First Impressions

Disclaimer: You can hash-tag some of what I'm writing about today as "FirstWorldProblems."  I'm fully aware.  : - )

I spent most of my first day at college playing Starcraft: Broodwar and sipping Brisk Ice Tea.  In other words, the perfect day for a loner.  For anyone out there geeky enough to care, I was a protoss man all the way. My initial strategy relied heavily on carriers, but then I switched to a ground attack 1 - 2 punch of Dark Templars and Dragoons.

 

For persons struggling with speech impediments, the mind can have a difficult time translating thoughts to words.  The imaginary line that flows from brain to voice is longer and more convoluted than for your typical person.  While I don't have a speech impediment, I feel there are areas where this same kind of disconnect exists.  

On the spectrum of loner <===> social or introvert <===> extrovert, I've consistently leaned towards the former as opposed to the latter.  But there's a disconnect from what I want to be and who I am.  My heart says, "Speak up, be involved, relax, have fun," but my mind and body lag behind.  Why?  It's not nearly as complicated as I once thought.  But it has taken me several years of deliberate thought and practice to discover.  The answer: Rules.  

Unlike this bold bird, I prefer to follow societal, ethical, and legal expectations and norms.  The great thing about rules is that they tell you how to act.  No thinking required!  I think one of the reasons I love sports is the clear guidelines for behavior.  Run fast, kick the ball, and try to win.  I can do that!  It's no wonder The Wizard of Oz is my favorite movie... Just follow that yellow brick road and all your questions will be answered.

There's no point hiding it, I like the idea of a society where we all tuck in our shirts, comb our hair, and walk on the right side of the sidewalks.  There, I said it, I am conventional and I don't care who knows it!  Have you ever seen a paragraph written about conventionality that used so many exclamation marks?!  

But what are the rules for a college party, "Have Fun?"  What does that mean?!

But more importantly, what about religion?  What about your thoughts about how God acts and how God thinks you're supposed to act?  

That's why I initially loved the United Methodist tradition.  Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience are the four sources of authority for theological interpretation.  It's like playing baseball, run around and tag all four bases and you're home!  *Props to J. Starkey*  But what happens when the rules you thought were written in stone are instead written in chalk ... and all of a sudden it's raining?

Well, for one thing, you look for new rules!

New rules for social interactions are far easier to discover than new rules for theological interactions.  I'll explore both in my next post.