Happy Friday, everyone! Consider this story from Springfield, USA. A local man is stuck living his life of 2007 over and over again, after his failed attempts to break free from outdated habits. Brian Simmons, 42, has been trying for weeks to stop using a flip phone, to stop wearing cargo shorts, and for the love of all things good, stop quoting The Office at inappropriate times.
“I just want to move on with my life”, said Simmons, shaking his head in frustration while browsing through an old stack of Rolling Stone magazines, “but every time I try something new, I get sucked right back into my old routines. It’s like my brain is still living in the pre-smartphone, pre-Instagram, and pre-Spotify era.” Simmons’ struggles have been well documented by friends and family, who say he constantly relives the days of dial-up internet, burning music to CDs, and quoting Anchorman as if it were still funny.
“I can’t take him seriously”, said Sarah Lopez, a longtime friend, “he’ll be talking about how he’s cutting out toxic habits, and then the next thing I know, he’s downloading 2007 hits on iTunes and getting all excited about his new Friends DVD box set.” On the rare occasion that Simmons does try something modern, such as using a smartphone for more than just checking the weather, he’s often caught staring at the screen, baffled by the concept of swiping.
“I just don’t get it. What happened to typing on a keypad?” he says, holding up his aging Nokia 3310. “You used to feel like you really accomplished something with each text. None of this predictive text nonsense. I guess I just missed simpler times, okay?” As of press time, Simmons had reverted back to wearing flip-flops with socks and was heard lamenting that TV shows just aren’t as good as they used to be. He asked, “Doesn’t anyone remember Mad Men?”
Well, that fun, albeit fictitious, story resonates a truth – old habits are hard to break. Change can be challenging, and living new isn’t always easy. And yet, that’s our call as Christians. Consider today Ephesians 4:22-24, “You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
You know, as you go into this weekend, check your thoughts, your words, and your activities from this past week. Were they outdated? Were they practices of that former way of living? Well, there’s great news for you this weekend. It’s not too late to swipe over to that New Life in Jesus. In fact, that’s what forgiveness and renewal is all about. So let’s put off those old habits and embrace the New Life of Jesus this weekend.
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, we give You great thanks and praise for this weekend and an opportunity to live the New Life that You want for us. Help us to put off our old selves and the habits that so often keep us bound, and renew our minds through Your Holy Spirit, that we would live in the newness of life that You offer, reflecting Your righteousness and holiness in all that we say, and in all that we do. We pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.