Pastor Walton spoke with Abi Thompson this week. She discussed her spiritual story, how she ended up coming to Guam, and how she knew it was time to move on.
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Chris Harper: Welcome to Harvest Time. My name is Chris Harper, and our host on this program is Pastor Gary Walton, the lead pastor of Harvest Baptist Church. Every week, we spend these twenty five minutes together telling you the stories of our church, interviewing our members and other friends of the ministry. We’d like to invite you to Harvest Baptist Church this weekend for two services. The first is at 08:45AM, the second at 10:45AM.
We have Japanese and Korean translation during that second service at 10:45, and that’s also when we live stream at hbcguam.org. hbcguam.org. This week, love is part nine from first Corinthians 13:8-13. Let’s begin today’s Harvest Time by welcoming Pastor Gary Walton. Hi, pastor.
Gary Walton: Hey, hafa adai, Chris. If you’ve been tracking along with our series, Chris just mentioned this is part nine. You might remember that we finished the final number of the 16 characteristics of love, two weeks ago on Sunday. And you’re like, woah, where are we going after this? But all along, we’ve been saying that one Corinthians 13 is a text right in the middle of a very important context, chapter twelve, thirteen and fourteen, that is all talking about spiritual gifts.
And so we’ve referenced that over time as we’ve come to the conversation on love and said that at the end, we’re going to come back and give some overview of those three chapters together, what they mean for the church, what they mean for our lives. And so that’s what we’re coming to this Sunday and then probably a couple Sundays after that, just talking through what about the supernatural gifts? What does the Bible say about speaking in tongues? What does it have to say about prophecy, the gifts of prophecy, and some others? And so that’s where we’re coming to this Sunday.
It’ll be very different in approach than that very practical teaching on what love means. But it’s a very important topic for us to understand what the Church is about in this age and what God expects of us in our worship. So I hope that you’ll come and join us this Sunday as we come back and look at the context around first Corinthians 13. Well, really glad to have the ever joyful Abi Thompson in studio with us today. Welcome, Abi.
Abi Thompson: Thank you, Pastor. Thanks for letting me be here.
Gary Walton: Yeah, I’m glad that you’re here. We did have to talk about it a few times before we got to this point, but I’m really thankful that you said yes.
Abi Thompson: Thank you.
Gary Walton: Abi has been at Harvest for a while, actually I think sixteen years. Came in 2009 as an intern. And then since then, Abi, I was trying to put the pieces together, but you’ve served in a lot of capacities. Generally, what kind of areas have you served in over the years?
Abi Thompson: Sure. I started out in the church office and HBBC office. And then I did some maintenance. And then back at the church office, was in the radio station for a while, and then back to maintenance.
Gary Walton: Okay. And you’ve been back in the maintenance department for how many years?
Abi Thompson: Probably about eight.
Gary Walton: Okay. If you know Abi, many of you do, you know that she has a servant’s heart and a love for Jesus that is evident in everything that she does. And she’s been such a blessing to Harvest Ministries over the years. Over the last few years, we’ve actually asked her if she would serve as the Facilities Director. So really overseeing our maintenance department and housekeeping and all kinds of things.
I remember when we first talked about this, Abi, you were like, You got the wrong person.
Abi Thompson: I still might feel that way.
Gary Walton: But in fact, this is exactly what God had. And I know that Abi said, Okay, if this is what, you know, what you’re asking, I’d be willing to do my best. And you’ve done above and beyond that, over these years. I’m so grateful for that, for your leadership, for your servant’s heart over these years. So thank you again for that.
You don’t even have to say anything about that. I’m just talking about it. We’re talking today because Abi’s getting ready to transition from Guam, from Harvest. We’ll talk about that in a minute. And God’s giving her a burden, and has been for some time, for ministry in another area.
So she’ll be leaving us this summer. Abi, we talk about this idea of Come, Grow, Serve, Go. And you’ll be going to join the ministry team on Yap. Mark and Diane Zimmer, pastor, missionary there in Yap Baptist Church, and pastor Francis is there, and Steven and Alicia, Zoe, and then a church family that’s just growing together. We’re gonna get to all that in a minute.
All right? I wanna talk about that and ask you about it. But let’s start with a background. Tell me about your spiritual story.
Abi Thompson: Sure. I grew up in Vermont with just a really godly family. I’m really thankful for my parents. They’re both believers who love God. They raised us, to study his word.
