| Author | Message | ||
| Yossariana Registered user Username: Yossariana Post Number: 1 Registered: 8-2004 |
I thought I am the only one, who's inspired by dark angels; I thought I am not good enough to go to heaven one day, since I couldn't reach Egw's ideal Christian model. One day, my 'big fat' curiosity (coincidence???) inspired me to read whatever is on internet against SDA. I had a reason to start doing it. I found this forum and while reading it, I realised that God called me to Freedom...and most important, I realised, I'm not alone. Well, somehow, I am alone, since I lost my sda friends (some are still nice, probably facing the same problems). I will open my heart slowly, my sda trauma still persist.  ) | ||
| Melissa Registered user Username: Melissa Post Number: 452 Registered: 7-2003 |
Welcome, Yossariana. You are not alone here (though I am not a former myself). There is truly the spirit of Christ in this place. Know you are in a safe place. | ||
| Ric_b Registered user Username: Ric_b Post Number: 28 Registered: 7-2004 |
A hearty welcome. You will find the same, or similar, stories here again and again. For me, having all of the people here that share the so many of the same experiences makes me feel less alone, and has helped my confidence grow. One of the beauties that I see here is that so many people who experienced "trauma" (either first hand or seeing it in those they care about) from the teachings of SDAs become so of the most caring and accepting people. The experience of grace and freedom is SO alive, it shows in many of the posts I read. | ||
| Dd Registered user Username: Dd Post Number: 92 Registered: 7-2004 |
Yossariana, Welcome and I am praying that the Holy Spirit will continue to be a driving force in your life. Despite what your SDA "friends" say, you ARE listening to the voice of truth! I love your name. What is your nationality? I would enjoy hearing more of your story? Life long SDA? SDA parents? SDA schooling? | ||
| Susan_2 Registered user Username: Susan_2 Post Number: 881 Registered: 11-2002 |
Yossariana, Welcome. It will be good learning from you and reading what you have to say. Were you raised SDA? Did you convert to SDA? | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 615 Registered: 12-2003 |
Yossariana, welcome! We're so glad God directed you to the internet and that you found your way here. We would love to hear more of your story! Colleen | ||
| Dennis Registered user Username: Dennis Post Number: 149 Registered: 4-2000 |
Yossariana, A hearty FAF welcome! Also in our case, the Internet was a significant factor in our search for biblical truth. Indeed, this information age quickly exposes the cultic dogma of Seventh-day Adventism. Obviously, there is a reason why the leaders of the SDA Church try to keep their members in ignorance. However, their ministry of deception has become increasingly more difficult due to the Internet. Dennis J. Fischer | ||
| Yossariana Registered user Username: Yossariana Post Number: 2 Registered: 8-2004 |
Dear friends, thank you all so much for your kind words and hearty welcome. In answer to all of your questions, here is a brief 'life story'. I am 25 year old Romanian, living in Sweden and married to my British, non-Sda husband. My home town in Romania is in the north of Transylvania and has a population of 40,000 and the Sda has a membership of 200. Growing up under communism, religion was suppresed and kept strictly in the family. My mother is non-practicing Orthodox, my father-an Atheist, my grandmother a JW and my grandfather a Jew. So, my background is a cocktail of faiths! I came to the SDA Church in 1995 because I was invited by a classmate, and I was baptized in 1998. During this time I worked voluntarily for the Church and later I attended a Sda Nursing School. I left Romania to come to Sweden last year, ignoring the warnings of some sda members who feared I would lose my faith. After meeting my husband in Sweden, we traveled back to Romania to meet my family. And it was during this time that my sda 'friends' interrogated my husband and the talk in the church was of how I would be disciplined. I later found out that families I visited, who were very friendly, were saying terrible things about me and my husband after we had left. During this time, many hours of internet research led me to question certain sda doctrines. My husband started to look into Daniel and specificaly the year 538, considered by Sda the begining of the 'papal' domination, but we could not find historical support for this year. I must admit, I haven't stop searching. I don't want to talk about some bad expereancies with the leaders of the Church, enough to say that many times I was just a naive, taking everything in serious and then, finding out that I was living in an ireal world. Thanks God, He brought me to reality. On Sunday I will be flying to Romania, and I expect to be visited by my pastor. The only thing I am really happy with, is that, when I was devoted to Sda Church, I was praying for a Sda husband. I didn't realise then, that God has something better for me and I praise God for not giving me a Sda husband, but for giving me a faithful-loving-caring-much-more-I-ever-wanted husband. Thank you for your prayers, I do need it! To finish with I will tell you a funny secret about me: I am scared to fly. I really enjoy doing it, but...you know. Sometimes I had the fear that God will punish me for not being a more devoted adventist...I know is not like this...but I stii ask you to pray for my flight on Sunday morning. Thanks again and God bless! Yours in Christ, andreea gascoigne | ||
