A feature of life today is how quickly culture changes. That can leave many Christians, even those with a strong personal faith, struggling to make the connections between what is true, real, and good and how to think about all the issues that seem to barrage us. What Christians need is a strong public faith, one that provides clarity and meaning.
The Colson Center equips Christians to see that though Christian faith is personal, it is not private. It is the implications of the faith, built on Christ and committed to what is true, that shapes a public witness able to think critically about culture, draw from the entire story of Scripture, and communicate wisely with others. In short, we want every Christian to be able to live like one in this time and place where God has called us.
To be clear, we do not think of ourselves as being on the “front lines.” Every follower of Christ is on the front lines when they take their faith into every walk of life, as “salt and light” to a world that desperately needs the redemptive power of the Gospel.
For example, Abby Foltz, a cardiac nurse from Colorado Springs, Colorado, is on the front lines. In addition to igniting her passion for caring for people in moments of crisis, the Christian story of reality helps Abby make sense of the big why questions raised in the practice of medicine:
I really enjoyed just being in those really high-intensity moments with people like that. [It] opens up the door for lots of conversations … “What’s the point of all this? What’s the meaning?”
Those end-of-life conversations we’re having with patients and different coworkers that I have, starting to talk about worldview, what people think what happens when we die, all those kinds of questions.
I feel like that’s what I glean most from it, how to speak strongly with truth but also compassion, because people aren’t ready to hear the truth right unless you’ve loved them well first, or shown them compassion, or shown them that you’re on their side and not just trying to win an argument.
Abby is also an expectant mother. The daily Breakpoint commentaries have helped her recognize the importance of not shying away from difficult conversations with her kids but instead teaching them a worldview that is big enough for life’s questions too.
Another example is Bob Dyer, Dean of Students at Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, Texas. He knows firsthand that parents and educators must be able to offer meaningful answers to tough questions.
A perception that I have is that there is a downward trend in the literacy of the Bible, what we call biblical illiteracy, and I think today in the Church it’s become more and more telling. There’s an expectation when parents send their student, their child to Trinity Christian, that they are going to be sitting before mature Christian adults who can articulate faith, and articulate why this is important. Not just be Christian in the classroom, or that they happen to be Christians who teach a particular discipline, but that they are able to articulate how a biblical worldview fits into math, science, history.
If I’m getting excited about this, I would surely want younger people to know about it. I would want parents to know about it, who are shepherding their own kids. I would want the guys who are my age because we’re not called to just at 70 retire, sit back, and wait. I just don’t think that’s what God has for me. And so I’m so excited about it. I really am.
As both a Breakpoint listener and Colson Fellow, Bob has found a wealth of resources to help him in his calling as an educator. To be a small part of what God is doing through folks like Bob is a huge blessing.
This month, we would love to hear your experience with the Colson Center. If any of our resources—the Breakpoint podcast, the Strong Women podcast, Upstream with Shane Morris, the Colson Fellows, or Colson Educators—impacted the way you think and live, please email us at [email protected].
And please keep the Colson Center in mind as you think and pray about year-end giving. To support the work of the Colson Center, please visit colsoncenter.org/december.
Today’s Breakpoint was coauthored by Kasey Leander. For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to colsoncenter.org.
Publication date: December 14, 2022
Photo courtesy: Amaury Gutierrez/Unsplash
John Stonestreet is President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, and radio host of BreakPoint, a daily national radio program providing thought-provoking commentaries on current events and life issues from a biblical worldview. John holds degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (IL) and Bryan College (TN), and is the co-author of Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview.
