Free Will and the Will of God

One often hears people wondering about whether all is predestined and if so, how our choices matter; or, if there is no destiny, and everything lies in our choice, to "make our own destiny". And then, how does the Plan of God fit into all this?

In fact, both are true--both free will and predestination. God does have a plan for each of us. Yet, every decision each of us makes matters. And affects not only ourselves, but those in our lives, which in turn affects those in their lives, with the quantum ripples resonating throughout the history of the universe.

So how can this be? Does God have a perfect plan, and then backup plans for if we make the wrong choice? Maybe. Certainly it wasn't his desire for us to suffer all the evil that we do--he wishes us only good. But it doesn't really matter, because he knew every choice each of us was going to make before he ever spoke the Big Bang into being. So, in a way, that is the only plan--that which actually happens. And so, it is his perfect plan, because in the end, it will all work out. He created us knowing all the evil we would do, and chose to create us anyway, because apparently he thought it would still be worth it. His perfect plan was for us to have free will, to choose our own way.

Think of God as a weaver, and the history of the universe as a great tapestry. Each choice made by every creature with free will--every man, woman, child, angel, power, principality, throne, dominion, and whatever other creatures there are in the universe, is a thread. And he takes those threads and weaves them into the tapestry of his plan, in a way that only he can see right now, because only he has the perspective. Have you ever seen the back of a tapestry, embroidery, or needlepoint? It's a big mess. That's what we see right now--just the cross-stitches and knots. And furthermore, we can only see our little portion of it, and that immediately adjacent. But he beholds the whole, from start to finish, and says, "It is good." And one day, he will show it to us, and we will agree, "It is good."