December 5, 2024 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Hello, friends! Today I am going to share an extraordinary story with you, written by Andrew McChesney, editor of the Mission quarterly that features mission stories from around the world.
In the heart of Africa lives a little 6-year-old girl named TMI. She is named after Total Member Involvement, the wonderful initiative that encourages every church member to get involved in sharing Jesus with someone else.
This little girl was born just as TMI evangelism was sweeping her home country of Burundi. It was an exciting time as Burundians told neighbors, friends, relatives, and even strangers about Jesus. People were meeting in small groups to study the Bible. Then they gathered at big evangelistic meetings. Many people gave their hearts to Jesus at the meetings and were baptized.
TMI’s father and mother were delighted to witness TMI evangelism with their own eyes. They were thrilled to participate by telling others about Jesus. Their joy peaked when a little baby girl was born to them amid all the TMI activities in 2018. The parents decided that the perfect name for their little daughter was TMI.
As a baby, TMI was a constant reminder to everyone that they needed to tell someone else about Jesus. Whenever her father or mother called TMI’s name, people remembered that God was calling them to get involved in Total Member Involvement.
As the little girl grew up, TMI became more than just her name—it become the way she lived. She enjoyed singing, and when she was just 4 years old, she prayed for a good voice to praise Jesus.
“Dear God,” she prayed, “help me so that I can sing.”
TMI hadn’t planned to pray about singing. But as she thought about how she could share Jesus, the words just rose in her heart, and she started to pray silently about it every day.
About that same time, she joined a children’s choir at her church. One of the church members noticed that she had a sweet voice and suggested she could sing alone. The church member even helped her record six songs in a music studio.
Soon, other church members noticed TMI’s voice and began to invite her to sing at Sabbath worship services. Then she was invited to sing at large evangelistic meetings. TMI’s parents were delighted that she was singing for Jesus.
Before long, TMI began first grade in a public school. Some of her classmates asked the teacher if she could sing for them. They had heard her singing, and they wanted their own concert. The teacher agreed, and TMI began to sing at school.
When classmates from non-Adventist families heard her sing, they began to visit her church on Sabbath. They asked if they could join her in the church’s children’s choir. When those children went home, they asked their parents to go with them to church on Sabbath.
So it was that a little girl named TMI became a living example of Total Member Involvement by using her voice to sing for Jesus.
Friends, even if your name isn’t “TMI” you can still be a part of Total Member Involvement! What can you do to reach someone for Jesus today?