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180-Degree Change

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Reynaldo Gutierrez, who goes by Rey, graduated last year from Holbrook Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Indian School. That may not sound like an out-of-the-ordinary accomplishment. However, near the end of Rey's junior year, graduating from Holbrook didn't appear to be an option.

Holbrook SDA Indian School is a grade school and high school (grades 1-12) mainly for Native Americans. It's located a few miles away from the vast Navajo reservation in Arizona.

Rey first came to Holbrook to attend fourth grade. As he continued attending Holbrook year after year, Rey didn't seem to be all that interested in religion. Then, during Rey's junior year, while his grades dropped lower and lower, he broke some of the school's rules.

The school administrators decided it was best to expel Rey. So Rey left a few months before the end of the school year.

Rey enrolled at a public high school in Phoenix, Arizona. When he started attending classes at his new school, he made a surprising discovery. Unlike Holbrook, this school had a large student body. Because there were so many students, Rey saw that his teachers didn't have enough time to deal with every student on a personal basis, which put more responsibility on students.

When he left Holbrook, Rey promised himself that he'd never get involved in gangs. At his new school he found gangs there. He also figured out that his new environment didn't allow students to discuss religious topics, like he was used to doing at Holbrook. These differences made it difficult for Rey to choose friends. But as friendly as Rey is, in a month or so he'd made some friends.

Weighing in

One day one of Rey's teachers brought up the movie The Passion of the Christ in class. As Rey listened to the class discussion about it, he realized that not only did the students not believe in the passion of Christ, they didn't believe in the Bible, either.

Eager to tell his classmates that the Bible is true and that Jesus Christ is real, Rey started weighing in on the discussion. He shared information from Daniel and Revelation to show that all the prophecies of the Bible are being fulfilled.

After class two girls came up to Rey to talk to him about what he'd said in class. To answer their questions, God helped Rey recall what he'd learned in Bible class at Holbrook.

As Rey explained more to these two girls about Daniel and Revelation, how these two books relate to each other, and how they relate to the passion of Christ, the girls wanted to learn even more.

The next day in class the discussion about The Passion of the Christ continued. Again Rey spoke up about the books of Daniel and Revelation.

A week later one of the two girls decided to attend church so she could learn more about what Rey had shared in class. Two weeks later the second girl attended church too.

After this experience Rey felt strongly convinced that he wanted to return to Holbrook SDA Indian School to learn more about God. He knew the faculty at Holbrook might not allow him to come back, though.

At the end of July Rey asked his mom to call Holbrook SDA Indian School to ask if he could come back. Rey's mom liked having him at home every day. Yet, she called Holbrook's registrar and vice principal, Mrs. Bragg.

Later that afternoon Rey's mom started telling Rey, "You are not permitted back at Holbrook SDA Indian School-"

Thinking he could do a better job of convincing the faculty than his mom had, Rey grabbed the phone before his mother could finish telling him what happened.

Rey called Mrs. Bragg. He told her about the experience he'd had at public school. "Please, Mrs. Bragg," Rey pleaded, "let me come back."

Through tears Mrs. Bragg replied, "I understand that you want to come back. But the administrative and discipline committees have to make the final decision."

Before they hung up, Rey and Mrs. Bragg prayed, putting the situation in God's hands.

The next day Rey asked his cousin to drive him to Holbrook so he could fill out the application package. The following Sabbath during divine worship on Holbrook's campus, Rey's name came up, along with a report about all the witnessing he'd done in public school.

Many of us were moved to tears to learn how God used Rey to reach some public school students. Thinking like human beings, we thought Rey would be one of the last people God would use. We thanked God for teaching us a lesson and for using Rey to tell others about Him. Then we prayed that the Holy Spirit would lead in the decision-making process on behalf of Rey's return.

A week after Rey called Mrs. Bragg, Rey came to Holbrook to follow up on the admissions process. He also presented his case to the school pastor (who is also one of the vice-principals), Mrs. Bragg, and the head dean of boys.

Rey promised to never break even the simplest rule at Holbrook SDA Indian School if they allowed him to come back. As Rey talked, the committee could see that he wasn't the Rey they used to know.

After Rey finished presenting his case and pleading for readmission, the members of the committee asked him to step out so they could make their decision. The committee decided to accept Rey on probation with two conditions: keep his academic standards high, and be a Christian model for other students.

Rey went back home rejoicing!

New year, new Rey

Rey regularly attended class and faithfully kept his promises. Many of Rey's friends noticed that he'd changed, and they started following his example.

The dean appointed Rey resident assistant for the grade school boys. Rey mentored a freshman and a sophomore by giving them guitar lessons. He even took part on the platform during divine worship service.

When I interviewed Rey, he requested, "Please keep praying for me and for the two girls who decided to go to church to learn more about Christ."

Rey is convinced that "if God can use me, He can use you too. It's a matter of surrendering all to God and being willing to do His work. He'll open the doors for you."

Safary Wa-Mbaleka used to be a teacher at Holbrook SDA Indian School in Holbrook, Arizona. He is now living in Puerto Rico.

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