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I was born to reflect the image of a God who is powerful enough to create my universe, attentive enough to hear my prayers and loving enough to be defined by self-sacrifice. I find my greatest fulfillment on a journey toward purpose and wholeness.

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Seventh-day Adventist beliefs are meant to permeate your whole life. Growing out of scriptures that paint a compelling portrait of God, you are invited to explore, experience and know the One who desires to make us whole.

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February 16

"The parents of Jesus were poor, and dependent upon their daily toil. He was familiar with poverty, self-denial, and privation. This experience was a safeguard to Him. In His industrious life there were no idle moments to invite temptation. No aimless hours opened the way for corrupting associations. So far as possible, He closed the door to the tempter. Neither gain nor pleasure, applause nor censure, could induce Him to consent to a wrong act. He was wise to discern evil, and strong to resist it."

                   Desire of Ages, page 72 from the chapter, 'As a child'

         A few years back a friend was talking in a psychology class about sublimation as a method of avoiding doing something that you would otherwise do and so avoid falling into a sinful activity.

      I had worked as a chemist and knew that sublimation was the process whereby something goes from a solid to a gas without passing through a liquid phase. That meant I didn’t understand my friend’s reference.

      A person who wants to stop smoking decides that instead of smoking a cigarette he will chew a carrot instead. That was one of the methods I used.

      We could say that Jesus as a youngster and as a more mature youngster avoided temptation by working instead of sinning.

      It would be possible to copy that method. I’m sure that this would work, up to a point. Dog-tired at the end of the day we would fall into bed having avoided temptation after temptation. What happens when the temptation sneaks up on you when you are having a short break? You are powerless. You have no experience with temptation. You are also so busy that you have no time with God. A better method must be sought.

      Jesus was placed where temptation was so that by degrees He would learn to say, ‘no’ to sin. Jesus also gained from another tactic. Jesus simply closed the door to the tempter. He had already chosen to say, “no”.

      We then have three methods to use to fight temptation. The first is to simply decide that you will say ‘no’. The second method is to train yourself to say, ‘no’ while the third method, only to be used in conjunction with a solid relationship with God, is to be busy about the work assigned to you.