Stardate 10.18.2026
Some days begin with a little unexpected exercise.
Saturday morning, I was getting ready to leave my hotel for an early morning haircut when I discovered the windows on my rental van were frozen. I could have waited for them to de-ice. A 0.4-mile walk seemed like a better plan.
So I jumped out of my van and began walking.
That short walk set the tone for a high-energy day. I arrived just after the doors were opened and enjoyed a great visit with Domonique, the store manager. During our conversation, I discovered she was good friends with Amanda, the store manager who had cut my hair during my previous assignment in Lee's Summit.
Small world.
I also shared a story about how her franchise had helped me make an important decision concerning a vaccine offered during COVID-19. It was a meaningful conversation, and I left looking forward to my day off.
Back at the hotel, I got my laundry done and headed to the indoor pool. I worked on some practice footage for YouTube Shorts, experimenting with ways to capture video while swimming and filming from the poolside.
There is something satisfying about learning a little more each time I try something new. The progress may be small, but it keeps me moving forward.
Later, I went to worship at a church I had never attended before. My usual church was closed for fall break, so I had an opportunity to experience a different congregation.
The homily stayed with me.
The pastor spoke about a group of religious leaders who came together to challenge Jesus. These were people who disagreed with one another on plenty of things. For this moment, however, they shared a common purpose. They wanted to trap Him.
As a Star Trek fan, I thought of the Kobayashi Maru, the famous no-win scenario designed to test a Starfleet officer. The leaders believed they had put Jesus in a similar position.
Their question concerned paying taxes to Caesar.
Jesus asked them whose image appeared on the denarius. They answered that it was Caesar's. He responded with the familiar words about giving Caesar what belonged to Caesar and giving God what belonged to God.
I had heard that passage many times.
Then the pastor took us back to Genesis.
Scripture tells us that God created human beings in His own image. The pastor invited us to consider what that meant for the question Jesus had asked about the image on the coin.
The coin bore Caesar's image.
We bear God's image.
Suddenly, the familiar passage carried a deeper meaning for me. The question reached beyond the coin and the tax. It invited me to consider my own identity and to whom I belong.
I left church with that thought on my mind.
The day continued with dinner alongside a colleague. Eventually, I returned to my hotel, grateful for a day that had included a good walk, a meaningful haircut appointment, laundry, progress on a creative project, time in the pool, and a new perspective on Scripture.
Before going to sleep, I had plenty to be thankful for.
Genesis 1:27 reminds us that God created humankind in His image. That truth has been present since the beginning of the biblical story. Sometimes, hearing a familiar passage through another person's eyes helps us see something we have overlooked.
Perhaps that is one of the gifts of making room for new experiences. We meet new people, hear familiar stories, and discover another layer of meaning.
And we are reminded of whose image we carry.
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Captain's Addendum
Spock: Michael, the evidence suggests that your Saturday included a successful away mission and a significant theological discovery.
Bones: Spock, he went for a haircut, swam in a pool, and went to church. Must you turn everything into a mission report?
Spock: Doctor, the question of belonging is hardly a minor matter.
I've shared with a few friends why these two characters mean so much to me. Spock reminds me of my father, a man whose approach leaned toward logic and whose emotions were almost never on display. Bones reminds me of my mother, whose empathy comes through in the way she approaches people. The two characters frequently disagree, and their exchanges have always meant something a little deeper to me.
Maybe that's part of why I enjoy bringing them along on this journey. Their banter gives me a way to honor two people who helped shape my life, each with a different way of seeing the world.
And on Saturday, after hearing that we are created in God's image, I found myself thinking about all the people whose influence becomes part of who we are.