And that was just, yeah, the character of our family, and I’m really thankful for that.
Gary Walton: Are you in a big family, little family?
Abi Thompson: There’s seven kids, so I’m the third of seven.
Gary Walton: That’s like me. Did I know that?
Abi Thompson: I don’t know. Did you?
Gary Walton: We both have seven kids in our family. Yeah. Great.
Abi Thompson: Yeah. Which was a lot of fun. I loved it. I’m very thankful for that.
Gary Walton: And you’re right in the middle too? Yes. Yeah. Okay. Yep.
Abi Thompson: So when I was three, almost four, I heard a sermon about being a sinner, that I deserved to go to hell. And, even at that age, I knew that I was a sinner. I was very stubborn, very strong willed, and could be, yeah, a very horrible child. So that evening, talked with my mom about it. And even at that age, understood that only Jesus could save me and that I needed him.
So that evening, I did pray and I asked him to forgive me, and he did.
Gary Walton: Wow. Yeah. What did your parents do, Abi?
Abi Thompson: My father was a carpenter and then a propane technician, and then my mom was home with us.
Gary Walton: Okay. Great. So you’re very young, when you came to Jesus. Did you I mean, actually, there’s such clarity with that. You said he saved you, forgave you.
Did you I mean, do you what do you remember about that and the time after that?
Abi Thompson: I think there were. So I went through a period of fairly doubting it. And because I was so young, it wasn’t necessarily clear memories
Gary Walton: Right.
Abi Thompson: And wondering, was there really a change in my life? I worried a lot about doing things the right way. So a lot of wondering, okay. Did I pray right? Did I say the right things?
And that was me not understanding what the gospel is. Mhmm. So when I was probably 12 or 13, I was very concerned about it and ended up making another profession of faith, prayed again. But as I get older and look back, I do see changes in my life when I was younger, and I really do believe that when I was three is when I was, say, when I put my trust, my faith in Christ. But, yeah, definitely periods of wondering and not understanding and just thinking that it relied on me, me doing the right things, saying the right things, which really is just works.
It wasn’t faith. It wasn’t believing that Jesus really is the one that paid it all.
Gary Walton: What kind of this is a very familiar story. Actually, it’s it’s my story. Professional faith very early in a little bit later on some questions. I actually made another profession of faith later on in my teen years look back and really believe that I became a true believer when I was young. So this is very familiar.
I talk with a lot of people about this. What kinds of things did you think God used to help you come to a confirmation about sort of when you became a believer or maybe even that’s not as important as just the assurance that you are a true follower and believer in Christ?
Abi Thompson: Yeah. I think what you just said was an important change for me, that it didn’t have to be a certain point.
Gary Walton: Right.
Abi Thompson: Which I knew there is a point, right, when you do put your faith in Christ. Yeah. But that it is the heart attitude now of that. I know that Jesus is my savior. I know that he’s the son of god.
I know he died and rose again for me, and he’s changed my heart to want to live for him, to want everything that I do to bring him glory. And that now, even since that time, right, it’s been a growing process of getting to know him. I think just reading his word probably more than anything and seeing his love, seeing his grace, and it’s shown everywhere throughout the entire scripture and realizing that he pours it out so freely on us. And he doesn’t say, if you do all these things and if you live well enough or if afterwards if you live up to my standards, because I think that probably is more where I struggled
Gary Walton: Yep.
Abi Thompson: Was I know that it was his grace that saved me, a lot of times I lived much more that, okay, now that he saved me, I have to do all these certain things to prove that I was worthy of him saving me. And I’ll never be able to do that. He doesn’t want me to do that. It’s all his grace, even just to be able to grow in him.
Gary Walton: I Love Romans 8:16. It says, The spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. I think it’s such a powerful test of our faith. It’s not whether I prayed some prayer or whether I prayed it enough or I prayed it in the right way. But genuine conversion evidences itself in a renewed spirit, the Holy Spirit coming to dwell in our lives.
I mean, that’s how the Bible describes it. And bearing witness with our spirit, this confirmation that takes place that we are the children of God. And, yeah, I love that that assurance of of God’s work in that way.
Abi Thompson: I think even more recently, like, continually shows me areas in my life where I’m failing. Yeah. And I’m thankful for his conviction. Even when it’s, like, really hard things, I’m like, I don’t really actually wanna deal with that. But he’s so good and kind and faithful in bringing that back to my attention in so many ways, whether it’s in church, right, the preaching will be on a passage.
