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UGW #2: Cause vs. Allow

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  "Understanding God's Will" #2: Well, what about verses like  Proverbs 16:4 :  “The Lord works out everything for his own end ... ”    Doesn’t this mean that He causes everything that happens for His own reasons? I don’t think that’s what it means.    It doesn’t say He  causes  everything that happens for His own reasons; it says He  works them out  for His own ends.    (I’ll break this down further in later posts.)   God  has an end goal, and He knows how to take whatever we do and work it together to reach that end.    But this doesn’t necessarily mean that He causes us to do what we do for His own reasons (because if He did then  He  would be responsible for our sins, not us) or that He causes the tragedies that we face for a reason. Now keep in mind as you read this series that I am not challenging the whole “Everything happens for a reason” idea for those who face trials in the quiet, optimistic assurance that there is some deep, unknown reason for their trial or tr
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UGW #1: Our Impact on God's Will

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Understanding God's Will #1: You say that we have an effect on the path that we walk in this life, that God’s “best path and best plans” don’t always "just happen" apart from our cooperation.    Do you have Scripture to back that up? Yes, well, I’m glad you asked.   But first, let  me ask this:    If God always did whatever He wanted to do in our lives, regardless of us, why are we told so often in the Bible to pray for wisdom, to seek it, to be discerning?    If our choices and actions don’t really matter and don’t have an effect because He's already got everything all planned out and will just do whatever He wants to do anyway [a Calvinist view of things, not my view or what I think the Bible teaches], then it doesn’t matter if we live with wisdom or foolishness.    Whatever happens is God’s plan, right?     Proverbs 4:7  tells us  “Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.    Though it cost you all you have, get understanding.” Proverbs 2  tells us to seek wisdom  d
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Understanding God's Will (UGW) series: Introduction

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This is a huge series that I posted on my other blogs.  [This is the one I wrote for the anti-Calvinist blog  and so it includes notes on Calvinism, in red and a different font . ]   Like most Christians, I've struggled long and hard with trying to understand God’s Will.    I went through years of stress when I was seeking His Will about buying our first home.   (I wrote all about this in the  "Child of Mine"  posts on the other blog, my life story.)   I was terrified of missing His Will.   But after that whole time was over, I delved deeply into the Bible to learn what it says about His Will.    And it changed my view. And the bottom line is ... I wasted a lot of time and energy needlessly worrying that I would miss His Will.   We  don’t need to worry about “missing His Will” as long as we are abiding in Him, sensitive to Him, and living obediently.    Because if we focus on this (instead of on finding “the next step”), things will become clear as we walk with Him. This
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