Never heard of it? Really?

I met Mr. Ken while helping an elderly couple move their belongings into a storage unit. It was a warm day, yet he wore a jacket. On the back and one of the sleeves, it had the label “The North Pole.” He looked at me and said, “You need a jacket, it may get cold later on.” I put mine on. He walked closer, glanced at the small label sewn into my jacket, and said, “Kirkland? Never heard of it.”

While waiting in the office of Dr. Uta, my dentist, I found myself entertained by a man with a strong desire to talk. After discussing the weather and the tortures of root canals, he said, “I was born in Colorado but grew up in Brooklyn, NY. That’s why I still have this accent. You have an accent too, I can tell. What’s your story?” I replied, “I was born in Romania.” “Really?” he said. “Never heard of it.”

While waiting in the restaurant’s hall to be seated, a friendly older man introduced himself. “I’m the senior pastor of First so-and-so Church,” he said. “I overheard you saying that you’re a pastor too. Which church do you serve?” I answered, “Seventh-day Adventist Church.” He glanced down at my shoes and said, “Seventh-day what? Never heard of it.”

Reading Mat.7:22-23 for my morning devotional I got something more dramatic than playing a little game of pretending ignorance regarding certain brand name, country or church denomination. Jesus warns that many still standing in the hallway of God’s kingdom, pretending they 

never heard of His Robe of Righteousness' brand, 

never paid attention to the Love-and-sacrifice language of heaven, and 

never considered the "minority report" regarding “Whole-Foods” church teachings.

Be ready for the day when Christ will either say, “I never knew you,” or, in the most glorious of moments, “I know you, come in”.

Talk to Him. 

Listen to Him. 

Walk with Him. 

Today.

I Have a Dream Too

 

I once served in a church where the leadership believed that faithfulness to God meant preserving a 1950s version of Adventism. They dressed, spoke, and sang as if it were still the 1950s. They looked back with nostalgia, thinking, “Look how great we were. If only we could return to that golden age of greatness.” This mindset stands in direct contrast to the warning in Ecclesiastes 7:10, which cautions against longing for the past. Sadly, this mentality made them judgmental, controlling, and at times, unsafe to be around.

This illustrates the danger of turning the past into an idol rather than using it as a springboard for the future. Our church’s legacy should be a foundation upon which we build, not something we worship. So, rather than clinging to the culture of past Adventism, perhaps we should emulate the faith and self-sacrifice of our pioneers—so that the Gospel can reach more people today.

True faith isn’t rooted in nostalgia. It’s about actively leaning into what could be, not resting on what was. A living faith takes the best of our heritage—our deep biblical roots, our commitment to health and education, our prophetic vision—and allows it to inspire something new for this generation.

Instead of saying, “It was so good when we did this or that,” we should boldly declare, “The best is yet to come.”

A culture where innovation meets mission, courageously exploring new ways to connect with today’s people in today’s world.

A culture where relationships matter more than regulations or local traditions, allowing people to encounter Jesus before they encounter barriers.

A culture that doesn’t just talk about the future but actively builds it—thriving in the present while staying true to the timeless message of hope.

Preserving the past may feel safe, but true transformation and growth happen when we prioritize Jesus’ "new commandment" in John 13:34. Merging the knowledge about the beasts of Revelation with this love-one-another lifestyle. This is how multiplication and impact happen.

So, what kind of Adventism do you want to see here? One that looks back or one that looks forward?

Let’s dream together.

    Let’s move ahead together. 

       Let’s togetherner together.

Train Up vs Train Down

 

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. Prov.22:6.

If our children see us putting other things ahead of God, they will become discouraged and disillusioned, like a young Jewish boy, Karl, who once lived in Germany.

Karl’s father was a successful retailer, and the family practiced their Jewish faith. But then they moved to another city, and the boy’s father announced that they would no longer attend synagogue, no more Sabbath keeping. They were going to join the Lutheran church.

The boy was very surprised and asked his father why the family was joining the Lutheran church. His father’s answer was something like, “For business reasons. There are so many Lutherans in this town that I can make good business contacts at the Lutheran church. It will be good for business.”

That boy, who had a deep interest in religion, became so disillusioned with his father that something died within him. He said to himself, ‘My father has no real convictions.” The incident helped to turn him against religion with a vengeance. That young boy was Karl Marx. He wrote the “Communist Manifesto,” in which he called religion “the opiate of the masses.” His ideas were pushed by Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Kim Il Sung and other communist dictators brining misery and death to millions of people. 

I wonder if world’s modern history would have been different had Karl Marx’s father hadn’t put other things ahead of God.

Our children and grandchildren know whether we love God with all our heart. They see it with every decision we make that minimizes God in favor of another gods. What they want to see is parents with such love and reverence for God that they bring Him into every area of their lives and put Him first in everything.

And by extension, this is not only what our families are looking for, but our neighbors, friends, coworkers… this is what people want to see when they are observing the life of a GC - Genuine Christian.

Are you a GC or a F(ake)C?  

My Lazarus

 

If you will, you can make me clean. (Mark 1:40) I hear my own heart in the words of this desperate leper. He knows that God can do anything, but He isn’t sure that He wants to. Jesus’ ability isn’t up for debate, but apparently His heart is. Is this true?

It’s likely years of shame which has this leper questioning whether Jesus would want to heal him. This leper knows that Jesus can heal him, but why would he want to? Not this is the line I love, v:41: Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed”

Jesus is moved with compassion and then He does the unthinkable…He touches the leper. And rather than Jesus getting leprosy and becoming unclean He heals the leper. That’s good gospel stuff right there. It doesn’t matter how much shame or darkness or dirtiness or brokenness you have, when you call Jesus, He is going to answer to you.

