Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards. ~Søren Kierkegaard
Our theologian for the week will feature quotes from Soren Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard. He was a theological, philosopher, and poet from Denmark. He is commonly thought to be the first existential philosopher and wrote a lot about morality, Christian thought and practice, and was considered an incredibly deep thinker. Some of his works are considered groundbreaking and was one of the first to truly reflect on one’s personal Christian experience. Kierkegaard is a shared favorite with Dr. Harvey and myself.
This quote from Kierkegaard today is one of those of the most famous lines in all his writings and I think most of us can acknowledge the truth that it holds. Most of the time when life is unraveling in front of us or around us we don’t always grasp the magnitude of what is happening or the impact that it will have on our lives. We can’t understand in the moment, but when we look back and are able to reflect, dissect, and see the impact we can learn and grow. However, we can’t live our lives in the rearview mirror. If we spend all our time looking backwards, we can’t possibly see the good things on the horizon that God is leading us towards.
I think the early Christians are a good example of this. After Jesus arrived on this earth and throughout his ministry, people were struggling to understand who he was. Even after he died and was resurrected, the early Christians spent the next days, week, months, years, and generations trying to fully grasp who Christ was and continues to be. Even today in our lives of faith we continue to grasp who Jesus was and is for each of us. As we look backwards, we can often see the hand of God in our lives, the times that God has carried us through challenges, and the places where God was giving us signs. And still, we need to continue to keep our eyes forward on where God is calling us to go and to “turn my eyes to the hills” (Psalm 121).
Prayer
God of all time, when we look back on our lives, we can sometimes understand more fully the complexities of life. We can see your hand in our lives and count the many blessings that have surrounded us. Help us to keep our eyes looking forward to your constant call to live into your grace. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Thank you, Rev. Weber, for introducing us to Kierkegaard. I had heard of him but didn’t know he was Christian. This is a helpful perspective: looking back to learn while moving forward to grow.
This! How often I’ve thought of the MANY times God has saved me from myself…MANY!! and still is 🙂
Thanks, Callie