Have you ever had one of those "Tangled" moments? I do not mean where you try to rescue a girl from a tower by using her long hair, but where you are caught in a mess of technology or work.
Today has been a Tangled day. I have been trying to set up a mail account on multiple computers. I have been moving from computer to computer to computer (there are three in the cycle) and using my iPhone to send and text and test and do whatever needed to be done. I hate this stuff. I had to reset passwords three times and it still is not working correctly.
There are a lot of things like this in our lives these days. For some of us, it is about technical or mechanical things (don't even get me started on gardening or lawn work, for which I have a total gifting index of zero). For some of us, it is about academic things (remember algebra? anyone?). For some of us, it is scheduling things or remembering things or planning meals. There is always something we just are not any good at doing.
One of the hard things for preachers is to realize that, for many churchgoers, theology is a Tangled thing. People sit and listen to us preach. They are very nice about it (like I am when I call technical support). But, when all is said and done, they don't get it. They don't think like we (preachers) think. Although, to be honest, having heard a lot of preachers, I am afraid the same is true for some of us. They are kind of embarrassed to ask questions, sometimes, because we (preacher types) can be hard to understand.
Here is a peace word for the day. If theological things seem Tangled to you, if you feel lost and frustrated with all the different ideas and terms, don't sweat it. It's okay. God did not leave a church of people who are each supposed to know everything, He left a church filled with teachers and elders whose job is to know all these things and answer questions.
It is not necessary to my computing work that I know everything about computers. It is also not necessary for every Christian to be able to explicate the various Trinitarian views or describe the supralapsarian debate. It is not necessary to my service to God that I know everything about God. What I need to know is easily summed up. God has shown me what I am to do. I am to believe in Christ, to obey His commands, to love His people, and to worship my God.
When I have computer problems, I call someone who knows. When you have theological problems, call someone who knows. That is why God gave them to you. Believe me, it sure beats being Tangled.
Today has been a Tangled day. I have been trying to set up a mail account on multiple computers. I have been moving from computer to computer to computer (there are three in the cycle) and using my iPhone to send and text and test and do whatever needed to be done. I hate this stuff. I had to reset passwords three times and it still is not working correctly.
There are a lot of things like this in our lives these days. For some of us, it is about technical or mechanical things (don't even get me started on gardening or lawn work, for which I have a total gifting index of zero). For some of us, it is about academic things (remember algebra? anyone?). For some of us, it is scheduling things or remembering things or planning meals. There is always something we just are not any good at doing.
One of the hard things for preachers is to realize that, for many churchgoers, theology is a Tangled thing. People sit and listen to us preach. They are very nice about it (like I am when I call technical support). But, when all is said and done, they don't get it. They don't think like we (preachers) think. Although, to be honest, having heard a lot of preachers, I am afraid the same is true for some of us. They are kind of embarrassed to ask questions, sometimes, because we (preacher types) can be hard to understand.
Here is a peace word for the day. If theological things seem Tangled to you, if you feel lost and frustrated with all the different ideas and terms, don't sweat it. It's okay. God did not leave a church of people who are each supposed to know everything, He left a church filled with teachers and elders whose job is to know all these things and answer questions.
It is not necessary to my computing work that I know everything about computers. It is also not necessary for every Christian to be able to explicate the various Trinitarian views or describe the supralapsarian debate. It is not necessary to my service to God that I know everything about God. What I need to know is easily summed up. God has shown me what I am to do. I am to believe in Christ, to obey His commands, to love His people, and to worship my God.
When I have computer problems, I call someone who knows. When you have theological problems, call someone who knows. That is why God gave them to you. Believe me, it sure beats being Tangled.
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