Woe

If you are easily offended, don't read this post! Some Adventist Internal Affairs, presented at length

Carree Sings. Pastor Meadows Philosophizes 

Isaac Carree as depicted on the M.O.B. (Men of Berean) placard publicizing the five day conference that featured Carree and Pator Nevilon Meadows. Cool!

A recent five day conference at Berean Seventh-day Adventist Church, Atlanta, was sponsored by the men’s group recently inaugurated at the church, “M.O.B.” Gospel Artist Isaac Carree sang for 15 minutes or so in the course of the Sabbath service. But Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, twice on Saturday, and Sunday morning events revolved around Pastor Nevilon Meadows, who may well have spoken for at least a dozen hours total during the course of the five day conference. The talks by Pastor Meadows represented just the tip of his didactic iceberg, as he possesses a stock of presentations on many varied topics. Extracts from several of these, combined with a large dose of Q & A, formed the body of the six addresses he offered not only to the “Men of Berean,” but (on Wednesday and twice on Sabbath) to listeners of both genders.

 

My former employer once remarked that Paul McCartney was such a prolific songwriter, he often wound up with more ideas than he could use. When this occurred, he would take several of these ideas and place them into a single song. The result would be a song that was more like two or three songs all rolled into one. Pastor Meadows is also prolific, but has developed his ideas into separate “songs” that reside in the form of Power Point presentations on his computer. But rather than deliver six of these narrowly focused lectures, he instead “sampled” content from his entire body of work. This kept things moving along, as the result was several servings of highly concentrated information, and a broad overview of Pastor Meadow’s total  inventory. It served to whet the appetite for more. More was available, for a modest sum. Pastor Meadows is not on the conference payroll. He lives on the proceeds of lecture fees and the sale of media. He is a self-proclaimed “hustler,” but the merchandise he is pushing is very useful. Here is the pastor’s website:

 

MEN UNDER DEVELOPMENT

 

The opening of a short address by Pastor Meadows delivered 5 years ago at Oakwood: “There are three ways we’re broken…” The pastor enumerates many points in the course of his interesting presentations.

The Wednesday night start of the series of talks by the pastor was too brief and wide ranging to serve as more than an overture to the lengthy presentations that would follow. Thursday and Friday evening, and Sunday morning presentations were geared toward an all-male audience. As the pastor’s appearance was sponsored by a men’s group, a large measure of his attention was directed the issue of manhood. The speaker, as Pastor Russell stated with regard to a recent sermon by himself, “pulled no punches” in the course of his men-only symposiums. But although the subject of manhood is a specialty of Pastor Meadows, his wide-ranging interests address many additional areas of concern, both topical and eternal. Sabbath's morning sermon was a more extended overview of the speaker's ouvre than the exclusively male sessions, and could have been discovered at time marker 1:58:30 in this broken link to the ENTIRE SERVICE. The user has removed it. Also unavailable is the June 14th service, due to copyright infringement. ChurchPond is an alternate source for videos of Berean Services, but seems to be joined at the hip to YouTube. I can comprehend a crackdown on copyright violation. Some slick in-house lawyer for Sony has discovered that they are missing a few hundred million a year by not cracking the royalty whip toward houses of worship. The "removal by user" of this service is less comprehensible, but I definitely have some pet theories about this, ones which I am most reluctant to share.

Isaac Carree prefaced the sermon with song, and reappeared after the sermon. The final song was very nice, but was not particularly well integrated into the sermon material. As the content of the sermon could be described as "The Greatest Hits of Nevolin Meadows," it would be difficult to isolate a single theme to accentuate with song. But it was all, as previously stated, very nice.

A short animation that greets visitors to Pastor Meadow’s “Men Under Development” website features a character that arises from the muck (or mud perhaps) in order to stand tall and triumphant. All it lacks is music from Richard Strauss’ “Also sprach Zarathustra.”

Pastor Meadows was introduced by Berean Lead Pastor Fredrick Russell, who noted that the guest speaker was originally attached to the Lake Region Conference (Chicago and environs). He had been Youth Director there, but left this position in order to “serve on the front lines.” Pastor Russell said that the Conference office exists in order to serve the frontline church [and not vice-versa, he seemed to imply]. Pastor Nevilon Meadows was called to a wider ministry, one currently designated by the acronym M.U.D. (Men Under Development). The Lead Pastor reminded everyone that the second week in August would be dedicated to women. Next year, however, the “weeks” would be rebranded as “seasons” [presumably extending their periods and significance]. M.U.D. was a ministry, Pastor Russell said, and recognized nothing that God did not breathe into. He added that recent writing and reading had put him in mind of this concept: “You have to recognize yourself as nothing. You have to realize not only that God is greater than you; other people are greater than you.”
 

An endorsement of the new Berean men’s association was offered. “Entry level contact with this church should be to connect with Earl [Blair, leader of the “Men of Berean”]. Pastor Russell asserted that this Sabbath’s speaker had done a “deep dive” into the topic of men. He then described Pastor Meadows as having a “forthright, in your face manner” [an understatement, believe it or not]. “Not to you ladies,” Pastor Russell amended, “but men require the direct, blunt approach!”

 

Rather than gloss the Sabbath sermon, a summary of the discursive, interactive, and very informative Sabbath afternoon installment of Nevolin Meadow’s series will be provided below. This talk was geared, like the main Sabbath sermon. to persons of both genders. It offers samples of many of the various subjects that constitute the pastor’s wide-ranging field of interest. It was not a unidirectional lecture, as was the morning sermon. It was more like a dialogue between the pastor and the congregation.

Exhibit A for Pastor Meadow’s Sabbath evening talk.

“I HAVE TAKEN ALL KNOWLEDGE AS MY PROVINCE”- BACON

 

The size of the Berean sanctuary had not shrunk since the 11:00 am service, but the size of the congregation, seven hours later, was about a fifth of what it had been earlier. They were dispersed here and there, in small clumps, distant from the rostrum. Pastor Nevilon Meadows set about to remedy this sorry condition.

 

“Folks sit in the same seat every time they come into church.” We were conditioned. “If there were a blackout, you would still be able to find your seats. Being conditioned is doing the same thing, the same way, all of the time. Condition leads to tradition. Tradition leads to conservatism. Conservatives don’t change!” [Degrees of typical physical separation between persons varies from culture to culture. It has been established that residents of New York City sit closer to one another than do residents of Atlanta, for example. The branch of science that studies this phenomenon is known as Proxemics, a term invented by anthropologist Edward Hall. A knowledge of how closely one should stand to people from other parts of the world comes in handy not only for diplomats and missionaries, but for anyone who does not wish to give offense to people from distant places.]

 

Questions were welcome, the pastor stated. He did not mind being interrupted. The first question from his audience asked for some clarification of the topic of the morning sermon, “The Advantage of Being an Adventist,” The pastor prefaced his reply by noting that there were many types of Adventists, but a proper one manifests the following characteristic: “You try to be on the Lord’s side. You say He’s worthy.” {A major theme of the speaker’s presentations was the superior nature of “worship” to “praise.” He oft lamented that praise seems to have supplanted worship in the Adventist denomination. Worship is continuous. Praise is usually mandated by another, as exemplified by the request “everybody clap your hands!” It was ironic to those who had been closely following Pastor Meadow’s remarks that guest artist Isaac Carree made just such a request in the course  of his morning performance.] The denomination would now be subjected to some additional criticism.

 

People who have difficulty coming up with original ideas frequently steal someone else’s ideas, and then apply them to a different context. This is what John A. McArthur did with Edward Hall’s ideas when he described the internet in terms of its “proxemics.”

The important subject of the Sabbath was raised, “Seventh-day Adventists have not been taught that the Sabbath is about relationships. We think that it is about legalism.” By observing the Sabbath, we are acknowledging that God is our Creator. We also acknowledge that our Creator chose to be our Redeemer. The pastor had previously noted a trend in Adventist services to replace a recitation of the fourth commandment with John 3:16. This circumstance was serving to diminish what makes Adventism so distinctive. Two other distinctive features of the denomination were mentioned.

 

The first was the “Sanctuary.” Fundamental Belief 24, “Christ’s Ministry in the Heavenly Sanctuary,” is one that critics of the church love to sieze upon, but there can be no question, by those who believe in the accuracy of Scripture, that something remarkable occurred around the year 1844. Belief 24 reveals this about Jesus: “In 1844, at the end of the prophetic period of 2300 days, He entered the second and last phase of His atoning ministry, which was typified by the work of the high priest in the most holy place of the earthly sanctuary. It is a work of investigative judgment which is part of the ultimate disposition of all sin, typified by the cleansing of the ancient Hebrew sanctuary on the Day of Atonement.” This information was furnished in a vision to Hiram Edson, a pioneer Adventist, and explains why there was no earthly manifestation of whatever shake-up may have taken place on that fateful day. You are free to either accept or reject the truth of this vision. Here is a statement by Mr. Edson, concerning this experience: “I saw distinctly and clearly,” writes Edson, “that instead of our High Priest coming out of the Most Holy of the heavenly sanctuary to come to this earth on the tenth day of the seventh month, at the end of the 2300 days, He for the first time entered on that day the second apartment of that sanctuary and that He had a work to perform in the Most Holy before coming to this earth.”

 

Here is  Here is a LINK to the Wikipedia article on Adventist eschatology.

