Author: jeremiahtan963404

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

March 30th, 2022

“[God] causes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends His rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5:45

We had a pretty sizable storm come through on Monday! As I was driving, I saw water streaming off rooftops, filling the curbs, and rushing down culverts. I had heard on the radio that, though getting 1 – 1½ inches of rain was good, it wasn’t going to make much of a dent in our water needs with the current drought. I thought: “What a shame that this water is spread so broadly, so much of it ‘wasted’ in going down storm drains and out to the sea! If only this could all be concentrated in our snowpack & reservoirs!

Then I imagined a hypothetical conversation between local & state leaders and God. And the governmental leaders were asking God: “Couldn’t we get the rain to fall just where it can be captured and reclaimed? We could really use it over here, but not so much over there… and while we’re at it, the sun shines so broadly… couldn’t we have it just shine more concentratedly on the solar panels, where its energy could be captured & utilized for clean energy?”

And I actually feel we have a similar desire about the Bible: “Couldn’t we pack down the doctrinal information more densely? Couldn’t we get, like, bullet-point format, or, principles diagrammed out, rather than having to glean out principles that are peppered so widely throughout various stories, proverbs, & parables?”

And to all of these hypothetical requests, I imagine God responding “No, I apply my blessings just as I intend to: broadly and liberally, to everyone equally. You are more than welcome to move them around, collect them and whatnot once they’re amply delivered, but, consider the benefits of my method of dispersion!”

And this is where we have to humble ourselves and admit that, yes, God’s ways are better than man’s ways (Isaiah 55:9).

Just what do we get from God’s methodology of broad blessing dispersion? We get lavish, green hills, arrayed with flowers (I’m considering the breathtaking beauty of Santa Ana Canyon in the weeks following a good rain: also the poppy fields in the high desert (which are currently blooming, as I saw a few friends posting pics from up there this past weekend!)), we get cheerful meadows and stunning sunsets lighting up the sky. Regarding the scriptural teachings: we get God’s truth communicated through gripping accounts of how He’s led in the past, and we also get a reward for the diligent (Hebrews 11:6), in that “seeking, you will find” (Matthew 7:7) and “You will find me when you seek with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).

In all this, I see that God lavishes his blessings broadly, insinuating that He gives out of His abundance, when we too often are concerned with managing scarcity. I don’t doubt that things like the drought are tough, and we need to be diligent in managing our water use, but we can also use this as an opportunity to trust God, rather than despair or wish things were different.

Above all, I pray that we’d all a) have the patience and trust to recognize that God’s way is the best way, and b) look for the blessings in the broad distributing that God provides. I believe that in doing so, we will find our hearts overflowing like an abundant fountain in joy & thankfulness. (see Psalm 23:5 & John 7:38).

May God’s blessings be abundant in your lives, and may you have the perception to recognize & accept them with gratitude!

I pray a good remainder of the week for you and your families.

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

March 23rd, 2022

“Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.” Psalm 37:27-29 ESV

In light of the recent war in Ukraine, with its heart- and gut-wrenching images of death, destruction, and devastation, I have been appreciating anew the stability, the peace and prosperity, in which we live. While so many of these things can be taken for granted, while ‘first world problems’ of reputation, career advancement, and life satisfaction can come to the forefront of our minds, it is important to stop and be appreciative that our attention can even be occupied with these secondary- or tertiary concerns, rather than “will I have food tomorrow?” or “will my house even be standing tomorrow?”

It is so easy to lose sight of it, but we are truly blessed. While it can certainly be an irksome or concerning difficulty to pay the higher gas prices recently, compared to the scope of struggle & trauma others are having, I hope we can gain some perspective in what constitutes a “life well-lived”.

We have been hugely blessed in this country, under, among other things, our government & constitution, in which “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” are held to be basic, guaranteed rights. But those principles take effort to maintain, and no small amount of public debate as to just how those rights are best effectuated to as many as possible.

Over the past couple of days, as I’ve been driving around & doing my errands, I’ve been listening to the congressional hearings for the new Supreme Court Nominee, Katanji Brown Jackson. It has been interesting and enlightening to say the least. Members of opposing parties take turns questioning the prospective justice, but often speak well over her head to either members of the opposing party, or to constituents at large in their home districts, knowing they have a large microphone for several minutes. I’ve heard very broad political and societal assertions being made, and it makes me realize that principles of freedom and democracy are sometimes (even often?) in tension with each-other.

