Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old....Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43: 18, 19)

One of the aspects of this ministry that we have not really focused on in our monthly newsletters to you has been our weekly Penn State Athletic Department Bible Study. We hold this study each Wednesday at noon in a conference room at the Bryce Jordan Center. Many of the coaching staff, as well as others involved in athletic department administration and support staffs join when they can for this time of study and sharing of God's Word.

Recently, the Bible Study group suggested hosting a special luncheon event to be used to invite others and as an outreach evangelistic occasion. This special luncheon was held on April 8th in the Varsity Lounge of the BJC. The keynote speaker was Pastor Bill Pepper from Grace Bible Church in Altoona, PA. Pastor Pepper has quite a story to share! As he will tell you, he is a person that has first-hand experience of Christ at the center of someone's life.....you see, Pastor Pepper was diagnosed in June of last year with HIV (actually, full-blown AIDS) and was given just 6 to 14 days to live. How does this happen to a man living in the will of God and doing His work....a man who has lived a morally pure life and has never done drugs??? How could God allow such an event to happen in such a life as this.....let us share a bit of his story with you....as were all of us who heard him speak that day, you will surely be blessed!!

Pastor Pepper told us God first changed his life in 1958, when he received Christ as Savior and Lord of his life. He grew up in a Christian home, farmed for a while and then received the call from God to enter the ministry and attended Bible College. He has been pastoring in the Altoona area for several years. Where, then, could he have contacted this horrible virus? The only incident that can be attributed to the cause of this disease was in 1983 when Pastor Pepper came upon a horrible traffic accident and he assisted in pulling out a victim from under a car. In the process, he cut his own hand and it intermingled with the blood on the scene. Afterward, he found out the person he attempted to rescue was a prostitute from the New York area. This is the probable cause of infection, the doctors tell him now. The disease did not surface until many years later, however.

Pastor Pepper told us that he was sick for about two years prior to his diagnosis, and only when he developed the type of pneumonia that AIDS victims usually contract, did they test for AIDS. That test was positive. Can you imagine what he was feeling...what his family had to deal with...how did they do this? Only by the Grace of God and through the support and prayers of many, many Christian family and friends. At this time he was down to 136 pounds and literally "wasting away", he told us. He did not expect to survive and was very anxious to meet the Lord and Savior that he so faithfully served, actually looking forward to going home to Heaven and being out of this terrible state of life. He denied the special drug treatment that was offered to him and expected to die in a day or two. However, his daughter came to him and told him that she was expecting his fourth grandchild. This really changed his perspective and with much urging from his family, he decided to go into treatment. The drugs available now, he said, a type of "cocktail" for HIV infested people, is a miracle for him. The Protae Inhibitors that he now takes were not available before, and they actually "corral" the virus and do not allow it to spread in his body. Last June the HIV count was at 390,000 and by October of the same year, it was totally suppressed in his body. It's been a year of rebuilding his muscles, regaining his strength, and recovery, he said. He now exercises regularly to help build his immune system, stays on his drug therapy, and plans to run in a race in Altoona soon. Oh yes, Pastor Pepper was here to hold that new little grandbaby, his fourth granddaughter! We all cried when he told us that story.

What is the purpose of his life now and how do you go forth in the ministry when you are AIDS/HIV positive? Pastor Pepper feels the miraculous part of this whole story is Christ. Christ's birth, life and death are a sign of His miraculous self. In the Garden of Gesthemane, Christ told the disciples to be ready -- "Arise....and let us go" were His words to His followers. Christ knew that Calvary was imminent and that His crucifixion was to take place, yet He was willing to go where God would have Him to go, and this is how Pastor Pepper now looks at his life. "We as Christians and pastors, need to know how to deal with this problem and how to reach these people," he said. "More and more people, yes, even Christians, will get this disease in the future. We need to minister hope through the Person of Jesus Christ, and help to those that need it," he reiterated. "Christ's hope is eternal....and this is the only way to Heaven, through Jesus Christ. With Christ, all things are possible!" he said. Pastor Pepper feels he is living proof of this!

What is in his future? Although doing amazingly well at this point in time, Pastor Pepper knows that the future is in God's hands. "God takes me a day at a time.....do you really live that life?" he asked. "Is every moment of your day important?" He challenged us to see that every day is an experience with God and to be a part of life and share God's gift of eternal life and peace of heart with all we meet. "Arise and let us go...." Pastor Pepper reminded us that now is the time to get out the message of Hope and Help...the "hope" lasts for eternity (John 3:16) and the "help" is needed by many people we see and touch every day.

What a blessing we received as we heard this story! We knew you would like to hear it as well, and we covet your prayers for Pastor Bill Pepper of Grace Bible Church in Altoona, PA. May God continue to bless him and use him as he shares this story of God's saving grace with others.

(If you would like to talk with Pastor Pepper, please feel free to call him at The Grace Bible Church - (814) 695-4060. )

(Prepared and edited for AIA/PSU by Judy Markley)