I’m like, I just read that, and I kinda skimmed over it because it hit a place in my life that needs to change. But that’s also at the same time such an assurance that I know I’m his child, right? He disciplines those that he loves and I’m thankful for that.
Gary Walton: I’m glad we’re talking about this because I think it’s not unusual for people to have questions about it. In fact, I was just talking with somebody this week about the passages in first John that say, you know, these things, first John chapter five thirteen says, These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you might know that you have eternal life. And it’s referencing the whole book of one John. In fact, if you’re listening today and you’re like, Man, I got some of these questions about my own faith, or Am I a genuine Christian? Well, first John, if you read through that short book, it’s five chapters, but it gives us a number of marks or indications of the people who are genuine followers of Jesus.
And it lists actually several things that you’re talking about, Abi. This love for the people of God, the conviction of sin, desire for God in his Word. And you can just go through and read that book and write down, hey, here’s the eight, ten, 12 things that are marks of genuine Christians. And if those are evident in your life, then you can have the assurance that Christ is your savior, that you are a follower of him and a child of him. So I love that passage.
Of course, it’s always good to talk to a mentor about that. I guess I’m just talking to people that are listening right now. If you have a spiritual mentor in your life that really knows the Word and you’ve got questions about this, this is a very important conversation to be able to have with somebody. Okay, so growing up in Vermont, trying to follow Jesus, throughout your elementary, middle school, high school. Just tell me about that journey kind of up to the point where you ended up on Guam.
Abi Thompson: I went to public school all the way through, and that was really good for me too, actually. Everyone knew that I was a believer there. Mhmm. And it gave a lot of really good opportunities, even with teachers and just classmates and stuff to, to have to choose to take a stand for Christ because a lot of times it would have been really easy just to wanna fit in Yeah. With everybody else.
And I tend to wanna fit in. I don’t enjoy being the one that’s different. But it was good for me, like, to really even at that point talking about knowing if I was a believer or not, it was very clear in my mind that if I was following Christ, then I needed to do what was right, and I needed to speak up the truth, right, even when everybody else didn’t wanna hear it. So that was good, and I’m thankful for it now. Looking back, very thankful that God allowed me to experience all of that.
But after high school, went to Northland Baptist Bible College and studied cross cultural studies. I originally really wanted to go into aviation missions, but some different stuff came up with that, didn’t end up being able to, so I did cross cultural studies instead.
Gary Walton: Okay. And then that, is that sort of what brought you out to Guam? How did how did you end up out here? Tell us about that.
Abi Thompson: Yeah. On my graduation, Pastor Herron, who was the pastor out here, was also on the board of directors at Northland at the time. So he was there for the graduation. And I was crossing the road right before going home, and he was driving too fast. He almost hit me.
So it was a near death experience that brought me out here.
Gary Walton: That’s I like it.
Abi Thompson: Yeah. So I jumped out of the way. He stopped, And then he had seen me graduate and had oddly remembered my name and asked what I was planning on doing. Said I was interested in missions, but wasn’t really sure what next steps to take. So he asked if I wanted a job out here.
That’s how I came.
Gary Walton: The rest is history.
Abi Thompson: Here I am.
Gary Walton: Yeah. Yeah. So that was 2009.
Abi Thompson: Yes.
Gary Walton: Came out in the office.
Abi Thompson: Yep. So intern the first year.
Gary Walton: Okay. Yeah. Intern. That’s right. First year and then followed up after that.
What’s ministry been been like here? How’s God grown you?
Abi Thompson: Probably in a lot of different ways. Many, many ways. I think he shows me more and more of myself, reveals my sinful tendencies. He gives opportunities to love people, to meet people. I’ve appreciated out here.
We have so many godly leaders and then just godly peers and being able to work with people who love God and that you’re able to have conversations with. God used that quite a bit in my life, to help me to grow, to be able to have people that I could go to and ask questions, which I didn’t necessarily have growing up. It was probably available and I just never
Gary Walton: Right.
Abi Thompson: Actually reached out to people. Mhmm. And even that probably in recent years has been something more and more that I’ve been very thankful for and have wanted to go to, other people older than me in the faith, learn from them, grow from them, and then just many opportunities here to be able to minister in a lot of different areas. Those were probably areas that I hadn’t been able to before, stretching areas, areas of growth, a lot of things that I don’t feel comfortable doing, but God uses that to change us.
