As some of you may know, I run most mornings with my friend Caleb.
We have great conversations on a gamut of topics. Recently he and
his wife decided to be part of a church plant in Boston and we have been
talking through this decision and its implications. One morning we talked
about what it is like to move somewhere and realize that many of the things you
believe and practice are not universal. This experience is fine when it
deals with things like sweet or unsweet tea, grits, or the social pleasantries
of sir and ma'am. Recognizing that this applies to your faith is a
difficult adjustment. Asking "Is this a cultural preference or scriptural
norm?" is something we all need to do.
After our morning jog
and conversation I asked Caleb to write about this for my blog. Here it
is.
Bob Collins
Bob Collins
President
I was born and raised
in Greer, SC. I was baptized as a small child in a Southern Baptist
church. My family was there at most every opportunity. I was educated in the
Greenville County School system, and the only years I was not a Greenville
County resident were my few at Clemson University. There I met and later
married a Tennessee girl, and we settled in Greenville. My friends and family
have largely similar stories. I tell you this not so that you know who I am,
but so that you know how I think.
My wife and I are
moving with our two year-old daughter to Boston to support a church plant. We
were both surprised to feel called into this ministry. We expected to
live out our days in the sultry summers and mild winters of the South. We
have not spent years, barely months actually, preparing and planning to go.
But now, we will live, at least for a time, in Boston.
When unexpected life
change happens, the realizations of your new life come fast. Here's my
newest: I'm lazy. I don't mean that I'm opposed to hard work, but that
I'm susceptible to lazy thinking. You see, when you have a story similar
to mine (and if you're reading this I bet you do), then almost everyone you
know agrees with you. The things we don't say, but leave unspoken, are a
part of our cultural foundation. Since most in the South bring these same
assumptions to any conversation, there is no need to be able to defend your
position; we all already largely agree. These common understandings range
from the purpose of government, the source of truth, the chief end of man, and
list keeps going. We are moving to a place where the foundation is different.
I'm being forced to
retrace my thinking. This effort should drive me to Scripture, because it is
sufficient to frame and inform my thinking. It does not clearly answer
all of our questions, but it does give us major principles that act as our
guide. We ought to filter all of our understanding first through the
Bible.
As I begin, I'm afraid
that I'm finding that those foundational truths of our culture aren't quite as
Biblically-based as our "Bible Belt" moniker might suggest. Let's
make sure that our national or regional identity, our political affiliations,
and our educational background have less influence on the way we think than
does the Bible.
As you begin, you may
find yourself agreeing with someone you would not have before or it may simply
deepen your pre-existing convictions. Both are progress.
A word of caution: Bob
reminded me that a perfectly articulated Biblical worldview does not save
souls, nor is it particularly attractive to a non-believer. That work of making
dead things alive is reserved for God. Good, clear thinking has its
limits.
Caleb Rogers
