Set Me Free: Devotions From Time of Grace MinistryNäide

SET ME FREE FROM MENTAL PRISONS: FATE Do you ever feel trapped by an evil destiny? Does it ever seem that your future has already been decided by unknown forces and that you are locked into bad outcomes? Do you feel doomed to repeat the sins of your parents and grandparents? Do you talk as though your whole life were in the grip of fate? You have a lot of company. Great literature abounds in stories of people who were "destined" for tragedy. Oedipus' horrible future was told him far in advance. Macbeth found out from three witches that he was doomed. Romeo and Juliet were star-crossed lovers. Guiseppe Verdi wrote an entire opera called "The Force of Destiny." But that's all romantic baloney. Fate doesn't exist. The idea is based on Roman mythology--the three Fates were imaginary goddesses who determined everyone's life trajectory. Here's the real power behind your life: "I trust in you, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.' My times are in your hands" (Psalm 31:14,15). You are not a puppet that's operated by a divine puppeteer. You are not a marionette, dancing to strings pulled by a cruel or indifferent master. You were designed and created to be a child of the Most High, designed in God's image, designed to think and act and to love and will in perfect accord with God's holiness and purity. God is the guiding force in your life. And your choices do matter.