On Brain Expansion and Christian Truth

I have been mulling over how to express the bajillion thoughts in my head all week.  The amount of hearing, reading, learning and processing I have done this week far exceeds what is normal for me.  The problem is that I’m not done processing everything, not even close, and I’m one of those who doesn’t like to write things down until I’m confident of my opinion and how best to share it.  This is an awkward feeling for me, to be reluctant to speak out about things because enough has been said already in the blogosphere and because I’m already feeling the judgement of people I love and respect.  But I’m not ever short on opinions, they just have a tendency to evolve when I’m least expecting it!  I warn you, I will ramble on here.  Feel free to just skip this post if you like, writing this is more for my own benefits than that of my audience. 🙂

What the heck am I talking about?  Two issues mainly, and they are interconnected and pretty foundational to me.  The both deal with Biblical truth.  The first is a firestorm that erupted this week when John Piper, one of my favorite teachers, posted a video about whether or not it is biblical for women to work outside the home.  It was actually not a bad video, describing how the question really is a new one, and that working arrangements for women have changed and are rapidly continuing to change.  But he did say that it ought to be discouraged.  So both “camps” posted and commented and posted some more about the topic.  Here’s a very incomplete list of somewhat related posts:

Jesus Needs New PR 
Like a Warm Cup of Coffee
Emerging Mummy
Nicole Wick
Rachel Held Evans
Micha Boyett-Hohorst
Jessica Turner
Joyfully At Home
The Run-A-muck
Elizabeth Esther
Serena Woods
Some of Life’s Posies

So anyway, if you know me, you know I’m conservative and my theology would normally be described as such.  I grew up in an evangelical home and went to a evangelical school.  I do believe the Bible is the inspired word of God, inerrant and authoritative.  So why do I suddenly feel myself being thrust to left? Judged, as it were? Because as much as I value and believe in the absolute truth of God’s word, I find myself valuing grace as well. Not more than truth, just in addition to it.  I think a lot of well-intentioned people are misunderstanding or at least mis-using the term grace.  I hear this “Yeah, God’s standard is this, you aren’t meeting it and therefore sinning…but OH here’s some grace with that judgement.”  What?!  Some things in the Bible sound pretty cut and dry as I read them.  Some things simply do not.  I have read and believe everything in Proverbs 31 and Titus 2 a hundred times.  I simply don’t agree with what one phrase “busy at home” “keepers of home” or “working at home” is being interpreted.  You may be surprised to hear that this has nothing to do with my view of how God created and ordered man and woman and our roles…I agree with the concept of gender roles and male headship…in the home and in the church.  But I choose to work, I send my kids to daycare/school and I do NOT believe I am outside God’s will or plan for how everyone should live.  My own situation is personal, has nothing to do with being selfish, and I think it’s wrong to go around calling out other women for how they tackle the role of “mother”.  I don’t feel like I need to defend the whys and hows and details of my life to my sisters in Christ, and I don’t believe I need your “grace” in this situation.  We can’t read the Bible completely outside of it’s, OR OUR, cultural context.  I do believe that what it says is relevant to us today, but it must be interpreted.  I do believe in “sola scriptura”, and a literal interpretation of the words, but it is still written through the perspectives of its writers. 

That brings me to the second issue.  The Bible is not a science book.  There is a lot of science found within it, but of course there is a lot that isn’t.  I’m taking a class at my conservative evangelical church called “Making Sense of God and Science.”  I probably have the most science and math in my background besides the teacher, who is a physicist.  I LOVE science and math.  Math is the language God used when he wrote the laws of the universe.  Don’t get me wrong, I do not worship at the alter of science.  But reading Genesis 1-3 and then studying the natural creation is a bit confusing.  My class is digging deep into hard science and I love it…this past week we discussed astrophysics…Einstein’s theory of relativity, the curvature of space, quasars and Dark Matter.  It thrilled me.  There are a whole lot of problems with the answers that the atheist academic science community have given.  But I’m still not seeing enough answers for me to draw a firm conclusion on how Genesis 1-3 should be interpreted.  And I like that…my brain is expanding, I’m asking more questions than finding answers, and I LOVE that.  Questions, not answers, are why I chose science as a profession.  Finding out how much we don’t know is so much more interesting to me than what we do, or what we think we do. 

I’m a learner, a student.  This week I am excited by all the new perspectives I am reading, and all the pondering it is forcing me to do.  But I’m still saddened by the divisiveness I see in the body of Christ.

Link Love Monday

How to Escape Materialism and Find Happiness I struggle with materialism but these are some good tips I often employ. I don’t think finding happiness should really be the goal of life, but I still like this post.

I Don’t Want My Children To Be Happy This pretty much explains EXACTLY how I feel about why happiness is not the goal, not for me and not for my kids.

From a Father’s Perspective This is our worship pastor, who recently decided to adopt.  Praise God.  Adoption is ON my heart, y’all.  And the heart of God.

The Email I Don’t Know How To Answer As usual, Kristen’s posts know right where to poke me.  How can we live with so many blessings, knowing there are people starving and suffering?

Embrace Your Authenticity While I do believe we ought to live for God and not for ourselves, He has made us unique and embracing our uniqueness absolutely leads to good things. 

Is It Unbiblical for Moms to Work Full-time Outside The Home? I love John Piper, but he says this should be discouraged and I don’t agree with him.  I don’t always agree with Matthew Paul Turner but on this one I think his post is pretty much right.  It pains me greatly to see the guilt-heaping and divisivness this discussion causes in the body of Christ. (I’m not endorsing the commenters, only the post.)

$50/Week x 45 Years = $1Million Never thought you could really be a millionaire? Check out the math on investing for retirement and why you should be doing it. I may be wanting to use my money for the Lord to help others, but I’m still in favor of managing it wisely.