Nicole’s e-Pistle “Car Buying”

February 4, 2026

Greetings, Friends!

I’m back! After a harrowing day last Tuesday and a long week of recovery, I am (almost) back to 100%! I am just left with the remnants of bruises on my legs and some lingering stiffness in my neck and shoulders. However, the next daunting task is purchasing a new-ish vehicle – something I have never really enjoyed.

Bjorn and I have been looking at cars the way many modern full-time workers and parents have chosen to buy a vehicle… online. Now, I can feel some of you shaking your head, but before you pick up the phone to scold me, it has some merit. One particular company has this amazing way of allowing you to select things that you want in a vehicle and filtering out the things you don’t care about as much. For example, we are looking for either an SUV with some towing capacity and third row seating (for short weekend camping trips) or a Hybrid minivan with great gas mileage and backseat entertainment system (for long drives to Florida). Of course, there are other features, such as sunroofs, that are irrelevant to us but that come standard anyway.

As I sat last evening, picking and choosing what worked for me, it occurred to me that many Christians do the same with their faith, their worship practices, and which scriptures they choose to follow. I am not suggesting this is a bad thing… necessarily. I happen to think diversity of belief and religious practice is a good thing. If we were all the same, we wouldn’t be able to learn from one another.

However, there is a danger when the SUV with towing capacity and third row seating decides that it is better than all minivans, especially those who choose to by Hybrid. In fact, it decides that not only does it not want to be Hybrid, but no one else should be, either. Truth be told, it’s the Hybrids that are really what is wrong with the road, and we would all be better off if we just got rid of them altogether! After all, we shouldn’t have to share the road with the likes of them…

Sound familiar? I had a professor that explained once that scripture is the inspired Word of God, but that like a beloved family member at the holiday dinner table, it is okay to love it while not agreeing with everything it says. In fact, a little healthy debate and wrestling with scripture is often food for the soul. What I have little patience for is one side of the debate claiming superiority in a way that demeans and oppresses other people. There is nothing about advancing one’s own position at the expense of others that is remotely Christ-like.

As you are well aware, we are living in divisive times. I do not suggest that you refrain from “choosing a side,” as it were. After all, I would never spend thousands of dollars on a vehicle that did not meet the needs of my family. However, the decisions we make about faith and the way we choose to live out that faith in the world have much greater implications than whether the kids can watch a movie in the backseat.

Let us keep doing our research, friends. Let us wrestle with the options before us. Let us dig into God’s Word in ways that bring life to the people around us, especially the most vulnerable. Perhaps together, we can be co-drivers along the road that lies before us, with God’s love as our navigational system.

Blessings and peace,