Imago Dei

Our highest dignity and purpose can only be found in the identity we have received from God, and no other identity formed or edited by us can even come close. Here the formulas of addition and subtraction are flipped and the will of God is seen in its glory. For only when we lose ourselves can we then become the highest and purest creature that God originally intended for us to become. For if we have been made by God, then no shadow or facsimile identity can ever satisfy - yet the core will of man is opposed to the things of God and our flesh must be put to death daily for us to achieve our glorification through the will of God. 

"Image of God" or "Imago Dei", which is the latin translation, has its origins in Genesis 1:27, wherein "God created man in his own image..." This biblical passage does not imply that God is in anyway human, but that humans were created in the image of God in their moral, spiritual, and intellectual essence. Thus, humans reflect God's divine nature in their ability to achieve the unique characteristics with which they have been endowed. These God-given qualities make humans different than all other creatures: free will, rational understanding, creative liberty, the capacity for self-actualization, and the potential for self-transcendence.

C. S. Lewis

When impressed with my own talents and ego, (which admittedly doesn't occur as often as I've gotten older but still happens more frequently than it should), I sometimes think back upon an essay that I wrote in college featuring the creativity of C.S. Lewis. 

In the late seventies I was not only living primarily for myself, I was foolishly apathetic about the presence of God in my life. God, of course, would not allow this choice to proceed unchecked, yet in His mercy He allowed me a rope of some substance, so that when I reached its end the pain would be substantial enough as to generate a recalibration of my passions and priorities. 

Yet what I find interesting is that even during this time of rebellion of The Truth, I found myself drawn to the books of C.S. Lewis, on of the great apologists of our time. My first journey into his creative world was found through his science fiction series, "The Cosmic Trilogy" and then his seven volume series, "The Chronicles of Narnia", followed by "The Great Divorce", "The Screwtape Letters", "Mere Christianity," and finally what I consider one of the pinnacles of his writings, "The Problem of Pain." (My personal favorite among his non-fictional works)

It was still early in my discovery process of his writings that I researched his creative output for the sake of my essay and I remember calculating the sum of his writings that started in 1940 and culminated around the early 1950's. It was later in life that my appreciation for his work grew in proportion as I looked anew at his volume of work during that ten year period. 

"If"

In my teenage years there were several artists that were taboo in my friend circle. That is not to say that they were not awesome talents, I believe it actually speaks more to our limited cultural taste in our developing years. Yet there were artists that we would publicly ridicule and reject and then in the privacy of our bedrooms and stereo units we would then design our "mix tapes" with the songs of those artists being a big part of those mixes. And the king of this hypocritical stance during those years was my love for the group, Bread. 

Now I would love to confess that my appreciation of the music of Bread was a reflection of my growing musical sophistication, but that would run counter to the intent of this blog, which is transparency. So my truthful reason for including Bread songs was that it seemed like every girl I knew loved their music. 

And I mean they really loved Bread songs.

A Foundation That Will Never Fail

With each passing year I find the world less populated with people that I grew up with, shared life with, and who constitute a large portion of my life memories. But I don't believe that we are to spend our lives fixated on the past, because our true destinies lie before us. So for me there is no greater reminder of my purpose on this earth than my daughter. Which leads me to the topic of this week's blog, three essential beliefs that I pray that my daughter, her future husband and children will all embrace. 

1. The Bible Is the Inspired Word of God

According to Barna, less than six percent of adults in 2022 believed that the Word of God was infallible —meaning God’s Word contains no errors, is completely true and applies to our lives today. That is a huge drop in previous surveys and can only be viewed as a victory for the enemy. Yes, the same enemy who's primary goal for you and me is to steal, kill, and destroy our lives. The enemy understands that in his quest to erode our faith, his first step is to introduce doubt into the equation. And this is exactly the worldview that our culture has embraced. If God's Word cannot be trusted, (and by proxy God Himself) than all bets our off regarding what we believe and how we choose to live. It is my personal belief that the Bible cannot be treated as a buffet, only selecting the verses and stories that you agree with, because at that point we have shifted the authority from God to ourselves.