FOCUS ON REMOVING THE OLD SELF AND ITS PRACTICES GO WITH IT

I am planning a sermon series on Paul's letter to the Colossians to begin the new year at Sardinia Baptist. It will be killing two birds with one stone: a number of sermons plus material for my dissertation.

Colossians as a whole - with Paul's emphasis on the interplay between knowledge and change in the Christian's life - is the Scriptural basis for my ministry project.

My key verse comes in Chapter 3:

9 Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices, 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 

An initial observation:

"Practices" is a translation of the Greek word "praxis", which itself has been adopted directly into English, meaning deeds or actions. 

It's worth noting that, although most believers I know who take holiness seriously tackle bad behaviors one by one, Paul says we are to take off "the old self" as a complete unit - and the practices go with it. 

This is a major shift in framing.

We aren't just whacking away at the bad habits. Paul has already said in chapter 2 that various "religious" approaches appear to be worthwhile but don't actually rein in the "indulgence of the flesh". 

In other words, they don't get to the heart of the problem.

For the believer, the old self has been replaced by the new self - and that makes a world of difference.

Or at least it should.  

JANUARY IS FOR EXPERIMENTING

In the midst of small talk over the last few days, several people have asked me if I plan to make any New Year's resolutions.

I don't know how to answer because I don't really think in terms of resolutions these days. The connotation of that word "resolution" is of making a commitment and then screwing up the appropriate amount of willpower to follow through with it.

And it's common knowledge that the majority of the population has no interest in making resolutions and, of those who DO make resolutions, the majority of resolvers quietly wave the white flag by the end of January. 

So I have reframed resolutions for myself. I have had enough success with creating and sustaining new habits now that I view January simply as a good time to evaluate my life and determine what new habits could currently benefit me. 

And then I experiment to figure out what is most effective and sustainable.

This year I am focused on my morning routine. 

My problem is that these days the only truly consistent aspect of my morning routine is almost entirely negative: mindlessly scrolling online. 

To fix that problem, for Christmas Melissa gave me a bedside alarm clock. Now I can set morning alarms while leaving my phone in another room. It will no longer be the first thing I reach for. 

Beyond that, I know the categories which need some daily action - Scripture, prayer, exercise and writing - and now I need to experiment a bit with the best content and ordering of these. 

It may require getting to bed earlier. 

Without the pressure of some formal "resolution", I have the freedom to do some experimenting and it turns into a fun and interesting process. 

BRING ON JANUARY

Melissa and I walked through the local Sam's Club yesterday and we couldn't help but laugh. 

When you first walk through the doors, to the left is a wall of merchandise, curving in and guiding you toward the heart of the store. 

A week ago that wall was all sugar cookies, Christmas candies, and stocking stuffers. 

But now that all the Christmas treats had been clearanced, the wall was all protein shakes, dumbbells, and exercise equipment. 

I love the changing of the seasons! 

Time for healthier eating, writing resolutions, and renewed discipline. 

January rocks.

THE IMAGE

I used to understand humanity being created in "the image of God" in the traditional sense, usually articulated something like this:

"To be created [in the image of God] means being endowed with an immortal spirit, a capacity to know and be known by God, a measure of autonomy and free will in the areas of thought and action, each of which separate us from the rest of creation." - Daniel Becker

There are problems with this sort of definition, though. 

And the main one is this: it is not grounded in careful word study and context of Genesis 1, where this concept first appears. 

In fact, the key words here - spirit, know, autonomy, thought - seem pulled out of thin air. 

[Side note: where does Scripture say humans are endowed with an immortal spirit?]

So these days I understand "image of God" quite differently.

Now I see something more in line with this author, Zachary Garris:

"It is often suggested that the “image” is tied with humans being personal, moral, spiritual, intellectual, and relational beings like God. Others suggest that the “image” is tied with humans being creative like God.

"While we are like God in these ways, they do not get to the central point of the “image” in Genesis 1. That central point is not hard to figure out. We just have to look at the immediate context. And what is mentioned in the context along with the “image” of God? Dominion. Sandwiched in between the two uses of “image” in Genesis 1:26-27 is the sentence: “And let them have dominion over . . . ” (1:26). This very concept is seen again in 1:28, in what is known as the Cultural Mandate. In the midst of God’s blessing, He commanded humans to do two things: (1) reproduce (“be fruitful and multiply”); and (2) rule (“fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion”). The word “dominion” is mentioned here in 1:28 for the second time, but now it is paired with having children and subduing the land.

"In other words, “the image of God” means that humans are like God and represent Him as rulers over creation."

It would be hard to overstate how profound this shift has been in my thinking and how this insight now shapes my understanding of what Christ came to accomplish. 

ANEMIC THEOLOGY

I received a Christmas email from an innovative ministry providing rugged, affordable transportation to impoverished people in the boonies of Africa and elsewhere. 

I fully support the organization, but I cringed at their Christmas theology:

Merry Christmas!  Do you know the completion of the Christmas Story? It involves transportation. 

