still living

 I have been fortunate enough to make it past a couple obstacles lately. It wasn't because of anything I did specifically rather I feel it is just fate unfolding before me. All you have to do is look beyond yourself to realize that. You can't change yesterday, yesterday is done and tomorrow isn't promised to anyone. All we have is hope and prayer. For that reason, I choose to be grateful for whatever time I am awarded. I make no claims to survival or having been victimized. Are we all victims of fate? If you go by the strict definition of the word the answer has to be yes. But we all know that victimization implies a negative action has occurred and affected us in some way. I refuse to think of my life as a series of victimizations! Would my God allow such a thing? I don't think so. Of course, I don't believe my God intervenes in my everyday choices and so place no blame upon him when I make a bad choice. I don't do that even when I am harmed in some way by that choice. I'm to blame, or fate, whichever way you wish to view that. Fate fulfills destiny is my belief. I wrote an entire blog posting concerning just that theme. I believe destiny and fate are different actions. Destiny is where I am going, determined by my god. Fate is the path I take to reach that destination. I do get to choose the path although it will not alter the destination. Circumstance and chance figure into the equation, there are random acts that affect our choices. The best we can do is pray and listen for the answers. I must assume some responsibility for my fate.
 I can pray for my destination, asking my God for that reward. Isn't that the purpose of prayer? Isn't that why we worship our God in the first place? Yes, I believe that is the case. We are asking for something! We ask in the belief that our God will hear our pleas and dispense mercy. It's a comfort to us. That is what it was designed to be by the very God we pray too. I don't believe God demands we praise him. God demands only one thing, obedience. We all know we are less than perfect and therefore we pray. It is really quite basic. I base all that on my thinking that we should attend church and pray to our God as a supplicant, not as a celebrant. Save the celebration till after the reward is received! There is a fundamental difference. I don't believe we should enter the house of God expecting to be entertained, rather we attend to be instructed. Listen to the instructions, follow them as closely as you can and pray. Live your fate and pray for your destination. That's my advice. I'm no victim, I'm no survivor, I'm just alive. Alive by the grace of God. If you require a ribbon or a pin to express that, try wearing a cross or whatever symbol of your religion is appropriate. All the others are just shows of vanity. That's my view anyway, yours may differ.