 

A second distinctive feature of Adventism, the “health message,” is no longer so very distinctive, Pastor Meadows noted. The world is now aware of it. The pastor stated that we were not currently teaching it, because we were not practicing it {the universality of this negligence was a case of literary exaggeration by the speaker, but it is true that Adventists are not all health-conscious. Additionally, the world no longer invariably considers Seventh-day Adventists to be “those anti-smoking guys”].

 

The latest Adventist anti-smoking initiative was road-tested in the Middle East by Daniel Handysides. His last name is a very familiar one in church health circles.

Berean Seventh-day Adventist Church stands at the beginning of a year-long capital campaign (fundraiser) to raise money in order to make some repairs and improvements to its physical plant. Pastor Meadows proposed to add his mite to this effort by furnishing a few thoughts from his presentation on Stewardship. It was one entitled “The Golden Calf Offering; the Lord, or the Ring.” He said that the motif of this presentation was “essential and non-essential jewelry.” The two-way effort that results in salvation was likened to stewardship. “Stewardship requires discipline.

Stewardship requires partnership. Partnership is the foundation of salvation. No one will be saved on this planet without human effort! The star on your crown in heaven signifies your willingness, your sacrifice” (here is a useful LINK about these “stars”). The pastor noted Adam’s relationship to God. “I am the Creator,” says God to Adam. “You are the created. I am the owner. You are the steward.” God introduced the concept of stewardship before anything else in the course of His relationship with man.

 

“Partnership is the foundation of the family.” A segment of Genesis 3:16 was quoted to the mixed-gender congregation: “… thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” Adam was not given dominion over anything until Eve arrived. The pastor observed that citations of Ephesians 5:22 often fail to include the preceding verse, 21. It is a short one: “Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” This implies that that marriage is, like stewardship, and like salvation, a two-way street. Here is oft cited Verse 22: “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.” Pastor Meadows is no misogynist, and would further qualify Verse 22. “A husband cannot be head of the household unless he is responsible for the souls of everyone in his family, including himself.” The wording used in the Bible is very significant. Pastor Meadows quoted part of Genesis 1:26: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion…” The pastor emphasized that it was always “them,” and never “him” in the Bible. Adam alone was incomplete. He (they) was not given dominion until he was married. It was Adam and Eve together that represented the image of God.

 

The great Albrecht Durer’s depiction of “Adam and Eve,” recycled now for the second, but presumably not for the last time. You cannot get too much Durer!

A few parenthetical comments on marriage were offered by the speaker. “There are two types of dead marriage,” Pastor Meadows stated. The first type anticipates its mortality. A spouse experiencing this kind of union might think the following: “I just can’t wait until the kids leave the house!” The second type is D.O.A. “The couple arrives at church in separate cars,” the speaker said.
 

Returning to the subject of stewardship, Pastor Meadows reminded people that there are several things that we can dedicate to God. (1) Time. (2) Talent. (3) Treasure. A fourth “T” word, “Temple,” was appended to this list. With regard to “time,” the pastor made the interesting remark that “Time never existed before Adam” [this is the kind of thing that theologians might endlessly debate among themselves]. Adam’s job as “first steward” was restated. The concept of “Talent” was expounded briefly. “God gives us our talents. It is up to us to develop them.” The third “T,” “Treasure,” was glossed by this comment: “The treasure of Adam was Eve. Adam could then see himself as complete.” The notion of “Temple,” which I originally assumed might have to do with an “offering” of praise, instead referred to that “living sacrifice,” our bodies. We are obligated to God to take good care of ourselves [here is a link to a 1929 recording of the song “Button Up Your Overcoat,” which features the insightful lyric “Don’t eat meat”].

 

The pastor asked a question that everyone in attendance knew the answer to. “Is money the real problem?” “No,” responded all who knew Scripture. Pastor Meadows verified the truth of this. “It is the love of money that is the real problem!” The speaker equated the science of giving to the science of chemistry {during a class earlier that day, an instructor had defined the word “catalyst” as something that causes a change. I badly wanted to add that, during the process of causing this change, the catalyst itself does not change. This makes “catalyst” a very satisfying concept for describing the actions of God in our lives. As I am painfully shy, I said nothing]. The pastor noted that the impetus for giving flows from the heart to the hand. Second Corinthians 9:7 was mentioned:

 

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

 

In his 1966 movie “The Bible: In the Beginning…” John Houston has Cain (Richard Harris) take back a few scoops of the grain that he offers to God. HERE is my pathetic, but slightly amusing song about these events.

Pastor Meadows divided the science of giving into three categories. You give out of your abundance. You give out of obligation. You give as a sacrifice [this later category, “sacrificial giving,” is the theme of the current Berean Capital Campaign]. Folks on fixed incomes invent excuses not to give, he stated. But we are not to tithe based on our income, but on our increase. Pastor Meadows related that, when he was a youngster, and asked his father for money, his father had the uncanny ability to pick out a ten out from a pocketful of fifties. This was not a skill that we were encouraged to acquire for ourselves. An analogy was provided that compared the complimentary categories of “heart” and “hand,” as they related to the art and science of giving, to twin loads balanced on opposite sides of a fulcrum. The intent of this analogy may have been to emphasize that giving is a “balancing act” [but cheerful givers always tilt the see-saw in the direction of “heart”].

 

A peripheral statement was elicited, no doubt. by the focus on the notion of “balance.” “The taller you are, the more difficult it is to keep your balance,” Pastor Meadows said. The lesson that can be extracted from this fact was quickly described. “The higher that you think that you are, the more difficult it is to discover the balance between you and God.” Pastor Russell, six hours earlier, had similarly recommended humility to the congregation.

 

The duality of the concept of “justice” {a field that is often symbolized by balances, and fulcrums] was brought up. “God will be just! But there is no justice unless justice is dispensed” (another two-way-street). As God’s stewards, we are often delegated by Him to mete out justice ourselves. If we have nothing else to offer, we can at least offer justice [perhaps a vow of poverty would enhance one’s judgmental skills. Exodus 23:8 admonishes: “And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous”].

 

The quote from Exodus 23:8 reveals that a gift “blindeth the wise.” But the blindness of “Justice” is typically regarded as a positive attribute. This blindness represents a hope, however, and not reality.

A recurring theme of the Pastor’s presentations was now mentioned, probably for the sake of those who may have not previously heard it. It had been raised in the all-mens session on Thursday night. It was the touchy subject of homosexuality. The platitude “Love the sinner, hate the sin” does little to instruct anyone as to what tactics should be utilized when dealing with homosexuals. Several hours were spent Thursday debating this subject [I have always attempted to treat this issue very sensitively, but was nevertheless banned from a forum called “OpenChristian.” They are not so very “open,” when it comes to any criticism of their lifestyle choices, even though these rebukes reflect the unambiguous Word of God. Henceforth, I will join my banner to that of Pastor Meadows. In the words of Bugs Bunny, “I suppose you know, this means war…” You can’t make a significant dent in sin by being sensitive. Ellen White’s thoughts on this subject would soon be revealed].

 

The younger generation in attendance at Thursday night’s debate seemed to be more accepting of “gayness” than those with more experience of life. As fellow members of a minority, they felt obligated to stick up for anyone who is looked down on by the majority. Pastor Meadows noted the historical advocacy by the Adventist faith for civil and religious freedom (but simultaneously lamented the faith’s lack of involvement in the Civil Rights struggle). His overall attitude toward homosexuals may be described by the famous statement by Evelyn Beatrice Hall: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” But the methods whereby the church should address this issue were based on another statement.

 

This image is titled “Ellen G. White in carriage with Sara McEnterfe c. 1910,” and is seldom seen, as it is highly copyrighted. I may be flying under the radar, however. Here is the SPOT where it legally resides.

If there exists any leitmotif for the speaker’s attempts to get Christians in general, and Adventists in particular, back on the right track, it is revealed in a very significant passage written by Ellen G. White. It comes from a 707 page compilation of her work entitled “Evangelism” (link is to a free PDF). The approach advocated by Sister White is to be discovered throughout the book, but is spelled out plainly on page 30. Here is the quote that Pastor Meadows alluded to:

 

“NO TIME TO LOSE. We have no time to lose. The end is near. The passage from place to place to spread the truth will soon be hedged with dangers on the right hand and on the left. Everything will be placed to obstruct the way of the Lord’s messengers, so that they will not be able to do that which it is possible for them to do now. We must look our work fairly in the face, and advance as fast as possible in aggressive warfare.”

 

Just as he had done during Thursday night’s exchanges, Pastor Meadows inquired of his listeners: “If you are being aggressive, who throws the first punch?” This seeming digression served, in actuality, to tie together 90% of what the speaker had been saying. We are all dropping the ball, badly. We are conforming to the world, and not to Christ! [my emphasis]

 

The topic of balance was resuscitated. What we term the “fulcrum” in a balance, Pastor Meadows revealed, is described in nautical terms as a keel. An extended keel serves to enhance the balance of a vessel {but makes it hard to pillage and plunder folk who live up shallow streams; therefore the Viking longboats had very small keels: another crazy digression by myself]. Pastor Meadows displayed his mastery over forms, a good compliment to his mastery over content, by exhibiting a tailor-made image of the cross-section of a ship, complete with keel, superimposed over an image of the front elevation of Berean SDA Church. The image was accompanied by the pastor’s expressions of hope that we, as a church, would be enabled by God to discover our balance.

 

My clumsy attempt to replicate Pastor Meadow’s craftsmanship. I am no graphic artist. I am good at lifting heavy boxes of food, however!

