How to Be a Traveler, Not a Tour Guide. (Sunday Thoughts Link Up #62).
ROMANS 1: 14-15
I am obligated both to the Greeks and non-Greeks, both the wise and the foolish. That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.
The one thing being both a child and a teacher has taught me is how to be a lifelong learner. As a kid everything is new. It’s why you ask so many questions. Why does the moon look like it’s full of holes? What’s an apology? What’s an asparagus and why should I care? Where do I put this Band-Aid I found at the park (answer: nowhere. Don’t ever touch a Band-Aid that isn’t yours). It’s the same when you become a teacher. Students know when you think you already know everything. They don’t want an expert on Brave New World. They want a fellow spelunker down into that scarily prescient world. They want a traveler to walk alongside them, not a tour guide. Nobody listens to the tour guides.
Curiosity: I think this is perhaps the most underrated quality in a Christian.
By common connotation in the modern world, Christians have come to be known as know-it-alls. We are hypocritical, presumptuous, unyielding, old-fashioned people who plod along behind the modern world. We stick to archaic principles from a dusty tome, and therefore, we cannot possibly understand the current climate.
Here’s what I have to say to that: it’s become a paradigm for a reason.
We get curious with the Bible in our quiet times, in our daily devotional, in our Sunday school class. But whether it’s out of fear or insecurity or paranoia, we pull down the shades in public. I never claim to know all the answers, but I do not share my honest questions as much as I should with people outside my circle.
- Did creation really take seven days?
- Why was Jesus so patient with some and so impatient with others?
- Why can’t I get a little more scenic description in the Bible so I can picture ancient Israel and all the flora and fauna and the heat index on a typical day?
- How do I reconcile a merciful God and the angry one from the Old Testament in a way that makes me less scared of Him? Side note: I often pray to Jesus for this very reason. Because I feel like He’s just a touch more understanding than God.
I think we should share our questions with the wide world.
Yes, the Bible is sacred truth. But to wonder aloud, to approach with curiosity and work through the unknowns, is not blasphemy. It is taking the necessary steps to make it real. Paul was often didactic. He was the kid who raised his hand first and always in class. But he was endlessly curious too after his conversion on that dusty road (heat index probably upper 90s). He loved to be around every kind of person, both “Greek and non-Greek”, both “wise and foolish.” I think we need to do the same and share our “open thoughts” which is what these Open Sunday Thoughts are all about. It’s okay to wonder aloud. It makes you a pilgrim on the journey. You haven’t reached the end yet. And if you don’t want to walk the road alone, you need to talk to the other travelers.
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A big thank you from Jamie on The Mom Gene!
