Recently in Derran Bedward Category

For the longest time, I have been trying to figure out what I have been following in my life. I have been told not to question my Faith, when I should have been. I should have been looking for the truth. I understand why many people are walking away from the Christian faith. I understand why many people are looking elsewhere to find God. I understand now many people have been shot and killed because of what they believed in and what they know. Because the true oppressor, Satan himself. He is using the Christian faith against itself. That is the tactic. By destroying us from the inside out, he uses forces people to use the Christian faith to destroy those around us; to oppress other faiths making others hate who we are. Yes it is true. The bible has been messed with a lot. Even the kings James version that we read today has been messed with over and over again. The Great Controversy was fought by the oppressors and is still being fought against. I learned that much has been taken out and changed only to allow the oppressor to keep us oppressed. However, Jesus knows of this also. Which is why he sent down and informed individuals like Ellen G. White, MLK, Malcolm X, and who ever about religion and social justice. Because they had knowledge to put bits and pieces together. To learn and listen to the word is one thing, but asking questions will not throw us away from God, it will not anger him. He said, "Ask and we will be given, seek and we shall find." In order for us to help others, we must help ourselves first; we must fully understand his message and truth first. Then we will be able to share his message. We must have reconciliation in followers of Chrsit first and heal one another before we can heal others. We must remember though not to oppress and force our faith on those who do not want to believe. Mission work must be done peacefully. At the end of the day, we are Sabbath keepers are oppressed also. All other faiths understand that. We must also understand them and not try to change what they are. Stating who you are and what you stand for is not bad, but trying to impose and having in the back of your mind there are truths that you don't know, or contradictions that lie ahead, that is the problem. The answers you seek are in the bible, yes, this is true, do not stir away from it though God's word has been tampered with, but also take the time to go to nature away from civilization and other people and seek God. Ask him questions. If you are upset with him, tell him that, don't be afraid to have a one on one with God. Listen to what he is trying to say. He speaks to you through many avenues. Ill tell you right now also, those who we shun away from us because we thought were speaking foolishness, may actually know what they are talking about. You will be surprised how Satan can twist the eyes of the believer and make a fine line between mentally crazy and truth that sounds crazy. 

We talk about how the Muslim people are so bad and they have killed so much when it was you who killed us off in the beginning. You took Christianity, my faith and turned it into a crime that I choose not to follow. I only follow Jesus Christ. For us to be true followers of Jesus we must not have judgmental thoughts and follow the preconceived notions that we have of people. First off, Christians, no not Christians who believe they were doing right, killed off more people in this world then the amount of Muslims killed flies. We preconceive that Muslims follow a different God, that they worship Mohamed when they don't! They don't believe in following Humans, that's all. Allah is simply God in Arabic. That's it. Insha'Allah means "God Willing," The problem that we have as Christians is that we think we are right when we are right, we believe we are right just like they believe they are right. However that does not make them bad people or make us bad people. For us to be true Christians or True Adventist, we must believe in Ubuntu - I am because we are. Everything that we have learned and that we follow, everything that affects us, is because we affect others. In the beginning, all was one and from that single point all things come. Nothing that you do in life is individual. You can only be yourself through other people. 

Life here in the Western Cape is going quite well. I've learned so much, done so much, understanding so much, and still trying to comprehend so much. Like for example, Cape Town, despite it being a Christian Nation, has a call to prayer announcement for Muslim individuals to head to prayer. Muslims celebrate Christmas over here because they do not believe that it should only be for Christians seeing that they believe that he walked the earth also and for celebrating that fact that he was born. Yet however, America believes that they are actually a free country. I am not saying that South Africa is any better, seeing that even though Apartheid Legislation has been abolished, the affects are still there. White Afrikaans are still within these amazing houses and everyone else, especially those in townships are in shacks right across the street. However what I am saying is that, South Africa has gone a much longer way in breaking their segregation than America has despite the fact that their segregation was worse than America's. America still has racism in some form and fashion as well. Look at the prisons of America. Are those prisoners of Black men or just another Slave Lodge?

Happy Sabbath All, I have a little message to share about my trip here. 