But then I think of Martha.“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

She, like the leper, isn’t questioning Jesus’ ability. She’s not even questioning His heart. If Jesus had been here, then He would have made sure Lazarus didn’t die. What she is questioning is Jesus’ timing, the goodness of God’s planning.

And that leads to where I occasionally wrestle with. I know that God is able. I know for a fact that He loves me, I’ve got story after story from my own life.

But what if His love means that Lazarus still dies? What if for the glory of God my Lazarus dies?

He is still good. He still loves me. He still is doing everything that is ultimately best for me. But it’s not what I would have chosen. Will I trust Him then? This is where those who question God’s existence get really frustrated with us.

We say God miraculously heals someone. We see the hand of God in someone’s cancer going into remission. We attribute this to God instead of medical science. Point for Team-Jesus.

Then when God doesn’t heal someone… we continue to believe that God is good and does us good. We say things like “He has a better plan” or “He decided to heal in His time”.

If God could heal someone, if God loves us, then why in the world would He not always heal? And if he doesn’t always heal doesn’t it mean that either He doesn’t exist or He isn’t good? Not at all! Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

It just means - the story isn’t over.

 

No-No Fling

 My wife was sleeping next to me – Joshua began telling me - and all of a sudden I got a Facebook notification, and a woman asked me to add her. So, I added her.

I accepted the friend request and sent a message asking, 'Do we know each other?’

She replied: ‘I heard you got married but I still love you.' 

She was a friend from the past. She looked very beautiful in the picture. I typed: ‘You look unchanged.’

Then I closed the chat and looked at my wife, she was sleeping soundly after her exhausting day of work.

Looking at her, I was thinking about how she feels so safe that she can sleep so comfortably in a completely different home with me.

She is far from her parents' house, where she spent 24 hours surrounded by her family. When she was upset or sad, her mother was there so she could cry in her lap. Her sister or brother would tell jokes and make her laugh. Her father would come home and bring her stuff she liked… And still, she placed so much trust in me.

All these thoughts came to mind, so I picked up the smartphone and pressed "BLOCK". Then I turned to my wife and slept next to her.

I am a man – says Joshua to me - not a child. I have sworn to be faithful to her and so it will be. I will fight forever to be a man who doesn't cheat and tear his family apart like some stupid guys who are falling into the trap.”

Giving Up or Letting Go?

 

In many situations in life, our instinct is to fight it, fix it, and seize control. But very often, the Lord is asking us to do the opposite. He’s asking us to let go.

 Letting Go and surrender is completely counterintuitive. But that’s the nature of life lived God’s way. It runs against our natural instincts. But letting go isn’t the same as giving up.

 Giving up is when the rope is torn out of your bleeding hands. It’s something you allow to happen by a choice of your will.

 God never wants us to give up. But He does want us to let go.

 1. Letting go is an act of acceptance and surrender. It’s also part of life. To let go is to accept those things we cannot change. It doesn’t mean we approve of those things or even like them. But we release them nonetheless.

2. Letting go is an act of love, not defeat. It’s a deliberate decision to place our trust in Jesus Christ.

3. Letting go is the path to freedom. It also opens the door for God to gain what He’s after without interrupting, interfering with, or intercepting the masterpiece He’s seeking to create in you.

The fact is life is a series of losses. We lose friends, relationships, jobs, churches, family members, even our favorite stores, restaurants, games, and preferential subscriptions. The only thing that’s guaranteed is our earthly existence, and even that will be gone one day.

 As difficult as it is to let go, keep this in mind: You’re not really letting go. You’re simply transferring the problem into God’s hands - hands that are far more capable than your own.

 As children bring their broken toys with tears for us to mend,

I brought my broken dreams to God, because He was my friend.

But then, instead of leaving Him, in peace, to work alone,

I hung around and tried to help, with ways that were my own.

 At last I snatched them back and cried, “How can You be so slow?”

“My child,” He said, “What could I do? You never did let go.”

Will you?

 

Breathing His Name

 

There was a moment when Moses had the nerve to ask God what his name is. God was gracious enough to answer, and the name he gave is recorded in the original Hebrew as YHWH.

 Over time translators arbitrarily added an “a” and an “e” in there to get YaHWeH, first of all because the original pronunciation was lost, and secondly because in English we have a preference for vowels.

 But scholars and Rabis have noted that the letters YHWH represent breathing sounds, or aspirated consonants. When pronounced without intervening vowels, it actually sounds like breathing.

 YH (inhale)… WH (exhale…)

So, a baby’s first cry, his first breath, speaks the name of God.  A deep sigh calls His name – or a groan or gasp that is too heavy for mere words.

Even an atheist would speak His name, unaware that their very breathe is giving constant acknowledgment to God. Likewise, a person leaves this life with their last breath when God’s name is no longer filing their lungs.

So, when I can’t utter anything else, is my cry calling out His name?

Being alive means I speak His name constantly. 

Is it heard the loudest when I’m the quietest?

In sadness, we breathe heavy sighs.

In joy, our lungs feel almost like they will burst.

In fear we hold our breath and have to be told to

breathe slowly to help us calm down.

When we’re about to do something hard, we take a deep breath to find our courage. 

When I think about it, breathing is giving him praise. Even in the hardest moments. 

This is so beautiful and fills me with emotion every time I grasp the thought - God chose to reveal himself through this Name that we can’t help but speak every moment we are alive.