Gary Walton: Well, Abi’s a servant, and just wherever the need is, has always been willing to step in in multiple different ways. I know that you’ve been burdened for, I was gonna say for missions, I don’t even know about that, but been burdened for some sense that is God asking you to do something else beyond Guam? Don’t think more because I think it’s such a significant ministry here. But I mean, I think from right away at the first time that we were here, you and I’ve had conversations about your praying, your thinking, you didn’t know what the next step was, you’d be content here but wondered if God had something else. Tell me about that journey over a few years of kind of wondering what else God was up to.
Abi Thompson: Yeah. I think you’ve described it well of just having you did a great job. I’m just having a sense, right, of I guess unsettledness might be unsettledness isn’t even the correct word, though, because I do love being here at Harvest, and there were so many are so many things that God’s allowed me to learn while being here. But there was an underlying sense of I don’t think this is forever. And probably just a wondering of how do you know when it’s the time to go?
And you know here a lot of people come and go, and so many of them had asked me, like, well, how did you know that God was leading you somewhere else? And what I really wanted was, like, a formula, right, of, like, well, this and this and this happened, so therefore, I knew. And that’s not the way that God leads. He leads on a very individual basis. And particularly in the last few years, has been a much more concentrated time of praying about it and seeking God’s will there of, do I stay here, continue with my role, or was there somewhere else that God was leading?
And up until about a year ago, his answer was always very much, okay. You stay where you are. Mhmm. And that that’s where He wanted me. And that was a good a good answer.
There was hard things that came with it, but it was also, I know where I’m supposed to be, and it’s what God wants me to be doing. And he used it in so many ways to change me and to show me things, to grow me, still is. Mhmm. And then just more recently, though, like I said, about a year ago, it was much more of a, like, the time is coming to be leaving Harvest to be going somewhere else. And it wasn’t necessarily anything like, there wasn’t any great experience.
Gary Walton: Right.
Abi Thompson: It was a very personal thing between me and God and just a growing sense of, okay. I think He’s leading me on. And from there, just, can you take one step at a time? And a lot of the way it hasn’t been obvious exciting things. It’s been more of just, there might be an open door, so you step through it, and then a lot of waiting and praying.
And then as God opens another opportunity, step through that. And I think learning that that is a process of faith, that faith isn’t just, like, seeing some huge task, some awesome thing and be like, yes. I’m gonna go do it. But a lot of it is being willing to trust that God knows what he’s doing, and I don’t have to have all the answers right now, that I can just follow him as he leads and trusting him that if I take a step in a direction he’s not wanting Right. That he’ll show me that.
And that I don’t need to be afraid to send in an application for a job or to reach out to a missionary, that he was in all that, that I can trust whatever the response is that He’s directing it.
Gary Walton: That’s so good, Abi. So clear. God’s never trying to fool us. He’s not trying to trick us. You know, we Christians who are sensitive to his will and trying to follow him, he’s not holding out a carrot over someplace.
When we start following after that, he pulls it away from us. God is not a father like that. He really does want to lead us. But, and you and I’ve talked about this quite a few times, sometimes it’s hard in learning to hear his voice because often it isn’t a still, small voice. Sometimes God speaks to some people, he like shouts it at them, and they’re so clear, you know, this is exactly what you want to do.
That hasn’t usually been my experience. A couple times it has been. But I think you sharing that is really important that this is sometimes how God leads us. And again, if I can just back up, I mean, have been a number of times you’ve said, God, what you doing? And God just kept saying, Stay.
You know, stay. And you weren’t, Hey, I’m ready to go. I’m willing to do this. You’re just listening to God’s quiet voice saying stay and being confident in that. And then I know when there was a turn.
I don’t know exactly when, but I know when our conversations turned and there was that, Hey, I really think God is moving us, moving me. And I really I’ve trusted that all along, but I really I think it’s a beautiful thing for people to hear that I’m just following God. He’s gonna open and close the doors. So, the plan is very soon to head to Yap. Can you tell us a little bit about what and why?
Abi Thompson: Sure. Oh, even that’s kind of a vague story, which I’ve mentioned to you just feeling like. But I think God allowed me my first year out here. I got to go visit Yap, and that was a really great thing. I stayed with Roland Sinchellen.
Gary Walton: Oh, wow.
Abi Thompson: Pastor Mark and Diane were in The States at that time. So got to know them just for a week, but really enjoyed it. Since my time here, I’ve really loved spending time with all of our Micronesian students and their families that are here. And at this point in life, right, you can look back and see how God was using that. At the time, it was just a a loving thing that he gave and a desire too to be able to understand them more to reach into their culture.
