The Best Stall In The Market

Written by Michelle Adams.

“So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.” Romans 10:17

Michelle Adams and her husband Lance come from a small beachside village on the east coast of the North Island, New Zealand. Although they both had Christian backgrounds, they steered away from being
associated with organised religion, and instead focused on God and his Word.

However, Lance and Michelle learned that Saturday was the Sabbath.

“It just made sense to us,” said Michelle. “Our hunger for Bible study grew. Through prayer, we were introduced to a wonderful couple who visit us every Sabbath for Bible study and a shared lunch. Our little
home hosts around twelve people every Sabbath to study God’s Word and we love it.”

But Michelle knew they would be travelling to Townsville (Queensland) soon and wondered how they would keep Sabbath there. She and Lance had visited Townsville several times and particularly
enjoyed going to the Willows Rotary Markets to buy their fruits and vegetables each week. Typically, they would purchase what they needed for the week, load it in the car, and then quickly drive home before the
day got too hot.

But on this visit, after they had loaded the produce into the car, Michelle found herself suggesting that they return to the markets and look around again.

“This was unusual,” notes Michelle. “I had never done this before. I was always too concerned about the produce getting too hot in the car. But on this occasion, it didn’t concern me in the slightest.”

As Michelle wandered through the markets, she noticed a stall with familiar cookbooks—the Revive series by Jeremy Dixon. Since she enjoyed the Revive cookbooks, she decided to see what else the stall might
offer. To her delight, she noticed a whole array of free books on offer.

“I took off to find my husband and asked him if he had seen the best stall in the market,” said Michelle. “He was bemused, so I told him to come with me.”

“The will of God never takes you to where the grace of God will not protect you.”

They were greeted by literature evangelist Willa Brough.

“Lance saw the books and he got it. He understood why this was the best stall in the market,” said
Michelle. “From that moment on, our lives changed, and for this, we thank God. His guidance is simply
amazing.”

That afternoon, Willa invited Lance and Michelle into her home for a Bible study. She and her husband Ian gave them study notes and invited them to visit their church the following Sabbath. Lance and
Michelle had never been to an Adventist church before and were delighted to find the people friendly
and welcoming.

“We learned more with the Sabbath school hour, listened earnestly to the fabulous sermon, enjoyed
joyful music, and then were treated to an exceptionally delicious lunch under the shade of some ginormous trees. What a Sabbath!” exclaims Michelle. “We were absolutely delighted and so thankful we met Willa and Ian at the markets that day.”

That evening, Lance and Michelle met Willa and her family down on The Strand to close Sabbath.
Here, they met more wonderful Sabbath-keepers.

“We want to thank the Lord for giving Willa the insight to have a stall at the Sunday markets,” declares Michelle. “Without this, we would never have been blessed with Ian’s study lessons or have visited the Riverside church that day. Thank you, Lord, for bringing these wonderful people into our life, allowing us to share meals, stories and give thanks together.”