Societal concerns are not foreign to the Bible. Particularly in the minor prophets, God repeatedly urges Israel to pursue social justice, liberty for the oppressed, etc. For example, the prophet Isaiah asserts, in chapter 58 of his book, that the reason the Israelites receive no response from God, despite fasting and making sacrifices, is because they ignore social justice issues and disregard the poor and oppressed. Similarly, Amos exclaims “Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (5:24)

So, bringing this to our current day, we have a perpetual 2-party system, who both affirm the general phrase “liberty and justice for all”, but have very different priorities as to how, when, and to whom those principles should be applied!

I, for one, prefer the internal, word-based debates to the external, forced-based ones like we see in warfare. Though at times it’s difficult to know which ‘side’ one should be on politically/socially, I pray we would have strong resolution Spiritually to be on God’s side. Let’s remember that whereas “the thief does not come except to kill and destroy”, Jesus has come “that they may have life, and that they may have it to the fullest” (John 10:10). Therefore, any policy that leads to life, liberty, and freedom is in agreement with Christ, whereas any policy or implementation that limits or harms it is against.

I pray that we would all be “wise as serpents, yet innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16) in discerning how to navigate societal issues personally. We occasionally get to vote in a local, state, or federal election, which we should take seriously, but in the meantime between those times, we should be lifting up “…petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” 1 Timothy 2:1-4.

I pray you and your families have a blessed rest of the week.

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

March 16th, 2022

“You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to man-made traditions!” Mark 7:8

Well, this week we find ourselves between two minor occasions on the calendar that only get attention for a few days: the changing of clocks for daylight savings time, and Saint Patrick’s day, which occurs tomorrow. One of these may be going the way of the Dodo bird, in that the senate unanimously voted yesterday to stop moving clocks twice per year,* and the other could practically be called extinct already.

Not that Saint Patrick’s day has become invisible: no, no. You can currently buy green donuts, green coffees, silly t-shirts, green beers, etc., you will see politicians wearing green ties or green scarves tomorrow, and I’m sure every radio and local TV news will be giving it a shout-out. But what has changed over time is that it has practically entirely ceased to be about Christianity IN Ireland, it has just been ‘generalized’ to now be a day in American culture recognizes Ireland/Irish culture (and, nearly universally, a 2-dimensional, stereotyped form of it at that).

Now: the history of St. Patrick and Christianity in Ireland is significant: last year I wrote my mid-week update all about that history (when the day fell on a Wednesday). At the risk of seeming lazy or self-plagiaristic here, I won’t do so again this year, but if you’re interested to re-read it, you can find last year’s e-mail by typing “St. Patrick” into your e-mail history search, or you can simply reply here to this e-mail requesting it, and I’ll forward it to you. 🙂

But I just want to reflect today on the prevalent de-specifying of holidays’ original meanings, to become more ‘palatable’ to the broader society. We’re obviously aware that this happens with Chrsitmas: Santa Claus and Christmas trees replace the baby Jesus in the manger, and also Valentine’s day, when a historical Christian character gets exchanged to the general concepts of “love”, red, and chocolates. But St. Patrick’s day seems to have been ‘de-fanged’, redefined even further, in that now St. Patrick’s day seems to be observed mostly as an occasion for drinking & carousing, which are actually opposite of the principles of Christianity, and therefore “Saint” Patrick actually stood for.

I suppose I need to “put the shoe on the other foot” regarding what an overtly Christian holiday might mean for a person in a minority religion in our county. I have to admit that, if I were in a country in which Christianity were a minority to another (monotheistic or polytheistic) religion, I’d be happy about a gradual de-specification of the religious aspect of holidays, and of having more of a “let’s all just have a general celebratory time together” feel. I still feel I’d likely not participate in such festivities, the histories of those holidays being incongruous with my beliefs, but I suppose I’d like to not have the religious aspect ‘shoved down my throat’ too much.

