Day nine of the 62nd General Conference (GC) Session closed with an evening worship service hosted by Hope Channel International highlighting a story from an Ethiopian church.

This testimony is a part of the series Stories of Hope that shares powerful first-hand accounts of lives changed by the gospel.

A man named Zawude was forced to seek shelter when a powerful rain interrupted his walk home. In the home where he took shelter, he watched a Hope Channel program, and the words transformed his heart. From there, he was introduced to a Seventh-day Adventist church in his region.

Zenebu, the wife of Zawude, said, “We received this light, and even though we knew the gospel, I was so happy with what we learned from what he [Zawude] watched.”

The story highlighted the need for church plants or home churches in countries such as Ethiopia, where languages and cultures are numerous.

“I was very surprised we got this light and didn’t understand it [before]. I was so happy with what he informed me of that he watched, even though we knew the gospel before.”

Before this testimony was shown, Debleaire Snell, speaker/director of the Breath of Life television ministry in the North America Division, spoke on the power of being a witness.

“The witness helps the jury to decide,” Snell said. “In order to be a witness for Jesus, all you need to have is a testimony.”

A testimony, he explained, is simply sharing your experience with Jesus as a way to help another person.

“We are all witnesses tonight to the power of God,” Snell said. “Let's not be ‘sad-ventists,’ let’s be ‘glad-ventists.’ ”

Evening worship takes place each night of the GC Session at 7 p.m. inside the arena. Tomorrow’s evening worship to open the Sabbath will be held by the Ellen G. White Estate.

The final division reports for the 2025 GC Session were given after tonight’s evening worship. The reports are for the Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division, Southern Asia-Pacific Division, and Inter-American Division.

For more coverage of the 2025 General Conference Session, including live updates, interviews, and delegate stories, visit adventist.news and follow ANN on social media.