The Longest Journey
Wisdom in a Whisper Ministries is delighted to have our own Doug MacColl contribute to The Mount Blog. In this two-part series, Doug will reflect on making the difficult journey from the head to the heart.
Ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu is credited with saying, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” Thanks to man’s ability to invent and innovate, we can now set out on journeys by car, plane, boat, train, and even by spaceship. The world has never been smaller or more accessible. Yet, there is still one journey that even the most advanced technology is unable to shorten: The journey from your head to your heart.
Reflection
It's no surprise that men tend to be “fixers.” A problem presents itself to us at work, with our spouse or a family member, a friend, or from any number of places, and we have a 20-step plan mapped out on how we will fix the problem. Now, if this problem is truly something “mechanical,” then working to fix it makes perfect sense. However, if these problems are anchored by emotions, trying to apply the same logical process in our heads to fix it, will often cause more of a problem. Truthfully, this is how God made men and women uniquely special. From the time we are born, girls tend to be more attuned to social interactions and emotional responses than boys. Data shows that by the time boys are three years of age, they surpass girls in visual and spatial integration. This is because the hippocampus, which is the part of the brain responsible for navigation and assembling pieces together, tends to develop faster in boys. While these are generalities, and not every child falls into this explanation, it does point to why men tend to be more hard-wired toward fixing problems.
Application
How does this apply to men and women in their journey as Disciples of Christ?
In more ways than you can imagine! Much like some people are “book smart” or “street smart,” we can’t stop at just being “book smart” about Jesus and our faith. Using our brain or our intellect to make sense out of spiritual problems is important; however, we must not stop at just knowing ABOUT God but must continue until we genuinely KNOW God.
Maybe you are saying, “Wait, what’s the difference? That’s kind of vague!”
And to that, I would say, “You are correct.” But here's the good news, friends! We have been given all the resources and tools necessary to both know about God and KNOW God. In his 2nd letter to Timothy, Paul writes,
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Scripture tells us the word of God is alive and active (Heb 4:12), that we are born again through the living and enduring word of God (1 Peter 1:23), that it transforms us (Rom 1:16), and that it should dwell richly inside us (Col 3:16).
As Christians, it is incumbent on us to not only know what The Word says about how to live or handle problems, but we must also apply these teachings to our lives (James 1:22). If we keep all this knowledge in our heads, and don’t allow it to seep deep into our hearts, then when problems, trials, pain or suffering strike, life will feel like being on a plane with engine failure plummeting toward the ground with no runway or parachutes to be found. We need to put our beliefs into action and our beliefs into being. To truly change, we must believe God, as well as ask the Holy Spirit to help us become what God ultimately wants us to be as we transform into the image of Christ. We need to stop doing and start being! We need to get out of our heads, fully surrender and allow God to fill the chambers of our hearts.
Will this happen overnight? No. Thankfully, that’s what the life of a Disciple of Jesus is all about. In his book “Outliers: The Story of Success,” Malcolm Gladwell made popular the concept that it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert at something. The idea actually originated from research by psychologist Anders Ericsson and his colleagues. Think about your own career or perhaps a sport you participate in. How did you get good at them? To both learn and master a job or sport takes time, and often requires talented coaches or mentors. Either way, you can’t truly become great at your job or a sport until you apply what you have been taught. Being effective at anything in life comes from unshakable commitment coupled with experience. The same is true in our faith journey. Thankfully, we have a Savior who modelled exactly how we are called to live, and we have the Bible as our map as we journey from our heads to our hearts.
God Bless,
Doug
Explore the Word
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Hebrews 4:12
1 Peter 1:23
Romans 1:16
Colossians 3:16
James 1:22
Check out our “Pastures” page for more information about Men’s Servant Leadership Training and Mentoring and the “About” tab to read Doug’s bio.