But for adherents of specific religions to gradually forget the historical reasons they/we celebrate their holidays is particularly tragic. For a Christian child to celebrate the cultural trappings of a holiday without intentional instruction as to its original significance is a loss of a golden opportunity! You can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be telling my kids a simple version of the story of St. Patrick tomorrow as I drive them to school in their green outfits!

So I guess I get it: Starbucks and Target want to have something ‘special to celebrate’ to try to spur sales, while not alienating clientele of religious (or anti-religious) convictions of another direction, but if that’s the end of people’s perceptions, what you end-up with is just a milk-toast version of the holiday for general gaiety’s sake.

I want to be careful here in what I advocate: a form of ‘Christianity’ being “shoved” upon society is what will bring on the time of trouble in the last days (Revelation 13:11-17), so maybe we should be thankful of secularization trends, rather than religious coercion ones. But we still have an important role to take in our families & faith communities: to remember what these holidays originally commemorated, and keep that understanding alive year after year.

I pray that you will be grateful for “Saint” Patrick’s efforts in Ireland so long ago, and that we would strive to have similar influence within our own families and social circles. May God bless us as we continue to shine his light into our community (Matthew 5:14-16).

May God bless you all

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum

* how often does a bipartisan, much less unanimous vote happen in the U.S. senate?! But it’s not a done deal yet: apparently it still has to be voted by the congressional House & signed by the President. But that would be significant, and I’d say it looks likely!

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

March 9th, 2022

“Woe! Woe to you, great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!” Revelation 18:16-17

If you drive a gasoline-powered car, you have no doubt been experiencing ‘pain at the pump’ lately, with gas prices having floated well above the unprecedented $5/gallon mark this past weekend, and probably headed up to and beyond $6 soon. While this was almost entirely unexpected 6-months ago, interestingly, contrastedly to other times gas prices have surged, I have not heard the outrage expressed as I have with previous fuel price peaks. News reports I’ve seen in which reporters interview gas customers as they fill up have been more filled with resignation to the fact, rather than being livid with anger or vitriol.

And that is largely because this latest price surge (on top of the post-pandemic surge in demand) has a very different and dreadful reason behind it: the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the subsequent sanctions, and the resulting volatility in the commodities market. I think that people realize that, while it is certainly a discomfort for us paying a full dollar more per gallon than we did a few weeks ago, it is a comparatively small and light burden, compared to the devastating bombardment and attacks that Ukranians are daily facing in their homeland. The images and reports coming from there are just wrenching my heartstrings. I pray you’ll join me in praying for them.

Jesus of course predicted that wars and rumors of wars would continue up to the time of the end (Matthew 24:6, Mark 13:7), but that we shouldn’t be overly concerned about them. They themselves will not bring about the end: the end is yet to come. How terrible for those who have to endure it, though!

But it does surprise me that a war being waged halfway around the northern hemisphere from us (Ukraine is 10 hours ahead of us in time-zones) would affect our gas prices so sharply. I understand that oil is sold, and therefore the prices are set, on the international market. So, despite the fact that oil can be dredged and refined right here in California, the worldwide supply vs. demand factors influence the value, and therefore selling point, of each barrel. This is part of what comes with an internationally-integrated, worldwide economy. I suppose sometimes such a system works to a majority of people’s benefit, but it sure feels like a drawback right now.

Perhaps surprisingly, a worldwide, mutually integrated economy was foretold by scripture. The great “Babylon” of Revelation 17 is described as a global religio/political and economical empire. While the religious/political aspects are often highligted in prophecy seminars*, the economical aspects can tend to be overlooked.

Yet, when the Babylonian system falls in Revelation 18, over a third of the chapter is spent on producers, shippers, merchants, etc. wailing in agony over the loss of their lucrative trade deals. While obviously for Christians, the fall of a corrupt and oppressive empire is good news, those who got inextricably involved in such an economic system can do nothing but lament its downfall. Verses 11 through 19 are kind of a laborious, churning record of the angst of the traders. Though of course in the Apostle John’s time & place (1st Century eastern Mediterranean), a worldwide system of communication and travel couldn’t have been imagined, yet we see prophetically portrayed here a worldwide integrated system of trade and money. But the prophecy also dictates that the gigantic system must fall (and quickly! “One hour”, which would indicate somewhere in the neighborhood of 2 weeks using the prophetic day/year prophecy principle).