Jesus is coming back. He will come on the clouds, a unique form of transport. 

When I’m asked “What is the most affordable transportation in the universe?” I say it's the supernatural trip to heaven. If you believe Jesus died for your sins and that he is your Lord and Savior, you receive a spot on that heaven-bound, soul train. 

This is an anemic understanding of the gospel. 

Dictionary.com defines "anemic" as "lacking power, vigor, vitality, or colorfulness; listless; weak". 

In other words, it's not as healthy as it needs to be.

Here are the main problems:

1) It implies that faith is primarily a matter of giving mental assent to propositional truths. 

2) It's very transactional: believe this and receive that.

3) It makes Christianity out to be an escape from this world. (The book of Revelation makes it clear that we don't get whisked off to heaven in the end. Heaven is brought down to a renewed earth. We stay put.)

In other words, it is a pretty good summary of most Americans' understanding of the gospel. 

CHRISTMAS LETTER 2024

                    December 2024

Dear Friends and Family,

Melissa and I wish you a very Merry and Blessed Christmas! We trust 2025 will find you and yours securely in the palm of God’s hand. 

2024 has been a rollercoaster. On the upside, our family saw two college graduations (Hannah from Olivet and Samuel from Ball State), another trip to Ghana for Steve, a couple of trips to Myrtle Beach and one to New Jersey, some fun house and yard projects, our nephew’s wedding in Milwaukee, and numerous show choir performances with Sarah. On the downside, though, Melissa’s mother has spent the year fighting advanced colon cancer. At this point, Trudy has exhausted all chemo options. All our focus now is on spending as much quality time together as possible. 

Melissa and I find ourselves entering a new stage of life. The three oldest kids live and work out of state and the youngest is ready to start her final semester of high school. Getting all six of us together is becoming more difficult, but we were blessed to do it on Easter and Thanksgiving and we will have everyone together for a few days over Christmas, too. 

Here are the updates:

Caleb, 23 – Finished his time at Fort Moore in Georgia and moved to Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. He earned his Expert Soldier pin in September and was recently promoted to First Lieutenant. Outside of military life, he is sharing a rental house with a friend, attending a local church small group, and will soon start serving as a “Big Brother” to a local kid. 

Hannah, 22 – Graduated from Olivet in May and moved to Myrtle Beach in August to start her career in interior design with a small firm called iQ Designs. It is her dream job and she is loving her new life and feeling quite blessed. Best of all, she took Ginger with her. 😉 

Samuel, 21 – Graduated from Ball State University in May and took a third summer to sell books door to door for Southwestern Advantage. In October Samuel moved to Holly Springs, Georgia, just north of Atlanta, where he is sharing a house with some friends from the book field. He has started working with a company that markets, designs, and maintains websites for businesses. 

Sarah, 17 (18 in January!) – Is dancing her way through her senior year. She is in two separate show choirs at Columbus North High School while also performing with a dance troupe in nearby Franklin. She plans to apply to Indiana University to study interior design and ceramics. We know her next semester will fly by with show choir competitions, the school musical, and a spring break youth mission trip to El Salvador. 

In May, Melissa successfully wrapped up her first year back in first grade only to be granted a new and “challenging” class this fall. It has taken some time, but she is seeing positive advances in behavior and learning. Much of Melissa’s “spare time”, of course, has been spent tending to her mother’s needs. Having a student teacher in class this semester made it a little easier to get away from school when needed. 

I have been with Mission Resource for three years now and Sardinia Baptist for nearly two – and I still find both incredibly fulfilling. I was baptized in March, so I am officially an American Baptist now (as well as a child of God!). In August I started a side job teaching English to local adult immigrants two nights a week. A third of my class is Haitian, so that’s fun. Meanwhile, I am making slow but steady progress on my dissertation project - though I don’t foresee finishing the degree before May of 2026 now.

Time is flying more quickly with each passing year - while our valuation of good friends and family increases at the same pace. Hopefully, 2025 will bring us opportunities to reconnect face to face with some distant loved ones. And we pray that the New Year brings blessings and life abundant your way!

God Bless,

Steve, Melissa & the (grown up) Kids

P.S. Next summer brings our 25th wedding anniversary! 

SAYING IT AGAIN

“Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But since no one was listening, everything must be said again.” ― André Gide

It took me years as a teacher to recognize the crucial role of repetition in learning.

Of course, lack of attention isn't the only culprit - and perhaps not even the worst offender. Prejudice and assumptions stand in the way of new insights and they are not toppled quickly. 

And it seems to me that repetition also has a way of establishing credibility: if the teacher is saying this yet again, it really must be important. I knew a woman who - whenever her boss asked her to do something - always threw away the first two memos on the subject. If he sent a third, she knew he really meant it. 

Although as an introvert I have always hated repeating myself, I consciously force myself to do it often these days for the sake of communication, both in promoting Mission Resource and in preaching at Sardinia. 

A competent teacher does not assume anyone was listening the first time.