Love is an Orientation
I have really been thinking a lot about the following, as I believe it is unfortunately ever so true today:
Culture no longer believes in progress, it believes in assimilation
When I say ‘progress’ I am defining it the same as American theologian and pastor Warren Wiersbe when referencing Paul’s words of ‘progress’ to his young disciple Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:15: “A pioneer advancing into new territory.”
Think what would happen if our culture today saw progress as a collective of unique individuals striving together to faithfully blaze humanitarian, scientific and social paths that have yet to be blazed – minus the politics, hierarchies and the innate human felt-need to rule.
But we can’t do that. Not in our culture. Not in our time.
Our responsibility as an independent individual is no longer focused on our own actions in light of the whole, but rather focused on outside persuasion – assimilating everyone who is not like us to be exactly like us – whether scientific, political or theological.
We don’t even know what it means to define progress other than through the lense of who has the dominant mass; scientific (evolution vs. creation), political (who has the majority in the government) or theological (missionaries from any faith whose goal is conversion rather than faithful Kingdom establishment).
We’re human. Complex. Independent yet eerily ever connected and inter-related.
A favorite saying of mine is: “Wisdom will be proven right by her actions.” If that is true today, having wisdom equals power through a mass of an exact, pre-determined right set of ideologies. To me, that is not wisdom. Wisdom, instead, must be proven by the life you live whether anyone ‘assimilates’ to your own way or not. How you react in the face of assimilative pressure shows more of your character and how much wisdom you have than any number of the masses giving in to you, your message or what mainstream culture (secular and religious) deems as the ‘only acceptable way to live.’
Are you trying to show how much wisdom you have by how many people assimilate to your side or how you progress through life despite others assimilation in either direction, around you?
Much love.
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