Washington Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

By Pam, Washington Conference associate treasurer and risk manager

There is a road from legalism to cynicism; and somewhere along the way, you cross paths with truth.

If you were raised in an environment where you obeyed the rules because that was the law, you learned that the rule and the intended purpose had often split and gone their own separate ways. They didn’t make a lick of sense. You may have excelled at questioning everything until gradually your belief grew slim, and you became wise in your own eyes. You liked the idea of being a religious rebel and a spiritual thinker. Reading the Bible, though, became a frustration — a never-ending debate match rather than the joy of hearing God speak.

Then you knew it was time to travel the road again — to come to the cross, to the place where you had crossed paths with truth. To understand that there is no wisdom except God’s wisdom, and no understanding except God’s revelation. When revelation comes, pray hard to not lean on your own understanding, but in everything you learn and do, give honest credit to God — not just with your mouth because it’s the right thing to say, but with your whole being.

"But they said, we will not take it."

This phrase haunted me. I had intended to leave it out, but my mind kept going back to the fact that we all have choices. We can choose the ending to our story. We can choose God.

“Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault” (Jude 1:24, NLT).