Dear friend.

Each year the Executive Committee of the General Conference (GC) meets to hear reports and make important decisions pertaining to the work of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. This committee meeting is referred to as Annual Council, an authoritative body of the World Church that meets annually between General Conference Sessions (the highest representative body of the world-wide church).

Each Annual Council is important, however, this year's is especially so as the GC Executive Committee will be voting on a course of action to bring non-compliant entities within the World Church into compliance. Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation circulating which is creating deep divides.

In this special edition of the Central Happenings you will find several resources to help you navigate your way through this year's Annual Council. Most importantly, we want to encourage you, our faithful reader, to pray for the Annual Council as it meets over the next 10 days.

The Sacramento Central Pastors

Independence or Unity?

“Satan well knows that success can only attend order and harmonious action.  He well knows that everything connected with heaven is in perfect order, that subjection and thorough discipline mark the movements of the angelic host. It is his studied effort to lead professed Christians just as far from heaven’s arrangement as he can; therefore he deceives even the professed people of God and makes them believe that order and discipline are enemies to spirituality, that the only safety for them is to let each pursue his own course, and to remain especially distinct from bodies of Christians who are united and are laboring to establish discipline and harmony of action. All the efforts made to establish order are considered dangerous, a restriction of rightful liberty, and hence are feared as popery. These deceived souls consider it a virtue to boast of their freedom to think and act independently. They will not take any man’s say-so. They are amenable to no man. I was shown that it is Satan’s special work to lead men to feel that it is in God’s order for them to strike out for themselves and choose their own course, independent of their brethren.” (Testimonies for the Church, Volume 1, page 650)

Central Happenings is published by the Sacramento Central Seventh-day Adventist Church, 6045 Camellia Avenue, Sacramento, CA 95819 www.saccentral.org

Sacramento Central Ministry Team: Chris Buttery, Lead Pastor; Mike Thompson, Associate; Fred Dana, Associate; Michael Butler, Youth-Young Adult; JeAnn Davis, Bible Instructor

Central Happenings: Chris Buttery, Editor; Chrystal White, Copy Editor/Distributor