Steven Colborne's Blog, page 55

Making Promises

Welcome to another post in my Praise and Prose series, which looks at the way we use language around matters of faith and spirituality, and how that language might change in order to better reflect reality.

In today’s post, I’d like to look at the subject of making promises.

Assuming God’s sovereignty over all events (which is an important part of my philosophical worldview), a promised action will only come to pass if God wills it, and there is no way of predicting what God will do in the future. As we are merely puppets in God’s sovereign hands, we have no freedom concerning whether or not we are able to keep any promises we make. Therefore, all promises are empty promises, and if we are being true to reality, we should never make promises.

But what about the promises God makes?

In relation to such matters, Christians often comment that the Bible says God cannot lie (Hebrews 6:17-18), but I disagree with this, for it says elsewhere in Scripture that God can do whatever He pleases (Psalm 115:3), and this would certainly seem to make sense if we have a high view of God’s sovereignty.

I believe God is unfolding all events in the present moment, and the future is uncertain until God actualises it. Therefore, in reality, there is never any guarantee that God won’t change His mind about a certain promise He makes.

God has promised me some things that seemingly haven’t come to pass, but whether or not they do come to pass, the fact remains that God has no responsibility to keep any promises, as He is sovereign, answers to no one, and can do as He pleases.

I am not accusing God of anything deceptive; I believe God is infinitely wise. I am simply noting what follows logically from an understanding of God’s sovereignty.

I’m aware that promises play an important role in many Biblical passages, and also that vows — for instance, wedding vows — play an important role in traditional religious ceremonies. However, the truth is that as with promises, we have no freedom concerning whether or not we keep any vows that we make, so they can be seen as illogical in light of God’s sovereignty over all events.

While Christians may argue in favour of tradition, I would argue that traditions that are based on illogical presuppositions are not necessarily worth defending and hanging on to. I realise what I’m saying is quite radical and will be hard for some readers to stomach, but I merely offer these arguments for readers’ consideration with no other motive than the flourishing of truth, and the imagining of a world that is more in tune with the reality of God’s sovereignty.

I would like to draw three conclusions from today’s post:

We should never promise anyone anything, without at least using the caveat “God willing”, because it is God who will decide whether or not any promises we make will come to pass.
We should understand and acknowledge that, in reality, God can break His promises, because He is free and not constrained by any external forces.
Traditional vows only make sense if we have freedom to choose whether we keep them or break them, which we do not if God is in sovereign control of all the events of our lives.

In a previous post in this series, I argued that words such as ‘luck’ and ‘chance’ do not make sense in light of a sovereign God, and therefore there is no need to use them. Today, I would like to add the words ‘promise’ and ‘vow’ to their number. I hope that readers are able to see the logic of my arguments concerning why I believe these terms are redundant.

A final note I’d like to make is that I’m aware that there are significant societal issues which might arise as a result of the arguments I’ve made in this article. I plan to cover issues such as ownership, contract law, and legal systems, in future posts in this series. Please consider subscribing to this blog if you’d like to follow along, and thank you for reading today’s post.

Is Christianity True?

For the purposes of this article, I take for granted a belief in the perspective of monotheism. Arguments for the existence of God are not the focus of this article, but I have discussed this matter extensively elsewhere on this blog and in my books and videos (see, for instance, this video entitled ‘How Do I Know God Exists?’). This article is intended to help believers in a single God to consider whether or not they should embrace Christianity.

Introduction: Three Possibilities

When considering whether or not to accept the Christian worldview, there are only three logical possibilities. I will list the three possibilities and then elaborate on the content of each of the statements.

We have free will and therefore an orthodox Biblical Christian worldview makes sense of reality
God is in control of all events (we do not have free will) and double predestination is true
God is in control of all events (we do not have free will) and the Christian worldview must be called into question

Statement One

Let us begin with the first statement. If we have free will, then it makes sense that we might be sinners who are potentially rebelling against God, and are potentially guilty of certain things, and are potentially deserving of judgement and punishment. Jesus may well have atoned for the sins which we have freely committed, and we may well have a free choice as to whether or not to believe in Jesus and obey His teaching.

It is clear that the idea of free will is central to all of the key Christian doctrines I have just described, and if we have free will, I for one would be satisfied that the Christian worldview makes sense of reality and should be pursued.

There will be some who could happily stop reading at this point, but for the deep thinkers among you, please read on, because what I have to say is important.

The Argument Against Free Will

I am convinced that we don’t have free will, for the reasons I have explained countless times on this blog and in my books. I have argued against free will using numerous examples, and discussing the problem from a range of different angles. It would take up too much space for me to repeat all of my arguments here, but I will just state summarily that my view is that God is omnipresent and the animator of everything that happens in existence. God’s boundlessness means that there is nothing outside the being of God, and so there is literally no room for freedom from God, or free will.