It has now been so long since “Exhibit A” was depicted, I feel obliged to redisplay it. It was the “conversation piece” for the next segment of the Sabbath evening discussions.

 

Exhibit A for Pastor Meadow’s Sabbath evening talk.

“What do you see?” Pastor Meadows solicited interpretations from the crowd, in the manner of Hermann Rorschach.

 

“The picture represents discipline and self-control!”

 

“It is like ‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…'”

 

“It reminds me of a lady walking past a group of construction workers!”

 

“The cat is walking with confidence, despite the danger.”

 

A half dozen similar reactions were provided. Toward the end of the litany, an auditor asked the pastor, “Who’s in control?” The pastor, like a good Freudian, turned the tables. “Who do you say is in control?” “The cat,” was the ready response [the pastor had previously noted the existence of what he termed “Sabbath School Questions.” These are queries where the questioner already knows the answer his own question, and is angling for an opportunity to do this very thing, preferably before as many witnesses as possible. These “questions” arose frequently during the course of Pastor Meadow’s Berean presentations]. The cat/German Shepherd image was intended to raise the issue of self-control, as it relates to gender. The internet source for the image reveals that it represents the last step in the training of a police dog, and is indicative of the triumph of “nurture” over “nature.”

 

Analogies to the principles and practices of the pastor’s M.U.D. program (Men Under Development) were provided. The nature of the dogs in the photograph was not to operate on the level of intelligence, but on an instinctual level. But, the speaker noted, “If these dogs can stand there, under control, and they operate on the level of instinct, then what about you?” M.U.D. teaches boys how to be men. Manhood would be the focus of the next segment of the freewheeling program.

 

This 2006 chart by the Correction Corporation of America reveals why they rake in over 160 million dollars a year. A reaction to this insane state of affairs in underway, thank God, and both parties support it.

The next question, one posed by a leader of the “Men of Berean,” will explain the presence of the graphic plastered just above this sentence. Here is the question: “We know that an index of prisoners reveals that a large portion of these were men who were not able to read by the age of eight. What are your thoughts about this?” [This is an extreme paraphrase.]

 

Pastor Meadows asserted a fact that also sounds like some kind of conspiracy theory. But it is, regrettably, all too true! He described the explosive growth in this nation’s prison population as an effect of the privatization of the management of these institutions. There is big money in the “corrections” industry.

 

A call and response interchange took place with the men in attendance who recalled some previous assertions by the speaker. “Man is who I am! Manhood is what I do!” Manhood consists of behaviors. You can be a man, but fail to do the things of manhood {a certain demographic was again cited, but I will again allow this unruly dog to remain asleep for now, undisturbed]. Several stages on the road to manhood were described, beginning with unembellished maleness, leading through boyhood and manhood, and ending with the assumption of leadership roles. The age of eight, mentioned in the preceding question concerning literacy and incarceration rates, is considered by Pastor Meadows to be a significant one in the formation of the character of future leaders. The nascent phase of “maleness” focuses only on the genitalia. Many live their entire lives without advancing beyond this level. It lies in the realm of instinct, and is animal in nature.  “I am as important as my penis,” Pastor Meadows humorously proclaimed, then added, “I know you’re not supposed to say ‘penis’ in church.”

 

Here is a good example of someone who never grew up, publisher Hugh Hefner. His empire celebrated maleness. The “machismo” of some of the articles in Playboy was a very degenerate form of “manhood.”

The process of forming new men was described. “Every male has a need for his primary  mentor. His primary mentor should be his dad!” A member of the congregation ratified the importance of this by remarking that “Kids will act on what they observe” [the dog that I was hoping would remain asleep was reawakened at this point, as an example of the kind of model that kids assuredly ought not to emulate]. The need to aggressively deal with the issue of homosexuality was restated, based on the Ellen White quote from “Evangelism.” “To be a man is a calling!” Pastor Meadow’s assertion tied in nicely with the topic of last Sabbath’s SERMON at Berean. “To be a homosexual is a choice!” Manhood as a manifestation of actions was again mentioned. “It is a choice to do, or not to do the things of manhood,” the speaker noted [“Ye shall know them by their fruits,” notes another. My contribution: “If it walks like a duck…” All anyone has to do in order to stop being a homosexual, is to stop engaging in homosexual acts. Southern University Professor Andy Nash (this quarter’s Sabbath School lesson book author) got into hot water by stating this simple concept a few years ago in a REVIEW of the lopsided “Adventist” movie “Seventh Gay Adventist”].

 

The absence of good male role models in the lives of many young men was mentioned. “No woman has to fail in raising a son. But there is one thing that they can’t do! They can never give him everything he needs to be a man. They cannot ‘invite’ him into manhood. A mother can support a son on his journey to manhood. But she cannot ‘affirm’ his manhood!”

 

Becoming a Mason used to represent a spurious stage on the road to manhood. Masonry, like getting rich off of prisoners, is a dying trend now. The hero of Tolstoy’s “War and Peace,” Pierre, got over being a Mason. Catholics, Pastor Meadows, and myself loath Masons!

A lady arose in order to ask a “Sabbath School” question, which assumed the form of a lengthy testimony. She was a single mom. Her 14 year old son had been acting up at school too many times. At her wit’s end, she took a belt to the school, proclaiming to the school authorities, “Bring him out!” [This does not sound like a wise move.] As a result of her escapade, DFCS (Department of Family and Child Services) made a house call, informing her that she would have to evacuate. “The father is not in the picture, but not because he is a bad person,” she added [he may be more than a little negligent, however]. “What are a single mothers options? What can parents do when the system is working against them?”

 

Pastor Meadows answered immediately, brushing aside the “victim mentality” reveled by the question, and attempted to empower a person who obviously intended to remain trapped in her dilemma, awaiting the arrival of some knight in shining armor. “We don’t get involved in the system,” he stated. “But the system belongs to the Devil,” the questioner replied. Pastor Meadows outlined a view that Ellen White is on record as also holding, vis-à-vis governmental affairs. “The Bible says ‘render unto Caesar.’ You have to comply with the law unless some fundamental Scriptural principle is being violated. You need to get involved in the system!” The pastor noted the existence of religious liberty leaders in the church [at Berean, this leader is Isaiah Delemar]. “You have to get involved, because eventually you will get dragged before the system” [a reference to end times tribulation, as prophesized]. Pastor Meadows now firmly threw the ball back in the direction of the questioner: “The system is broke, because you broke it!” [This was definitely not the “tea and sympathy” that the lady had probably expected to receive.]

 

Two more visual aids were displayed side by side at this point The left hand image was a bowl of black and white puppies. All were asleep, except for a pair in the foreground. One of the pair had their mouth open. The other had placed its paw into the open mouth of the first. The right hand image was like a juvenile version of the “Peaceable Kingdom,” and displayed a baby cat, a baby chicken standing on a baby pig, and a baby duck standing on a baby rabbit. They all appeared to be getting on famously! The pastor again made like Rorschach: “What do you see?”

 

This is not the puppy image that Pastor Meadows displayed. In fact, rather than being warm and fuzzy, this photo is creepy! Are these puppies in a garbage can, awaiting disposal? Is somebody about to cook them?

“One puppy is feeding another puppy. No other puppy is getting anything to eat.”

 

The pastor fine-tuned his query: “Which image represents a family? The one on the left [puppies], or the one on the right?” [the Peaceable Kingdom.] The speaker, at this point, provided a simple definition of a word that is relatively simple to start with. “Something that is dysfunctional is something that does not work the way that it is supposed to.”

 

“The one on the left,” someone shouted. The puppies were undoubtedly relatives, although they were not very engaged with one another.

 

Pastor Meadows issued a provocation” “Which one looks like your church?”

 

“The one on the right!” The pastor’s prior definition of “dysfunctional” had subtly influenced his listeners, who all secretly harbored the idea that their church was, indeed, “dysfunctional.”

“Because they don’t look alike, you don’t think they are functional?” Pastor Meadows was laying a heavy dose of the Socratic method on the congregation. A tad more discussion led to a conclusion by the speaker: “Your value judgment about the right hand image [the Peaceable Kingdom] is based on appearance.” A member then offered an insight concerning the right hand image.

 

The separate species of “Pig” and “Farmer” are blended into one compound character, one dedicated to Satan, in this 1954, Cold War cartoon based on “Animal Farm.” I had to squeeze this one in here, somehow!

“The group in the picture are unable to reproduce with each other!” This was true, but it had no bearing whatsoever on the lesson the pastor was attempting to illustrate. He started to zero in on his target.

 

“Most of our Black families look like the one on the right,” he asserted. The target was now squarely hit. “One more. Which one looks like your church?”

 

A very sagacious answer was now sagely provided, but it was not the one that Pastor Meadows was fishing for. “We are like the puppies in the bowl,” a man proclaimed. “They are forced to be together, but they are ignoring each other” [the correct image, which was not the puppy picture, had previously been identified by the audience, but in an intuitive, and not in a reflective manner].

 

Pastor Meadows quickly dismissed the preceding insight about the apathetic puppies. “Sorry, the bowl of puppies does not look like your church.” A very brief history lesson followed. “In 1844 [the end of the prophetic period foretold in Scripture] all were getting ready to go to heaven. Where were all the blacks? In slavery! We changed this. Recently, the Caribbean invasion [the influx into the United States of many black Adventist islanders] occurred. We don’t look like those puppies!” This concluded the discussion about Exhibit B and Exhibit C, the lazy puppies and the motley menagerie. Adventism is a polyglot operation. The focus was now shifted from denominational, to domestic affairs.

