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August 24, 2006
Wisdom
"Wisdom is, and starts with, the humility to accept the fact that you don't have all the right answers."
Anonymous
As a pastor you're taught to be a fix it person. With that comes a false assurance and expectation that you should have all the answers. Sometimes you begin to believe that you do. I think this is why, at least in part, for so long, Christianity has been reduced to being right. Belonging is, often, determined by whether or not you believe the same thing as the people you "fellowship" with. Unsaid, if you believe the right thing, if you're right, you're in and you belong. If you're wrong, even your faith is questionable. We might not say it that way, outright, we'd just rather you would associate somewhere else, with other people who believe like you do.
Over the last few years of my life I'm learning more and more, that I know less and less of the answers. I'm also learning that, most often, people aren't really interested in knowing what you think the answer is, on any given matter, if they don't already know that you're willing to journey with them through their questions, without trying to correct them at every turn, when their questions and your answers don't match up exactly, or sometimes, remotely.
Church needs to be a place where people are allowed to work through their questions and in so doing arrive at a faith that is real, true, vibrant and Christ-centered. Especially if the alternative is a faith that is stale, irrelevant and institutional.
There is freedom in not having to be right. In realizing that you don't have all the answers. Even that many of the answers you think you have, might not be right. It's not so much about what you're trusting, as who you're trusting that's really important.
Posted by: POG