I want to be dependent upon God PART 2

It’s true what many say, that God does not force himself on us. God might give us a tap on the shoulder sometimes. As God did with me almost twenty years ago, when I was a stubborn atheist that looked upon religion and spirituality as self-deception. I was full of pride and arrogance at the time. Stains, by the way, that have been hard to wash away and that sometimes still make their presence known. So I don’t understand why God chose to give me definite proof of God’s existence. I know that I’m not the only one that has had this type of experience. But I can think of so many that haven’t, that would deserve it better, if you see it from the perspective of their actions and their overall effects on people’s lives.

I’m of course familiar with the concept of undeserved grace. And that in some sense we all fall short of what God intended us to be. Whatever that means. Was our fall into something lesser an accident? If so, did God make a mistake? I guess that in the concept of almightiness, there must be room for creating creatures that can make choices that are out of the almighty being’s control. If God was forced to be in control of everything, and/or know everything, God wouldn’t really be almighty. 

This is also another reason why free will truly deserves attention. Because it is by necessity so central to religious life. And I know nothing that comes with so many difficult questions. Such as the one just mentioned. Or the fact that when we start looking at what seems to be free choices, these are really reactions to stimuli, driven by unconscious emotions, desires and a number of other factors that we are not consciously aware of. And yet, free will seems to be what characterizes being human. Animals don’t seem to make free choices, as far as we know. And without free will, we cannot be accountable for anything and the idea of consequences for our actions just seems cruel, since no one could do anything but what they in fact do. On the other hand, the consequences happen by necessity as well, no matter what they are, since they, by necessity, must have emerged through the actions of individuals that are only acting under the illusion of free choice. And so on. 

Photo by Stephanie LeBlanc on Unsplash