Carli cannot figure out why history is important. “It’s old Dad. Who really cares and to me it is boring!”
Whitney likes to explore and appears less concerned about titles. If it is interesting, who cares what one calls something? Imperial War Museum is good. Science Halls can be fun. Staring at monuments gets boring quickly.
Everyone has a view and I am no exception. For me, history’s purpose is to understand and learn with as little bias as possible. From today, decisions of yesterday come packaged and colored. We sense that we know the reason why decisions were made because we can see events the led up to the turning point in a holistic way. We can learn as we see the results playing themselves out in the lives of people and communities. A mysterious area that remains is the perspective of the people directly involved. How did/do they see things. What were the pressures facing them at that moment? What application can I make to my life in learning from the past?
I want to learn from others pursuing God. I want to see God as clearly and powerfully as people have in the past, to live life as close to God as anyone has or will. A key ingredient is the role of facts, rules, and laws. I can see myself in a conversation with the leaders in Christ’s era.
“Don’t you remember how it was? I do, perfectly well. The law code started out as an excellent piece of work. What happened, though, was that sin found a way to pervert the command into a temptation, making a piece of ‘forbidden fruit’ out of it. The law code, used instead of being used to guide me, was used to seduce me.” (Romans 7.9,10)
Dear God, let me learn from the past! I have a helpful guide that is a tool at my disposal. The tool can also seduce me into believing I can realize the god within. Let me experience, walk, and live in your freedom. Let me learn from their steps.
