Does My Opinion Matter?

  So here I am with a shiny new blog. It's all clean and new. Hopefully it always stays clean, but it's impossible to keep new. One of my fears is that when the new wears off that I'll lose interest or something. I guess thats ok though; because in the whole big scheme of things, it probably doesn't matter that much.
  Or does it?

  Does my opinion matter?

  It's a question worth asking. Since most of what you read here will be my opinion, it's fairly important to me that the conclusions I reach and the opinions I form are accurate and relevant to our lives. Following, are three observations I've made about opinions:

I. Being "opinionated" isn't all bad.
 People tend to dismiss anything that can be labeled as "opinion". One of the worst things that we accuse people of is being "opinionated". Yet no one like to be around someone that has no opinion because they have very boring personalities. I actually think that everyone has opinions, but some people are so afraid of rejection that they don't know how to express theirs.

II. Truth is divisive, but that doesn't give me a license to be obnoxious. 
  We don't like any opinions that disagree with ours. The problem is that none of us are the standard for truth. We take our own views to seriously and don't take God's views seriously enough. The Truth that is from the character of God is exclusive. There can't be two opposing ideas that are both true in God. There are no divisions within Him. The division occurs when people reject truth and accept the lie. (sometimes the lie fits our opinions better)
  If my opinion is from God, then I should be open about it and free to share. It's not a bad thing to have an opinion. It is a bad thing to be obnoxious and condesending with our opinion. Many people have been turned from the truth by those who proclaimed it in the flesh with arrogance. I can drown out the truth with my voice if I'm not careful.

III. The value of my opinion is determined by it's foundation.
  It's also important that our opinions are formed from our theology instead of our theology being formed by our opinions. (how to form a good theology is another subject for another blog)
  There is a spirit of truth and a spirit of error (I John 4:6) The only way I can know the truth is by being in a relationship with the one who is Truth. The stuff that comes from me is unreliable at best. The stuff that comes from Him is truth and will stand whether we agree with it or not. Unless He gives me the thoughts to think and the opinions to believe, I have nothing to offer. If there's anything good here it's because of Him.
  If my opinion comes from Him then the answer to the question is, "yes my opinion matters". If if comes from me, then it's like most of the other gibberish you can read on the internet. - Unreliable at best