Last night we were discussing God’s plans for us and whether we have a free will or not. It was felt that our lives are like a blank piece of paper and it is up to us what we do with it. Some of us may produce fantastic works of art on that piece of paper, some may just make a mess whilst others simply screw it up and throw it away.
However, we did feel that God had a plan for us, and there was a purpose in our lives, however it was up to us what path we took. If we strayed from the God’s plan, then He would do all He could to get us back on it. He would provide us with signs pointing us in the right direction. But sometimes we just couldn’t see them because we either chose to ignore them or they’re weren’t where we were expecting to see them.
Let’s take an example of the man whose house is beginning to flood. First the army come along and offer to rescue him. He says “no thanks, God will save me”. But the water continues to rise and he goes to the top floor and prays for help. Then the navy arrive and again he turns them away saying “No thanks, God will save me from this flood”. The water rises even higher and so he climbs on the roof and prays again. Now the air force arrive in a helicopter. He waves them away saying”No I’ll be okay, God will save me”. But the water continues to rise and he drowns. When he gets to heaven he asks God why he hadn’t helped him. God replies “I sent the army, the navy and the air force! What more could I do!” The man had simply not been looking for God’s help in the right place.
All through life we are faced with difficult choices and we often ask God for help in making those choices. But do we always look for or listen for the answer? Sometimes the answer is staring us in the face, but we just cannot see it.
Is there a way to tell when God has given us an answer or shown us the route to take? Once when I had been agonising over something, I asked God to give me a sign as to what I should do. I’m pleased to say that I did in fact get a sign, and very quickly after I had asked for it. The trouble was it wasn’t very clear as to how I should interpret it. At first glance it seemed to say do one thing, but after careful consideration, it could easily have said do the exact opposite. From this I can only conclude that although He has a plan for us and shows us what He wants us to do with our piece of paper, the final choice really is left to us.
[There seems to be a theme developing on my blog at the moment about making decisions. This is not intentional. It is just happening. I think I’m being told something – but what?]
