unsafe for women. And I’m feeling glad this community isn’t continuing that pursuit. My thoughts turn to someone else on that stage. Tey’re gay,


but no one has come to yell at me about defending the biblical ideal. Instead, the church members who know this person love them. I’m glad they have a safe place where they can grow in Christ. I think of my LGBTQ friend who is convicted to be celibate for


life. He’d be loved here, too. I see a young adult who once pulled aside a transgender person


at church because he felt convicted to share the truth with them. Don’t love that he did that, but I love him. I see a couple sitting nearby who have a baby together. Tey’re


What if, when we share these lifestyle principles, we are also quick to say that each person will have different convictions within the boundaries of those principles?


not married. Nobody cares. Actually, scratch that. A middle- aged family seated next to them cares deeply. Te husband is one of our elders, and his wife is oſten holding that little baby. Tey welcomed that unmarried couple into their home for meals and invited them into their small group. Once, they leſt their jobs in the middle of the day, because this young couple was having such an intense disagreement that it threatened to break down their relationship. Tey love that couple. So do I. Te music crescendos as I scan the congregation. I see a bunch


of people who drink alcohol socially. It’s not an issue. Tere is one man whose drinking has harmed him, his wife,


and their kids. He showed up in our community with a very “I’m- a-bad-Adventist-if-I-drink” mindset. Te secret of his alcohol use and habits were hanging over him, but God got through to that husband over the course of a year and convicted him to surrender. His habits have changed. He’s working hard to lead his family well. I love that man.


18 AD VENTIS T T OD A Y


Tere’s a guy who told me he took $20 to the casino while


out with friends and used it on the slot machines. Ten he leſt, because he had only budgeted $20 and had the self-control to stop. Not many in the congregation would have cared if they had heard. Another guy used gambling as a coping mechanism and lost


thousands of dollars. Jesus freed him from that addiction. We love him so much. I’m walking through the lobby now and see the coffee cafe.


Every week it serves high-quality coffee, matcha, and chai. People have found community in the volunteer team that runs it. Some likely wouldn’t be in church unless they’d had that pathway into relationship with others. While walking, I greet a guy my age. He and his wife hadn’t


attended church for years, but now they’re here, involved in small groups, clued in to the sermons, and in love with the community. Tey gave church another shot because someone told them that we had good coffee. We love them. I see someone I talk to regularly who doesn’t do caffeine,


because it causes too much anxiety. I love that person, too. Ten there’s the queer person who copes with childhood


trauma through random sexual relationships and abuse of substances. Another guy smells like smoke consistently and feels convicted to drop the cigarettes but is still figuring it out. I’ve met with one of these individuals for a year and a half and have witnessed God work in his life in the most amazing ways. I feel slightly emotional as I take it all in. It’s beautiful. People


are meeting Jesus and finding a deep love for church. All around me are some who closely align with an “Adventist lifestyle” and others who don’t at all.


What We’re Afraid of I’m seeing conviction. Te Spirit is convicting some (who check the Adventist-lifestyle boxes) of their self-righteousness, giving them spiritual eyes to see their unintentionally judgmental attitudes and how they have alienated others. Te Spirit is convicting a few people to shiſt away from caffeine consumption because of how it impacts them. Others, who had taken a relaxed attitude on sexuality outside of marriage, have shiſted to a more traditional conviction. All as the Spirit sees fit. My mind goes back to a quote our lead pastor used in a


sermon: “It’s God’s job to judge, the Spirit’s job to convict, Jesus’ job to save, and our job to love.” Tere’s something to that.


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