Believe His prophet

Toward the end of the reign of King Jehoshaphat, the kings of Moab and Ammon united their armies to fight against Judah. Jehoshaphat proclaimed a fast throughout Judah and turned to the Lord in prayer. As the king and his people were humbling themselves before the Lord, through the gift of prophecy, Jehoshaphat received the assurance that the Lord would fight for the Judeans (see 2 Chronicles 20:1-18). Early the next morning, the king said to his people, ” ‘Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper’ ” (verse 20). Then Jehoshaphat did something unusual; he told the temple singers to march ahead of the soldiers into battle. What a sight that must have been—the singers marching at the head of the army, lifting their voices in praise to God for the promised victory! And the Lord honored their faith. “When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped” (verse 24).GP 117.2

“Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” The truth of this promise was brought home in a singular way to Australian Adventists in the 1890s. Soon after her arrival in Australia in 1891, Ellen White told the conference committee that the Lord had instructed her to tell them that they should establish a school. In response they pointed out that there were only about one thousand Adventists in all of Australia, few of whom owned their own homes. How could they purchase land, erect the necessary buildings, and establish, equip, and operate a school? While acknowledging the difficulties, Ellen White consistently reminded them of the school the Lord had shown her in vision.GP 117.3

In 1894, the conference officials found in Cooranbong a block of fifteen hundred acres available for about three dollars an acre. The price seemed alluring, but the land itself was disappointing. Ellen White went with the committee to examine the property. Before starting out on the morning of the second day, they had a season of prayer. In the group that morning was an Elder McCullagh, who, afflicted with diseased lungs and throat, was losing ground physically. While they were all bowed in prayer, the Lord impressed Ellen White to pray for the healing of Brother McCullagh, which she did. Speaking of it later, he said that, as she prayed, it seemed as though a shock of electricity went through his body. His coughing ceased, he soon regained his strength, and he lived for many more years. The committee took this as a sign from God that they should move forward in faith and purchase the land. The experts they consulted, however, told them that the soil was poor and that they would be wasting their money purchasing the place. In a dream, Ellen White received another sign that she believed confirmed that in spite of what the land experts said, the Lord wanted them to purchase that property. Here is the remarkable story in her own words:GP 118.1

Before I visited Cooranbong, the Lord gave me a dream. In my dream I was taken to the land that was for sale in Cooranbong. Several of our brethren had been solicited to visit the land, and I dreamed that as I was walking upon the ground I came to a neat cut furrow that had been ploughed one quarter of a yard deep, and two yards in length. Two of the brethren who had been acquainted with the rich soil of Iowa were standing before this furrow and saying, “This is not good land; the soil is not favorable.” But One who has often spoken in counsel was present also, and He said, “False witness has been borne of this land.” Then He described the properties of the different layers of earth. He explained the science of the soil, and said that this land was adapted to the growth of fruit and vegetables, and that, if well worked, would produce its treasures for the benefit of man. This dream I related to Brother and Sister Starr and my family.GP 118.2

The next day we were on the cars, on our way to meet others who were investigating the land, and as I was afterward walking on the ground where the trees had been removed, lo, there was a furrow just as I had described it, and the men also who had criticized the appearance of the land. The words were spoken just as I had dreamed (8MR 259).GP 119.1

When Mrs. White told the members of her party what the angel had said in her dream, they were deeply impressed. They recognized that the Lord had indeed led them to this place, and they voted to purchase the property.GP 119.2

Time has vindicated the counsel Ellen White gave. The school prospered, becoming a model for Adventist schools around the globe, and it is still training young people for the Lord’s work. It was this writer’s privilege to spend three years at Avondale College in the 1960s and to witness firsthand how the Lord had blessed this school.GP 119.3