If you don’t understand this argument and would like to hear me elaborate upon it further, please do read my book God’s Grand Game, or check out my Deep Thoughts About God video series, because this argument is central to my understanding of reality.

I should mention, at this point, that there are Christians who attempt to argue that it is simultaneously true that God is sovereign over all events and that we have free will (see, for instance, my posts on Compatibilism, Open Theism, Calvinism, and Molinism). But my argument in relation to all of these philosophies is that they do not make sense, because it is logically impossible for God to be sovereign over all events and at the same time for human beings to have free will (again, do check out God’s Grand Game for further elaboration).

Actually, it’s quite common for orthodox Bible-believing Christians to implicitly acknowledge that they don’t have free will. For instance, whenever a Christian prays for God to plant them in a great church, or to bless their marriage or their ministry, or to make their job interview go well, or to heal their sickness, they are acknowledging God’s sovereign control over every aspect of their lives (this argument is expounded further in God’s Grand Game). The fact that some believers pray in this way and simultaneously argue that they have free will represents a clear contradiction in their thinking.

Statement Two: Double Predestination

Now, let us look at Point 2. Double predestination is a doctrine embraced by some Calvinists that acknowledges God’s sovereignty over all events. The view is that God predestines some people to be believers in Christ, even before they are born, and others to be damned, even before they are born.

This perspective is certainly a possibility, in that God could logically unfold events in this way, seeing as He is in perfect control of everything that happens, and is responsible to no one. But if God is really like this — that even before He has created a human being He decides that their destiny will be eternal punishment — there is no denying that such a perspective would make God an incredibly cruel being. So we are forced to consider whether it’s likely that God is cruel in this way.

As I argued in this post, it is possible that God is angry for certain reasons (although, I might add, not because of sin; if He is sovereign over all events then He is the cause of all so-called sin, and why would He cause sin in order to make Himself angry?). God may be angry due to a kind of loneliness, or the fact that His existence will never have an ending (I have elaborated on these examples in this post).

If God suffers terribly, this might be a justification for double predestination, because God might want to appease His anger and do so through tormenting His creatures. I might add, however, that it’s not clear to me why even if God is angry He would necessarily need to express His anger by making His creatures suffer terribly. In any case, I think it’s more likely that God’s natural state is perfect bliss (see my essay entitled God and Suffering: A Covid-19 Theology) and so this would, at least in my view, leave Him without motive or justification for damning human beings.

Statement Three: The Christian Worldview must be Questioned

The final option of the three I presented is that God is in control of all events and therefore the Christian worldview doesn’t reflect reality. The argument is quite simple: If God is in control of our thoughts, words, and actions, then central Christian doctrines such as sin, salvation, judgement, etc — which all depend on free will — don’t make sense.

At this point, I believe it’s wise to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Christianity is a religion that has been around on a single planet for around two thousand years. Scientists estimate that the universe is around fourteen billion years old, and that billions of planets exist. I’m not one to blindly believe the statistics of scientists, but when I gaze out into the night sky I have a sense that such incredible vastness is possible.

Even if we confine our considerations only to Planet Earth, there are billions of human beings who have lived and died without encountering the Christian worldview (unless, of course, all of these people encountered Jesus in a dream, or a vision, or a near death experience, or such like). There are also the billions of people who feel they are serving God in accordance with non-Christian religions, such as Islam, Sikhism, and the Baháʼí Faith, for example. A question I posed in this post is can it really be the case that all of these billions of lives are relatively unimportant to God, because these people did not embrace Jesus as Lord and Saviour and lead a Christian life?

An alternative perspective, which embraces the idea of God’s sovereignty over the entirety of creation, is that Christianity should be seen as one great religion among many. According to this worldview, Jesus is an immensely important person in God’s Grand Game, and no doubt an astonishing teacher and healer. But what the New Testament teaches about sin and judgment cannot make sense in a world where we don’t have free will. Instead, Jesus could be considered a great prophet, as Muslims argue he is, but possibly not the only way to have peace with God.

Conclusion

I will leave readers with these questions to consider:

Is there a positive role for every human being in God’s plan? Does the doctrine of hell make sense in light of God’s sovereignty over all events? And, of course, the question it all hinges upon — do we really have free will?

I do believe that the three options presented in this article are a logical way of looking at the problem of whether or not Christianity is true and should be embraced wholeheartedly. I hope that readers have found this post thought-provoking, and if anyone reading would like to explore the issues raised in this article in greater detail, I would (for one final time) urge you to consider investing in a copy of God’s Grand Game, which is available now from these retailers.