 

This stairway cover at the Northern Caribbean University (Adventist) Mandeville (Jamaica) Campus is so interesting, it may represent a happy accident, rather than a conscious design. The ridges follow the slope.

Pastor Meadows had some advice for the women in attendance. He lamented the tendency of some women to surrender some of the power that they are entitled to, just because the man they are attached to does not have any power. This was revealed to be the first of seven mistakes that women make.  If they happen to have more education, they pretend as if this is not the case They “dumb it down.” The speaker seemed to imply that, just because they are in a relationship, it is not needful for women to lay down their power. The ultimate power of women is the power of refusal. “Usually in relationships, it is the man who approaches the woman,” Pastor Meadows observed. “The woman has he last say-so. She has the power!” But seldom does she make statements such as “Yes, you can go out with me, but you have to keep your hands to yourself.” The pastor digressed in order to note the emphasis that is placed on the bride, but not the groom, in marriage ceremonies. The groom may be standing at the front of the church, but is typically ignored. But when the bride enters, every eye and camera lens is instantly directed toward her.

 

Pastor Meadows would not go on to reveal all of the seven mistakes that women make, but did offer a second example. Several old sermons at Berean, delivered earlier, by other speakers, had warned the congregation to not get involved romantically with highly flawed people, assuming that one could easily steer them into the paths of virtue at some future time. Second Corinthians 6:14 advises “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers…” Jesus can change people’s nature, but other people seldom succeed in doing so. Pastor Meadows unveiled mistake number two: “She falls in love with a man’s potential.” She may attempt to placate her mother with a statements such as “Just wait til' the Holy Spirit gets done with him!” Pastor Meadows hinted that they were putting the cart before the horse. “She’s not looking for a man on her knees, but on her back,” he noted.

 

In the 1966 “metafictional” novel “Giles Goat-Boy,” the saintliest woman in the book is unequally yoked to the most evil man. Giles is the Messiah. Satan is the “Dean o’ Flunks.” The Last Judgment is the “Final Examination.” It is not written very sensitively.

Celibacy was not recommended. The speaker observed that some claim that they don’t need a man. They have Jesus. Pastor Meadows recalled a comment once made by legendary Adventist Pastor E.C. Ward: “A woman is not ready to be married until she is she is twenty-five years old.” A few of the “steps of dating” were cited. The first of these steps was designated “generalized” dating. At this stage, girls of 10, 11, or 12 years of age are entirely subject to the will of their parents. It is they, and not she, who decide whether a young suitor is appropriate or not. Needless to state, these outings are to be highly chaperoned affairs. A subsequent stage, suitable for 15, 16, and 17 year olds, might be called “specialized” dating. This phase is characterized by “group dates.” The speaker warned us that the church will exert heavy pressure on young people to go ahead and pair off during this stage. “You need to pick one!” But the time is not yet ripe for commitment. In fact, the more dates a young girl has, the better she will fare. Pastor Meadows assured us that “As long as she is in the will of the Lord, she can have as many Leroys as she wants!” He suggested that it may even be a good ideas to let each know of the others. Nobody could claim the rights of sole proprietorship.

 

The stages of dating advance. The girl is now twenty years old. She soon gets her first degree, and may perhaps choose to work for a year in her field. When she reaches 23 or 24 years of age, she earns her master’s degree. At this point, she and her intended should receive something that used to be quite common, but is now falling out of fashion. It is “pre-marital counseling.” The deliberate process just described by the pastor serves to eliminate most of the mistakes related to courtship that many young ladies incur. She now twenty-five,  E.C. Ward’s perfect age. “Then she is ready,” Pastor Meadows consented.

 

Born in 1924, Pastor E.C. Ward cut the hair of his fellow students at Pacific Union. I hope they compensated him for this service. He was in on the ground floor of the South Atlantic Conference when it was born in 1946. He was married 2 years later, close to the optimal age of 25 that he recommended for all.

Sunday morning would witness the pastor sticking up for some of the mannerisms and slang of the younger generation, even extending provisional indulgence to the casual employment of the “N” word. He was not necessarily advocating that these usages persist, but rather that they not present an insurmountable barrier to those who hoped to evangelize the younger generation. It was one more warning, in a long series of warnings issued not only by Pastor Meadows, but also by a host of other recent speakers, that Adventists should strive to suppress their judgmental attitudes, a prelude to evangelizing those who are different from us [by extension, this could include gays as well, but they are a much tougher nut to crack than gang-bangers, as the later group includes many who thirst for righteousness, but the former group is terribly self-righteous. Guest Pastor Edwards Woods II was not as exasperated as I am at present when he delivered a “sensitive” and inclusionary SERMON at Berean back in March].

 

The “baggy pants” question was raised by one of the Sabbath evening auditors. “It has been going on for ten years now,” the questioner related. “I thought it would have died out by now. If anything, it is getting worse!” Pastor Meadow’s response revealed that he did not exactly endorse this fashion trend. The concept of “empowerment,” as it was in the case of the “damsel in distress,” was raised. “In Florida [the speaker’s base of operations] they have made a law against it.” The speaker spelled it out, once again, for anyone who may have been taking a nap the first time he said it: “We can talk about it all day, but if you don’t get involved, ain’t nothin’ gonna happen!”

 

 

 

“Men of Berean” functionary, lawyer, and church Religious Liberty Leader Isaiah Delemar had something to say. “Is not God in control of all of this?” Pastor Meadows was quick to reply, “God is not in control! God is in charge. There is no choice in control! [This reference to our obligation to assume personal responsibility was also cited with regard to the presumed “control” that parents exercise over their children.]

 

Pastor Meadows furnished a term that described his theological preferences. It sounded intimidating when first spoken, but upon reflection was not at all obscure. “I am a non-canonical proclatory prophet of the Second Coming!” The “non-canonical” business might have been better rendered as “super-canonical.” Things were excluded from the original canon because they were badly out of alignment. Ted N.C. Wilson would be first to assert that Adventist “Spirit of Prophecy” material is inadmissible if it is not perfectly conformed to Scripture. The pastor seemed to have proclaimed himself a prophet as well, and it would be easy enough to determine if this were true. There exist a “canonical” litmus test for this gift. Anyone can prophesize, and many do. Not just Ellen White, or (presumably) Nevilon Meadows. In First Samuel 19, Saul himself prophesizes. The proof will be in the pudding. Here is a LINK to an Andrews University lecture on this subject. “Is Saul also among the prophets?” Yes! Is my former co-worker Pastor Harris? If he says so, as he has never told me a lie before. You? You never know…

 

The late prophetic Pastor Gail Harris (Pastor Rich’s wife) deserves a better memorial than this unillustrated YouTube sermon, one based on “Dem Bones.” You may pay your respects by clicking right HERE .

A question by someone highlighted that the speaker had left us hanging in mid-air, “What are the other six points?” [In regard to “The Seven Mistakes That Women Make,” I believe, but the speaker had actually manage to describe two out of the seven points.]

 

“If I told you, my CD’s would not get sold!” [You have to admire the man’s candor.] Isaac Delemar sought a big lesson that might be distilled from all of this varied material. He asked the pastor “What is the action plan?”

 

Pastor Meadows prefaced his response but grouping the subject into four broad categories: (1) Family (2) Finance (3) Education, and (4) Religion. “Most black people have problems with finance” [the questioner, Elder Delemar, had recently introduced a church-wide initiative, via a sophisticated two hour PowerPoint presentation, to straighten out everyone’s money problems by applying Scriptural principles to the field of finance]. “Most black people also have problems with family,” he added.

 

“There is a difference between being a ‘good' man, and being a ‘God’ man. Find your purpose, and you will be a ‘God’ man” [here is a link to a very recent SERMON that reveals how we may all discover our callings]. Pastor Meadows stated that difficulties with Family and Finance could be overcome by reference to category four: Religion. “A man, as head of the family, should say “This is the church we are going to!'” But the seeming dictatorial nature of this proclamation should be softened by providing accessory information. “But he has to answer the question ‘why,'” the pastor amended. “He even has to be able to explain his directive to himself.” The category of Education is of such importance, it required no endorsement by the speaker. The conversation seemed on the verge of wrapping up, but this was a premature vibe. A listener asked the speaker where his materials might be available for purchase, after the discussion. Pastor Meadows’ answer was brimming with humor: “I don’t know where I’m going to sell my CD’s, but I know one thing. I’m going in the same direction you’re going!”

 

An illustration culled from Pastor Nevilon Meadow’s big portfolio of presentations, for “Repeat Boat People.”

The pastor described one of the many presentations that he carries around with him. It has the provocative title “How to Raise a Thug.” Some background information on the origin of the term “Thug” was provided. Thugs strangled their victims, presumably in order to avoid the shedding of blood. Pastor Meadows revealed that we had all seen them in Indiana Jones movies. They were the ones wearing turbans. Here are some pointers on truly bad parenting:

• “Give him whatever he wants.”
• “Laugh at his use of foul language.”
• “Let him make all decisions on his own.”
• “Avoid the use of the word ‘wrong.'”
• “Pick up everything that they leave behind; this will give them experience in the art of passing the buck.”
• “Quarrel in front of him, so he will be accustomed to quarrels.”
• “Give him money. Never let him ‘own’ his money.”
• “When he gets into trouble, apologize for him. Then apologize for yourself, while you are at it.”