| Pw Registered user Username: Pw Post Number: 124 Registered: 6-2004 |
That's a sure-fire sign of SDA dogma, making people think if they don't follow their traditions they will not be accepted by God. How they consider to be under grace is beyond me. Don't be discouraged by losing your SDA friends, I got the same treatment when I left. In fact even the pastor made a special trip to my home and shared his disapproval with my decision to leave their church. Best move I ever made. | ||
| Dd Registered user Username: Dd Post Number: 99 Registered: 7-2004 |
Andreea, WOW! Great story! God is so good. How wonderful that He did not answer your prayer for a SDA man! He knows our hearts better than we do. I suspected you had to be out of the U.S. as I have a dear friend (she lives in my town) from Turkey and your writing style is very similar to hers. I love it! I am not only praying for your peace of mind during your flight on Sunday but I am praying for the time you spend with your SDA pastor and "friends" (that to me is the "scariest" part of your trip). "For thus the LORD spoke to me with mighy power and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying, "You are not to say, 'It's a conspiracy!' In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it. It is the LORD of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, And He shall be your dread." ISAIAH 8:11-13 | ||
| Tealeaves Registered user Username: Tealeaves Post Number: 150 Registered: 5-2004 |
Yossariana, Welcome! So glad to have you here. I think you will find that people here come from many different backgrounds as well. Thanks for sharing your story. I have heard it said here before that when you hear nagging voices telling you to fear, (voices from your SDA past), be assured that they are NOT from God. God doesn't nag. He has brought you to where you are. The voices are the voices of irration, programmed fear. And they will fade as they are replaced by positive ones! praying for your flight, -tanya- | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 630 Registered: 12-2003 |
Andreea (Yossariana), I am so glad you've joined us! What a wonderful answer to prayer that God gave you a loving, Christian husband. Will he be going with you to Romania? I will also be praying for your trip, that God will give you courage and wisdom and the authority of His Spirit as you talk to the people at your home church--and also in your family. My maternal grandparents were from Romania--my grandma left the Orthodox church and became Adventist in order to have access to the Bible. Finding the Bible, though, ultimately brought several of her descendants out of the church! Praise God for calling you to Himself! Colleen | ||
| Yossariana Registered user Username: Yossariana Post Number: 3 Registered: 8-2004 |
I can't believe it!You are answering so fast and spontaneously! My husband's name is Steve, he's 31. I met him at university, while I was studying 'Scandinavian studies, cultural and social perspective'. Our story is funny, but I am sure it was not a coincidence. When I left Romania, I was very dissapointed, due to a relationship I had with a young man, unfortunately a pastor. Well, to start with, I thought it was the answer for my prayer and I can remember considering myself unworthy for such a priviledge. In Romania, a pastor is in a very high position, much more than in other countries. But after few months he left me, without saying anything, and then, suddenly he got married with a very rich girl. I was confused and when I spoke to my pastor, he told me that God wanted like this. And that is how I have started to question the leaders of the Church...During my stay in the Sda Church I saw incredible thinghs...some people were excomunicated for not attending the church every Sabbath, but some, didn't have this privildge, even if they had broken the 7th commandment. When I met Steve, I was too nervous for a relation, but he was what God prepared for me, so, I couldn't say NO. When we were in Romania, an adventist teacher asked him 'What is the difference between sda and English Church?'. I think that woman started the discussion just to show him that he is in a wrong church; I liked Steven's answer: 'Our church never teaches us to judge, or even worse, to hate other churches.' And I am sure that he was right. On Sunday I am flying to Romania to visit my family. I will be staying there 1 month and after that I will fly to England. Steve can't join me. He has 1 year left at uniiversity, so he must go to England. Thanks for your prayers. You are amazing!I was so scared about the flight, but now I know that I have sisters and brothers who are parying for me, so, no need to be scared anymore. Sometimes I found myself with dark thoughts and scared. I never had this problem before. Maybe because what sda tought me. Hope God will take care of my feelings and hope He will make me come again to life. andreea | ||
| Bb Registered user Username: Bb Post Number: 27 Registered: 7-2004 |