Home Audiobook Recording Setup (1/3)

There’s a buzz around the audiobook recording scene at the moment, as the popularity of audiobooks increases due to their convenience and accessibility. Also, with the Covid-19 lockdown, books of all descriptions are proving popular (this article from SilverWood Books explains why in a little more detail).

There is, of course, the problem of isolation, and the fact that most of us aren’t able or willing to travel to studios and work with audiobook producers during the lockdown. Many people are experimenting with home audiobook recording setups, and it’s been on my mind for some time to take this approach myself. I have written and self-published six books to date, and I feel that at least three or four of them would be suitable for conversion to audiobooks.

Recording an audiobook is not a project to be undertaken lightly. There is a lot to consider, and what I have learned from my research is that customers demand a very high quality of recording, and this means burdens on the producer to excel not only at the voice recording process, but also at editing and mastering the audio.

Recording a single audiobook can take many hours of concentrated effort, and really this is something for experts. However, being perhaps brave, or perhaps foolish, I am considering that my past experience in audio recording (I’m a hobbyist musician and have a degree in Commercial Music) will have given me many of the skills necessary to undertake such a project myself.

I thought it would be fun to share my audiobook recording process with readers of this blog, in case any of you are planning to do a similar thing yourself. And I thought that even if you’re reading this and have no such plans, you may simply be interested in the process. Also, there may be some of you that have experience in this area, and can offer me some advice.

In this post, I will describe the equipment I will be using to record my audiobooks along with some pictures of that equipment and of my wardrobe, which I’m planning to convert into a temporary audio recording booth. I will plan to follow up this post with others as the setup and recording process unfolds in the coming weeks.

The Audiobook Recording Space

I live in a small one bedroom flat in South London and do not have the space to convert a room into a recording studio. Because I am renting the flat rather than owning it, I have to be careful that in undertaking a project like this I don’t cause any damage.

Fortunately, I have a fairly large walk-in wardrobe which I feel is just about big enough to temporarily convert into an audiobook recording booth.

Here are three photos of the wardrobe:

[image error]

[image error]

[image error]

I plan to take out pretty much everything on the left hand side, including the stacked plastic boxes you see, and the shelves with some clothing, hats, etc, on them. The shelves are not fixed so can be removed very easily.

On the right hand side, I will remove the laundry basket, but will probably leave in the hanging clothes because they will play an important role in absorbing echo and reverb during recording, and also because I would struggle to find anywhere else in the flat to put them.

Compact, Collapsable Table and Chair

I spent quite a lot time on Amazon trying to find a suitable table and chair, and there was a lot to consider. Naturally, my main consideration was size, as finding a table that would fit into such a small space was a challenge.

With the chair, my main consideration was that it was comfortable, as I could be potentially sitting for hours at a time with not much of a break. Also, I wanted to find a chair that was quiet, as creaks from metalwork etc could be picked up by the microphone and be detrimental to the recording. The chair also had to fit neatly in the small space.

[image error]

[image error]

Although this table and chair aren’t very attractive at all in my opinion, my main concern was utility rather than aesthetics, and the table fits perfectly in the space, with the chair fitting very well underneath it, so I feel these were a good choice. Also, as you can see, they are both collapsible, which means I will save space when I’m not using them.

My only worry with this table and chair is that there is metalwork which creaks a little. I will have to experiment to see whether this is a problem when it comes to doing some test recordings a little further down the line.

Recording Equipment

Below you will find a picture with all of the main technical equipment I plan on using for the audiobook recordings. What I haven’t included is a picture of the computer I’m using, but it is a small notebook computer which is suitable for the very limited space. The other thing I haven’t pictured is cables — I have an XLR cable to connect the microphone to the audiobox (the blue box), and a USB to USB-C cable to connect the audiobox to my computer.

[image error]

Included in the photo are a Rode NT1-A condenser microphone with a cradle and attached pop shield to the right of it. The purpose of the cradle is to keep the microphone suspended during recording so it is less likely to record the sound of any small knocks or other movement in the vicinity. The purpose of the pop shield (that’s the circular mesh attached to the cradle) is to limit the amount of air hitting the microphone when certain consonants (such as ‘p’s and ‘b’s) are spoken.

Also in the picture are a set of AKG K52 headphones — these are affordable but high quality corded studio headphones. The round block of metal is a heavy duty Samson MD5 tabletop microphone stand, which I had to order from the other side of the world because I couldn’t get one through Amazon. I tried using a small tripod to mount the microphone, but the combined weight of the cradle, pop shield, and microphone, was way too much for a little tripod to handle. The MD5 is just about heavy enough to do the job.

Lastly we have the PreSonus iOne audio interface, which I purchased to use for recording my electro-rock album Tell Everyone Now (any opportunity for a plug!). The audio interface provides power to the microphone, and also has level adjusters so I can alter the input level of the audio.

