Theology from Parenting

It's been close to a month since my last post. Life has gotten busy and no real strong music has come across my path for #MusicMondays inspiration.

Well, something did dawn on me the other day - kind of a half-baked theological idea - and I thought I might as well process it out via this post. 

See, I've found myself using the phrase "...because I don't want you to get hurt" as I've been redirecting our two toddler-aged boys. "Don't stand on your chair, don't climb up on the table - because I don't want you to get hurt." Our oldest especially is entering the stage where we can explain a little of the reasoning as to why we are saying certain things. Usually we have to keep it basic - both because of his level of understanding and our energy levels. So often I default to "because I don't want you to get hurt" just because it's an easy-enough generality and I know he can get that.

After saying this at some point last week, I realized there could be a spiritual lesson there. If parenting can teach me about how God is our Father (and it can), is this how our Lord sometimes communicates with us. Take away our tiredness, and I think it might. 

God doesn't always explain everything to us. His Word is comprehensive but it isn't always super-detailed. Sometimes he explains why his will needs to be followed. Other times he leaves it at the level of "I don't want you to get hurt". It is easy to question why God sets the standards he does because so often they go against what we naturally want. 

But God sees the bigger picture. He sees how a short-term fix might lead to long-term damage. 

Again, there are plenty of examples in Scripture where he gives rationale for his "rules". Often though it boils down to his fatherly love for us and wanting to prevent us from harm.

Another corollary to this that is not even half-baked (is quarter-baked a thing?) popped into my mind regarding this too. We just celebrated Easter, is there a connection from this idea to Christ's ultimate sacrifice and his resurrection?

In order to shield us from God's just wrath, our brother took our place out of his infinite love, in essence saying "I don't want you to get hurt". 

Still working these things out in my head at this point. If you agree or disagree I'd be happy to hear it in the comments below or via FB/Twitter.

It is not an entirely new idea to me - God wanting to protect us from harm. But it has taken on a new aspect now that I am a dad myself.