By Bobby Davis
Deb Pomplun smiles as she recalls how the Lord led her to the Seventh-day Adventist faith. “It was as if He kept having to give me a new sign every step of the way,” she says. “I’m sure He must have thought, Okay, she’s not looking for Me, so we’ll have to get her attention!”
As we spoke, I was impressed with her candor and her humor; but most of all, I was impressed by her strong desire to follow Jesus.
Early Memories
“My dad didn’t do church,” Deb begins. “He was too intellectual. In his view, it was nice if children learned about God, but he believed that when he died, he just wouldn’t be here anymore. He also believed that church attendance was a cultural thing for elderly people, and that the more enlightened ones didn’t need it.
“My Mom was raised Lutheran by her very elderly parents from Denmark, so I attended church with her early on. Later, we attended a Congregational church, but by the time I was in junior high, neither of us went regularly. In college, I’d gotten all up in my brain and married a man who was raised as a Catholic (but also didn’t attend). And since I’d been noticing hypocrisy from an early age, it wasn’t hard to stay way from church.”
Her distaste for “churchy” things showed up in other places, too. “I got something else from my family,” she says, “and that was alcoholism. Eventually, it drove me to a recovery program, but I remember noticing how the word God kept popping up in their literature; and when they passed the basket to cover their expenses, I thought, Aha! They’re taking up an offering!”
But despite her reservations, it wasn’t a church-run program; and because she was ready to try anything to stop drinking, it worked. “However, my husband wanted nothing to do with my recovery,” she says, “so things got very difficult, and eventually he became my ex-husband. You know, God uses things to get us where He wants us to be. He knew I’d become an alcoholic and that I’d eventually look for help and come in contact with that God word. When I got comfortable with that, I didn’t take it any further, so He introduced me to someone in recovery who helped as a musician in a mostly African American Baptist church. I went to watch him play once, and that’s how God broke the ice and got me back through the church doors.”
Kids
After college, Deb became a grade school teacher, working with children who had real problems. “One day, someone said to me, ‘You need to take some of these kids home with you,’ and I started considering it. When my first foster child moved in, I was told to keep things as close to her religious and cultural practices as possible, and since she was Native American, that was interesting! However, she’d been raised for a time in an evangelical church, so we began church-shopping, and finally landed in that Baptist church I’d visited. She loved all the movement and the activity—and the fact that she’d need more dresses!”
Deb’s second foster child was African American, so her church seemed a good fit, as well. “Conflicts at my job drove me closer to Jesus,” she says, “and the pastor was a wonderful teacher, so I got a lot of comfort there.
When Deb decided to try to adopt her first foster daughter, she ran into a lot of problems. The little girl’s birth mother died from an overdose of heroin and her father gave up his rights, but all that just made things worse. “She was just crazy!” Deb says, “and the state of Wisconsin was afraid to get involved. To make matters worse, her adoption social worker got married and changed jobs, so another social worker had to get involved. Some thought a Native American family should adopt her, and ultimately, the Tribal Council had to decide. Finally, I was at wit’s end. God, I prayed, if You want me to adopt her, please let me know. I can’t go on like this. The next morning, the phone rang, and they told me the Council had approved the adoption! There’s no doubt in my mind; it was the power of prayer, and my honest desire to do God’s will that made the difference.”
God TV
About this time, Deb moved from a small town to Madison, Wisconsin, so her daughter could go to a private school. “Then, one of the mothers at church introduced us to the Veggie Tales series, and we bought every new DVD that came out. That’s how I really learned about Bible characters like David, Daniel, and Esther! We learned all the songs and sang along,” Deb says, “and I remember thinking, Wow. These stories aren’t just parables with poetic license! The Bible came alive, and as I learned more, I began wondering if the pastor was using biblical passages the way God intended.
“Right about then, I think God must have thought, You know, she’s watching all these TV stations, so let’s narrow down her choices, and soon all the TV stations began converting to digital, and my channel selection dwindled. The last one we had was 3ABN—and my kids called it ‘God TV!’
“The first thing I noticed was that although each 3ABN presenter had a different style, they all had the same truth! I simply loved David Asscherick. I mean, he’s the perfect ADHD poster child—so fired up and talking so fast! I kept wondering, Why didn’t anyone ever tell me these things?
“I finally heard the real Ten Commandments, instead of the shorthand version, and the fourth commandment made so much sense. I wanted to take a leap of faith and keep the Sabbath, but I was scared, so God must have thought, Okay, it’s time for the big guns. Bring in Juanita Edge!”
Buying Blinds
Juanita is the wife of Mike Edge, president of the Wisconsin Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, and one day she came into JCPenney, where Deb works, to buy some blinds. “I helped her with her order, but told her she could get a sizable discount during our one-day sale on Saturday. But instead of jumping on it, she said, ‘Oh no, I couldn’t break the Sabbath.’
“I knew what she meant because of what I’d learned on 3ABN, but I was amazed she was so matter-of-fact about choosing to obey God over saving money. I couldn’t help thinking, Maybe it doesn’t have to be a huge war to follow my heart and do the right thing. So I told my manager that I’d been watching a Seventh-day Adventist channel, put in a schedule change, and got my Saturdays off! However, the assistant manager asked me about it, so I had to tell him about my beliefs. He said, ‘Oh, that’s fine,’ and I haven’t had to work a Saturday since. Later, I thought about how I’d tried to just sneak in Sabbaths off, but God wanted me to share my faith.”
One day, a flier arrived for an evangelistic series at the Madison Community Seventh-day Adventist church, and since it was just a half-mile away, Deb decided to investigate. Pastor Abraham Swamidass was happy to meet her. “She told me her story, and how she’d been watching 3ABN,” he says, “and then she began attending our evangelistic series with Pastor James Fox. She came faithfully, and we began studying the Bible. And after the series was over, she was baptized, along with three others.”
Deb says that day was very special. “All my kids were there. Even my 18-year-old showed up to support me; and it was all the more special because Juanita and Mike were there, too.”
Juanita remembers, “As I watched Deb be baptized, I felt humbled to realize what an impact we unknowingly have on others. Now that I know Deb better, I’m continually amazed by her compassion and acts of kindness for her family and community. I pray I can be as self-sacrificing as my dear friend Deb.”
Pastor Swamidass is thrilled to have her in his congregation. “She’s very cheerful, and we’re happy to have her in our church,” he says. “She’s a deaconess, and is also very passionate about doing community outreach through vegetarian cooking classes,” he adds. “In fact, she’s always eager to get involved in anything I ask of her. She’s an inspiration to us all.”
A Changed Life
“I just have to laugh at how God does things,” Debbie says. “For many, coming to the Lord seems like a one-step thing. But for me, it was different. I’m always taking one step forward, and one step sideways!
Madison Community Seventh-day Adventist Church
