Seamless Lives of Faith | Luke 6:45
Davison Drumm ‘25
“The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
Reflecting on this past week, I cannot believe Thanksgiving is one week away. To say the fellows and I are thankful for our church community, its encouragement, and its willingness to pour into our lives would be nowhere near strong enough. The Falls Church is a blessing like no other I’ve experienced. This week, we explored a theme that sparks much joy and thankfulness: God’s purpose for our lives and his intentionality in making man.
Although born from dust, we are not merely dust that wanders aimlessly after accidentally coming alive. God created mankind in his image as male and female. The Honorable David Gustafson, our seminar speaker this week, began a multi week series exploring the question “What is Man?” If you were raised in the Church or have been active in it for a long time, the series may seem trivial. Of course, you might say, we are made in God’s image that bestows dignity and imposes moral consequences for murder, for cursing our neighbors, and for other acts that distort God’s image. Yet, the Church’s stance is increasingly counter-cultural and an important source of hope. Without identity in God, we cannot find purpose and fulfillment.
Additionally, the dedication and humility of the Falls Church congregation has amazed and inspired me over the past two months. Through the Fellows program, we have had the opportunity to hear seminars from a range of successful executives, researchers, and former military officers. This week alone, the fellows and youth leaders heard from two judges. Yet, rather than personal success, both were most interested in speaking about their faiths, about their relationships with the Lord, and about their experiences spreading the Gospel. Judge Trevor McFadden, our speaker for Youth Family Dinner, walked us through his experiences of sharing the Gospel and the importance of forming bible studies with peers in the same career. Luke 6 tells us that “out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” I am thankful our speakers, leaders, and congregants speak first and foremost about God’s goodness.
Last week, the annual TFI conference which gathered fellows programs from around the nation exhorted us with the slogan “Get After It.” This week, we explored how to begin by thinking about man’s identity from creation. While we have much to be thankful about as we approach Thanksgiving, perhaps we should begin giving thanks at the same point that our Bibles begin. We should spend some time praising God for giving us a purpose and for making us in his image.