'We’ve Come This Far by Faith'

Editorial by Charles A. Tapp

As the Potomac Conference begins its new quinquennium, there is much for which we must be grateful. And as you can imagine, there are far too many blessings to list. But there is one thing we, as a conference, are thankful for and would be remiss not to mention—over the past five years, God has been incredibly faithful to His people. And His faithfulness has little to do with our faithfulness to Him. Rather, God’s faithfulness in the lives of His people has more to do with His goodness than it does with anything else.

Many times, when addressing a congregation, I would greet them by saying, “God is good!” And without skipping a beat, they would respond in chorus with a resounding, “All the time!” Upon hearing this, that would be my cue to say, “And all the time,” which they quickly followed with, “God is good!”

So, as we move forward into this new term, let us be reminded of the words of the gospel song, “We’ve come this far by faith.” And when we say, “by faith,” in essence what we mean is that we recognize that our confidence should never be placed in ourselves but rather in a God who is faithful to His promises and trusting that everything that we will need moving forward is in the capable hands of a God who is faithful, despite the challenges we may encounter along the way.

As we move forward by faith, here are four major initiatives we are trusting God for. The first is to continue the completion of our Potomac Conference Ministry Center in Silver Spring, Md., so that it will become more than just an office but a hub for creative ministry that moves us “Beyond the Walls.” The second is to create a sustainable plan for Seventh-day Adventist Christian education for our children that is both affordable and accessible to all families desirous of a Christ-centered learning.

The third is to ignite our young people to serve God as never before by providing opportunities for them to use their God-given gifts in a youth-driven context, all to His glory. And the fourth initiative is to provide additional resources to churches in the rural territories of our conference, which are sometimes overlooked and underserved, so that the three angels’ messages of hope may help expand God’s kingdom as never before.

Bold initiatives indeed, but we move forward in faith, as we are committed to placing our trust in God, who is always faithful to His people.