Andrews University

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Institute of Archaeology, Andrews University

Cleaning Cave in B.3

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Area of East Tell

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Drs. Horn and Sauder discuss Problem in Area B

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Lawrence Geraty Demonstrating  Proper Tool Use

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Area South the Tell

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Philip Post uncovering pot in situ

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John Wood Digging

Matiko, Beverly

Andrews University 
Digital Commons @ Andrews University 
Lake Union Herald Lake Union Herald 
1-2025 
Closer to Jesus than I Thought 
Beverly Matiko 
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/luh-pubs 
TELLING GOD'S STORIES 
“In Kazakh culture,” Irada explains, “my educa-
tional, social and political influences were all atheis-
tic. But with the fall of the Soviet Union, religion be-
came tolerated, and to some extent even encouraged, 
though often with a ‘This can make you a stronger cit-
izen’ component. As we began to hear about the Ten 
Commandments and the Golden Rule, we also heard, 
‘Honoring parents, treating others well, not stealing, 
not killing — all these things are good for the state. 
They strengthen the nation — and the individual.’” 
While huge cultural, political and social changes 
were swirling around Irada as a young schoolgirl, 
a confession her mother made to her one day was 
especially memorable in her own spiritual develop-
ment. “When I gave birth to you and first looked into 
your eyes,” her mother shared, “I sensed the Divine. 
Right then I prayed for the first time. ‘Save this child,’ 
I pleaded with God. I was filled with gratitude for this 
new life entrusted to me. Having just given birth for 
the first time, I sensed a presence much larger than 
myself, my daughter, or any human.”
Like her mother, Irada too began to sense, “There 
must be something or Someone more.” As she grew 
older, changes in her homeland and especially in her 
immediate community caught her attention. She re-
members her initial surprise at seeing imams, priests 
and others freely walking around in religious garb. She 
was curious about the significance of such distinctive 
attire. She noticed too the appearance of religious 
discussions in newspapers. She read columns pro-
posing new points of view and opportunities. One of-
fer caught her eye. It was geared to children her age: 
Bible study lessons. She wrote away for the lessons, 
completed them, and shared what she was learning 
with her mother. “We found these Bible stories so 
interesting and exciting,” Irada recalls. “It was all so 
new. We had never heard anything like this before.” 
Irada’s curiosity grew, and she began to explore 
the Muslim faith of her grandmother as well as de-
nominations within Christianity, including the ortho-
dox tradition. As she visited houses of worship and 
explored various sacred texts, she found places and 
passages that appealed to her, but others that she 
could not accept. What started as a search for an-
swers seemed to be generating more questions.
Irada’s search continued into adulthood. By the 
time she immigrated to the United States seven years 
ago, Irada had decided that too much of what she had 
encountered in her study of various faith traditions 
was incompatible with her own beliefs grounded in her 
medical training, her sense of equality and justice, and 
her understanding of the Bible. “I couldn’t support the 
Dr. Irada Flood is no stranger to long and life-altering journeys. Not 
only did she leave her native Kazakhstan and travel over 6,000 miles 
to a new life in the United States, she also moved from an atheistic 
upbringing into a new spiritual home — Christianity. 
Closer to Jesus than  
I Thought
12 |  JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2025  |  Visit LakeUnionHerald.org
Visit LakeUnionHerald.org |  JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2025|  13
meting out of harsh punishments for certain beliefs 
or actions,” she explains. “I also questioned the value 
and meaning of icons, saints and some rituals. I was 
uncomfortable with what appeared to be worship of 
individuals rather than worship of God alone. Also, I 
couldn’t accept the hierarchy inherent in some faiths. 
Growing up in the former Soviet Union, the equality of 
women was a given. For generations, we have been 
welcomed into all professions. We have been expect-
ed to do whatever needs to be done — from raising 
a family, to farming, providing food, working on ma-
chinery, pursuing higher education, entering any vo-
cation of our choosing. No one ever said to us, ‘You 
can’t do this because you are a woman.’”
A Casual Invitation
Irada’s quest for truth and meaning continued, 
both on her own and in the company of others. One 
day, at the height of the pandemic, a Christian col-
league named Dan invited her to attend some infor-
mal online discussions he was leading. These dis-
cussions, he explained, were open to all. He stressed 
that there would be no judgment, no pressure, but 
together they would explore questions and share 
beliefs about such topics as the existence of God, 
creation, suffering, injustice and more. Irada lis-
tened with interest to ideas shared by people from 
a wide range of faith traditions and from atheists, 
too. Before the close of each session, Dan opened 
his Bible and presented what it said about the topic.
Irada’s eventual introduction to Seventh-day 
Adventism came through a fellow Kazakhstani that 
she met at a get-together at another friend’s cabin. 
Here Irada and her new friend, Assel Burnett, con-
versed and bonded over their shared backgrounds 
and interests in faith and religion. Eventually, these 
and subsequent conversations led to Bible studies 
with Pastor Myoung Kwon. Irada decided to join this 
denomination and was baptized by Pastor Rowell 
Puedivan. Today she worships at the Evansville and 
Madison churches in Wisconsin.
When asked what appeals to her about Seventh-
day Adventism, Irada explains that the emphasis on 
healthful living is important to her. After decades as 
a smoker, she was finally able to quit, and she re-
mains grateful for the encouragement and support 
that led to this change. Sabbath, she explains, was 
a new concept for her. Initially, she thought that 
it was important to Jewish people only. She was 
surprised to find the Sabbath included in the Ten 
Commandments.  She now treasures its rest and 
fellowship. She enjoyed learning about Ellen White 
and the church’s beginnings. “I was pleased to dis-
cover,” Irada says, “that here was a denomination 
who had a strong woman as one of its founders, and 
yet this leader neither sought nor accepted worship 
directed towards herself.” 
What was most instrumental in her decision to 
cast her lot with Adventism, however, was the wel-
coming acceptance and friendship she found within 
the church community. Bible-based doctrines were 
important to her. The concept of a triune God —
Father, Son and Holy Spirit — was in keeping with 
what she found in scripture. “But the loving accep-
tance of the church community and the beautiful 
life of my friend Assel,” she says, “spoke to me most 
powerfully, and still does today.” 
Irada continues to celebrate the positive changes 
that Christianity and Seventh-day Adventism have 
made for her. She isn’t alone, though, in marking the 
differences. Her husband and son tell her that she is 
a calmer, happier and more confident person since 
becoming a Christian. 
When asked which passage of Scripture has spe-
cial meaning to her, Irada quotes Romans 14:4: 
“Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To 
their own master, servants stand or fall. And they 
will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand” 
(NIV). How fitting that someone who was filled with 
questions for so many years finds herself drawn to a 
passage of Scripture that poses a question. The re-
minder that we are not appointed to judge others is 
central to Irada’s understanding and appreciation of 
her new faith. Especially reassuring is the promise of 
strength and endurance that comes from the Lord. 
As Irada daily learns more about her Savior, she 
remains ever grateful for the support of her church 
family and her Christian friends. “Dan once said to 
me,” Irada recalls, ‘I always knew you were closer 
to Jesus than you thought.’”  
 “Even though I still have much to learn about my 
Bible, my new church, and my new faith,” Irada con-
cedes, “I can see that Dan was right. I was closer to 
Jesus all along, indeed much closer than I thought.”P
Beverly Matiko lives in Niles, Michigan and is an associate pro-
fessor emerita of English and Communication. Though retired, 
she continues to enjoy telling her own stories and the stories of 
others from the podium and in print.
Photos by Josue Peralta