Older dogs can learn new tricks. “Sometimes parents cannot be saved, until they see their children sin.” The topic of freewill was revived by the speaker. “The parent is in charge, but the child is in control,” Pastor Meadows asserted. This terminology had been previously applied to the nature of God’s control over our lives. Persuasion is superior to brute force. God wants followers, and not an army of slaves.

A detail of an image that is much more well-known than the previous one. These involuntary “boat people” are numbered in the hundreds in the full-size image. Nazis used to think like this, scientifically exploiting, and then exterminating people!

Some Adventist matters were revisited, here close to the end of Pastor Meadows’ penultimate talk at Berean. “When you have the opportunity to choose your diet, with vegetarianism as an option, but you pass it by for what you want, you will be allowing “present truth to pass you by,” the pastor said. It might seem like a sideshow, but this in no way diminishes its importance. Matthew 25:23 was quoted:
“His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

Some cautionary words written by Ellen White were mentioned. To aspire to an advanced level of devotedness, while continuing to eat meat, was likened to hypocrisy by the speaker.

The conversation had been commenced with a description of three distinctive characteristics of the Adventist denomination. It would be closed (nearly closed, anyway) by the provision of not three, but four SDA distinctions:

• “We are part of the Remnant Church.” Not the whole. Just a part. The “other sheep” verse was cited as a certification that Adventists do not picture themselves as an exclusive club, The speaker noted that the denomination could not have existed before 1798 [the end of the 1,260 year dominion of the papacy: a “faithful remnant,” according to Ellen White, certainly existed before this date, but Pastor Meadows may have been referring to the organization].
• “We keep the commandments, with an emphasis on the fourth.”
• “We proclaim the worldwide message of the Three Angels.”
• “We believe in the ‘Spirit of Prophecy.'” [E.G. White, et al]

Time are changing, but not necessarily for the better, with regard to liturgical practices. This theme permeated all six of Pastor Meadows’ Berean presentations. “Practice becomes based on Preference. And Preference excludes Principle!” Old denominational controversies were alluded to, which came as news to a new Adventist like myself. “Ellen White was never against drums in worship services!” [My unfinished post on the “Church of Christ Ban on Musical Instruments” will never be concluded. I think I will turn it into a page and then hide it HERE.] The pastor reminded us of his criticism of the denomination’s trend toward “praise” (a very drum-intensive endeavor), at the expense of worship.” I will include here a reminder of his expression of regret that some congregations now recite John 3:16, rather than the fourth commandment, during Sabbath services.

A split in the church was shaping up, one determined by what generation a member belonged to. Pastor Meadows stated his intention to prepare a sermon that addresses these backward steps, one to be called “Old Men Will Dream Dreams.” “Being young is not the opposite of being old!” This was a variation on a previous theme stated by the speaker, “Being a woman is not the opposite of being a man.” “There is a division in the church, and it is based on age groups,” the pastor declared. ” M.O.B. [again, “Men of Berean,” the sponsors of this week’s activities] should be appreciated by the older men in the church. They need to say to the seniors, ‘We’re moving, and you’re not present!” The pastor had a good plan in mind, which he now proceeded to implement.

You can acquire your own copy of this dramatic picture of Pastor Nevilon Meadows, captured by Bridgette Mack on 6/1/2016, by simply clicking on this LINK .

“I need 24 older men to partner with the younger Men of Berean.” [These partnerships were effected immediately, and directly with the leadership, rather than the laity, of M.O.B. Numbers were exchanged. We’ll get together, then, son. You know we’ll have a good time then!]
Some parting ephemera appeared. Masons and Shriners [yesterday’s news, and deservedly so, I continue to assert] were mentioned. The pastor made a provocative comment: “I believe every president has been a Mason” [perhaps JFK was the Catholic version of a Mason, which is a “Knight of Columbus”]. “Hillary can’t be president, because she is not a Mason!” [Here is a LINK to a very amusing song on this topic.]

The direction of Adventism, and black Adventism in particular, was declared a last time by the speaker, and, in a case of possibly saving the best for the last, the largely forgotten names of William Foy and Hazen Foss cropped up. Before there was Ellen G. White, a pair of black men were overcome by the “Spirit of Prophecy,” but as the pastor stated, “Foy was Coy, and Foss was lost!” Information on Foss is indeed hard to come by. Here is data on Foy from the Church Heritage Manual. If you already know of him, just skip past the italicized material.

Adventist polymath Delbert W. Baker (whom, if history is any indication, is destined to become known to future generations as D.W. Baker) wrote a nice book about William Foy. He was also President of Oakwood.

William Ellis Foy was born in 1818 to Joseph and Elizabeth Foy in Augusta, Maine. They were African Americans. Maine was a free state, meaning that they did not allow human slavery. William was born free, and grew up during a time of racial conflict and divide. His birthplace, however, was far removed from the oppressive conditions of the slaveholding states, as Maine had very few blacks, and virtually no slaves. But Maine was not entirely free of racial prejudice.
After growing up in a country setting for a large part of his life, he than married in the middle or late eighteen thirties and moved to Boston, where his skills in farming and carpentry provided him a means by which to live.

In 1835 Foy was converted, under the preaching of Elder Silas Curtis, at the Freewill Baptist Church in Augusta, Maine. Here Foy converted to Christianity, and began to inquire what he should do to be saved. Shortly thereafter, Foy began receiving visions about the Advent. After he moved to Boston, many witnessed him during times of these visions.

His first vision concerned the ultimate victory of the saints. Then late one Friday evening he entered into his second vision, which lasted twelve and a half hours, until early Saturday morning. It was based upon the judgment, and the level of preparedness in the church. Given the racial tensions of the times, Foy was apprehensive to share the visions. However, he trusted God, and shared what he had been given.

After travelling extensively with his message, Foy was given two more visions shortly before the disappointment. New material was presented to him showing three platforms, which indicated a third phase in the message from God for that time. In perplexity, he ceased public work, but maintained an interest in the Advent movement. He died on November 9, 1893, at the age of seventy-five. This information was taken from a book by Delbert W. Baker entitled “The Unknown Prophet.”

Not just another riverboat. A detail from Harry Anderson’s painting of the “Morning Star,” the boiler of which formed the first heating plant at Oakwood. I have  issues with the part of this painting that has been cropped out, which depicts sheep in wolf’s clothing!

Some conclusions were drawn. “Many people stand accused of taking Ellen White out of context. To deal with Ellen White, you start with the Bible. You don’t start with Ellen White!” A final statement of regret for the diminished status of the fourth commandment was provided. The new focus on love, its non-controversial substitute was noted. It was again described as a reaction to criticisms by the Catholic church to the effect that the Adventist were preaching “Hellfire and Brimstone” [which are, ironically, concepts that are not in the least “Adventist”].
“The church compromises. The church collapses not because of outside forces, but collapses due internal causes. We have a perfect message, but imperfect people. The influences of the world have caused us to compromise.”


   

Signs

Attention, Graduates Old and New- A Commencement Speech for the Ages by Pastor D.K. Snell

Snell on “The Components of Being Called” 

From left to right (or bottom to top). Jadon, Gianna, and Debleaire Snell. as depicted on the website of the church that Debleaire pastors in Huntsville, Alabama.

A COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS, A SERMON, A SEND-OFF

The May 28 Sabbath worship service at Berean Seventh-day Adventist church, Atlanta, was dedicated to the graduates of the Greater Atlanta Adventist Academy (GAAA for short). Here, as usual, is a link to the ENTIRE SERVICE. The sermon begins at time marker 1:17:57, and concludes, after a brief song, with an altar call at time marker 2:17:00. Pastor Debleaire Snell‘s remarks to the Class of 2016 were based on the experiences of Abraham as he transitioned from Ur to Canaan. God had called the patriarch. God has a call for all of us. It is important that we respond to this call, be we newly matriculated, or just seeking renewed purpose and a better direction in our lives.

Pastor Snell received his “calling” as a freshman at Oakwood University, an institution where many are called to ministry, and all are seemingly called to serve God in some manner. The Oakwood website currently displays the statement “God First,” a very streamlined motto. I think it used to be “Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve.” Oakwood President Leslie Pollard visited Berean back on 10/24/2015, at which time he noted that “excellence is the norm, and not the exception at Oakwood.” He also said that “Oakwood is a launching pad, and you can get to anyplace from Oakwood.” This last statement may have been a conscious tie-in to a Huntsville, Alabama neighbor of Oakwood, the Marshall Space Flight Center. The 1950 arrival of Wemher von Braun and his posse in Huntsville was the result of the existence of Army ordinance institutions in the area that were founded in 1941, at the beginning of WW II. These facilities came to be known, collectively, as the Redstone Arsenal. One of the early functions of one of these establishments was the production of chemical weapons.

This mysterious image from Google Earth is of a location just south of Lexington, Ky. There sure  are a lot of roads leading to just one spot. It is associated with the Bluegrass Army Depot, a chemical weapons facility.

Pastor Debleaire Snell is currently leader of a church that is (like Oakwood, and like the arsenal) located in Huntsville. It is the First Seventh-day Adventist Church, and students from the university, looking for an alternative to Carlton P. Byrd, can wander across town and listen to Pastor Snell. By a strange coincidence, he was previously pastor for four years at Lima Drive SDA Church in Lexington, Kentucky. The historic link between these two regions is chemical weapons. Just outside Lexington lies the Bluegrass Army Depot, founded, like Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, in 1941.

