Derek is a willing participant in several aspects of worship at PPAC, including offering the Scripture reading. In Nov., he preached his first sermon.
He simply said he was there for the 10 a.m. Bible Study as advertised on the church sign. Derek was introduced to the high school Sabbath School class and quickly made new friends, but it was apparent that he truly was most interested in studying the Bible, which he has done with Pastor Sean Reed and member Stanley Lebrun. They both report that he is a serious Bible student, one who studies the lessons ahead and comes with questions and insights.
Derek’s journey is a case study of the power of the Holy Spirit — and what happens when we submit completely to His leading. As in many families, God wasn’t a priority at his house as he was growing up. He remembers visiting extended family years earlier, and attending a church, his only exposure to anything religious, which he called boring. However, Jesus had His eyes on Derek and used a novel approach to capture his attention initially.
While watching “Young Sheldon” reruns one day, he was struck by a discussion between a pastor and the child genius about whether God was real. This sketch was designed for laughs, but the Holy Spirit prompted Derek to start wondering if God existed and if He did, what happens when someone dies? It was a thought that stayed with him, so he found a Bible and started reading, on a mission to prevent “going to hell.”
Instead of finding a God only interested in punishing bad behavior, what Derek found out about God has surprised him, “He always forgives, He never withholds His love, He is so wise, and His love is so great, there is so much mercy!” he says, with enthusiasm. He says he doesn’t remember exactly how it happened, but he started having conversations with God, causing him to feel connected to Someone far greater than himself, and he prayed for a way to find answers.
After reading several books of the Bible, he considered finding a church where He could worship and learn more about God. When he asked his grandma, who had grown up attending a church, she agreed to go with him. Since she had watched a few Doug Bachelor sermons online, she suggested the Adventist church they drove by every day. He quickly agreed because the church sign promised a 10:00 Bible Study on Saturday mornings. That was the part Grandma initially found to be strange; who goes to church on Saturdays?
Derek and Grandma have rarely missed a Sabbath since their first visit and they both consider PPAC to be their home church these days. She says she is glad to worship again with other believers. He has found great joy in keeping the Sabbath and wishes everyone knew how valuable Sabbath is.
The Lawton High School junior was baptized on Aug. 3 and is an active member at PPAC, playing piano, reading Scriptures, participating in skits, helping with Feeding America mobile food pantries, and taking a major role in the VBS play. He’s part of the Paw Paw Harvesters Pathfinder Club this year, planning to be a TLT soon, and is a dedicated member of the 2025 Pathfinder Bible Experience team. When asked how his life is different, this high school junior showed maturity beyond expectations for someone who turned 16 in September.
Although we only saw an eager young man, Derek says he was on a “pretty bad path” involving some destructive choices before last February. He has been amazed by the Holy Spirit, who has led him through every stage, bringing him to Jesus through an unlikely sitcom, convicting him of the need for confession and change, and teaching him to obey, which gives him peace. “Man shall not live by bread alone” (Matthew 4:4) is one of his favorite scriptures because it reminds him of the value of consuming the Word of God as we would food. He thinks missing a day of reading the Bible makes it harder to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to him. As soon as he returns to his Bible, he says he can feel the joy again because there is no joy without God.
Of course, this dramatic change in Derek’s life has impacted his social life. Even though a couple of the relationships in his life have become awkward, his very best friend and another friend have also ended up coming to Christ. He says they talk about how God is working in their lives, calling it man sharpening man; he’s grateful they can encourage each other. Since his best friend isn’t attending his own church much, Derek is wondering if God wants him to extend an invitation to join him at Paw Paw. With each day, he is finding more people who love Jesus, and he is eager to take their conversations deeper. He believes that confessing shortcomings to friends, removing the masks that we falsely think make us look perfect, allows us to know how to pray for others and find encouraging Scriptures.
Derek has his own mission in his high school, evidenced by his final comment, “I wish more people my age wanted to talk about God.” Keep talking, Derek, because the Holy Spirit is working on them, too. Paw Paw Adventist Church is praying for Derek because we know how committed he is to the guidance of the Holy Spirit — and we are praying for the contacts in his life, too. His willingness to follow God without compromise or negotiation has been a powerful witness for us, as well. Not only does God have special plans for this young man, He is using him already.
Jan Bermingham is a member of the Paw Paw Communication team.
