Human Limitations

14/24 Well it’s Lent, and I’ve decided to try again. I hope to put a few words together every day! My plan is to try and stick to one focused topic with each note. If I can avoid rambling I may be able to do it.

I recognize that I am not God. But I am a human being with the attendant limitations. I do believe that God’s thoughts are above my thoughts, and his ways above my ways. That leads to a problem with my view of the church and current “teachings”. I have a human mind and a human body. That means I can’t do what God does. I can only do what He wants me to do within my limitations. The current mindset is WWJD (What would Jesus do?) Well, I think WWJHMD (What would Jesus have me do?). It’s one thing to recognize we are God’s adopted children. It’s another thing to believe we are to become God. Everything I hear is about Jesus and his miracles and how we are to follow in his footsteps. All that is fine, but it doesn’t help me deal with human issues with human limitations. If we look at the fall from the garden of Eden, we see God telling us that we are going to have to deal with the rain and the droughts and slog through the mud. What is our relationship with God? Is he the puppet master that pulls the strings and we react accordingly? Or is he the clock maker that winds the clock then goes away? I don’t think either fits the mold I perceive. It is the same way I see a human family. When you have a child you try to instill in them a set of values that will allow them to grow and become good human beings. Then you allow them to become independent. You allow them to make mistakes and to succeed, but you don’t do it for them. If they have a problem and come to you for help you evaluate whether your help would help them continue to grow or whether it will hinder their growth. You encourage them to mature. You want them to love and respect you, but not under threat of punishment or reprisals. It is a joy to see a child fully human. This sounds like it has nothing to do with God, but that’s not what I think. God wants us to mature both as human beings and well as spiritual beings and he gives us the opportunity to do that without interfering with our free will. {stop here because I perceive I have not made myself very clear, maybe next time}