Products fashioned in Huntsville wound up in Lexington, just like Pastor Snell did. But the pastor is now safely back in the environs of his first collegiate alma mater. His Masters Degree in Divinity was obtained from Andrews University, a credential that he has in common with last Sabbath’s sermonizer, Berean Associate Pastor Danielle Pilgrim. Pastor Snell has come in for both praise and censure as a result of his decision to hold worship services on Sundays, in addition to Sabbaths. This precipitated another denominational brushfire when it was first announced [my opinion, which counts for nothing, is that services should be offered every day, “lesser lights” that could rotate around the Sabbath, which is appointed by God to constitute the center of the worship galaxy].

“FOR MANY ARE CALLED, BUT FEW ARE CHOSEN”

The preceding verse, Matthew 22:14, has little to do with this Sabbath’s sermon, except in regard to the several instances where the speaker admonished his listeners not to be allow themselves to be deflected from the course that God has planned out for everyone, our “calling.” There are many instances in Scripture of God calling ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Moses is one example. Gideon is another. After a few false starts, Samuel enthusiastically responded to his call. But the call that started it all was the one God issued to Abram. The first stages of his foray into Canaan served as an allegory for the “commencement” of life’s vocational journey by the graduates of GAAA, and, by extension, to any graduate, anytime, anywhere. The theme of Pastor Snell’s sermon was universal, and should prove to be recyclable until the Second Advent.

“God Calls Abraham,” a mid-17th century print by Wenceslas Hollar, like a comic book from the 1600’s. This image is recycled from a previous post. I like it!

In his opening lines, Pastor Debleaire Snell assumed the demeanor of an educator addressing his students: “You’ve got my permission, and my cooperation, for lifting up the name of Jesus.” After a few more instructions, he proclaimed, “Let the name of the Lord be praised today!”

Obligatory praise and thanks to his gracious hosts was offered, starting at the apex of the pyramid with GAAA Principal Johnny Holiday, descending the flanks to include the dedicated staff, and coming to rest at the base of the edifice, the “illustrious Class of 2016.” Somewhere in this last group, the pastor predicted, there may lurk the person who would cure cancer, or become a great evangelist, or possibly a great writer. A reference to the Janus-like nature of graduation was provided: “The journey is not over. It is just beginning!” [A prior sermonizer at Berean referred to the inscription over the entry of the National Archive building, “The Past is Prologue,” and interpreted it as meaning “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet!”]

Some general autobiographical notes were provided. The speaker remarked that he had now been married 12 years, 6 months, 26 days…etc. He even cited the number of seconds. He met his wife at Oakwood, the former Gianna E. Norman. South Atlantic Conference President William L. Winston was thanked. Winston was in attendance, as was the conference Vice-President of Education (and Berean Associate Pastor) James Lamb.

South Atlantic Conference Vice President for Education Dr, James Lamb, emphasizes his appreciation for all those who have contributed financially to the effort that it took to matriculate the GAAA Class of 2016.

Scripture was read, the parts of Genesis 11 and 12 that were germane to the “commencement” of Abram’s transition from Ur to Canaan. 11:31 escribes the removal of Abram’s father, Terah, from Ur to the land of Haran. Genesis 12:1-3 describes the “calling” of Abram. Abram eventually gets his name changed in Genesis 17:5.

Pastor Snell noted the decisions that were confronting the graduating class: “What will be your major? What will be your career field?” He warned the graduates that it was not what they would “do,” but what they would “be” that was important. “You got to be called,” he revealed. He who soon was destined be rechristened Abraham was called by God (Paul’s famous statements concerning the faith of Abraham, found in Hebrews 11:8, had been read to the congregation prior to the sermon). “Without evidence, without seeing,” he departed to go unto the land of Canaan. Pastor Snell revealed the title of his presentation, “The Components of Being Called.”

“Class of 2016, the one thing I want you to walk away with today is that your life matters.” We are all fashioned in such a manner, that when we align our wills with God’s will, we are fulfilling the “purpose of existence.” All of our moral compass is a product of our sense of self-worth. We were urged to be worthy. The speaker gave the college-bound some good advice: “Don’t buy spirits, because His Spirit lives in you.” Another word of caution was provided: “It is more important to be sealed than tattooed. You have been created in the very image of God.” The body is a temple that ought not be desecrated.

The commentary on “self-worth” was continued. “The truth is, that in the free market, something is worth whatever somebody is willing to pay for it.” We have all been assessed by others in material and societal terms, in terms of possessions and lineage. But this value, however high it might be, is nevertheless a fixed one. These temporal, terrestrial assessments fail to reflect a higher truth, for we all have an outstanding debt that we cannot pay. Pastor Snell stated it clearly. “Because my worth was established at the Cross, I’ve got value. I’m a son of the most high God!”

A Pearl of great price, Cousin Minne. The hat was probably pretty cheap, though. The dangling price tag is what is relevant to our sermon at this point.

An illustrative anecdote was provided, from the days of the speaker’s errant youth. Pastor Snell recalled the time before bar codes were ubiquitous. A dishonest person who removed a price tag from an inexpensive item, and then transferred  it to a more expensive item, could realize a substantial savings. The pastor admitted that he had done this a time or two. Once, at a flea market, he implemented this technique to try to drop the price on an object that he particularly coveted. When he placed it before the person to whom he would have pay, the seller remarked that the price was incorrect. The pastor asked him how he could know this for sure. The seller replied the following: “Because I made it with my own two hands. I know what it is worth!” Pastor Snell explained his parable. “You God’s workmanship,” he revealed. “He knows your value!”

The residency of Abraham and his father in Haran, an intermediary step on the journey to Canaan, was subjected to scrutiny by the speaker. It introduced the topic of the first of three described “components” that attend the proper  determination of one’s calling.

#1: YOU CAN’T SETTLE FOR “JUST GOOD ENOUGH”

The relocation of Abraham’s people to Canaan was originally the responsibility of his father, the patriarch Terah. But “daddy” has been stopped partway there. God calls his son to go further. “The goal of parents is to see the next generation to get a little further in life than they have.” Sometimes, the forward momentum of a life is stalled by the process of having to work in order to support and advance the chances of the offspring. Students owe it to their parents that they exert themselves in order to take these further steps. A kind of genealogy of forward momentum was provided by Pastor Snell. High School graduates beget college graduates. College graduates beget Masters candidates. Masters candidates beget Doctors, etcetera. God is able to easily orchestrate these generational advances. We should aim to build upon the foundations laid by our progenitors, and (the speaker admitted that he was a Trekkie) “Boldly go where no one has gone before.” He spoke encouraging words to the graduates, and to the rest of the overflow crowd: “You are going to prosper where others have failed, because you have an anointing. You are called!”

“Space: the final frontier.
These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilisations; to boldly go where no man has gone before.”

In Haran, everyone is nice and friendly [here is a link to “Pleasant Valley Sunday” as rendered by the Monkees, but as written by Gerry Goffin and Carol King]. They manage to catch some of the breeze that blows in from Canaan. Pastor Snell stated that Abraham’s entourage no doubt considered it “good enough.” Some of the qualities of Haran were described in the imagined words of the sojourners:

• “We were on our way to Canaan, BUT: We are already getting out mail in Haran!”
• “We were on our way to Canaan, BUT: There is a nice YMCA in Haran!”
• “We were on our way to Canaan, BUT: We are now a part of the Haran Chamber of Commerce!”

The pastor drew a lesson from the presumed attitude of complacency that beset the stalled travelers. He warned the future collegians that they had to be careful about making any dangerous digressions from their intended trajectories. They should not flirt with the notion of taking a semester off, expecting to pick up where they left off at some future date. They should be careful about accepting any job which would demand attention that would be more appropriately directed toward schoolwork. And, perhaps most significantly, they should not prematurely plunge into a permanent relationship with the opposite sex. The concept was generalized for the non-students in attendance, as the pastor similarly warned folk not to consider “taking a break” from church attendance. The warnings were summed up by this statement from Pastor Snell: “Be careful where you take your breaks.”

“The devil will deceive you into believing that you will be OK where you are presently comfortable,” the pastor remarked. Another illustrative anecdote was provide at this point, but not an autobiographical one. It concerned the storage and transport of live codfish (and reminded me of another ancient anecdote about the storage of sea creatures, which will be painfully recalled at the appropriate time).

A  engraving of Cod processors at work in Canada in 1738. Cod was like money in the bank in an era when fish was the only high grade protein Catholics could consume during Lent. Tofu was not available in 1738.

Live codfish used to be shipped from Alaska, in containers of water. The passage to the lower 48 is a long one. The fish just relaxed during the voyage, oblivious to their future as part of a plate of fish and chips. When they, at long last, reached their intended destinations, they were terribly flabby, and totally out of shape. Their normally firm muscle tone was lost, due to inactivity. But some genius got the idea of putting a catfish in the shipping containers with them. Codfish and catfish do not get along very well. The activity that was the result of the animosity between the species, and their enforced proximity, ensured that the cod got plenty of exercise during the course of their journey south. They all now arrived in fit condition, their flesh firm and toothsome. The catfish proved to be the perfect irritant for the normally placid cod. Pastor Snell extracted a lesson for the graduates, as well as for the laymen, from this story. Lethargy and self-satisfaction can lead to paralysis, so we all, on occasion,  stand in need of a “catfish” to spur us into action. The pastor provided a litany of these occasions:

• “Sometimes our teachers can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “Sometimes our parents can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “Sometimes our future roommates can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “Sometimes the people in our church can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “Sometimes the people at work can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “Sometimes our kids can act like catfish in our lives.”
• “You might be married to a catfish!”

