Great Teachers in My Life

As I look back over the years of my walk with Christ I cannot but note the way in which he has shaped my life through great teachers.There's been different teachers along the way, each one making their own contribution, no two doing so in exactly the same way.

In recent times Christian philosopher Dallas Willard has been one of these. I was introduced to Willard's books some five or six years ago, and at first didn't get a great deal from them. But events occurred that drove me back to look more closely at them, and when I did so, I discovered a spiritual gold mine. His trilogy Hearing God, The Spirit of the Disciplines, and The Divine Conspiracy have been my constant companions for the last four years. I've read and re-read them, and still find myself drawn to God in remarkable ways through them. As much as I think I've digested them, I know that the Lord hasn't finished with them in my life yet. And that's what has led to the creation of this, yet another blog site.

In interacting with my teachers over the years through their books I've invariably found that I gain most when I write about what they have written. I typically underline and highlight my books when I read - some of them several times over - but it is only when I take key ideas, think about them deeply, and then write (or speak) about them, that they become fully part of me.

For most of the recent past I've used the vehicle of weekly insights written for Grace Theological College to do this. Right at this time, however, I'm passing that writing task on to a colleague. Part of the reason for doing so is to enable me to focus more deeply on thinking and writing on selected insights from Willard in a different way - a way more suited to a blog site than to theological college publication.

Basically I sense the need for a forum to be able to write as I think - to write in a personal, conversational way that allows me to clarify half-formed ideas. I'm not expecting others to read what I write, but if they do, I trust they will be helped by my cogitations - and perhaps be able to help me deepen my thinking as well.