I absolutely love learning. Sign-me-up-Sally for the next opportunity! So over the years, as I’ve accumulated a degree or two, it’s been a humbling thing to frame the diploma only to recognize that God has shifted my career trajectory and I don’t have the ideal credentials.
This humbling wave rolled up to my doorstep again last week as we gathered for our annual VP3 Team Days. This is only my second year at the Team Days table and the focus for more than half of our time together: THEOLOGY!
What the rest of the team didn’t know is that every time I hear a Pastor or colleague say, “that’s a question of theology….or theologically speaking…” I question if I know enough to contribute to the conversation because I don’t have the right degree. I even looked up what “theology” meant earlier this summer during one of my private waves of insecurity.
Brother Vic Gordon, VP3 Board Member and founder of Gospel Depth was our guest teacher and he helped me SO much! Vic’s goal for our time together was to help us be better reflectors on God and his truth for a more fruitful relationship with others.
He explained that theology isn’t something we know about from the past,
theology is HERE AND NOW.
And, he explained, that every Christian is a theologian.
Brother Vic gave us a definition of theology as:
faith seeking understanding.
I learned SO MUCH during our time together!! I will for sure have weak knees of confidence in certain circles, but I grasp now that my ongoing pursuit of God, knowing God, so that I can love God more fully and completely, and trust God to transform me completely because of God’s great love for me…. well … my eyes and ears have been opened afresh to the glory of God’s word and the Kingdom now and to come. I AM a theologian on a journey and so are you!
I also found myself so thankful to be a part of an organization that takes seriously the commitment to be a learning and praying community. We were on the edges of our seats with our Bibles open for hours. We prayed together. We laughed hard together. A few of us cried easily (but I will protect their identity), we shared wonderful food together, and we worked hard.
As you begin this new ministry year as a Pastor, associate, lay leader, friend, and servant to others, we pray for your learning and praying community to be all that it can be so that you, too, may grow and grow and grow for the good of others and the glory of God.
May God’s Spirit be gracious among you,
Pam, for the VP3 Team
