Knowing/Not knowing

[GodIsLove]

My thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways are not your ways. . . . As high as the heavens are above the earth, so my ways are beyond your ways, and my thoughts are beyond your thoughts. —Isaiah 55:8-9

We cannot comprehend the work of God from beginning to end. —Ecclesiastes.

"When we presume we know fully, we can be very arrogant and goal-oriented. When we know we don't know fully, we are much more concerned about practical, loving behavior. Those who know God are humble about their knowledge of God; those who don't really know God, often speak in platitudes and certainties (about which they are not really certain).

All our words, beliefs, and rituals are merely "fingers pointing to the moon."  They are never 100% right or perfect. This is the necessary and good poverty of all spiritual language. Remember, Jesus never said, "You must be right!" or even that it was important to be right. He largely talked about being honest and humble (which is probably our only available form of rightness).

Such admitted poverty in words should keep us humble, curious, and searching for God. Yet the ego doesn't like such uncertainty. In fact, we usually focus on areas where we can feel a sense of order and control—things like finances, clothing, edifices, roles, offices, and who has the authority. In my experience, I observe that the people who find God are usually those who are very serious about their quest and their questions. It is said that asking good questions is a sign of intelligence. But Western culture has spent centuries admiring and promoting people who supposedly have all the answers—which, too often, they have read or heard from someone else."

-The above is a quote from an email I received

Thoughts? I tend to agree with this. I think as a group we are fairly humble, speaking of things to one another, especially compared to other places on the internet, Christian and non Christian sites included, but of course we aren't perfect and I think we can all use a reminder of humility and that the mystery of God is something that we can only understand in part here on earth.