One of the things you aren't taught in Sunday School is that God may have a magnificent plan for you, but He'll still give you the choice to walk away from it.
I've mentioned Jonah before, but... I think one of the lessons from that is that we can make our own decisions. That doesn't mean God will leave us to ourselves, but He does let us do what we want, and then to pay for the consequences. I mean, the people who didn't see things through God's way mostly didn't make it in the Bible, or at least not in any way we want to follow.
But nowadays, God doesn't tend to come down in a pillar of fire, or a burning bush, or anything like that. He's a lot more subtle than that now.
Most of my day today was spent doing research, not really getting a lot done on my own. I was hampered somewhat by the fact that when I went to college the first round, it wasn't something I'd made a conscious decision about. I wasn't like a lot of students who did a lot of research and sent out a lot of college applications. When your father is a professor, you're pretty much guaranteed to get into his college, and I kinda just fell into my field of study.
So I finally just got up and took a walk. Now, I live within a quarter mile of a local lake with a walk-around. So I went for a walk. Halfway to the lake, my MP3 player shut down. I paused for a moment, and then decided to go ahead and walk the lake anyway. There's a lot of nature there, and there's no reason I would need an MP3 player. I've just, like a lot of people my age, gotten used to being surrounded by a lot of man-made noise, and the concept of being without it is a little odd.
But... Not to sound cliche, but it was a really good experience. Getting out, being surrounded by nothing but God's creation, it really just made things easier to deal with. I came out of it feeling at peace. I really think I need to make this a daily thing. Now I just have to remember to do it.
Interestingly, when I went to my Church Small Group tonight. I talked about the ways God has blessed me, and about the decisions I'm facing and how terrifying it is right now. Pastor has offered a booklet on making Godly decisions to me. I'm hoping that will help me as I face all that's being thrown at me.
I've mentioned Jonah before, but... I think one of the lessons from that is that we can make our own decisions. That doesn't mean God will leave us to ourselves, but He does let us do what we want, and then to pay for the consequences. I mean, the people who didn't see things through God's way mostly didn't make it in the Bible, or at least not in any way we want to follow.
But nowadays, God doesn't tend to come down in a pillar of fire, or a burning bush, or anything like that. He's a lot more subtle than that now.
Most of my day today was spent doing research, not really getting a lot done on my own. I was hampered somewhat by the fact that when I went to college the first round, it wasn't something I'd made a conscious decision about. I wasn't like a lot of students who did a lot of research and sent out a lot of college applications. When your father is a professor, you're pretty much guaranteed to get into his college, and I kinda just fell into my field of study.
So I finally just got up and took a walk. Now, I live within a quarter mile of a local lake with a walk-around. So I went for a walk. Halfway to the lake, my MP3 player shut down. I paused for a moment, and then decided to go ahead and walk the lake anyway. There's a lot of nature there, and there's no reason I would need an MP3 player. I've just, like a lot of people my age, gotten used to being surrounded by a lot of man-made noise, and the concept of being without it is a little odd.
But... Not to sound cliche, but it was a really good experience. Getting out, being surrounded by nothing but God's creation, it really just made things easier to deal with. I came out of it feeling at peace. I really think I need to make this a daily thing. Now I just have to remember to do it.
Interestingly, when I went to my Church Small Group tonight. I talked about the ways God has blessed me, and about the decisions I'm facing and how terrifying it is right now. Pastor has offered a booklet on making Godly decisions to me. I'm hoping that will help me as I face all that's being thrown at me.
"Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding, you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds." Psalm 148:7-10
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