Well, I think the fatalistic “Que’ sera’, que’ sera’” thinking is quite different from faith in and an understanding of a sovereign, loving God who simply must rule over every molecule in the universe or He be not God.
I repeat: we do have choices, moment by moment. God did not create us robots. He created us specifically to have an intimate relationship with Him. A living being cannot have a relationship with a robot - a machine.
I daily can choose to walk with Him, which is a moment-by-moment joyous finding of His perfect will which is always for our best even when it hurts beyond comprehension (Romans 8:28, 29). I am close friends with one of the families whose daughter was murdered at Virginia Tech, known the girl since birth, she played my wife’s grand piano many times, and I was honored to bring the main msg. at her memorial service.
Was the daughter’s murder painful? Beyond description...I was there with the family from early that morning when they first talked with her (my son was at Tech at the same time and had called me), to their finding out she was one of those killed.
Her parents will tell you today it was God’s perfect will, and they are being used all over the state to minister to others. If you haven’t read it, you might read “The Shack” to get a perspective of how God can reign over the worst events and redeem them - turn them for good. They give the book to most everyone they meet. The staff at Tech who stay in touch with the families of those killed have told them they and one other Christian family are markedly different from all of the other families who are not Christians and who are still angry, bitter, hurting.
Again, we cannot comprehend God. We can only accept by faith what He has revealed about Himself. Because we will always be the creature, and He the Creator, I don’t think we will even comprehend Him when we leave this short breath of a life. But then, it won’t be by faith, but we will see it clearly.
Until then, we trust. We believe. He is LOVE.
I would encourage you to simply read the book/gospel of John, and ponder every statement of Jesus and its implications. Then boldly ask God personally to speak to you in revealing Himself and answering any questions you have! I guarantee you will be surprised.
arlis
As I have said, free will is not the issue.
Of course we can choose to do anything. But we both agree that God knows what we will choose. I only ask why you think God creates those that will do bad things and those that will be victims of those bad things. We agree that God knowingly created those that are Christians, and have gotten over their grief, but He also knowingly created those that are not Christians and haven’t gotten over their grief.
We also agree that we cannot comprehend why God does what he does and we accept by faith, what God has revealed about Himself. God has created those that are of different faiths, in the same way that He has created Christians, hasn’t He? He obviously creates people of all different faiths, knowingly. It would seem then, that any faith that God has created within each of us, must be legitimate. Afterall, we can’t comprehend Him, can we?
I have talked/communicated with God, and this is His result for me...He creates each of us individually, for His plan.