Wisconsin

When Lisa Isensee, Monroe Church pastor, received a request in the mail for video Bible studies from LaVada Roper, she responded right away. She found LaVada, and discovered she loved the Lord, was kind and thoughtful, and had a great sense of humor.

Some weeks later, when Lisa picked up the video about the Bible Sabbath, she asked LaVada if the subject was new to her or if she had any questions. She responded, "No, I don’t have any questions because it is the truth, and I’ve known about it since I was a little girl."

As it turned out, when she was just four years old, she had learned about the Sabbath from her grandmother, who loved the Lord and often spoke about the Sabbath. She remembered hearing her say, "Sunday is not the day God tells us to worship—Saturday is!"

LaVada remembers that her grandmother gave her a Bible of her very own as a young child. It was she who helped put a desire in LaVada's heart to love Jesus and want to follow Him in all He asked her to do.

In 1955, as a young wife and mother, LaVada lived in Schullsberg, Wisconsin. The Voice of Prophecy radio broadcast was heard in that area at that time. Each night, LaVada and her grandmother listened to the familiar music of the King's Heralds quartet and the loving, encouraging messages from H.M.S. Richards.

One day, LaVada and her grandmother decided to enroll in the free Bible correspondence course that was offered. LaVada completed the course and enrolled in another course on the book of Daniel. Now, 50 years later, she was delighted to find someone teaching the same familiar truths she had learned from the broadcast. She was also excited to learn that the Hope Bible Prophecy Seminars were coming to Monroe in Fall 2004. She determined she was going to attend.

Arthur "Art" Schneider also attended the Hope Bible Prophecy Seminars. He had not been to a church service more than a dozen times his entire life. What drew him to the prophecy seminars was a desire to be with his fiancée, LaVada Roper. He could tell she was captivated by what she was hearing and that God was speaking to her heart.

But it wasn't just her heart God was speaking to. As he learned about God's wonderful plan of salvation, His atoning death on Calvary, and that Jesus died for him personally, Art gave his life to Jesus Christ and accepted salvation by faith. On February 26, 2005, Art and LaVada sealed their decisions through baptism, and now they both are experiencing the joy of being a part of God's family after all these years.

Bruce Babienco, Lake Union Herald volunteer correspondent with Lisa Isensee, Wisconsin Conference church planting coordinator and Monroe Company pastor