Best I Can

Windsor, London (photo from trekearth.com)

Best I Can is a song from the album, Fly By Night (1975), by Rush

I thought the title was appropriate for this posting.

The Serenity Prayer

by Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971) Complete, Unabridged, Original Version.

God, give us grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.

http://skdesigns.com/internet/articles/prose/niebuhr/serenity_prayer/

The last several years I had many things occur in my life that I have strongly disliked. My Biblical and theological research however, has shown me that God, and Christ as God, is the Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1:8, 21:6, 22:13). God is the first and the last, and the triune God existed before creation in spirit, and God is sovereign over his creation. Therefore, from a Biblical perspective what happens in my life is under God’s sovereign control. Over the last few years I have had health problems related to allergies, sleep apnea, and the eyes. I have seen several persons that I know experience failing health, and a few have died. I lost an academic PhD appointment and was treated unfairly. I gained another appointment, although there have been many delays and advisors have quit. I have been frustrated by the lack of available Christian women to date, and from my personal and internet experience it appears that some Christian women do not date or marry Christian men. I have also experienced the common struggle with sin that all true Christians should experience. On a smaller scale, I used to be a huge follower of the National Hockey League, only to find that the League has set upon a course of trying to establish itself in non-hockey markets, and this sees many of the good players and teams go to places where hockey is not very appreciated. The last three Stanley Cup championships have gone to cities where hockey is not very popular and this is very hard to stomach for a Canadian who used to the love the professional game. But the game is no longer shining brightly in this country in regard to winning championships, and I suppose I am among a minority of people in this country that are very turned off.

Many of these issues are largely out my control, and to blame them primarily on human free will would be a theological error, since with the use of compatibilism, God significantly influences the actions of persons. John Feinberg writes that compatibilism does not allow for coercion or force, but holds that God, or some outside force, can simultaneously determine with the use of persuasion, that an action will or will not take place. Feinberg (1986: 24). Louis P. Pojman writes that compatibilism or soft determinism states that an act can be entirely determined and yet be free in the sense that it was committed voluntarily and without external force or coercion. Pojman (1996: 596). Gregory A. Boyd explains that incompatibilism assumes since human beings are free, their wills and resulting actions are not, in any way, determined by any outside force. Boyd (2001: 52). John Sanders writes that in incompatibilism it is believed genetic or environmental factors are not ignored in the process of human actions, but it is thought that a human being could always have done otherwise in any given situation. Sanders (1998: 221). Compatibilism makes sense Biblically, as God creates and is in control of creation, and yet persons are morally responsible for actions. If incompatibilism were true, since the human nature and will are corrupt, persons would never follow God and Christ, and therefore God would not be able to bring saved sinners into the Kingdom of God, since he would be prohibited by human freedom from doing so.

My health problems are primarily genetic, as are many of the health problems of people I know. I cannot change the intolerance in regard to Christian academics by a British academic department, but can only come to academic conclusions based on all of my education, including what I learned at Christian institutions prior to coming to the United Kingdom. I also cannot control the fact that advisors come and go. I am not of course responsible for the secular nature of Western and Canadian society and how that influences persons in the Christian church and contributes to making certain Christian men unattractive to certain Christian women, and vice-versa as there are godly Christian women that I know in person and through blogging. There are of course few Christian persons percentage wise in Canadian society to begin with. I do pray to the Lord and repent of sin, and at times avoid sin, but the Bible teaches that we have a corrupt nature. Ephesians 2:3 discusses the lust of the flesh and that believers gladly accepted this corrupt nature prior to being saved, and 1 John 1:9 points out that followers of Christ still sin, and need to confess sins. The human nature of followers of Christ shall be altered and purified in the resurrection as Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 15:43, as the former body of dishonour shall be raised in glory. Revelation 21:4 explains that the culminated Kingdom of God shall not feature death, and therefore it can deduced that there shall be no sin present, as Romans 6:3 explains sin leads to death. An important point here is that I cannot control my nature and although I do confess my sin and repent, I cannot be rid of my sin problem until God resurrects me. I am not writing myself a blank cheque here to sin, but merely acknowledging theological and practical reality. As far as professional hockey is concerned, as a former fan I was merely an observer and not an active participant. The League can do its own business and face the consequences, good or bad.

I need to through prayer and God’s guidance continue to focus in what I can do with my life for God. I need to do the best I can. This includes praying, studying, and fellowshipping in the faith. I need to follow the Great Commandments to love God and others from Matthew 22:34-46 and Mark 12:28-37. My life should also include working both hard and smart with my PhD dissertation and obeying my advisor in regard to completing the task properly. I can also continue with blogging in order to minister, fellowship with friends, further develop my theological skills, and promote my work, as I shall be looking for a job as a theology professor once I complete my PhD, God willing. I can also serve at my church as much as reasonably possible. I am also actively seeking to improve my health and am presently recovering from eyelid surgery on Tuesday.

BOYD, GREGORY A. (2001) Satan and the Problem of Evil, Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press.

FEINBERG. JOHN S. (1986) Predestination and Free Will, David Basinger and Randall Basinger (eds.), Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press.

POJMAN, LOUIS P. (1996) Philosophy: The Quest for Truth, New York, Wadsworth Publishing Company.

SANDERS, JOHN (1998) The God Who Risks, Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press.