In my prayer time this morning, I once again asserted to God that I wanted to please Him. But instead of moving on to another aspect of my prayer, I was forced to stop and consider the words I had just prayed. Was I really wanting to please Him?

Pleasing, in my mind, requires doing. This is true especially in the context of my relationship with my earthly father. I have for most of my life sought approval from him. Much of my focus was centered around making him happy so that I wouldn’t get “the look” or worse, a tongue lashing or a spanking. I have realized in the past couple of months that I still seek approval from those males I respect or who are in a position of authority over me. Continue Reading

If the following from my previous post in this series is true, then an acknowledgment must be made about how we construct theology:

What we “see” in the world, then, is really a function of our brain, an image that integrates past experiences, memory, cultural learning and other multi-sensory information. What a person perceives or sees is not the world. It is actually a prediction of what should be in the world based on what a person has experienced. This prediction is constantly tested by action. (1)

We must understand that our theology is culturally constructed. Culture provides framing, which in sociological and communication terms is a schema for determining interpretation and how we make meaning out of life. For instance, among those in the LDS sect recently raided in Texas, many were born into that sect. Marriage, for them, is framed in a specific way and it has meaning outside of what the rest of the country would have for marriage. Church for a neo-landmark Baptist from rural Kentucky or Texas has a different meaning than for most Baptists.

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