He allowed me to spend a lot a lot of time, especially when I was first out here, like just hours in the dorm Yeah. With them, and I’m thankful for that time. So I think that that probably planted a seed. Then, in 2019, I got to go out while they were building their church and help out with that for a week and once again enjoyed it, but it wasn’t ever like, this is where I’m gonna end up someday, which I know some people have that. I didn’t.
It was just really thankful for the opportunity, but back here and just continue where I was. So I think Yap really came about when I was first thinking about all this probably around August. Was talking with pastor Keith, kinda mentioned that I was like, I don’t know. I’d really maybe like to go to Yap, just help out with pastor Mark and Diane. I appreciate their church so much.
I love their heart for discipleship and just so much about their ministry that I really appreciate. They’re just faithful, humble people. So he asked me if I’d emailed them. I was like, no. Why would I ask them?
I was shocked. I was like, no. Like, definitely not. Why would I do that? So he’s like, well, you have to know the truth of the situation.
You know the truth of God’s word. So going there and desiring to serve like that aligns with what we’re told to do in scripture, but I have to know the truth of the situation. So I emailed them that evening, just asking if it would even be a possibility. And I don’t know what I was hoping they would say, but they said yes. So, they asked if I’d come out for a couple days just to be able to talk, see the ministry with a different perspective, with the idea of being able to go out there.
So my desire is to go out and just help in their church however I can, just as a regular church member of hopefully helping to teach some of the Bible studies and Sunday school classes, just whatever they need. And then I’ll be working at Yap High School.
Gary Walton: Okay. Yeah, so God’s provided that part. You’re gonna teach. Yep. And that, again, has been just following what doors God opens.
So you’re gonna teach at the high school. Got a living situation there.
Abi Thompson: We think so. Yeah. It’s in the works.
Gary Walton: And, I mean, frankly, Abi is going by faith. There’s some financial challenges in that whole situation, but God’s gonna provide, and, she believes that. So, Abi, we can pray for that, that God would just meet your needs. But anything else that we can pray for as you go? And and then tell us kind of what your timing is.
Abi Thompson: Sure. I think probably the biggest prayer request I have is that when I did my interview with, the YAP Department of Education, they asked me if I would consider doing bible studies with their high school students, which was such if there was, like, any clear leading that God did throughout this process, that one was like, k. This is definitely the job he wants me to take. It was also the only job available, but even beyond that, it was just for them to ask me to do that, was incredible. But it also comes with such a huge responsibility.
And I know if God is calling and leading, it’s him that does it. Right? And that’s what I want. It has to be him. It’s never gonna be me saying the right things or doing things well, but I wanna be an empty vessel that he can use.
So if you would pray for those like, I have not had much experience with teens, even here. Like, I never worked with them, so it’s a very different very out of my comfort zone, just the teaching them, but also the bible studies. And they go through a lot of things out there. Like, they have a lot of just burdens that they carry that I’m not familiar with. God knows it, though, so that I would trust him and that I would be just faithful in sharing the word, know how to do it in an effective way.
That be my biggest prayer request.
Gary Walton: Okay. We’ll pray. Those teens in Yap High School has no idea the privilege that they are going to have, honestly, to have you there, Abi, and God’s called there and the impact I mean, I just am overwhelmed by the impact I think God’s going to allow you to have in individuals, but in many ways. I know the church is gonna be blessed. The HBBC grads that are there that are serving and Pastor Mark and Diane, they’ll all be blessed.
You’ll be missed incredibly here. But we’re glad that you’re close and we love that ministry. So the privilege of being able to send one of our best to help there with the ministry, that’s just, it’s an awesome, awesome opportunity even for us as a church. So thank you for saying yes. Thank you for following Christ’s leading and listening to his voice, and, we’re gonna pray that God uses you in ways far beyond what you can even imagine.
Abi Thompson: Thank you.
Chris Harper: And thank you for listening to Harvest Time. Of course, at this point in the program, we always want to invite you again to services at Harvest Baptist Church. We have two services on Sunday, 08:45AM and 10:45AM. There’s Japanese and Korean translation available during the 10:45AM service, and that’s also the service we bring you live here on 88.1 FM and KHMG.org. We hope to see you this Sunday.
Thanks again for listening to Harvest Time.