So they teach this now...Part 2 (speak truth in love)

Philosophy is like a punch in the face.

Or more like a sucker punch from behind.

Socrates. Plato. Aristotle. I think my brain just imploded. (I personally don't like philosophy)

I understand that philosophy has a dramatic impact of how Christian theology was formed, discussed and interpreted and I do love reading, studying, and understanding theology. Yet somehow, to me philosophies role in theology was to try to close off the mystical aspects of God and try to have a rational answer for it.

Rationality is another result of philosophy spawning from Aristotle which spawned into our theology. I see a reason behind have rationality in theology, where we must somehow grasp or define God and what he does in our lives. 

But how do you define an unlimited God?

Theology it seems, breaks God's into parts, and tries to study the part.

But I fear that might make us miss the whole picture of who God is (if that is even possible to see the whole of God)

So then we come back to "speak truth in love".

Truth must incorporate our story.

So speak truth in love.

(I don't know if I am making sense anymore at this point)

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So they teach this now...

Postmodernism. Yes

Meta-Narratives. Yes

lower case truths vs Upper Case Truths. Yes

One class summarized and answered what I had been wrestling with 3-4 years ago. 

Life could have been extremely different if, and only if this was spoken to me when I first began my journey. So now I have to ask, why am I finding this at Regent, and not at the place more seekers come to, at our local churches? 

I understand the fact that, this is part of my wrestling, my struggles, my story, which defines my character and who I am and God has definitely used it to get me closer to him. But I also have friends who have walked away from Jesus because of the same things.

Perhaps this is why Paul writes in Ephesian about how some are like "infants being tossed back and forth by every wind of teaching and craftiness of men."

So what are we to do engage in such philosophical talk? Paul tells us to "speak truth in love".

Speak "truth" in "love".

"Speak" truth "in" love.

"Speak truth in love".

This is going to keep me up all night.

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Thank You

Profound. Brilliant. Intelligent.

This is the best description of all the people I have been meeting the last few days at Regent Orientation. My fellow classmates, many I still have not met, or had a chance to say hello has indeed intimidated my journey to what God has called me to. 

Because I am neither profound, or brilliant, or intelligent. (I'm not being humble, I am just not)

So given this slight intimidation, I pushed God if this was really his plan for me to come to this place only to watch me fall. 

Yet somehow, today during our communion service I had this overwhelming sense that this is where I should be. That in the seer 'out of placeness' and the lack of insight that I prophase in any context, God reminded nothing more to worry about but to look toward his love on the cross. I found myself choking back tears as I took the bread and the cup. I began to pray and found myself  only to pray these words that became this beautiful mantra:

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

"If the only prayer you say in your whole life is 'Thank You', that would suffice."

 - 14th century Christian Mystic Johannes 'Meister' Eckhart

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