Its not even what happened, it's the fact that they had the audacity to take God's words and use it for their own miscomputed judgments and thoughts to hurt people all around the world because they wanted to feel superior only due to the fact that they had an inferior intellect. Then with our constitution, they used it to blind side their "people" to stop us from seeing the light and truth of this world. This whole time I have been living in darkness of this world not listening to what God has been actually saying to me. I had to go half way across the world, sit on the top of a mountain, watch and sunset and a sunrise, argue with God to ask why he brought me here, and then here him say "ask and you will be given, seek and you shall find." I have learned more about God's love being out here in the wilderness than I have ever before. America with all of its fancy technology, "necessities" and such has been a distraction in my eye line. I spent the whole day learning about the Apartheid and how Afrikaans's or Europeans in forced God's love upon people and used his words to force them out of their own land. Clearly in Galatians 5 it states that the Fruit of the Spirit and or Love is not forceful but kind and gentle. Jesus walked this earth to promote that and they felt as if they had the right to destroy that. Getting back home, I decided to study the fall of Adam and Eve and could clearly understand why the world is the way it is. When they gave up their right to the land to Satan, they created a world of darkness where Satan has been reincarnated into all that strikes evil. His tactics are at an utmost high. However in light of this, I discovered why God lets this happen, for us to be able to live in Heaven peacefully later on down the road, we must be able to discover all of Satan's tactics and motives. We need to see the light in the truth and understand it for ourselves and truly discover God's love on our own. It says to "seek he first," its says that he tells us "I did not know you." If we seek him not only by what we hear but also on our own, then he will know us. No human can judge us or otherwise. For he is the final call.

Bless uP and Happy New Years to all my friends and Family. Cape Town Keepin it real on Long Street with the Music and such. Had a Great night out "On the Town in Cape Town" as the say down here. Its Kind of like a "Grand Market" type of thing for all my Jamaicans who are wondering. Diversity in music, culture, food, yes the food!!! BOMB!!! We also got to visit a township earlier this morning, it was quite a scene yet very peaceful. About to head out to the Mountains soon and live up there for three days and relax, really learn about who we are as individuals. 

Gotta Say though again, Bless uP to 2K13, love everyone, love it here, respect, see yal soon.

Yow, I have officially, Reached South Africa. Thanks for all the the prayers. It is nice so far, the air is warm, lil humid, no biggy. And the best part, Got to Ride in a MINI BUS!!! Jamaican people know how that goes. The people are great and GOD IS GOOD!!!. 

Ill keep yal posted, Love yal, respect and Bless uP. 

P.S. WE ARE 8 HOURS AHEAD!!! SO IM HEADIN TO SLEEP!!. NIGHT!!

Derran G. Bedward - Nov. 27th, 2012

I would have never expected this, to be able to take a 18 hour flight to Africa. From the USA to Amsterdam then landing in Cape Town, South Africa, I will be taking a journey that most could not ever dream of. 

Being a sophomore at the U of M majoring in Kinesiology in hopes to matriculate into a med school of my choice and become the doctor of my choice, I never once had the thought of going to Africa to study abroad. People always mentioned to me that I should go to England or Japan, but never once did they mention Africa. South Africa with its long history of social justice and change, gives me the opportunity to learn more about how the health system works there and even here in the U.S. Having one of the top health systems in the world, South Africa gives me hopes of finding out break through on diseases that haven't been found here in the USA as of yet.  

Haha however this isn't my reason for going. 

I want to find out who I am as an individual and what I am about. In my future, I plan to be a doctor of medicine, but the issue is; how must one help another if they are not fully in tune with themselves? How will I be able to use my God given gift to heal an individual if I do not know who I am? Even more so, is the career path I have chosen for myself right for me, is it my true calling or am I only in it for the money? These are the questions I ask myself everyday, and these are the answers I hope to find. 

In the next few weeks, I am expecting to deal with a lot of money issues and packing issues along with learning about the country of South Africa. I also expect little sleep seeing that I really excited and even more, I love planes. 

To the new life in South Africa, let it be amazing. 

Bless uP,

D. Bedward