Humanity’s greatest gift is free will, the ability to choose the course of our lives. This gift was established in the Garden of Eden when God first instructed Adam on what he was permitted to eat and what he was forbidden to eat. Yet God did not stand over Adam, forcing him to make the right choice. Instead, He gave him the freedom to obey or disobey.

“The LORD God commanded him, “You may eat freely from every tree of the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)

This freedom to choose obedience or disobedience demonstrates that love, faith and devotion to God are only real when freely given.

The Choice

There had to be a choice in order for God to see the first couple’s love for Him. Would they listen to God knowing that He is a wonderful Father. Or, will they choose independence and make choices based on what seems good. This is the start of humanity’s lesson on believing what God says over what we see and feel.

Adam and Eve had the gift of dwelling with God in the Garden of Eden. They witnessed the beauty and perfection of His creation. In Eden, there was no illness, death or violence among the animals, everything lived in perfect harmony.

Yet humanity chose to trust it’s own judgement over the wisdom of the Lord. God’s command was treated not as truth to be obeyed, but as an option to be weighed against human desire. Adam and Eve decided for themselves what seemed good, and in doing so, they became spiritually separated from God.

In the same way, whenever we rely soley on intellect, emotions or the opinions of the majority, we drift away from God’s goodness. Choosing our own way apart from Him often brings consequences that can shape and affect an entire lifetime.

Free Will To Have Faith

Free will is ultimately the choice to trust in God’s Word or to rely on ourselves instead. Every day we decide whether we will walk by faith or by human understanding.

I can give you an example of a time I had to make a choice based on either the Lord’s direction or my reasoning.

After my daughters went to college and child support ended, I asked the Lord, “Do you want me to sign a contract to work on a more consistent basis?” The answer He gave me was the same answer He had given me years earlier when I was newly divorced. I was lead once again to this verse:

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have”(Heb 13:5)

At that moment, I realized the issue was not simply about financial security, it was about faith. Would I trust God to provide and guide my life, or would I lean on my own ideas about how to gain enough for my future. Free will gives us that choice. We can rest in God’s promise of provision or place our confidence in a plan that makes sense to us and fits into the world’s way of doing things.

I originally chose to work on a PRN basis after I had children because I remembered what it felt like to have my mother at home during the first eight years of my life.

When I came home from school or Girl Scouts, she would be cooking, the house smelled warm and inviting, and the television or radio played softly in the background. The house felt alive. As an adult, I would say it felt like a true home not simply a house.

In contrast, I remember going to a friends house after school whose mother worked full time. Although the house had decorations and furniture, and all the usual household comforts, it felt empty of warmth, life and as if something was missing- dead almost, for lack of better words. I didn’t like the emptiness. That feeling made such a deep impression on me that I still remember it today.

Those experiences shaped the choices I later made as a mother. I wanted my children to come home to a place filled with comfort, peace, and the sense that someone was there waiting to love and care for them.

Free Will To Choose To Not Control The Future

To be content with an unpredictable work schedule and paycheck took faith. But time and time again I noticed I was home on days I really needed to be home. For example, one day my daughter called me from college in deep distress:

“I’m drowning, no one is a Christian, I ‘m alone I have no support!

I was home-thank the Lord- to take the call immediately, and directed her to head straight to church and explain to her Pastor that she needed a mentor. God’s faithfulness brought my daughter to a husband and wife team who lead a college life group. My daughter received the weekly support she needed to continue in the morals and values she learned prior to entering college.

What is the chance, if I worked full time, that I would’ve been home to take that call from my distressed daughter, deluged with Satanic oppression at that moment. I don’t want to think about it.

Faith Is Movement

Our free will comes with promises from a God who is more than able to provide. Some promises are conditional and others unconditional. When we use our free will to step out in faith on God’s Word and let go of our safety nets, we have entered the realm where God’s supernatural power can work.

“I can do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond all you can ask or think according to the power that works in you.” (Phil 4:13)

It is difficult to stand on a verse of Scripture and trust God enough to step out in faith. Be thankful He never asked you to sacrifice your only child as He asked Abraham! Yet Abraham trusted the Lord, and at the last minute God provided exactly what was needed. The same God who came through for Abraham will come through for us. Our responsibility is to ramain in faith even when circumstances seem overwhelming.

At times it may feel as though we are drowning under the weight of life’s demands. I remember wondering how I would manage the expenses that came with raising college age children. Things like the purchase of a car, the insurance, gas, and countless other needs. From a human perspective, it did not seem possible. But when God calls us to walk a certain path, He also provides what is necessary to sustain.

Turning our hearts toward where God is leading, can feel difficult at first because it often requires surrendering our fears, plans, and need for control. But we must remember that God has given us each a measure of faith, and that faith can grow stronger through daily time in the Word, memorizing verses that speak to our situations. As we fill our mind with God’s Word, our faith is strengthened, and we start to understand through experience, that God is trustworthy.

“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”(Romans 12:3)

This verse tells us that we shouldn’t put our ideas above what the Word of God reveals. Rather, we should think “soberly” of ourselves, in other words use “sane” thinking, and remind ourselves no one is smarter than our Lord. And no one can provide more than the Lord, even the hardest working person.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but power, love and a sound mind.” (2 Tim 1:7)

The sound mind we have received is our conscience, warning us when we are choosing wrong. It is the feeling we get when we take care of something that God says He would take care of. For example when we chase after money, leaving our children in daycare 10 hours a day, even though God said that He cares for the birds and we are far more important to Him.(Matt 6:26-27)

If He tells us to do something, it is up to Him to bring about the good result. Yes, we can turn the other cheek when others are mean to us. (Matt 5:38-40) The Lord will fight for us if we are in the right, we can sit back and rest. (Ex 14:14) The list of what God will do for His faithful followers is amazing. What we find when we step out in faith, our faith increases and we can trust Him more and more. Our life becomes an adventure as we watch Him help us over and over again in unexpected and exciting ways. We can let God fight our battles, handle our unexpected problems/expenses and give us His peace and joy

The Lord is our supernatural help all of the times, not only in times of trouble. We should never fear when we are following His direction- He is faithful.

“If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.” (2 Tim 2:13)

Food For Thought,

Lisa