7 Signs You Grew Up A Seventh-Day Adventist

Sorry can’t hang out tonight I’m practicing with my church acapella group but want to go hiking tomorrow?

1. Church is on Saturday not Sunday

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Seventh-day Adventism is a denomination of Christianity, it even has many of the same rules. Until you drop the Saturday (called Sabbath) bomb and confusion implodes the mind. But Saturday…not Sunday…why not, it’s the same? No it’s not really. Because we are unique and don’t want to be like anybody else Sabbath typically beings at sunset of Fridays and ends at sunset on Saturday. For the typical SDA this means worshiping with the family by reading a Bible story, singing hymns or congregating with church family at someone’s house (usually whoever has the better board games). Also TV is off limits unless it’s educational. Our knowledge of Animal Planet and the History channel is unparalleled. Bring it on Jeopardy!

2. Do you even scrimmage bro?

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Typical Saturday nights end with a scrimmage game of flag football, basketball, Frisbee, etc. It’s about to go down! Everyone gets in on the action it can been youths vs leaders, girls vs boys, point is someone is going home crying and we’ll feel really bad having to open a can of whoop ass. You can up the game by having to recite a Bible verse before a point is awarded or singing part of your favorite hymn. It’s always a bunch of fun hanging out with your pastor and church leaders in a more relaxed setting. Just be prepared to recite a bunch of Bible verses in front of the congregation next Saturday if you beat them really badly.

3. Ellen G. White is our homegirl

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Catholics have the Virgin Mary, Muslims have Muhammad, Scientologists have an alien (is it alien? Tom Cruise let me know) and SDA’s have Ellen G. White. The founding leader of the denomination which dates back to 1863 during America’s Enlightment period Sister White began receiving visions at a young age and though many tried to discredit her (because you know sexism) but her visions were too powerful to ignore. And though she may look severe in an all black dress she had a wicked sense of humor, was a feminist, and loved to eat. She would have ruled the Twitterverse. Also she’s known for her series of red books. We may not have read many of them (or any) but people love to quote them. Which she hated by the way. Can’t a girl live?

4. Just Haystack me up!

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Don’t confuse this meal with nachos. No. Nachos are just melted cheese and if you want to get crazy you throw some jalapeños on top. Pathetic! Hint: if you want to capture an SDA person just use this as bait it’ll be too easy. No one knows the origins of the haystack but we’re pretty convinced that when God let it rain food on the Israelites the manna was actually haystacks. Point is we lose it when haystacks show up at potluck (which is at every Saturday potluck). Build it yourself. Go with traditional tortilla chips or Fritos, top with veggie meat (Morningstar if you’re rich like that), pinto beans, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomato, and sour cream. Salsa and avocado are optional. And no you won’t get charged extra.

5. We take health to another level

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The majority of SDA’s are vegetarian or vegan (those of us who eat meat keep that a secret…shhh). Loma Linda, CA for many the epi-center of Adventism, is know for its longevity because people are so healthy (shout out LLU). We've never met a salad bar we didn't love and make up the calories by eating a lot of dessert. We also like doing a lot of physical activity. Typically on a Sabbath afternoon we love to go hiking or taking longs walks. Nature is another way we commune with God and if you skipped leg day this will more than make up for it. Hiking is no joke to us. It’s going to be an all day activity but don’t worry we're going make it just in time for evening youth service if you don’t pass out from exhaustion that is.

6. We volunteer as tribute

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Volunteering is air. Volunteering is life. If you’re not part of your church’s hiking group it’s because you are out making the community a better place. Whether it’s handing out lunches to the homeless, doing a park cleanup or taking care of the babies from church in order to give their parents a break, you are sacrificing your time for the greater good. And we’re not even bitter about it. We sign up in advance to help others. Some take it to the next level by doing mission work in other countries every year rebuilding homes, churches, or giving clean drinking water. Through it all we are sharing the gospel and telling others about Jesus.

7. We take the lead

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Whether it’s leading in song service or a prayer group the youth in church are encouraged to lead. Stepping up is all we know so we’re not afraid to be a group leader on project, sports team, or in the workplace. We take on responsibility gladly and if it freaks us out a quick prayer is all we need to pump up our courage. When the project ends in a success we praise the Lord for lending us His strength and tell Him to continue to guide us in all future endeavors. When you have the Holy Trinity on your side you’ll never fail.

We’re also not afraid to pray with you, no matter where we are. We may not be able to help you but we’ll lend you our strength, love, and support #prayerteam. And Happy Sabbath!