English

Closer to Jesus than I Thought

Kaiser, Denis

Andrews University 
Digital Commons @ Andrews University 
Lake Union Herald Lake Union Herald 
1-2025 
Little Acts of Kindness 
Denis Kaiser 
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/luh-pubs 
8 |  JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2025  |  Visit LakeUnionHerald.org
HIStory  / FOLLOWING THE LAMB WHEREVER HE GOES
Not long after, Rafael left for Venezuela to con-
tinue selling Adventist books. Unfortunately, his 
work was met with hostility. A local Catholic priest 
warned him to stop, but Rafael persisted. Tragically, 
a group of thugs ambushed and killed him. News of 
Rafael’s death in 1922 devastated the López fam-
ily and plunged them into financial hardship. Two 
years later, Rafael’s widow, Esperanza, realized she 
could no longer support her six children. Desperate, 
she sent her eldest daughter, 15-year-old Carmen, 
to live with relatives in New York City, hoping she 
might earn money and eventually prepare a new 
home for the family.
Though Carmen struggled to make much mon-
ey, she managed to rent a small apartment in 
Manhattan and later brought her mother and sib-
lings to join her. However, the López family found 
life in New York difficult, and without the close-knit 
Adventist community they had known, they slow-
ly drifted away from the faith for which Rafael had 
given his life.
Meanwhile, Sebastian Lewis learned of his friend 
Rafael’s tragic death and the López family’s move 
to New York. Determined to help, he relocated to 
the city and searched for them. When he finally 
found their home, he knocked on the door, greet-
ing Esperanza with a big smile and broken Spanish: 
“Hermana Esperanza, it’s me, Sebastian Lewis.”
When he discovered they had stopped attend-
ing church, Sebastian urged, “Hermana, you must 
come back to the Lord, for your husband’s sake and 
Little Acts of Kindness
E DENIS KAISER
In the 1910s, Sebastian Lewis, a native of St. Thomas in the 
Virgin Islands, arrived in Puerto Rico with his family. There, they 
met Rafael López, a recent convert to Seventh-day Adventism 
and a literature evangelist. Moved by compassion, Rafael offered 
the Lewis family a house he owned across the street and trained 
Lewis and his eldest son in literature evangelism.
for God’s sake. We must raise up a church here, a 
church for Puerto Ricans.”
Moved by his words, the López family began host-
ing weekly prayer meetings in their home. Carmen, 
often busy with work, usually excused herself. But 
one evening, returning home while the meeting was 
still in progress, she overheard her name being lift-
ed up in prayer. Deeply touched, she felt her need 
for Christ.
Sometime later, Lewis encountered Carmen 
on the subway as she returned home from work. 
Looking her in the eye, he said, “Carmelita, I’ve 
thought about this for a long time. I believe you 
should be our new Bible worker.”
Though Carmen felt unqualified, she sensed God’s 
call. She enrolled in a Bible doctrine course through 
the Home Study Institute, and at the age of 19 be-
came the first Hispanic Bible worker for the Greater 
New York Conference. Through her efforts, many 
Hispanics in Harlem, the Bronx and Brooklyn joined 
the church. Her work was instrumental in founding 
the first Hispanic church in New York City.1P
1  The information is based on Manuel Vasquez, “The Untold 
Story: 100 Years of Hispanic Adventism,” 1899–1999 (Silver 
Spring, MD: North American Division Multi-Lingual Ministries, 
2000), 84–89.
Denis Kaiser is an associate professor of church history at 
the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews 
University.
E Carmen López Morales


Little Acts of Kindness

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Cleaning Cave in B.3

Area of East Tell

Drs. Horn and Sauder discuss Problem in Area B

Lawrence Geraty Demonstrating Proper Tool Use

Area South the Tell

Philip Post uncovering pot in situ

John Wood Digging

Closer to Jesus than I Thought

Little Acts of Kindness

Working on Tumble in area D

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