Why Theology?

I was working on a blog post about the great motorcycle ride my husband took me on today, but all week I felt the need to pick up a book that I read two years ago.  So, tonight while sitting in bed waiting for Jason to finish his xbox mission, I opened up When Life and Beliefs Collide, How Knowing God Makes a Difference, by Carolyn Custis James.  I am sitting here looking through some of the passages I underlined.  This book made a big impression on me, and I highly recommend it.

I read this book in my first Women's Ministry class at a small college in Kansas.  I was still nervous about the prospect of investing in a biblical education.  At first I was not sure if I liked the book at all, but it has a very important message.  Custis James wants us all to recognize that anyone who thinks anything about God is a theologian.  If you live your life any particular way because of your belief (or non-belief), then that is your theology.  In my case, as a Christian, my theology is simply what I understand about Jesus, and the quality of my theology will depend on my relationship with God.

I am not trying to sound more educated than I am.  Reading this book helped me realize that when I was baptized in the cold Truckee River near downtown Reno in 2004, I made a commitment to study and understand for myself what being a Christian truly means.  I have had to take a close look at who I am.  I believe that with the proper theology, the proper understanding of Jesus and relationship with God, I will be able to overcome not only the challenges of being a wife, but also all the other challenges life and marriage throw at me.

Taking my first Communion with Jason at our wedding.  (Incline Village, Lake Tahoe)

In the past couple of years since I first finished this book I have found that God has even more in store for me.  The more I learn, the more I want to bring others along in my study.  I want to be able to share the massive impact that improving my theology has already had in my life and my marriage.

Chena Hot Springs Road, Alaska

About two years ago I took my first motorcycle ride.  I was not convinced it was a good idea.  Today I did all I could to make sure Jason and I got out on the road, even despite the chill in the air.  Life has this way of always changing in unpredictable ways.  I believe that there is nothing the truth of Jesus Christ cannot get us through.  There are so many lessons to be learned.  I hope you will join me.