Why do we in the church think we have to know all the anwers? I spent a long time in graduate school learning as much as I could only to realize how very little I really knew. Is that the culture we grew up in? "Be ready to give an answer!" we preached all the time. But how about if the answer is, "I don't know."?
Intellectually, I struggle with stories about Adam and Eve, if Noah really did build a big boat, if Abraham and Sarah conceived at an old age, or if Jesus really did perform miracles. Charles Swindoll in his book Getting through the Tough Stuff said that one way to get through doubt was by "risking and failing, not always playing it safe." Do you hear what he's saying? He says we need to step out a little bit. Don't worry what others are saying or thinking, but trust in the Lord. Seems so trite doesn't it? But in the long run, what other options do we have?
I love what Donald Miller said in Blue Like Jazz. "At the end of the day, when I am lying in bed and I know the chances of any of our theology being exactly right are a million to one, I need to know that God has things figured out, that if my math is wrong we are still going to be okay." Amen, Don! Amen! Have a good day! JW
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Jim,
"I don't know" is my favorite answer sometimes. My brain hurts when I try to figure it all out. I'm glad I can know that in the long run, knowing that God has all the answers can reassure me that all is well, but I also know that I need to step out of my comfort zone and stretch my brain a little bit. It is so easy for me to say, "It doesn't matter," to let others do the stretching and growing while I remain safe in my little cocoon. I'm still learning. I think I pop in and out, never fully emerging from that safe spot. Hopefully I will learn.
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