I look back on my formal education with mostly good feelings. There were so many positive, exciting experiences—from elementary school all the way through grad school. But calculus? I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that anymore.
Still, I consider myself a lifelong student. In particular, I want to keep myself open to learning from God. Getting older does not automatically mean that we are getting wiser. We have to work at it. A regular practice of reading the Bible, praying and listening for God’s response are good places to start. But we have to do more than go through the motions. While memorizing Scripture can soothe and inspire us, learning from God requires constant rethinking and refocusing.
It requires asking questions. God is not intimidated by them; in fact, questioning God can help you build a deeper, more intimate relationship with him. The same way that a science teacher wants to show you two chemicals interacting in a test tube so you can see how chemistry works in real life, God wants you to experiment—with different ways of studying his Word, different teachers, different mediums.
Learning is central to faith. Jesus knew that—at age 12, he sat in the temple, asking questions as well as listening. So experiment away: Order a new version of the Bible, switch up your prayer practice, question a long-held belief. And do it with an enthusiastic heart. The words of Psalm 25:5 guide us: “Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.” Happy learning!
