Tagged (Is that good or bad?)

Well, apparently I got tagged, which is bad on the playground (perhaps the virtual playground is a different story). At any rate, it reveals that (until today) I haven't been keepin' up with Van Diesel's blog. Shame on me - you put together some quality posts, JVD.

And now, the resposnes:

1. One book that has changed your life: Revolution in World Missions by KP Yohannan. I don't think I even made it halfway through the book before I got on my knees and repented of my gross selfishness/wasteful use of the LORD's money. This book also opened my eyes to the native missions movement and God's actions in India, a nation with a population of 1,095,351,995 - 2.3% of them are Christian (according to CIA - The World Factbook). If my math is correct, that leaves 1,070,158,899 non-Christians.

Through volunteer work with Gospel For Asia, I've probably handed out over a hundred free copies of the book. Go to their website and get your free copy!

2. One book that you've read more than once: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Once for high school and once for college.

3. One book you'd want on a desert island: The Works of Jonathan Edwards (either volume). His material is thick and rich, and if I was stranded on a desert island, I might have the time to delve deep into the spiritual goodness that is packed into one of those tomes.

4. One book that made you laugh: The Pushcart War by Jean Merrill (or at least I think it made me laugh).

5. One book that made you cry: See response to question #1. According to an August 15, 2004 journal entry, I shed a few tears (which is a big deal for me).

6. One book you wish had been written: God Loves Himself More than You

7. One book you wish had never been written: The Day of the Dinosaur by L. Sprague de Camp & Catherine Crook de Camp. I'm not hatin' on this book because of its substance, but rather because I borrowed it as a kid from Joshua Barney School Library in Italy and never returned it. Its due date is March 5th, 1990 and sixteen years later, it rests on my bookshelf. I probably owe the Italian government a bazilly amount of lira (or I guess its euros these days).

8. One book you're currently reading: Desiring God by John Piper (my second time through).

9. One book you've been meaning to read: Knowing God by J.I. Packer (never read any of his books)

10. One book you recommend: Treasure Principle by Randy Alcorn. Short book, but full of application regarding finances.

God's Will: Flexible or Concrete?

This post is in response to a conversation I had with Truitt (and Truitt, if I botch this up in anyway, please feel free to correct me or clarify the discussion/thought pattern). I think the main question we were searching to answer in our conversation is: Is God's Will flexible? Or, to put it another way, are there situations in life in which God does not care which action is performed (or not performed)? Let me provide a series of examples.

Right now, in the panty, there are two boxes of cereal waiting to be devoured by me. One is Raisin Bran from Harris Teeter. The other is Frosted Maple and Brown Sugar Shredded Bite Sized Wheats from Trader Joe's (quite a name, huh? Feel free to take a breather after that one.....). If a straight interpretation of Ephesians 1:11 is taken, does God ordain my action of eating one of the cereals tomorrow (as I plan on doing, LORD willing)? Does it matter to Him? If, as I read in that article referred by Van Diesel, that God indicates through His Holy Word that He ordains even things like dice rolling and travel plan completion, where does breakfast selection fall in line?

Say you have a dollar to donate, and two different missionaries need that dollar. You perceive that both missionaries have equal need, and that 50 cents will not do: each needs the entire dollar for ministry. Is it possible through prayer that a Christian can receive a conviction to give the dollar to one of them, but not receive specific revelation as to which one should be the beneficiary? Is this scenario possible, and if so, would God be honored equally no matter which missionary received the dollar, or is His will so specific that giving to one would be honoring, and giving to the other would be sinful?

Chew on this real example. After reading the church bulletin tonight, I see two activities for September 9th: church-wide prayer and house painting for a missionary. Both seem like excellent investments of my time. Is it possible that I could be convicted to participate in one of them, but not convicted to the point where I sense that God is leading me to one, but not the other? (This, of course, is assuming that the events overlap each other, which may not actually be the case).

Hrm.....................