Soundproofing

As I already mentioned, the hanging clothes in the wardrobe will absorb a lot of unwanted sound. But to make things even better, I bought some foam acoustic soundproofing panels (from Amazon) with some spray glue to fix them to the inside of the wardrobe doors and walls.

[image error]

The function of these foam panels is to absorb echo and reverb, so that the quality of the audio recording in cleaner. I purchased twelve of these, but I think I may need to get some more. They probably won’t make a huge difference, but from the research I’ve done, it seems they will make a difference.

I plan to attach them with EverBuild spray glue, which is primarily used for fixing carpets but the instructions say it can be used for foam so I’m hoping it will work with these panels. I’m a little worried about leaving marks on the walls when I remove them, so I may not use the glue if I can find a better solution. If I do use the glue, I may have to repaint the walls after the recording process is complete.

Miscellaneous Items

That’s just about everything, but there are a few other items I will be using that are worth mentioning. Here are the pictures with a description below:

[image error]

[image error]

There are no lights or power sockets in the wardrobe. So I decided to purchase a tall LED lamp (from Amazon) as well as the green extension cable pictured, which will allow me to use a power socket in the adjacent bedroom in order to bring power to the space for my computer, the lamp, and anything else that needs power.

The red and white package contains an insulating strip which I plan to attach to the bottom of the wardrobe doors for extra soundproofing and insulation, and the final thing pictured is a pair of door handles which I will attach to the inside of the wardrobe for easy opening and closing.

That’s a Wrap!

Well, that’s a wrap for this post, but as far as the audiobook recording project is concerned, this is only the very beginning. There is still a lot for me to research and learn and I’m not 100% sure which software I will be using for the project, though it’s likely to be Garageband or Cubase.

I plan on writing further posts describing how the the process is going, and sharing some pictures of the wardrobe once the space has been converted. So feel free to subscribe to this blog if you’re interested in following along.

List of all Equipment

I am not a member of any affiliate programs, so that’s why I haven’t included affiliate links. I will just list all of the items mentioned in this post:

Notebook computer (13″ MacBook Pro)

Outsunny collapsible camping table

MECO deluxe padded steel fabric folding chair

Rode NT1-A condenser microphone

Rode SM6 shock mount cradle and pop shield

AKG K52 closed back wired headphones

Presonus iOne audio interface

Teckin standing LED floor lamp

PIFCO PIF2069 4-Gang cassette reel, black, 5m

HULAMEDA door draft excluder strip

AmazonBasics AB3801-SV-2 door handles

Thank you for reading! If you’d like to support me and my writing (and audio!) activities, please consider purchasing one of my books or some of my music. With any questions, please leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to answer. On this blog, I cover mainly topics related to philosophy and theology, so please consider subscribing if this is of interest.

To read Part 2 in this 3 part series, click here!

(Image by Andrzej Nowak from Pixabay)

Home Audiobook Recording Setup

There’s a buzz around the audiobook recording scene at the moment, as the popularity of audiobooks increases due to their convenience and accessibility. Also, with the Covid-19 lockdown, books of all descriptions are proving popular (this article from SilverWood Books explains why in a little more detail).

There is, of course, the problem of isolation, and the fact that most of us aren’t able or willing to travel to studios and work with audiobook producers during the lockdown. Many people are experimenting with home audiobook recording setups, and it’s been on my mind for some time to take this approach myself. I have written and self-published six books to date, and I feel that at least three or four of them would be suitable for conversion to audiobooks.

Recording an audiobook is not a project to be undertaken lightly. There is a lot to consider, and what I have learned from my research is that customers demand a very high quality of recording, and this means burdens on the producer to excel not only at the voice recording process, but also at editing and mastering the audio.

Recording a single audiobook can take many hours of concentrated effort, and really this is something for experts. However, being perhaps brave, or perhaps foolish, I am considering that my past experience in audio recording (I’m a hobbyist musician and have a degree in Commercial Music) will have given me many of the skills necessary to undertake such a project myself.

I thought it would be fun to share my audiobook recording process with readers of this blog, in case any of you are planning to do a similar thing yourself. And I thought that even if you’re reading this and have no such plans, you may simply be interested in the process. Also, there may be some of you that have experience in this area, and can offer me some advice.

In this post, I will describe the equipment I will be using to record my audiobooks along with some pictures of that equipment and of my wardrobe, which I’m planning to convert into a temporary audio recording booth. I will plan to follow up this post with others as the setup and recording process unfolds in the coming weeks.

The Audiobook Recording Space

I live in a small one bedroom flat in South London and do not have the space to convert a room into a recording studio. Because I am renting the flat rather than owning it, I have to be careful that in undertaking a project like this I don’t cause any damage.