This last citation proved to be highly amusing (and no doubt, extremely accurate as well) to the married listeners in attendance. The lessons from the anecdote were summed up, as the pastor proclaimed, “You need an irritant to keep you motivated.” The second of the three “components” attending the disclosure of your calling is was now unveiled.

The reason for this image will soon be apparent to you!

#2: YOU CAN’T RUN FROM RESISTANCE

What the crew that attended Abraham found so intimidating about going forward to possess the land of Canaan was the fact that you had to FIGHT for it. “You have to fight to get in, and you have to fight to stay in,” Pastor Snell revealed. “If you want to live a called life, you have to be prepared to face some resistance.” When we are in the process of trying to determine God’s will, we will sometimes choose the easy path [Here is a LINK to Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken,” which they made our class memorize in the eighth grade]. The pastor prepared the soil for the introduction of yet another illustrative anecdote with the following declaration: “It may not be the most comfortable place to be, but the BEST place to be is in the will of God.”

Pastor Snell spoke idiomatically for a moment, which served to underscore the homespun wisdom (a la Will Rogers) of his remark: “I ain’t never seen a plane turn around in midflight due to turbulence!” On a recent flight the pastor took, the flight attendant announced that they would soon be experiencing some turbulence. The pastor asked the attendant about how they could possibly know about the impending turbulence. The attendant replied that the only way to know was by finding out from planes ahead of them, ones that had already been through the turbulence. The lead plane would then advise the following planes to either go OVER it, or AROUND it, or THROUGH it. The preacher applied the concept of this anecdote to the Cross: “God has sent His Son to go through the turbulence.” It may not be the easiest thing in the world to do, but if Jesus could endure His measure of turbulence, then we, too, can safely make our way beyond whatever pockets of turbulence we may encounter in the course of our lives.

The shortcomings and inadequacies of Abraham were briefly alluded to, and would soon be revisited. This mention of his failures paved the way for a statement, by the pastor, of what constituted Abraham’s greatest strength (and what I will safely assume to represent “component” number three, one that must be present during the process of discovering your calling). It was what Paul revealed in Hebrews concerning the character of Abraham. It was a manifestation of his unquestioning “faith."

Arthur Schopenhauer brought the importance of the will (universal and individual, although he considered the latter an aspect of the former) to the front burner of the stove of Western philosophy, for better or worse.

#3: ABRAHAM’S GREATEST TRAIT WAS THAT HE WAS WILLING

“We often make excuses for ourselves based on the idea that we do not possess adequate financial resources to seek advancement, or we blame our lack of progress on inadequate support by our families” (an extreme paraphrase of Pastor Snell’s remarks). “But the big problem is that we are just not WILLING!” God does not call you based of your sufficiency, or your strength. He rather identifies our weaknesses, and uses these to further His purposes. First Corinthians 1:26+  was referenced:

“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (NIV)

The pastor stated the reason for this by quoting verse 29 from the KJV: “That no flesh should glory in his presence” [There exists several other verses in the Bible that express the same sentiment]. “Those that we would call [based on societal criteria, several superficial instances of which were provided by the speaker] are not the ones that God would choose to call.” More idiomatic language from Pastor Snell: “God don’t care about any of that junk! He is just looking for someone He can use!” Several Bible heroes who overcame handicaps in order excel were noted, a subject that had been briefly touched upon in the introduction to this section of the sermon. The homicide by Moses is familiar to all. So is the infidelity, and fatal consequences that resulted from this infidelity, of David. Rahab [the subject of an whole sermon by at Berean by guest speaker Pastor Edward Woods III, and stored at his LINK] is invariably subtitled “the harlot,” yet she advanced the Hebrew’s cause at Jericho. and was also an ancestor of Jesus.

Illusionist David Copperfield has made more profit off of “magic” than any other person, according to Forbes. Charles Dickens furnished a name for the band “Uriah Heep” as well, not to mention “Scrooge McDuck.”

Pastor Snell greatly amused his imperfect audience by noting that “Rahab had turned more tricks than David Copperfield.” There was talk of some of the excesses perpetrated by the Zealots, whose enthusiasm provoked the Romans to bring the hammer down on Jerusalem in 70 AD. And last, but not least, Paul, nee Saul, was included in the pantheon of reformed stinkers by the pastor [the oratorical style and anecdotal illustrations of Pastor Snell are very similar to those of Berean Associate Pastor Austin Humphreys, another Oakwood alumnus. In the time-honored manner, the Hammond organ now began to assist the speaker to emphasize some key points]. The pastor vehemently stated the following: “God uses ordinary people. Where God will have you in the end, does not resemble where you are now!” Another anecdote was now related, in order to enhance another important point. It was not about seafood {I am sandbagging my own overly familiar seafood anecdote for later use], but was back on autobiographical turf.

“I struggle cooking grits,” Pastor Snell revealed. “I always overestimate it, because it seems like it will not be enough.” But grits, when they are finished cooking, don’t look anything like they did when they started out. “One day,” he stated, addressing the graduates, “you are going to wind up looking nothing like you do today!”

Pastor Snell quoted Ellen G. White concerning Abraham, a passage that resides on page 126 of “Patriarchs and Prophets.” Here is a LINK to that page.

“In order that God might qualify him for his great work as the keeper of the sacred oracles, Abraham must be separated from the associations of his early life. The influence of kindred and friends would interfere with the training which the Lord purposed to give His servant.”

An 1892 edition of Ellen G. White’s “Patriarchs and Prophets.” Pastor Snell’s reference to this book was like an Adventist “watermark” distinguishing  the sermon.

The pastor observed that Abraham’s advanced concepts concerning God and faith were not shared by the idolatrous denizens of his native land. Pastor Snell spoke wisdom to the youths (as well as geriatric cases like myself) when he made this observation: “God’s calling on your life will not always be obvious to those around you. But when you get a calling, you don’t have to explain it to those around you.” Rather than further your advancement toward your goals, your contemporaries are rather more likely to attempt to retard these goals. This concept would be restated a bit later in the sermon [The following two paragraphs represent a digression from the narrative thread of the pastor’s sermon, but the first (Danielle Pilgrim’s) is great. The second (mine) is hackneyed, trite, and extremely shopworn].

In the course of her May 21 speech (last week’s, the one that YouTube removed, presumably due to a copyrighted song that was played during the service) to the graduates od GAAA’s sister school, BCJA (Berean Christian Junior Academy) Pastor Danielle Pilgrim provided her own anecdote about not allowing oneself to be unequally yoked to old associates, and surrounded by bad influences. Her story, which was road tested at a previous Wednesday night prayer meeting (aka the “War Room”) employed Facebook as a metaphor for our proper relationship with God. She had ventured to honor a “friend request’ that she had received (as a pastor, she wryly noted, she had no option but to accept). The computer revealed that the persons “friend limit” had been reached. Pastor Pilgrim explained that, in order for there to be room enough for her to be friends will the person who made the request, the latter would have to “unfriend” someone else. She then drew an analogy to the process of letting God into our lives. In order to make room for God, it will often be necessary or you to “unfriend” some others {This summary will hopefully get replicated, should Sony Corporation ever choose to stop holding the 5/21/2016 Berean Sabbath service video hostage, and should this release also reflect God’s will].

An enigmatic “friend request” to myself. I will, of course, accept it. This image is recycled from the post about Pastor Pilgrim’s “road test” of her Facebook metaphor.

Here is my ancient anecdote about the bad influences of peers and compatriots upon one who seeks a more spacious life. Half a dozen sermons I have heard have incorporated it: If you are crabbing, and have managed to accumulate a bucketful of live crabs, you would be surprised to discover that it is not necessary to place a lid upon the bucket. Should any crab prove intrepid enough to seek to escape the bucket by climbing up its sides, it will never reach the top of the container. Before the enterprising crab ever gets close to freedom, the rest of the crabs will grab hold of it with their claws, and drag it back down to the bottom of the bucket! This may or may not be true, but it makes a great story. It is so great, no one can resist using, despite the fact that it has suffered from irredeemable overexposure.

The independent actions required by individuals seeking their calling was related to the self-sufficiency and power of God. The pastor noted that God did not require consultants in order to make His plans [this statement could serve as a summary for the last chapter of the Book of Job]. “When God calls,” Pastor Snell advised, “don’t run around to your associate to see what their opinion is. There are too many opinions! What we need to do is ‘be still,’ and know the will of God” [here is a LINK to a summary of a short Wednesday night sermon Pastor Russell delivered about six months ago on determining whether a proposed course of action truly reflects the will of God; hint- it has to feel right].

The subject of forsaking “old playgrounds, and old playmates” (a phrase from the 12-step universe, which I have thankfully never heard spoken at Berean) continued as the focus of this part of the sermon. A final anecdote was provided. Like Pastor Pilgrim’s Facebook analogy, it was relatively modern in its particulars, “high-tech” even.

The results of a brief internet research project concerning the “bucket of crabs” story reveals that every person on the planet has already heard it. I vow to never mention the subject again. Unclean! Unclean!

