A church is a community of like-minded believers. To ensure a vibrant church life, however, belief is not enough. Its practices must also be practical.
A church body is obligated to take care of its individual members. Teaching and preaching only will not grow or even retain membership. Seventh-day Adventism embraces whole-person care. It’s a way of life, a blueprint of how to live successfully and enjoy practical Christian living.
Providing for the needs of youth, for example, is vital. Along with theoretical instruction and discussion, many local church congregations arrange for areas in the church facility in which youth can gather for social as well as spiritual events. Various youth programs and initiatives are routinely developed, demonstrating to the youth that we care about them in all aspects of their lives. This is one of the many strengths of Adventism.
I didn’t have the advantage of attending an Adventist school or church while growing up. During the Great Depression years in the early 1900s, the only Adventists I knew were my mother and the neighbor man and his wife, who were instrumental players in the conversion of my mother shortly after I was born. Since there was no Adventist church in our entire county, I attended the Methodist and the United Brethren churches, which were about equal distances from our home in southern Ohio.
My mother taught me early on to love Jesus and to honor the seventh-day Sabbath. That was about the extent of my doctrinal study. She also bought me a Bible. But just as important were the practical aspects of Adventism.
For instance, it seemed only common sense to take one day off a week in order to worship, enjoy nature, and rest after six days of farm work. Adventism also kept me “steady” during the 12 years I attended public school. It taught me the dangers of drinking alcohol and smoking, as well as the inappropriateness of using bad language, which guided me in making positive lifestyle choices.
Even though I had many good friends, I never attended functions on Friday evenings or Sabbaths. I didn’t play basketball on Friday nights, even though I was a member of the team and the coach truly needed me to participate in all the games because we were playing for a small high school.
I wasn’t faithful to all the Adventist teachings during those years, but the church’s belief system, taught to me by my mother, served as a practical guide.
I wasn’t a vegetarian, and high school lunch meals usually consisted of hamburgers and sodas at the only restaurant in our small town. Eventually, however, Ellen White’s writings revealed to my family and me the advantages of health reform. Today, after more than 80 years of life, I can look back and see the true value of a plant-based diet—particularly as I consider my longevity of life compared to that of many of my high school friends. Sadly, most of them died before they reached the age of 65.
Following high school I worked for four years as a woodsman operating a chain saw. It was a rough crew, and I began to see my “Adventism” slipping away. My wise mother then packed me off to Emmanuel Missionary College (now Andrews University) in Michigan, primarily with the goal of my finding an Adventist wife.
In 1951, however, “Uncle Sam” needed me in Korea. One night while out on patrol there I promised God that if He would allow me to return home safely, I would go back to college, look for a good Christian wife, and settle down—and it happened just like that. After two years serving in Korea I returned to Emmanuel Missionary College, and in the registrar’s office I met a wonderful young woman named Donna, who signed me up for my coursework. We married the following year. That’s what I call practical Adventism!
My college professors were fine spiritual teachers. Professor E. K. VandeVere directed my historical studies, and I graduated with my undergraduate degree in 1956. I completed my graduate work at both Ohio and Michigan State universities, focusing on millennial studies relating to William Miller and early Adventism. Again, the practical side of my membership in the Adventist Church paid off.
After obtaining a doctorate, I accepted a call from Pacific Union College president Floyd O. Rittenhouse. My wife, three children, and I moved to PUC, where I taught in the History Department for almost 40 years.
I count it as one of the greatest blessings of my life to be a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which not only teaches solid fundamental Bible doctrine but also emphasizes the practical side of life on this earth. This is largely a result of the messages the Lord sent through Ellen White, guiding our church in such areas as evangelism, health reform, education, and mission.
Ellen White—a practical, commonsense person whose writings are simple and easy to understand—helped to direct our church for more than 50 years during its critical formative period. Her emphasis on the primacy of Scripture and making Jesus the center of all our ministries has helped make the Adventist Church one of the fastest-growing denominations in the world. Her writings have also kept us on task with preaching the three angels’ messages and sharing the love of Jesus in every world nation.
God has truly blessed the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and I’m grateful I’ve had the opportunity to live my life according to its teachings. But most of all I thank God for a church that is practical. It makes all the difference.
