named Philip Reekie 45 00:02:04,864 --> 00:02:08,430 emigrated from Scotland to Australia in the late 1800’s. 46 00:02:08,825 --> 00:02:11,918 He rode his bike thousands of miles around Australia 47 00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:14,395 sharing the gospel with anyone he rode past. 48 00:02:14,707 --> 00:02:16,709 One of those people happened to be 49 00:02:16,709 --> 00:02:19,230 Anthony Kent’s great-great-grandfather. 50 00:02:19,948 --> 00:02:23,073 Philip Reekie rode up to him on a bicycle 51 00:02:23,455 --> 00:02:26,321 and shared with him the Great Controversy, 52 00:02:26,322 --> 00:02:28,669 and it completely transformed his life. 53 00:02:28,670 --> 00:02:30,000 Now, in our family, 54 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,770 there are seven generations of Adventists, 55 00:02:33,770 --> 00:02:38,000 as a result of Philip Reekie doing that wonderful ministry. 56 00:02:38,465 --> 00:02:42,344 Our dream was to take the spirit of Philip Reekie 57 00:02:42,345 --> 00:02:47,891 and his desire to lead people to Christ back to his homeland. 58 00:02:48,768 --> 00:02:50,581 Following Philip Reekie’s legacy, 59 00:02:50,869 --> 00:02:53,888 the team took Jesus’ call to go to the ends of the earth 60 00:02:53,888 --> 00:02:55,941 and applied it to their work in the Shetlands. 61 00:02:56,250 --> 00:02:57,517 We’ve literally gone 62 00:02:57,910 --> 00:03:00,929 from the very south of the Shetland Islands, 63 00:03:01,420 --> 00:03:02,920 to Sumburgh, 64 00:03:03,683 --> 00:03:08,978 and we’ve gone all the way north as far as we can ride a bike. 65 00:03:09,370 --> 00:03:12,010 From sea to sea in a sense. 66 00:03:12,325 --> 00:03:14,338 We haven't just stayed on the main roads. 67 00:03:14,772 --> 00:03:18,392 We've deliberately ridden past homes. 68 00:03:18,915 --> 00:03:21,208 We've seen people out and about, 69 00:03:21,209 --> 00:03:24,668 whether they're cutting their grass, putting their washing out, 70 00:03:25,232 --> 00:03:29,191 walking their dog, farming, working in the outdoors. 71 00:03:29,633 --> 00:03:32,547 We've gone to where people are available, 72 00:03:33,060 --> 00:03:35,555 and we've had wonderful conversations with them. 73 00:03:36,198 --> 00:03:38,649 Although this is not the way they normally witness, 74 00:03:38,651 --> 00:03:41,186 they've seen the value of trying unique methods of ministry. 75 00:03:41,493 --> 00:03:43,720 We have here a group of pastors. 76 00:03:44,860 --> 00:03:46,133 They're not cyclists. 77 00:03:46,565 --> 00:03:49,587 They're willing to go to the ends of the earth, 78 00:03:49,587 --> 00:03:54,850 even if it means riding a bike, in wet, cold, windy conditions, 79 00:03:54,850 --> 00:03:58,037 if it may lead one person to Jesus. 80 00:03:59,833 --> 00:04:03,099 My dream is that people will look at unentered places. 81 00:04:03,742 --> 00:04:08,214 Places where we don't have any followers, 82 00:04:08,628 --> 00:04:11,810 and do what you can do to reach them. 83 00:04:13,178 --> 00:04:14,538 Please pray for ministries 84 00:04:14,539 --> 00:04:17,529 such as the I Will Go Bike Ride, and others around the world 85 00:04:17,530 --> 00:04:19,739 who are using unique methods of ministry 86 00:04:19,739 --> 00:04:21,169 to reach the unreached. 87 00:04:21,578 --> 00:04:23,525 Thank you for your support of Mission. 88 00:05:03,211 --> 00:05:06,124 Well, first of all, when I ride this, 89 00:05:06,419 --> 00:05:07,753 it's so much fun, 90 00:05:07,975 --> 00:05:10,315 and I literally feel like a kid again. 91 00:05:10,968 --> 00:05:15,391 Like a young person with wind blowing in my face, 92 00:05:15,391 --> 00:05:17,729 and through my hair, what hair is left. 93 00:05:18,607 --> 00:05:22,841 And I really sense the pleasure of God, 94 00:05:23,573 --> 00:05:27,549 that this is something that we're doing together. 95 00:05:27,549 --> 00:05:31,289 When a witnessing opportunity comes, we do that together, 96 00:05:31,289 --> 00:05:36,168 and it's just incredibly good, fun.