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pursuing the upward call with fear and trembling

just a 44 year old man seeking to share my meanderings with the world at large or the blogosphere at small

Friday, August 14, 2009

Struggling With God- our self

Pain and suffering is a huge dimension to cover, could well spend a lifetime on it. In thinking more about it I decided to focus on an undercurrent in that mix-ourselves. Pain and suffering have been such a big deal because they impact directly upon our very selves. Once the beginning of life begins within a mothers womb, a self has been created. As soon as that self is removed from the womb and delivered into the outer world, it will begin to consciously experience all that is involved in life, though at first in very minute doses.

many studies have been done over time to chronicle childhood development. Are we born a *tabula rasa* or *blank slate*??? I think theological/philosophical views underscore the answers to this question. Notions of original sin come into paly as well. Babies are inherently selfish by nature i would venture because they have no ability to do anything other than express their wants and needs. Freud said our earliest desires are, *i want what i want when i want it and i want it right now* That seems to be a genuinely accurate depiction of babies. Of course many may seem stuck at that stage forever no matter what age they reach, but that is a whole other ballgame lol.

Self vs God. I think this is the landscape or canvas upon which life is painted,drawn or any metaphor you choose. Who is God?? How does He reveal Himself?? How do i know what kind of God He is??? What involvement does He want with me??? These and dozens of other questions will revolve within our minds as we continue to grow and develop. The Bible lays claim to being Gods authoritative Word and revelation of Himself to all creation for all time. How you view this claim and respond to it causes major ramifications for struggling with God every day of your life.

Some people are very self-aware and cognizant of multiple variables around them, some barely have enough consciousness to wake up and get out of bed, if that. We all have multilayers to ourselves, some genetic,some environmental,some of our own choosing. We all have differing gifts,weaknesses,strengths and abilities,including how we view and relate to God. An atheist or agnostic will view God entirely separately from a christian,jew or moslem. An entire host of differences on viewing God exists amongst christians,jews and moslems, which must be infuriating for those who vociferously declare there is only ONE correct way to view and relate to God!!! Talk about a struggle???!!!??

This has just been an overlay, hope to dig into more specific details in more posts. I want to leave this one with a teaser though- what if we struggle within ourself with God so much because within our self is the nature which is called satan or adversary?? And only God can give us a new nature from Himself with which to overcome this battle?? i have talked on this before but it was awhile back. Contemplate just who satan is and let me know your thoughts. Thanks for stopping bye. :)

3 Comments:

At 4:36 PM, Blogger MistiPearl said...

Hi :)
I am curious to see where this thinking leads...I need to ponder it a little more. I am wondering: are you suggesting that Satan is a "nature" versus a fallen being? or are you equating "satan" with the nature of evil? See the difference?
That being said, what about the self, the soul, and the spirit of the person? Can we discuss struggle without considering these three in unison, making the whole of a person? (Albeit, I would go on to clarify that we are not made "whole" until we recognize that we need Jesus, believe He is who He says He is, repent, and receive Him as our Lord and Saviour.)
...Now that being said <;)> and we consider the struggle we endure to even come to the point of recognizing the Truth, let alone the struggle of growing in that Truth, we must consider Satan and his nature, not just our own.
Okay, that's all I am going to scribble for right now - let me know if it doesn't make sense.
xx~mp:)

 
At 7:49 PM, Blogger Robert said...

hey MP- sure does make sense thanks so much for sharing. i amsaying that satan is our sinful nature which we took on after adan and eve disobeyed His command. All the references to satan can be seen as personifications like in proverbs calling wisdom a woman. The root word in hebrew is ha-satan or the satan. Satan means adversary and the same word is used when calling God davids adversary in OT. I know this may sound out of left field but i have reached this understanding over a period of time wrestling with it. If you would like to email feel free MP, love to talk in more depth on it.

 
At 11:17 AM, Blogger Aphra said...

I was thinking about you today- hope you are ok.

I saw a movie today that I thought you might like- It's Canadian- called '7 days'. Don't know if you can get it down there, but I would recommend it if you can!

 

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