Fortezza, Umilitade, e Largo Core - Courage, Humility, and Largeness of Heart.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

The presence of God?

I regularly ponder the presence of God in our daily lives. I am troubled by the issue of free will vis a vis omnipresence. An Islamic Imam posed one possible explanation: that life is like an improv play- God sets the stage, gives general direction, and will yell "Cut!" when your scene is done; how you choose to get through your scene is up to you.

This is what I was wearing when
James prayed that God had no
hand in selecting the outfit.
Yet, this leaves me wondering- how present is God in my life? I have no doubt that it was Providence that has guided me here to Atlanta, but does God care whether I get stuck in traffic or not?

In seminary we have very deep conversations in a very lighthearted way. While at a Tacky Christmas Sweater Party with my classmates, we were debating the issue of Providence. I was up on my metaphorical soapbox, passionately debating both sides of the argument, when I asked, "does God really care what I wear?" Without missing a beat, my friend James retorts, "with what you're wearing, I certainly hope not."

I would love to hear your thoughts. How present is God in your life? Where do you fall on the issue of Providence?
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1 comment:

  1. PunkasaurusLexOctober 2, 2013 at 2:02 AM

    I tend to swing agnostic, where my beliefs are centered around some sort of cosmic karmic force with a dash of fortune. I feel like there may be a god out there, but almost certainly not in any sense that man can imagine. The limitations of our minds are too great. I think man imagines god in his image.

    I certainly dont expect this great cosmic force with so much to balance to care if my sports team wins or if i get stuck in traffic, or if my crush likes me back or my hiccups go away, or any other similarly common situation. I do expect that if i work hard towards something, opportunities will present themselves. I do expect that effort pays off, although not always in a way that you can see or would expect directly. Each step takes you down your path, and it's all about your foot placement and balance. But i feel the cosmic wind can fill your sails on occasion. Everyones life has a little bit of magic to it, and if it so happens you prayed right before that magic came, you're free to interpret it how you want, but i believe it's more a cosmic sense of balance than anything else.

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