My Monday Cup | Seeing Life Through God’s Eyes

Good morning! Welcome to a new chapter of My Monday Cup. Today, I want to explore the topic of theological intelligence. How does what we know and believe about God impact and influence our daily life?

Theological intelligence is the ability to grasp the truths of Scripture and apply them in a way that glorifies God and enhances our relationship with Him. Developing our theological intelligence involves having a heart that seeks after God, a mind engaged in His Word, and a life that reflects His teachings. It is how we learn to see life through God’s eyes.

Emotional intelligence helps us navigate relationships.
Social intelligence helps us read the room.
Creative intelligence helps us imagine new possibilities.

Theological intelligence, by God’s grace, gives us the ability to live with a God-shaped awareness of life. To be clear: theological intelligence is not about knowing our theology academically. That’s only useful to a certain extent. As believers, it’s good to know our theology—the study of God and of all things in relation to God. Theological intelligence is really about seeing the fingerprints of God throughout our daily experiences and having the boldness to ask, “What is God saying here? How does this moment connect to my beliefs?”

Looking back over my own journey through complicated grief, PTSD, and seasons of exhaustion, I am beginning to see how theological intelligence has helped me frame my experiences.

Instead of asking “Why me?” I’ve learned to also ask, “Where is God in this?” and “What can I learn about His heart through this struggle?” It’s a life-giving paradigm shift.

How does theological intelligence make itself known in our lives?

Seeing beyond the surface.

Life’s events aren’t just random; they can reveal God’s presence. There aren’t any coincidences in God’s kingdom.

Connecting faith to life.

Scripture isn’t just words on a page. The Bible speaks to us as much on Monday morning as it does on Sunday morning. Perhaps, more so.

Embracing mystery.

Not every question comes with an easy answer. That’s okay. Faith isn’t about certainty; it’s about trust.

Living with transformation.

As Paul writes in Romans: Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). In Christ, we are new. We are different. We are set apart.

By exercising theological intelligence, we see our world differently. Success looks less like achievement and more like the fruit of our faithfulness. Our pain and hurt doesn’t mean God is absent, but that He is present in the moment of our greatest need. We can remain confident that He is at work all around us. Our heartache is the very place where the Lord’s grace meets us in a most profound way.

Seeing life through God’s eyes keeps us rooted in love. As followers of Jesus, it reminds us that our calling is not just to think rightly about God—which is incredibly important—but also to live rightly with God and with one another.

Prayer
Lord, grow in us a deeper theological intelligence. Help us see our lives through Your eyes, connect our experiences to Your Word, and live with humility, wisdom, and love. May our thoughts be renewed and our hearts transformed by Your Spirit. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.