Fortunately, I have a fairly large walk-in wardrobe which I feel is just about big enough to temporarily convert into an audiobook recording booth.

Here are three photos of the wardrobe:

[image error]

[image error]

[image error]

I plan to take out pretty much everything on the left hand side, including the stacked plastic boxes you see, and the shelves with some clothing, hats, etc, on them. The shelves are not fixed so can be removed very easily.

On the right hand side, I will remove the laundry basket, but will probably leave in the hanging clothes because they will play an important role in absorbing echo and reverb during recording, and also because I would struggle to find anywhere else in the flat to put them.

Compact, Collapsable Table and Chair

I spent quite a lot time on Amazon trying to find a suitable table and chair, and there was a lot to consider. Naturally, my main consideration was size, as finding a table that would fit into such a small space was a challenge.

With the chair, my main consideration was that it was comfortable, as I could be potentially sitting for hours at a time with not much of a break. Also, I wanted to find a chair that was quiet, as creaks from metalwork etc could be picked up by the microphone and be detrimental to the recording. The chair also had to fit neatly in the small space.

[image error]

[image error]

Although this table and chair aren’t very attractive at all in my opinion, my main concern was utility rather than aesthetics, and the table fits perfectly in the space, with the chair fitting very well underneath it, so I feel these were a good choice. Also, as you can see, they are both collapsible, which means I will save space when I’m not using them.

My only worry with this table and chair is that there is metalwork which creaks a little. I will have to experiment to see whether this is a problem when it comes to doing some test recordings a little further down the line.

Recording Equipment

Below you will find a picture with all of the main technical equipment I plan on using for the audiobook recordings. What I haven’t included is a picture of the computer I’m using, but it is a small notebook computer which is suitable for the very limited space. The other thing I haven’t pictured is cables — I have an XLR cable to connect the microphone to the audiobox (the blue box), and a USB to USB-C cable to connect the audiobox to my computer.

[image error]

Included in the photo are a Rode NT1-A condenser microphone with a cradle and attached pop shield to the right of it. The purpose of the cradle is to keep the microphone suspended during recording so it is less likely to record the sound of any small knocks or other movement in the vicinity. The purpose of the pop shield (that’s the circular mesh attached to the cradle) is to limit the amount of air hitting the microphone when certain consonants (such as ‘p’s and ‘b’s) are spoken.

Also in the picture are a set of AKG K52 headphones — these are affordable but high quality corded studio headphones. The round block of metal is a heavy duty Samson MD5 tabletop microphone stand, which I had to order from the other side of the world because I couldn’t get one through Amazon. I tried using a small tripod to mount the microphone, but the combined weight of the cradle, pop shield, and microphone, was way too much for a little tripod to handle. The MD5 is just about heavy enough to do the job.

Lastly we have the PreSonus iOne audio interface, which I purchased to use for recording my electro-rock album Tell Everyone Now (any opportunity for a plug!). The audio interface provides power to the microphone, and also has level adjusters so I can alter the input level of the audio.

Soundproofing

As I already mentioned, the hanging clothes in the wardrobe will absorb a lot of unwanted sound. But to make things even better, I bought some foam acoustic soundproofing panels (from Amazon) with some spray glue to fix them to the inside of the wardrobe doors and walls.

[image error]

The function of these foam panels is to absorb echo and reverb, so that the quality of the audio recording in cleaner. I purchased twelve of these, but I think I may need to get some more. They probably won’t make a huge difference, but from the research I’ve done, it seems they will make a difference.

I plan to attach them with EverBuild spray glue, which is primarily used for fixing carpets but the instructions say it can be used for foam so I’m hoping it will work with these panels. I’m a little worried about leaving marks on the walls when I remove them, so I may not use the glue if I can find a better solution. If I do use the glue, I may have to repaint the walls after the recording process is complete.

Miscellaneous Items

That’s just about everything, but there are a few other items I will be using that are worth mentioning. Here are the pictures with a description below:

[image error]

[image error]

There are no lights or power sockets in the wardrobe. So I decided to purchase a tall LED lamp (from Amazon) as well as the green extension cable pictured, which will allow me to use a power socket in the adjacent bedroom in order to bring power to the space for my computer, the lamp, and anything else that needs power.

The red and white package contains an insulating strip which I plan to attach to the bottom of the wardrobe doors for extra soundproofing and insulation, and the final thing pictured is a pair of door handles which I will attach to the inside of the wardrobe for easy opening and closing.

That’s a Wrap!

Well, that’s a wrap for this post, but as far as the audiobook recording project is concerned, this is only the very beginning. There is still a lot for me to research and learn and I’m not 100% sure which software I will be using for the project, though it’s likely to be Garageband or Cubase.

