The Age of Unlearning

It occured to me today, as I sat and listened to my friends in our Bible study group talk about the macro view of the Kingdom of God, that my experience of the scriptures we were studying was quite different to many in the group, and that I seem to be in a season of unlearning.

I have no intention of bad mouthing those whose sole purpose was to bring light to the Bible and help me understand who God is and who I am in relation to him or imply that what they taught was Biblicly unsound or wrong. I have many wonderful memories of beautiful and authentic Christians who have provided sound guidance and much scaffolding and support in my life.

But my experience of that time of learning has left me with more questions than answers and a realisation that many of the teachings I have held onto should be investigated a bit more; that their robustness should be assessed and that it is a good time in my life to be stepping back and evaluating what I have known and what I want to know.

The thing that stands out to me now, as I reflect on my childhood and early adulthood, was that I was enmeshed with those who held authority in my denomination. There was never a question in my mind that what I was taught could be wrong or misaligned, or that the context of that teaching was off-centre.

And, to be fair, I expect I had rose-coloured glasses on (especially as a young adult trying to prove my ‘availabilty for God and service’), and even if it was taught from the pulpit to question what I learn, the message did not translate into my everyday life.

In fact, I don’t know if I ever questioned those in authority – it was not said explicitly; more an implied directive through observing the adults around me and mimicing their behaviour – that you just didn’t question the pastor or the leadership team.

Now, as I consider how I have been learning over the past few years (thank you COVID for the opportunity to assess my faith and hone in on what I actually believe), I can see that they have been years of slow – and sometimes painful – unravelling.

Unlearning and relearning.

Un-layering old thought patterns … and sending some pretty big question marks out to God for feedback.

I think my generation grew up in such a small world, and like the frog in the pot, never thought to question the waters we swam in. I am grateful that I am seeing this now. There is so much value in taking stock of where we have been, both the long-gone past and more recent experiences, whether faith-related or not.

Now, alongside others just like me, I am emerging from the stupor, opening my eyes, reading the Bible for myself, asking questions, posing opinions, seeking answers and reconnecting with my faith – and more so, sometimes, connecting for the first time with God Himself on particular topics I have not known or fully comprehended.

Please allow me to encourage you – ask questions, don’t be afraid to disagree with those who seem more learned. Be prepared to have unresolved conflict with those who don’t like your new-found freedom of thought.

And trust that the Maker of All is more than capable of reaching you (and me) where we are at; funnily enough, He’s quite capable of bypassing our experiences and shedding His light on what He wants us to understand. What a gracious God.

May you join me on this journey of unlearning and rediscovering who the Triune God is – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – and why He, as One, is calling us to a new place of knowing Him.

Until next time,

Miriam