So: let us take Jesus’ advice of not putting trust in money/trade or wealth-amassing, but rather in God’s everlasting Kingdom of Righteousness (Matthew 6:19-20, 33). While it may seem ‘backwards’ to the world, it is the only way to avoid the inevitable lament of those who’ve committed everything they had to such systems.

I hope we can all take this latest inflation & price surge in stride, remembering that our problems are comparatively small to what others are going through. Let’s be compassionate for them: praying for them and donating aid when & where we can. I encourage you to go to either www.unicef.org or www.adra.org to see how you can help in a practical manner.

May God bless you and your families this week and beyond.

Sincerely,

Pastor Mark Tatum

* The religious aspect is depicted as a woman (often representing a church, in either its pure or impure form), while the political aspect is described as a beast (frequent symbolic usage in Daniel for nations). Combined they are described as a prostitute riding a beast. Revelation 17:3.

Please read (or at least scroll) all the way to the bottom of this update, in order to see important prayer requests (many health ones), and announcements, including the repopulating of our activity calendar!

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

March 2nd, 2022

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10

I don’t know if you are aware, but last night was the annual presidential “State of the Union” address to congress. Whether you watched or not, you are likely familiar with how it generally goes: The president enters the large house chamber in the capitol building, to much applause and fanfare. He takes the podium, and begins to give an open-eyed assessment of the state of our nation. He is expected to take an optimistic yet resolute tone, inspiring America to pull together and move forward. He is not to sugar-coat problems, but give confidence in how they will be overcome and resolved. And, of course, the speech would never be complete without the strong assertion at some point that “the State of our Union is Strong”, drawing a long, bipartisan standing ovation.

Then, of course, comes the rebuttal from the opposing party, in which a prominent (or rising) personality in that party comes on the TV screen and partially deconstructs the president’s speech, and partially establishes an alternative narrative for moving forward as a nation. Though the two speeches are often at cross-purposes from each-other, they both affirm American freedoms, ideals, and workers as the backbone of our society.

As I heard on the radio a few days ago that President Biden’s speech was coming-up this week, I wondered to myself ‘What if God were to give a “state of the world” speech sometime?’ What tone would God strike in speaking of affirming the good, yet resolutely facing the challenges, that lay ahead? Would he have more good or bad to say? What ideals and motivations would He employ to motivate people to pull together to accomplish lofty goals?*

I hope He would have plenty of good to say, in addition to the necessary bad. I recall that Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount started with blessings and upliftings, before getting to more hard-hitting parts. I don’t believe He would mince his words about the real problems and struggles that need addressing, but I hope that the goodness & grandeur would shine through to give a mostly optimistic tone.

And then, in contrast, if Satan were to get a “rebuttal” speech as the alternate party does afterward, what would he say in response/opposition? I imagine he’d say something like “God shouldn’t be so serious about all this stuff! Yes, we’ve got hardships, but let’s celebrate! Let’s take it easy! Let’s make this place a little more like a party, let’s make it more like Vegas, baby!”

And that message would probably appeal to a broad swath of people who saw God’s speech as too stodgy or formal. “Yeah,” people would say, “let’s live it up while we’ve got it!” as they choose the path of revelry.

But I can’t help but remember Jesus’ strong words, in the scripture passage from John 10 quoted above: The thief, the devil, Satan, does not approach except to cause damage, to harm, to ultimately destroy. And every source of seeming thrill and fun and fulfillment ends in utter destitution and misery. Satan leads people down the primrose path to destruction, while God holds our hands on the path leading to fulfillment and prosperous life everlasting. Jesus described these two paths overtly in Matthew 7:13-14.

Of the two options: I have to pick God’s way. Both claim to offer freedom and life while the other one offers limitation. But who is to be believed? The one who gave us this planet and every day of life and opportunity? Or the one who used his God-given life and freedom to rebel against Him?

To me the choice is so clear: so obvious, it boggles my mind that the deceiver is able to lead astray so many. We shouldn’t be surprised though, Revelation 12 calls him “that serpent of old, the devil or Satan, who deceives the whole world” (v. 9), and “the accuser of the bretheren, who accuse them before God day and night (v. 10).