Andreea, welcome and I will pray for a safe trip for you! I too had reservations about flying. I used to think "the devil knows that I am an adventist, and he will want to get rid of me now because I am not perfect" and so I thought that I was a target for the devil. It was so silly. He is probably laughing that so many people are in bondage to trying to be perfect!! About the flight however, I just got back from flying and when I feel nervous, I just think "this is something these pilots and flight attendants do EVERY day, and to them it is just like a routine car ride would be for us (and safer they say). I also pray and put my life in God's hands, because He loves me more than anything. It is good to hear your stories! I love Steven's answer to that woman. I bet that was a conversation stopper!!! God Bless. | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 633 Registered: 12-2003 |
Andreea, I will pray that God will be more real to you than your fear. Colleen | ||
| Flyinglady Registered user Username: Flyinglady Post Number: 525 Registered: 3-2004 |
Andreea, Welcome to the FAF. You are in the right place. I love to fly, in fact, I have had flying lessons. So I will pray that God will help you to enjoy the flight and protect you. The dark thoughts you get are not from God, so when they come start praising God and the thoughts will leave. The conversation your husband had with the SDA teacher must have stopped that teacher in her tracks. I am sure God gave him the answer. When you are with your family and especially when talking with the pastor remember that Jesus is the gospel and nothing else. I will join with the others here in praying for you. You are loved my Jesus and are in His hands. He is awesome. Diana | ||
| Doc Registered user Username: Doc Post Number: 101 Registered: 2-2003 |
Andreea, Bine ai venit! I'm in Europe too. I am British, living in Hungary. I visit my friends in Romania sometimes, in Arad and Cluj, but they are Welsh and Hungarian, respectively, confusing, huh? Where in Transylvania are you from? I have heard there are a lot of Adventists in Romania, and there are quite a few in Hungary too, proportionately. I am praying for you, that you have a good time at home. God bless, Adrian | ||
| Yossariana Registered user Username: Yossariana Post Number: 4 Registered: 8-2004 |
To all my friends, Thank you for all of your kind words, it has been a great help to me. I am flying tomorrow morning and I feel a lot more confident after your words and your prayers. I hope to be online again next week and I will let you all know how my flight was. In reply to Adrian, I am from Sighetu-Marmatiei. And yes, there are a lot of Sda in Romania. God bless, Andreea Gascoigne | ||
| Susan_2 Registered user Username: Susan_2 Post Number: 890 Registered: 11-2002 |
I have some questions for those of you on this forum who do not live in the United States, especially you who are in Europe. In countries other than te USA is ellen white and her books, counsil, teachings, etc. pushed as much on the sda people as she is here? It seems to me that this wouldn't be, that she would be more promoted over here because this is her native land. Also, what about meat/vegetarinism, etc.? There are some areas where if people don't eat pork then meat is prety much out of the price range for the average folks. How is this addressed by the SDA's elsewhere? And, jewlery, sda schools for the kids, and of course the torn in my side, the Adventists and their scare tactics about the forth coming Sunday laws? I say the thorn in my side because to me that has to be just about the most stupid teaching they could ever come up with. I am very courious about these questions. Thanks. | ||
| Tealeaves Registered user Username: Tealeaves Post Number: 160 Registered: 5-2004 |
I was on an ADRA work trip to Malaysia in college. (After much interviewing and questioning, they decided i could go, even though I wasn't SDA, as long as i just did the work, and didn't do any preaching.) Anyway, the people way out in the jungle there were foragers, and the village made about $25 per year collectively. THeir diet consisted of roots, plants, rice if they could trade for it, and scrub pigs, little wild pigs that roamed everywhere. (The occasional snake if they were lucky.) There was absolutely NO MENTION of a health message that spoke against eating meat, even pork. They didn't even say "well if there were options, then a vegetarian diet would be better." They just acted like there was no teachings about meat at all. There were also no teachings about modesty. Since there were no toilets or privys of any sort, people just squatted right in the middle of the village, or just off the trails... wherever was convenient. They preached very heavily on the ban of jewelry. One would think that "rules are rules" if they in fact believe they came from God, but i guess they can be ignored if need be? I didn't hear mention there about the Sunday Law/doomsday stuff either. It wouldn't have even been understood there, since they didn't know understand government or really participate in civilization. In the cities in Borneo and in Hong Kong, I didn't hear Doomsday stuff either. I heard talk of the jewelry ban everywhere. (mostly because jewelry often indicated participation in local superstition and "witch doctor" type activity.) I didn't meet any vegetarians in Malaysia, even in cities, but I met some vegetarian SDAs in Hong Kong. that is about all I can remember. |
