The Will of God

This small book packs a powerful punch, and as a collateral benefit, provides a way to practice discerning the will of God. Rev. Leslie Weatherhead wrote this book during World War II, but it still remains relevant more than 50 years later. It provides a portrait of God that begins to humbly attempt to explain the will of God, particularly in bad circumstances. Weatherhead divides the will of God into three types: 1) God's intentional will; 2) God's circumstantial will; and 3) God's ultimate will.

It is comforting to worship a God that Weatherhead sees as wanting only good things for his people. Nonetheless, our God is one that has vested us with free will, that often interferes with God's intentional will, creating circumstances that are bad or arise out of evil. In these circumstances, we see the circumstantial will of God, i.e. how God's intentional will can still be realized. As an example, he uses Jesus on the cross. God's intentional will was that the world would accept and follow Jesus. When they chose not to, God's will was still realized through Christ's death and resurrection. Nothing can defeat the ultimate will of God, which is man's reconcilliation with God.

Weatherhead also sets out how he believes we can discern the intentional will of God, which is far more pragmatic and do-able for people like me. I've always felt spiritually inept because, unlike many other Christians, I don't "hear" God's will the way I hear my kids telling me their desires for dinner. However, he suggests that conscience, common sense, talking with wise Christians, as well as working to develop a close relationship with God will aid in discerning God's will. I think I can do that.

Weatherhead admits that he doesn't have all the answers as to why God would "allow" bad things to happen. Overall, a very good and important book.

Harry Potter--done

It took waiting for Chip to finish and two days of reading, but finished earlier today. An enjoyable experience, spent mostly in Starbucks or on the living room sofa. I liked it a lot. Like a beautiful tapestry, Rowling wove the various strings that were created in earlier books into a good tale overall. You sort of knew the answer to the ultimate question, and of course, it was all but telegraphed that Harry was a Horcrux, and I was pretty close to right about Draco. Satisfying indeed. It is at this moment, my favorite book in the series. That may change. We'll see.

Update!

So what have I been up to in the month since I've written? Well . . . let's see. I did indeed finsih listening to The Assault on Reason. It was thought-provoking, if a bit repetitive. Yes, Al, I heard it the first 5 times you said that Americans watch 4 1/2 hours of tv/day on average. Yes, I get the Bush administration is essentially evil, and I wonder if perhaps there are sour grapes on your part. But, either way, I agree with most of what the book says. We are being manipulated, and we don't even realize it. And, if we don't take back our country, and soon, we will have only ourselves to blame. Good book, Al.

I also finished reading Man Without a Country. It was a little hard to get into, initially. For Alex, it was a short read, but it was anything but that for me, at least at first. As it turned out, I agreed with much of what it said. A curmudgeonly old liberal who makes some very good points. My favorite quote from the book is, "There are no 'good old days'. Just days." I like that. I like remembering to live in the present--not the nostalgic past or the unattainable future.

I'm now on to reading Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison. Didn't realize it would have the existentialism aspect. Boy! That's stretching my philsophical memory. But it's well-written and has lots of food for thought. I can relate in many ways. In this society, so many of us AAs are invisible. Are we also blind?

I'm listening to Vanity Fair. Good social commentary, that's as relevant today as it was when it was written. Everyone is out to use the next person for whatever they can get, and the value of a person is dependent on that person's possessions. I think there's some truth in the idea that we become what the world expects of us. There are a lot of Becky Sharps in the world.

I'll be working on Vanity Fair for another week or so. Perhaps two more weeks for Invisible Man. I wish I had more time or energy!