The pastor owned an iPhone. He had been scrupulously deleting older messages, in order to make room in the phone’s memory for new ones. Despite this, however, the memory got filled, and new messages could not be accepted [this story has several points in common with Pastor Pilgrim’s “Facebook” story]. The technician that assisted the pastor with his dilemma revealed that, even though his old messages may have been deleted, they were not yet destroyed. They were just buried a little deeper in the phone’s memory. In order to rectify this situation, a drastic purge of the memory was required, what the tech designated as a “hard reset.” This tale set the stage for the speakers next remark: “Some of us need to do a hard reset, to get rid of all the ideologies, all of the opinions that are clogging you.” He then said something that would have been well served by the jaded crab anecdote. “You will learn the hard way that most people will not endorse a vision that puts you higher than where they are.
”
Pastor Snell recalled some personal situations where he felt more than justified in acting contrary to the opinions of others, specifically citing “church committee” business meetings. “When I get a word from God, I do not seek approval. I just say, ‘this is where God has me!'” Some examples of groups who might present some opposition were provided, including people you go to school with, relatives, etc. He noted that many would even be discouraged from answering an appeal, fearful of what others may think were they to do so. This kind of misplaced concern could even serve to dampen the intensity level of one’s praise. “Who cares what those around us think. Just say ‘this is where God has me!'” A few additional assertions of this nature, with the assistance of bursts fron the organ, served to highlight the importance of serving the perfect will of God, as opposed to the highly imperfect will of man. The high energy level of the sermon was temporarily curtailed with the statement, “Let the church say hallelujah!”




Pastor Snell sought to assure the new graduates that God had a plan for them all laid out. He quoted from Jeremiah 1:4: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” He told the youth that the purposes of their lives have been ordained. “I want you to know, you have significance, You have value. Value to God.” We have been created in the image of God. “Boys,” the speaker stated, “need someone to pat them on the back.” A man, in contrast, will proclaim, “I don’t mind if I stand alone.”

Final instructions to the troops were issued. They should all learn to just sit still, and wait on the Lord. If need be, they may need to undergo a “hard reset,” one that will purge them of improper expectations. In a secret place, we should make the inquiry, “Lord, what would you have me to do?” We should be prepared to act upon the answer wherever, whatever, whenever. The pastor made a prediction. “You will not find fulfillment outside of your calling.” Money, yes, perhaps, Fulfillment? No! The pastor revealed that a song was about to be sung, and requested that we should meditate upon the words contained in it. An appeal would follow the song, but the final injunctions of the sermon were delivered just before the start of the song.

“A calling is not just for pastors. It is for everyone who has been created by God.”

Dr. Lamb’s closing speech at the Sunday GAAA Graduation Ceremony was 8 words long: “Keep your hand in God’s hand. Thank you!” Here is the EVENT.

The song? It begins at time marker 2:11:37 on the linked video. Here is a duplicate LINK to the video, one that shall save much scrolling around. The song was “Pass Me Not,” aka “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior,” aka “Do Not Pass Me By.” The lyrics are by passionate and prolific Fanny Crosby. Here is the chorus:

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

The reference to “calling” made this song an appropriate selection.

Here is a LINK to a uniquely pepped-up rendition by the Bowie State University Gospel Choir in Bowie, Maryland.

Here is a LINK to an inoffensive (way too inoffensive!) version by the Joslin Grove Choral Society (I think).

Douglas Miller in the very early eighties. He sounds a little like Barry White. Everyone wore crazy glasses like these back then, even Former Berean Seventh-day Adventist Church Pastor Dr. Harold Lovell Cleveland!

Here is a very special LINK to a site that features five “African American” versions of the song. Example #1 is by Decatur Georgia’s own Pastor Dewy Smith. It serves to highlight the deficiencies of the “inoffensive version” (I can critique them; I just can’t sing them). Example #2 is from a dramatic “Lifetime Channel” biopic, starring the actual subject of the bio. It is “The Fantasia Barrino Story,” and is a scene that could easily be titled “The Return of the Prodigal.” It is a Hollywood version of Gospel, but not too compromised thereby. Example #3 is from 1982, and is super-funky! It is by Minister Douglas Miller. Fanny Crosby might have had some trouble discerning her creation beneath the embellishments of this production. The example is attended a long print biography of Miller. This SUBLINK is of historical interest, It features the same arrangement, directed by the Minister, 29 years later. What is missing is the lead vocals. They are sorely missed. Example #4 is a performance by the Bowie, Maryland crew that also populates the first link in this series. Example #5 is by MC Hammer. Here is a cowardly endorsement of version #5 by the author. It is a citation of First Corinthians 9:22, and serves as a mild rebuke to the hyper-exclusionary crowd:

“To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some,”

A look into the future, should the Lord delay his return. It is Andy Stanley’s Buckhead Church. Change the day of worship to Saturday, insert 28 Beliefs, and behold- Adventism for the 22nd Century, the USA edition.

The following is a 5/30/2106 addenda to this post.

The Christian content of Pastor Snell’s remarks is solid, and ecumenical by nature. This is what makes the presentation so “portable.” A brief citation of Ellen G. White’s book “Patriarchs and Prophets” is the only clue that it is by a preacher who represents the Adventist denomination. A Monday morning assignment served to remind me of what others have referred to as the “theological consistency” of Adventism. In an attempt to answer a question concerning a few lines of another Ellen White book, “The Great Controversy,” I inadvertently fashioned (reproduced, would be a more accurate term, as it represents no novel thought) a few sentences that  not only capture the essence of the book, but also exhibit an edifying explanation of why there is evil in this world, and why a loving God would allow it. Adventists consider this to be a temporary state of affairs. God is giving men and angels, who are endowed with freewill, a chance to witness the regrettable (but not irreparable) consequences of allowing Satan to have temporary dominion over the earth. In Eternity, the question will never arise, “What if?” There will exist an indelible record of what can go wrong when we stray fron the path that God has so clearly marked for us through His Word, and by His Spirit, Christ has acted as trailblazer upon this path. This doctrine  is one of a handful that serves to distinguish the Adventist denomination from most others, and is described in “Fundamental Belief #8” of the 28 Fundamental Beliefs.

Here is a link that is worth exploring. It places all of the cards on the table, face up!   28 Fundamental Beliefs

Many (but perhaps not most) are aware of some of the salient features of the faith (worship on the Sabbath, modesty of dress, healthy lifestyle and diet, abstaining from alcohol and tobacco, and even meat if you are committed enough), but these are outward manifestations of the attempts to be good commandment keepers. Explanations of the church to those who are unfamiliar with it should begin not with a superficial description of the effects, but rather of causes. Christians of every  stripe are already familiar with 99% of the Adventist viewpoint, as it is primarily the same as their own. One assumes that they already accept the fact that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. The “great controversy” theme is distinctive, and serves as a good entry point for those who are searching for answers as to why the world is in such a mess. Eschatological (end times) issues are also a focus of the faith, but it is no longer unique in placing heavy emphasis upon this issue. The Adventists way of approaching Biblical prophecy, however, is not sensationalist (as are many of the competing approaches), but rather scholarly, and balanced, and Scriptural. If it comes across as “alarmist,” this is only because the Bible itself is “alarmist.”

Adventist South Atlantic Conference President William Winston delivered a sermon at Berean SDA Church that admonished Adventists to try to let go of their narrow obsessions long enough to talk about Jesus to others. This is the core value, one that Adventism claims no monopoly upon. Elder Winston was hoping to create new Christians. My current appeal is to those who, as was I, are already Christians, but feel as if something may be missing from their walk with the Lord. That’s how I felt. Whatever may have been missing, I was blessed enough to discover that the Seventh-day Adventists kept an abundant supply of in stock, and it was free to whomever might require it.

Elder William Winston is a Christan. To quote Keats, “That’s all I know, and all I need to know.”

Many of the particulars of the denomination are attractive enough in themselves. Want to live a long and healthy life? Then become an Adventist! Want to “walk the walk,” and not merely “talk the talk?’ Then Adventism may be right up your alley! Want to “fellowship” (industry parlance for “make friends with”) people who love God, but are not very big fans of this fallen world? Adventism consists of a plurality of this type of person, although levels of commitment vary widely. These are all wonderful aspirations. But what attracted me, personally, was the potential to find answers to the “big questions,” which few seem able or willing to provide. Many (including a few Adventists) don’t even seem to care about these “big questions.” Health is good. Charitable work is good. Friendship is good. But illumination is great, and especially welcome by one who has been stumbling around in the dark for the longest time, breaking his toes on the furniture. Here is the segment of the homework assignment that inspired me to “Adventize” this post, and engage in a little “amateur” (everything I do is “amateur”) evangelism:

Satan is not particularly kind to those that he exercises dominion over. It is rejection of God that results in subservience to the Devil. Ellen White makes a statement with profound theological consequences. It might be restated as follows: “Difficulties in life, be they experienced at either the national or individual level, are not the result of active punishment by God for our transgressions. They represent, rather, the removal by God of the protection from evil that He consistently provides to those (be they nations or individuals) that are not living in His will. Without God’s protection, we are open to the adversary. Difficulty is not caused by God, but by ourselves when we reject God, and by Satan, who stands ever ready (until the return of Christ) to fill the power vacuum that results when God absents Himself from our life. This seems to be the essence of the “great controversy” theme, which serves to answer criticism (and there is plenty of it) that questions the purity of God, and His motives, and His methods. Needless to say, this principle assuredly applies to our own time. We collectively, and individually, must exert ourselves to render honor and obedience to He who, alone, can (in the words of “Come, O You Faithful”) “save us all from Satan’s power…”