It’s been a while…last time we talked a little about sharing our experience with others.
I remember my first college calculus class like it happened yesterday. I can see Dr. Cornett in front of the lecture hall, and I still remember what he explained that day.
He didn’t begin with a bunch of problems or calculations. Instead, he spent the entire class providing an overview of what calculus was about. He showed some interesting examples of the sorts of problems we’d learn how to solve and explained why these problems were important.
That lecture stuck in my brain. In one class session, Dr. Cornett provided context for a huge chunk of the math and science I learned in the next four years. I can’t estimate how many times I connected what I was learning to the big-picture examples presented in that very first lecture.
In classrooms and lots of other settings, we often forget the value of context. We present tips and tricks and bullet points, skills in isolation, and then wonder about the lack of deep understanding or connection.
Consider how many times you’ve encountered a scripture verse out of context and thought about how it just doesn’t seem to fit. Or how often someone uses a verse out of context to make an argument…and you wonder, how does that fit with what I know about Jesus?
I’m grateful for the people who taught me more than 40 years ago that the Bible is one big story. Whenever something doesn’t seem to fit, perhaps it’s my lack of understanding. Usually learning more about the context helps a great deal.
Because if my interpretation doesn’t point to Jesus, I need to take a second look.