And, contrasted to those descriptions, what about those who resist and refuse him, they do so how? “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (v. 11)

So friends, the scripture is clear: life will not be easy for those who choose God’s side. In fact, “everyone who seeks to live a godly life in Christ will suffer persecution” 2 Timothy 3:12. But let’s not be overly discouraged by that: let’s remember that the long-term destiny, the final point of the imagined “state of the world” speech by God is a glorious one, while the main thrust of Satan’s speech is a short-term one, only geared to immediate (supposed) happiness.

Let’s take the long view, friends: after all, “The world and it’s ways are passing away, but the one who does the will of God, endures forever” (1st John 2:17)

May God bless you and your families the remainder of this week and beyond.

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum

*I realize that these questions are similar to ones I asked about what Jesus would say to our society/churches in the recent sermon on the 7 churches of Revelation. In case you didn’t see that sermon, you can watch it by following this link: https://youtu.be/TKIJV0-alqc

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

February 23rd, 2022

“Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise” Proverbs 20:1

Early last week, I had an evening free in my schedule, so I proposed to my wife that we go somewhere for dinner. “Where would you like to go?” She asked. “Well, I’d be good with El Torito, with Chili’s, or with the Argentinean restaurant up on Tustin Ave. in Orange…”. “I’ve heard of a couple other Argentinean restaurants nearby, we could try one of those” she responded. “Great”, I said “Text me the address, and the time to meet you & the kids, and I’ll see you there.” She did so, and I set my GPS to that address at the proper time.

As I pulled close, I didn’t see any Argentinean restaurant, but rather a… strip mall with a liquor store? I pulled into the parking lot to check my GPS, thinking “perhaps it’s a ‘street’ vs. ‘avenue’ thing, or a ‘north’ vs. ‘south’ on the street name… but as I was trying to review my phone, my wife & kids pulled up in the parking space next to me, smiling & waving.

“This can’t be right,” I said, “Are we at the wrong place?” “No, it’s here: look! That sign says ’empanadas’ right there.” Sure enough, written vertically on the pole supporting the liquor sign was the undeniable sign. “It must be in the liquor store” Jime said. “It can’t be!” I retorted. But as she went to the entrance, she said “Yeah, I see tables & chairs in the back half.” As she and the kids went in, I had a weird moment of eeriness come over me: ‘Am I about to go in a liquor store?’ I thought. I’d been in plenty of grocery and convenience stores, of course, which sell wine & beer, but nothing like this: with neon signs in the windors, and shelves of colorful bottles displayed on shelves of mirrors that went to the roof! I surreptitiously glanced back and forth to make sure no-one was watching me (church members or otherwise :-p ), and slinked in.

Sure enough: in the back half of the liquor store, there was a second business: a window to order food at, that had Argentinean candies and souvenirs, and a menu above to read from. Several tables with tablecloths and chairs were arranged in front of it. Behind it, a nice little lady was smiling, chatting with Jimena about Argentina, and discussing the hot food that could be ordered.

After we ordered our food, the woman tore off the receipt and handed it to us, saying “You pay at the cashier up front”, and so, man! I had to stand in line with people buying liquor to pay for our food! I was appreciative that the cashier didn’t look at me funny, or ask why I was in a liquor store in a suit (although, come to think of it, I’m sure plenty of business people come straight after work to ‘get their fix’.)

The rest of the meal turned out to be uneventful and quite tasty: the husband came out from the kitchen in the back and, along with his wife, talked with us friendlily for several minutes about their homeland. They said they’d moved to the U.S. about fifteen years ago, and that they had been in their current location there for about 3½ years. They also showed us a bit of the new money that’s been printed down in Argentina, more recently than the last time we visited. We parted afterward with friendly ‘ciao’s, and promises to come back sometime (or better, order the food for delivery, I thought).

So that was a unique moment for me. Upon driving home, I was reflecting: what was making me so uncomfortable going in there? Obviously, liquor stores are places of bad repute, and of course a number of bad or violent evenings for folk begin at such places. But it was kind of remarkable how ‘normal’ it felt inside. Like so many things in life, you had the good right next to the bad (I even saw they had bottles of Martinellis in there for purchase! I picked one up and put it on the table to show Jime as a joke).

