Hey everyone, I’m on vacation, so that’s why things have been so down around here for the last few days, but I wanted to share something that’s been bouncing around in my head before I lose it completely.
A few weeks ago, my kids and I were driving in the car and, as kids often do, they were looking at cloud formations and telling each other what shapes they saw. What was funny about this particular moment was a eureka experience from my son in which we all got to share a part. I have great kids, but just like so many families, there exists the typical sibling rivalries where our children will argue against one another incessantly.
The moment came when, as one child relayed what they saw and another their own vision, I was asked what I saw in a particular cloud. I don’t remember what I said, but it was something different than any of my children said they had seen. At that moment, my son pipes up and says, “You mean, people can see different things when looking at the same cloud?”
It dawned on me that, though still useless and annoying, all my children’s arguments about what could be seen in the clouds all came down to a matter of perspective. In my son’s limited viewpoint, everyone in the world should see the exact same thing he did when looking at the clouds. I had to explain to him that, because of the way God made each of us with different imaginations and viewpoint, and that we’ve all had different experiences, we all see things a bit differently. I also had to explain that it was ok for one person to see a cloud one way, and for another to not only see it completely differently, but to not be able to see what another could see very clearly.
That day my son had a shift in his perspective, coming to realize that his way of viewing things was not necessarily the only way or the best way. I also had a perspective shifting experience, in that I learned that my son is still stuck in a very “me-centered” viewpoint of the world.
Being me-centered is a sign of immaturity and lack of experience. It started me wondering about all the conflicts we hear about or experience personally in the body of Christ. So many of our “holy arguments,” such as debates about music styles or culture, come from one party or another having a very immature, me-centered viewpoint of how things ought to be.
In a recent blog post, one of my favorite bloggers had a list on his opinions why many fundamental churches are becoming increasingly irrelevant. Number 5 on his list speaks to this issue: “They have turned many traditions into near doctrines. (Music styles, Bible versions, Service Schedule, Denominational Tags, etc…)” I know a me-centered viewpoint does not explain away all the arguments over such things that have taken place in the past, but I think is might explain a huge portion.
This is where the value of subjective truth comes in to play. There IS such a thing as absolute truth, that being God Himself, and His Word. Absolute truth is truth which applies to all people, at all times, in all places in all situations. Subjective truths, while not having the weight of absolute truth, still has both place and value. Subjective truths, when placed under the authority of God’s Word—absolute truth—find their place and value in society and relationship.
The next time you find yourself in an argument over something as trivial as a viewpoint, check yourself to see if you are being me-centered. If you are, get over it, apologize, and walk away. If the person you are debating with is being me-centered and you recognize it as such, choose to not argue with them until such a time they “see the light.”
Once both parties are striving to no longer be me-centered, I’ll bet you’ll mutually discover there was really nothing to argue about in the first place.
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