I plan on writing further posts describing how the the process is going, and sharing some pictures of the wardrobe once the space has been converted. So feel free to subscribe to this blog if you’re interested in following along.

List of all Equipment

I am not a member of any affiliate programs, so that’s why I haven’t included affiliate links. I will just list all of the items mentioned in this post:

Notebook computer (13″ MacBook Pro)

Outsunny collapsible camping table

MECO deluxe padded steel fabric folding chair

Rode NT1-A condenser microphone

Rode SM6 shock mount cradle and pop shield

AKG K52 closed back wired headphones

Presonus iOne audio interface

Teckin standing LED floor lamp

PIFCO PIF2069 4-Gang cassette reel, black, 5m

HULAMEDA door draft excluder strip

AmazonBasics AB3801-SV-2 door handles

Thank you for reading! If you’d like to support me and my writing (and audio!) activities, please consider purchasing one of my books or some of my music. With any questions, please leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to answer. On this blog, I cover mainly topics related to philosophy and theology, so please consider subscribing if this is of interest.

(Image by Andrzej Nowak from Pixabay)

Being Estranged from God

Hello, friends. Today, I’d like to offer up another contribution to my Praise and Prose series, which looks at the way we use language when discussing matters of faith and spirituality, and how that language could change in order to be more true to reality.

I was listening to a song I love called “I Need You” (by a Christian artist named Eclipse Nkasi) and was struck by some of the lyrics in the song, which are as follows:

“I’ve been on my own for way too long”, and subsequently, “I need You, Lord”.

To listen to the song, click here.

The above quoted lyrics would make sense if it were ever possible for a person to be on their own, and without God. But in reality, I believe that due to God’s omnipresence, the idea of being estranged from God doesn’t actually make sense.

Allow me to elaborate a little.

I have always felt uncomfortable when Christians talk about the idea of ‘backsliding’ from their faith, because there seems to be an implication that God is only in our lives when we are actively pursuing Jesus, rather than being in control of every aspect of our lives in their entirety, which I believe is the way things really are.

The worldview encapsulated in the song lyrics suggests that God is separate from His creation, which is something a lot of Christians believe. But in my books I argue in favour of God’s literal omnipresence, which means there is nothing outside of the being of God, and this perspective encapsulates the related idea of God’s sovereignty over all events, including all human activity.

These things considered, I believe the lyrics I quoted do not make sense, if they are taken literally. Well, you might say they should be taken metaphorically. But if someone were to argue that, I would suggest they are using metaphor in order to be dishonest about the true nature of things, and the fact that in reality it is impossible to be separate from God’s guiding hand.

It is true that our awareness of God sometimes goes away, so we can have the experience of being isolated. But this is just a mode of mind under God’s control. God often makes us feel as though we are acting independently, by removing our awareness of Him from our consciousness. But this doesn’t mean that in reality He goes away (check out my video entitled Modes of Mind for a deeper exploration of this). God is always intimately involved in our every activity throughout our lives, from our hearts beating, to our bodies growing and changing, to our circulation and digestion, to our actions, and even our thinking.

There is no separateness from God; there never has been, and there never can be.

I believe that what the singer of the song I quoted is really trying to say is that he wants an experience of peace, knowing God loves him and isn’t angry with him, and that he is safe. I could relate to that entirely, but this view encapsulates a manner of understanding which is quite different to that expressed in the lyrics of the song.

I believe the alleged separation between God and creation is a flaw which is present in the thinking of many Christians, and I hope that if readers consider their relationship with God carefully, and in terms of their present moment awareness (and the way they pray, for instance), they will be able to see the logic in the arguments I am making here, and may think twice about using phrases that imply they are ever acting independently of the will of God.

If you would like to share any thoughts or feedback in relation to this article, you are welcome to email me via the Contact page. For previous posts in this series, check out the Praise and Prose category. Feel free to subscribe to this blog to receive an email whenever I publish a new post. Thank you for reading, and have a blessed day.

(Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay)

The Ice Cream Dilemma (poll)

My last few posts have been rather heavy in terms of the subject matter, so today I thought I’d lighten the mood a little with a hopefully thought-provoking poll.

Here’s a real life scenario:

It’s been a hard day at work and I’m feeling drained. As I leave work, I say a prayer to thank God for the blessings of the day, and ask Him to lift my spirits and give me peace throughout the evening.

A few minutes later, the thought enters my mind that I would like to buy a tub of my favourite ice cream. It’s on the more expensive end of the ice cream spectrum, but I pop into the ice cream parlour to buy a tub on my way home.

For the rest of my journey home, I feel a little guilty about buying the ice cream and wonder whether that money might have been better spent on my kids or put towards something of more lasting value for my home.

So, the question is: Should I have bought the ice cream?