As I continued reflecting, I wondered whether Jesus, were he here currently, would visit liquor stores and bars and the like, and I concluded that, fairly likely, he would! As he said at Levi the tax collector’s house, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick”. (Luke 5:31)

Speaking of which, that brought me to something else I noticed while we were eating there. The whole time we were there eating and chatting with that Argentinean couple, there was a pretty steady stream of clientele coming in and making liquor & beer purchases up front. There were women, of course, but I’d say probably 80% men, plenty of them young & healthy looking. I thought about how many stand-up men we see at church on a given Sabbath, and it’s probably about the same number that came in during that 40-minute or so period we were there that evening: meaning that, if you extrapolate it out through the night hours and seven days a week, far more people (predominantly men) are visiting that little liquor store than our visiting our churches. Obviously I shouldn’t stereotype: not all those men are ‘off the wagon’ or non-church attenders, but I couldn’t help feeling some melancholy over “where are our men in society? Far more here at the liquor store than in our churches.” And I thought about how liquor is an escape: of how many people use liquor (and stronger drugs) to ‘medicate themselves’ to deal with life, their histories, regrets, etc.

I had a great longing to talk to those people: to ask them what their life consisted of, and what brought them to the liquor store that evening. Though I kind of wanted to, I didn’t approach any of them: how many people would like to talk to a guy in a tie at or in front of a liquor store asking about life? But I wondered what Jesus would do in that situation.

Sometimes I get asked by young adults if they should travel in certain circles, or go to certain parties. Some of them say “I had this circle of friends back before I converted, shall I still hang out with them, or should I stop?” And my answer usually consists of something like this: “If you are sure you can be a positive influence on that group, then go ahead and go: if you’re concerned that the group will be a negative influence on you, then you’d better not.” Jesus could go into any situation in his day, because He knew His radiant holiness would undoubtedly be a good influence on them. But with us, we need to be careful and discerning. Even the Apostle Paul warns us: “if you think you are standing firm, be careful, lest you fall!” (1st Corinthians 10:12) So we should never haphazardly enter into dangerous situations. But he goes on to give us the positive advice in verse 13: “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to man. But God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” So this means that, while we do not approach temptation intentionally, we can have confidence to endure and/or escape tempting situations in the power & space that God gives us.

<sigh> I wonder if you’d join with me in praying for how we can reach hurting people in society who are trying to ‘fill the void’ through alcohol or other means. We know that God’s love, His vision, His salvation, and the fulfillment that He brings are the solutions to all the social problems people experience, but many times people don’t want the ‘cure’ when they can have the supposed ‘medicine’ that numbs the symptoms for a time. (Never mind that it hurts the brain, liver, and relationships in life in the meantime).

I don’t know whether I will ever visit that liquor store again: I kind of doubt it, I only went that first time because I had no idea of the situation in which that little Argentinean café was oriented. But it was an experience that gave me much to reflect on. I certainly hope Jesus can reach those people: let’s resolve to be available to anyone who shows the slightest inkling of interest: after all, Jesus says “No-one can come to me unless the Father draws him” (John 6:44).

I pray you and your families have a blessed week and beyond. Hope to see you at church this Sabbath (and I’m glad I didn’t see any of you at the liquor store! 😛 )

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

February 16th, 2022

“Vindicate me, O LORD my God, according to Your righteousness; And let [my enemies] not rejoice over me.” Psalm 35:24

Hello dear church members & friends, I hope your week is going well. Hope you had a good Valentines’ day on Monday: let’s remember that all forms of pure love under God’s umbrella are worth elevating, savoring, and celebrating every day of the year. (This stands out in stark contrast to the mere 2-dimensional representations of hearts, flowers, chocolates, teddy bears, etc. These things aren’t ‘bad’ in-and-of-themselves, but fall far short of the bonded unity and helpfulness that true love consists of.) 🙂

For my devotional thought today, I’d like to go back to my jury duty experience from early last week. Beyond the thoughts that seeing the wall of judges’ pictures gave me that I discussed last week, there was another aspect of that day that really impacted me in my soul.

