Traveling Without A Map

I purchased A Year with C. S. Lewis a few days ago. I really like it!

His writing on theology resonated with me. I'm concerned that we, the church, are edging away from solid theology in favor of the emotion of the moment, and whatever flashy teaching hold our attention longest. Now, I like both songs with feeling and well crafted sermons. So I'm not completely knocking them :)

Is it just me, or do we avoid examining the theology of some of our songs and teaching? Saying, "It's legalistic. And besides, theology is boring, dry and unimportant." I think some theology is boring too! But I'm beginning to understand the danger of accepting just anything that strikes a chord in our hearts without examining it first. I'm becoming more thankful for those who have taken on the arduous task of writing down just what we do believe.

"Now, Theology is like the map...Doctrines are not God: they are only a kind of map. But that map is based on the experiences of hundreds of people who really were in touch with God - experiences compared with which any thrills or pious feelings you and I are likely to get on our own are very elementary and very confused. An secondly, if you want to get any further, you must use the map. You see, what happened to the man in the desert may have been real, and was certainly exciting, but nothing comes of it. It leads nowhere. There is nothing to do about it. In fact, that is just why a vague religion - all about feeling God in nature, and so on - is so attractive. It is all thrills and no work: like watching the waves from the beach. But you will not get to Newfoundland by studying the Atlantic that way, and you will not get eternal life by simply feeling the presence of God in flowers or music. Neither will you get anywhere by looking at maps without going to sea. Nor will you be very safe if you go to sea without a map." -- From Mere Christianity