I’ve laid out some suggested answers below, from which you can choose one, or you can add your own answer. The answers appear in random order. I will leave the poll open for a week, and then share the results in a post on this blog. Feel free to share the poll around; the more votes that are submitted, the more interesting the outcome will be.

Take Our Poll

Disclaimer: Any similarity between the events described in this post and my own life struggles is purely coincidental. Of course.

Disclaimer 2: Don’t take this poll too seriously. I know theological matters are serious, and I’m serious 99% of the time, but this is just a bit of fun.

(Image by StockSnap from Pixabay)

Duality in Language

Hello everyone. Today, I hope you’ll join me in looking a little deeper at the way we use language, and how our conversation might change to better reflect God’s involvement in our lives.

In this article, we’ll take a look at the linguistic implications of the two previous posts in my Praise and Prose series, which looked at the ‘primary and secondary causes’ of events (view the post here) and ‘dimensions of reality’ (view here).

For every human action or activity that takes place, there are a duality of causes.

Here are a few examples:

I had a toasted marmite bagel for dinner because:

1) God wanted me to

2) I forgot to get dinner out of the freezer

I’m having a cup of tea now because:

1) God wants me to

2) It tastes nice and usually lifts my mood

I’m going to have a shave and a shower later if:

1) God wants me to

2) I get a burst of motivation to do it

(Note that the same duality applies whether we’re talking about the past, present, or future)

The above examples encapsulate the idea that for every human action, it is orchestrated by God in the divine dimension, and we also have thoughts and feelings about it (controlled by God) in the human dimension. God is the primary cause, and we are the secondary cause. So, how can the language we use reflect these truths?

We don’t normally acknowledge God as the primary cause of our activity in everyday conversation. Instead, we commonly use expressions such as “chance would be a fine thing”, “I’ll take my chances”, “that was lucky”, “if I’m lucky” or “I can’t wait” to do a certain thing. None of these expressions acknowledge the truth that God is is the primary cause of our actions.

People of faith do a better job, with Christians sometimes saying “God willing” (which is, in Islam, “inshallah”), which is a good phrase and accurately reflects reality. We should always talk about future plans with the caveat “if it is the will of God”, and past events using expressions such as “It was God’s will” or “God willed it that…”, as such expressions acknowledge God as the primary cause of all events.

In contemporary speech, we very rarely use phrases such as “God is making me feel hungry” or “God wanted me to sleep in this morning” and yet these expressions are entirely logical and accurate. We tend to resist talking about God in our everyday conversation, possibly because our societal structures place great emphasis on personal responsibility, and also because we are frightened of making those who don’t believe in God feel uncomfortable.

I’m not suggesting we should oversaturate our language with God-speak. But by using language that brings God into our conversations, not only would we be speaking in a way that is more true to reality, but we would also be breaking down some of the untruths that are implicit in atheistic language (for example, an atheist might over-emphasise the role of the brain in human activity by using phrases such as “My brain can’t handle it” or “use your brain”, when the truth is, your brain does not control your thoughts, God does).

In summary, I feel that the language we use should acknowledge that there is both a primary and secondary cause of all human activity. We can achieve this by using phraseology which acknowledges God’s sovereignty over our actions. There is never any need to talk about ideas such as ‘luck’ or ‘chance’ in a world where God is sovereign over all events, and I believe these two words are largely redundant and could feasibly be removed from our vocabularies altogether.

Let us be bold in thinking about the way we use language, and how this could change in order to make our expressions more true to reality, and therefore more powerful.

With any thoughts or feedback on this article, feel free to email me via the Contact page. There is more to come in this series, so please consider subscribing if you found today’s post interesting. Thank you for reading.

Dimensions of Reality

Good morning everyone, I hope you had a good weekend. Today’s post is another in my Praise and Prose series, which looks at the way we use language to talk about matters of faith and spirituality, and how this language could change in order to better reflect reality.

In my last post in this series, I discussed the primary and secondary causes of events, and proposed that the primary cause of our actions is God, and the secondary cause is creaturely activity. I argued that God is in complete control of both the primary and secondary causes of all events, and that there is therefore no freedom in our actions at all.

Today, I’d like to write briefly about the related issue of what I call ‘Dimensions of Reality’. This is a difference in perception that I believe makes the awareness of human beings distinct from the awareness of God. One caveat is that I can only speculate as to how God experiences reality from the thoughts and insights He has given me, so I am not certain about this. But I will present the theory for your consideration.

In my 2013 book entitled Ultimate Truth: God Beyond Religion, I wrote a chapter explaining my vision concerning the different dimensions of reality, and rather than needlessly repeating or paraphrasing, I will link to a blog post in which I featured that chapter.

To read the the post, click here.