About 50 of us, prospective jurors, were assembled into a courtroom, and the judge, among saying many things about procedures and equity, mentioned that the case to be tried was going to be regarding theft. Then he put a series of questions on a screen that, in addition to asking our occupations, children and spouses and their occupations, asked each juror to identify if they or a close relative had ever been a victim of theft or violent crime. It was clarified that answering in the affirmative wouldn’t exclude someone from the possibility of being a juror, but that it needed to be disclosed to the court.

So the judge began to proceed through the jurors. Our juror numbers were assigned based on last name, so my number was most of the way toward the end. Folks went through listing their occupations, family members, disclosing anyone who had ever worked for law enforcement, etc. But then that question inevitably came about regarding you or someone close to you being a victim of crime, and I’ve got to say that roughly 80% of the prospective jurors had something to disclose. Many were thefts, but there were also examples of child abuse, rapes, murder of family member(s), etc. It was anguishing to hear some of these accounts described!

To each of these examples the judge would quickly ask “Was the person apprehended?” “Did they go to trial?” “Did you have to testify?” And again, I’d have to say that about 80% of the responses to those secondary questions was “No”, meaning that the vast majority of the perpetrators had gotten away with their crimes. This meant that the majority of prospective jurors had unresolved offenses against them, that they just had to deal with psychologically, hoping that time would minimize the sting of them.

And I just thought “Isn’t this why we need a judgment?” Because, despite our best efforts as an earthly society to pursue and execute justice, a large percentage of violators get away with their crimes, and people are left to go on with their victimizations unanswered for.

I resisted the urge in the moment to stand up and proclaim “This is why we need God’s judgment!”, though when my turn did come to discuss my occupation, I made it clear I was a minister of the Gospel, thinking that, if someone wanted to talk to me afterward, they could certainly approach me (though no-one did). I left that experience reconvicted that so many, religious or not, have unresolved wrongs that need righting. And that the yearning in the soul is, though possibly unknowingly, a longing for an Authority to come and make things right.

The judgment is a big topic, so we won’t be able to thoroughly explore it here, but I just want to say to any Christian who is ambivalent against the judgment: stop your worrying! God’s judgment is not against you! Judgment is made “in favor of the saints” in Daniel 7. The righteous cry out in Revelation 6 for God’s vindication, as does King David in the Psalm verse quoted above (as well as several other places in the Psalms). Judgment is against those who have committed and perpetuated evil, who have victimized others in their selfishness & greed, and particularly for those who feel they’ve gotten away with it.

I assure you, friends: when God has His way, nobody will have ever gotten away with anything. “Everything done in secret will be brought to light” says Luke 8:17.

Actually, amazingly, the only ones who will get away scott-free will be those who bear no burden for their sins, having given them to Jesus on the cross, and having received His perfect righteousness in return (Revelation 7:14) What an amazing deal! So if we’ve taken up God on His incredible offer, why would we dread or fear His judgment?

I am sure that if I had asked each of those jurors upon leaving “Would you like the crime you were a victim of from however many years ago to be resolved?” I’m sure that, to a person, they would agree that, yes, that is what they’d want. And that’s exactly what God offers! No (unforgiven) perpetrator of evil will get away unscathed, nor will any (forgiven) victim be denied the justice they deserve.

I hope that you, along with the Psalmist, the martyrs in Revelation 6, and with God’s faithful people throughout the centuries will similarly cry out “Come and judge (vindicate) us, O Lord!”. May He keep us faithful until that day.

May God bless you and your families the remainder of this week and beyond.

Sincerely,

Pastor Mark Tatum

Anaheim SDA Church

Mid-week Pastor’s Update

February 9th, 2022

“Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! Amos 5:24

Earlier this week I got called to a responsibility of citizenship; not a joyful one for most, but surely a good for society and therefore an honor to contribute to: jury duty. Though I didn’t relish having to clear my schedule or spend most of a day sitting in a room, I thought it would be interesting, and wondered if maybe I’d even be placed on a jury (?). Though in the end I didn’t, observing the early aspects of how the process works was fascinating. I got a glimpse into an aspect of society that I don’t often think about, but that is truly at the core of the stable and free society we live in.

