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Thinking Outside the Box
| This phrase is often
used to describe creative thinking. However, it can be helpful to
consider what the “box” actually is. We create all sorts of “boxes” in
life. By compartmentalizing we can reduce anxiety and give ourselves a
feeling that all is well. In a world of increasing collectivization it
should not be surprising that much of life becomes circumscribed by
procedures and patterns that are repetitive. School, work, and even
church can become so ossified that little consideration is given to
anything outside the “box”.
For Christians relying on the inertia of a denominational “box” to
carry them along, a lack of curiosity may lead them to end up with a
different outcome than they expect. An employment box may give one a
sense of security. However, if one is laid off because his job is sent
overseas, he may come to suspect that the box in which he trusted was
not what he thought. Boxes give comfort of the familiar and routine.
They are not necessarily true.
Curiosity and healthy skepticism can be useful to examine our boxes to
see where and how they might have caused us to accept something not
true. One should be careful because questioning can make others anxious
or even hostile. People can have have a huge emotional investment in a
box such that even slight questioning is seen as a threat.
Complacency can make the precision of truth seem unnecessary. One can
even become energetic and derive what seems to be rewards from a box
that is false. For example if a young person is convinced that casual
fornication is a rewarding life choice, he might find in old age that
it was nothing to build on. A religious box of stern legalism can seem
rewarding only for one to discover that self-righteousness is isolating.
People can adopt a persona appropriate for a box. A teen age boy might
come to see himself as a sort of James Bond. A teen age girl might see
herself as on a career trajectory of corporate success. We can
pigeonhole ourselves into a “box” defined by assumptions, hopes, and
dreams that become expectations. We can even come to see ourselves as
having achieved success. This sort of blindness can be comfortable, but
for the Christian can also be dangerous. A box does not have to be a
complete way of living, it can be as simple as a way of looking at
things.
A Christian who has come to see his faith as guessing that every good
thing is a blessing from God and every bad thing as a test may continue
to see things as a sort of Christian consumer. This can lead him to
neglect coming to Christian maturity and leaving him regretful for not
having questioned his approach to living the Christian life. It would
be sad to have an eternal regret for not having questioned if one were
on the best path.
Thinking outside a box may be the sign of a malcontent or someone who
has been burned by bad experiences. However, it can also be for those
simply curious and questioning. Christians should be growing in truth
which would imply questioning. We have the word of God which is truth.
We are supposed to grow into Christ-likeness, and Christ is truth. One
would expect in a world where Satan sets the course and he is the
father of lies that being able to discern truth is an essential
survival skill.
1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
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