October 12, 2026
An Amazing Fact: In 2005, scientists planted an ancient date palm seed discovered decades earlier at Masada, the historic fortress overlooking the Dead Sea. Radiocarbon dating indicated that the seed was about 2,000 years old. Yet even after nearly two millennia, it sprouted! Sometimes, a seed can lie dormant far longer than anyone imagines—waiting for just the right conditions to spring to life.
“Why am I still alive?
Duane had asked his daughter Ashley that question more than once. He was fighting advanced cancer that had already spread to his lungs and bones, and he couldn’t understand why he was still hanging on.
“I have to believe that God has a reason for you to still be alive, Dad,” Ashley told him. “There are no accidents with God.” Friend, Ashley had no idea how right she was!
Duane had been raised Mormon but drifted far from faith after nearly losing his life in Vietnam. Years later, when Ashley and her mother gave their hearts to Christ and were baptized, Duane wanted nothing to do with their newfound faith.
“Your baptism means nothing,” he told his daughter. Still, Ashley and her family kept praying for him. Then something changed.
After health problems landed Duane in the hospital several times, Ashley asked if she could pray for him. He said yes. “We were all surprised,” Ashley remembers. “He never used to let us pray with him.”
Soon afterward, Duane attended a Christian conference—where I happened to be speaking on what the Bible actually teaches about death. Ashley says that afterward, “He started asking questions about faith and joining us for family worship and prayer.”
Then came the devastating diagnosis of late-stage cancer. But even as Duane’s condition worsened, God kept putting answers in his path.
Ashley introduced him to The Richest Caveman, the story of how God rescued me from a lost life. Duane wanted to watch it immediately. He laughed, asked questions, and began thinking seriously about salvation.
Soon, he was tuning in to my sermons on his own. One message especially spoke to his heart: “Do You Need to Be Perfect to Be Saved?” Coming from his background, Duane struggled to understand God’s grace. But as he listened to Bible truth and studied God’s Word, the pieces came together: “For by grace you have been saved through faith … it is the gift of God, not of works” (Ephesians 2:8, 9).
A Life Transformed
“We had prayed for this for so many years,” Ashley says. “It was truly nothing short of a miracle to see the transformation in Dad’s life.” During his final months, Duane wanted to read only the Bible. He began making things right with people. Old wounds were healed and relationships restored.
Then Ashley shared something that deeply touched me. “He was finally the dad I’d always dreamt of having.” Duane’s cancer was not healed. But before he died, his heart was. Remember his question: “Why am I still alive?” There was still a reason. There was still time.
Today, Duane rests, awaiting the Lifegiver’s call. Ashley says, “I fully believe I will see Dad in heaven. He came to peace with Jesus before he died. Amazing Facts played an important role in Dad’s spiritual journey, and I am so thankful.”
And friend, her thanks belongs to you too. Your faithful gifts made those messages available when Duane needed them—a sermon heard in person, a testimony watched with his family, and Bible messages he later sought for himself. We never know which message God will use—or when a resistant heart will suddenly open.
That is why I’m asking you to prayerfully send a loving gift today to keep planting seeds of Bible truth in searching hearts.
Your gift will broadcast Christ-centered Bible messages, keep biblical answers available online, provide books and study resources, and carry the everlasting gospel through evangelistic outreach. As Paul wrote, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6).
Your compassionate gift today will put Bible truth within reach when another Duane begins searching. As my thank-you, I’d love to send you my message “Seven Keys to Spiritual Growth.” I believe it will help you experience a more victorious and fruitful spiritual life—and plant seeds of truth in the hearts of those around you.
And please include your prayer requests on the enclosed reply card. It is a privilege for our ministry family to lift you and those you love before the Lord each week.
Thank you for being a faithful co-laborer. Because you care, seeds of truth are being planted every day—and by God’s grace, lives are being changed for eternity.
Planting seeds for His kingdom,
Pastor Doug Batchelor
President, Amazing Facts International
P.S. Duane’s family prayed for years before they saw the seeds of truth begin to grow. Your sacrificial gift today will keep Bible truth going out through broadcasts, digital evangelism, books, Bible studies, and evangelistic outreach. Please keep planting seeds of truth—God knows which heart is ready to grow.
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