As I was on my way to the 3rd floor waiting area there at the Santa Ana courthouse, I saw the wall of pictures of past judges (pictured above), and thought of all the decisions that had come across their attention over the years, which they’d had to rule on. Not surprisingly, my mind went back to Bible times when judges were the cornerstone of Israelite society, and I was kind of awed to think I was in the presence of the modern-day equivalent (including the living judges currently serving). The administering (“administration”) of justice is one of the highest callings outlined in scripture.

Moses was, among other things, a judge over the Israelites in their desert wandering times, and would decide on disputes between contesting parties. In Exodus chapter 18:13-18, we find that there was so much of this work to be done, it was overwhelming and exhausting for him, and his father-in-law wisely advised him to establish a tiered system of judges (“over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens” v. 21), and only have the toughest cases brought to him. This system worked well, and continued into Israel’s moving into the Promised Land.

Furthermore, we have the book of Judges in our Bibles: this was actually God’s intended plan for Israel – to have judges over the people, and of course priests and prophets in their respective roles, but no “king” or earthly governmental structure to be over the people. Ironically, the book of Judges is one of the most lawless and “crazy” books of the Old Testament, showing that our human nature is very hard to keep in check unless a centralized authority with a heavy hand is over us.

And then in the minor prophets in the latter third of the Old Testament, you get repeated outcries for justice in Israel and Judah, in that perhaps the most harmful aspect of the society’s straying from God’s principles was the unrestrained abuse of vulnerable ones: widows, orphans, aliens, the poor, etc. God, in the Amos passage cited above, describes that he is sick of the people’s religious festivals and rites in a society in which justice for the marginalized is overlooked. This lack of compassion & justice is identified as a key reason Israel fell into the discipline of captivity, perhaps so everyone could experience what it feels like to be among the marginalized.

And we today, of course, strive for justice in our daily living (in addition to mercy & humility, Micah 6:8), but in looking at that wall of black & white photos, I knew I was seeing folks who operated on a whole other level of determining justice in our present context.

How many of these faces were of upright, honest judges? I wondered. How many were crooked, prejudiced, receivers of bribes, or alternatively, too lenient? Great damage is done to society in any of these possibilities. I’m of course thankful that there is a system of checks and balances within the justice system, I don’t believe judges can just ‘go rogue’ and do whatever they want: there is precedent to guide decisions, there is a system of appeals and levels of courts for cases in which a 2nd (or 3rd, etc.) opinion is desired & merited.

But I was just impressed by what a solemn duty it is for a society (any society, even on a secular level) to evaluate and administer justice. In a world where the powerful & ambitious tend to steamroll right over the meek and humble (whom Jesus identifies as being seen & affirmed by God – Matthew 5:5), systems need to be put in place to correct & prevent abuse, otherwise the society as a whole can become a twisted, miserable experience for the vast majority.

And of course, there are many types of judges and types of justice: criminal court, civil court, military court, immigration court, federal court, financial court, trial & appellate courts, etc. All of these need specialists, professionals, sharp minds examining, establishing, and debating laws to keep the “playing field level” as much as possible.

On that day of jury duty, I heard principles of fairness asserted, such as “innocent until proven guilty”, “trial by jury”, and “confirmation beyond a reasonable doubt” – all of which of course serve to protect the rights of the innocent, and lean on the side of caution if determination is not discernible. As bad as it is to let a guilty person go free, it is a greater harm to punish and/or imprison an innocent person (which, ironically, also lets the guilty person go free!)

So as much as I have concern for accessibility of justice for the marginalized in society (the wealthy being able to pay for better representation, for example), I am glad that such care and attention is given to matters of justice. Surely God is looking down now, just as He did in Israel’s day, seeing whether our society is administering justice fairly and equitably. I hope, in the majority of cases, he smiles on our efforts, on the processes, and on the outcomes of these cases. But let it never be an excuse to sit back and thing that further striving is not called for.

I pray that you and your families are blessed throughout this week, and that you will have a sense of gratitude for our system of justice we live within, even as that system is subject to God’s far greater justice (to which all people in the workings of earthly justice institutions and procedures will answer to as well).

Greetings to your families from ours, and May God bless and keep you ‘till we meet again.

Sincerely,

Pr. Mark Tatum