The connection I would like to make between my last post and this one is that primary causes happen in the God dimension (and God, I believe, has omniscient awareness), and secondary causes happen in the creaturely dimension (which is restricted by our senses).

In tomorrow’s post, I will talk about how primary and secondary causes and dimensions of reality can be reflected in the language we use to talk about matters of faith and spirituality, thus bringing the discussion back to my stated aim for this series.

What are your thoughts on the ideas discussed in today’s post? With any feedback or questions, please email me. To receive an email for every new post on this blog, please consider subscribing. Thank you for reading.

(Image by Okan Caliskan from Pixabay)

Primary and Secondary Causes

Welcome to another post in my Praise and Prose series. The series looks at our use of language, especially in matters of faith and spirituality, and how that language might change in order to better reflect reality.

Today I would like to begin a discussion around the causes of human activity. The implications of this in terms of language will be discussed in a subsequent post.

I would like to refer readers to a short post I wrote back in 2018, in which I discussed primary and secondary causes. The idea is that for every action a creature does, there is a primary cause (which is God) and a secondary cause (which is the creature). While the Calvinist I quoted in the post argued that there is freedom of the will in secondary causes, I argued that secondary causes are entirely under the sovereign control of God, and there is no freedom whatsoever, even in secondary causes.

To read the post, click here.

The idea of primary and secondary causes is central to this blog series. But there is little point in repeating myself, and the linked article contains more than enough substance for today’s reflection, so I won’t elaborate further today.

I invite comments below, but please keep your comments concise and relevant to the subject of primary and secondary causes, and to the ideas discussed in the linked post, otherwise they may be deleted.

Thank you to everyone who has engaged with the beginnings of the Praise and Prose series this week, it’s been good fun. I may write a post over the weekend summarising what’s been covered so far, but in any case I plan to be back next week with new posts in the series which I am brainstorming and mapping out on an ongoing basis.

Stay safe, stay positive, God bless you, and have a good weekend.

(Image by Di Lewis from Pixabay)

Why Does God Punish Dreadfully, When Jesus Teaches Forgiveness?

I re-read the book of Revelation today. It seems to me that the teachings of Jesus — who emphasised love of neighbour, love of God, and forgiveness of our enemies — are at odds with the way God’s character is depicted in the Bible.

The Book of Revelation is absolutely terrifying in respect of some of the things it says God will do to sentient beings in the future, such as sending plagues, a bottomless pit, torturing for 1000 years, throwing people into a lake of fire, killing all ocean life, etc.

And, of course, in the Old Testament, God is believed to have obliterated the human race in a great flood, as well as punishing nations on countless occasions by sending plagues and droughts, or through violent wars. If you believe God is sovereign over all events, as I certainly do, then divine punishment seems very cruel and unnecessary, because God is punishing people for things they have done which He has actively caused them to do (more on that here).

How can the character of God and the character of Jesus be so different, when Jesus is supposedly God? Why can’t God forgive people in the way Jesus teaches humans they must? I’m really struggling to accept the Biblical presentation of a God who is unspeakably cruel. It just doesn’t make sense.

It seems that the Biblical justification for God’s severe punishment is His supposed anger over sin. We are all apparently guilty because of something that Adam and Eve did long before we were born, and regardless of whether we do our best to be kind and loving people during our lives on Earth. Christian evangelists will rebuke everyone without exception, claiming that because we have all slipped up at least once in our lives, we do not meet God’s high standard of holiness and purity, and this makes us deserving of hell. Really?

It’s perfectly possible that God might torment His creatures dreadfully and in the ways we read about in the book of Revelation. But if God is all-powerful, and His natural state is one of peace (as I have argued it likely is in my essay about Covid-19), then it doesn’t really make sense that He would be so angry as to punish with the kind of gruelling severity described in the Bible.

Some Christians reading this will no doubt take the standpoint that whatever is in the Bible, we must believe without question. Of course, Christians disagree on pretty much every issue of Biblical theology there is, so “believing the Bible” is in no way black and white. I understand that those Christians who elevate the authority of the Bible do so out of a fear of God, and I respect that — reading the Bible definitely creates great fear, there is no doubt about it.

But I have found myself asking this important question, which I also invite readers to consider: Which am I more happy to call into question, the Christian worldview (as expounded in the Bible), or God Himself, as I believe Him to be? My way of dealing with this problem will be to think through the issues with an open mind and pray about the issues I have discussed here, and I hope God will enlighten me as to the Truth of the matter, whatever it is.

I took a break from my Praise and Prose series in order to write today’s post, but I will continue with that series tomorrow, God willing. I have closed comments today, as I don’t wish to engage in heated theological debate around today’s post, but I simply wanted to raise the issues I have described and invite readers to consider those issues for themselves. Thank you for reading, and God bless you.

(Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash)