In his heart a
man plans his course, but the Lord [directs] his steps (NIV 1984, Proverbs 16:9).
Most Christians
believe God has a plan for their lives. At the same time, many Christians also
believe in the concept of free will. Are the ideas of God’s plan and man’s free
will compatible? If so, how does that work? What’s the balance between God’s
sovereignty and our freedom to choose?
Have you ever
started down one path only to end up somewhere completely different? How could
I have known when I started taking piano lessons at age nine in Erie,
Pennsylvania that it would one day result in being a pastor in the Pacific
Northwest? And I know God isn’t finished with me yet. It can take years for the
reality of God’s plan to unfold, but as we look back through the interplay of
free choice and random coincidence, we can see the hand of God that
has directed us to this time and place to fulfill his purpose in our lives.
Some would say, “Okay,
then God’s predetermined plan trumps our free will.” But which God is greater? The God who pulls people’s strings like a puppeteer,
giving them only the illusion of choice? Or the God who allows his children
real freedom, directing their steps only through the persuasive power of his
amazing love?
God created us to
love him, but didn’t force us to love him. According to Greg Boyd and Paul
Eddy, “Love requires choice. If God controlled everything in detail, love would
not be possible” [8]
TODAY’S MEDITATION
Reflect on how God has
brought you here.
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