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Reflections on Providence
Frank S. Rose
(Retail, $4.50) WEBSITE PRICE $4.00 |
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Price: $4.00 How divine providence applies to our lives. |
| How does God take care of us throughout our lives? This little paperback (4"x5.25") is a wonderful overview of main points from Swedenborg's Divine Providence. Using everyday language, sample dialogues, and real life examples Frank Rose offers a clear discussion on how it is that God guides our lives, and what our own role is. Eighteen short chapters each start with a relevant quote from Divine Providence, which is then brought all the more to life by Rose's compassionate, easy manner. Reading this can leave you feeling peaceful in the thought that we are always thought of, and always cared about. God always allows us our freedom, yet does all that is possible to guide us to happiness. READ THE FIRST CHAPTER Chaper 1: What Is Providence? Copyright 2009 by Frank S. Rose Once I was talking with a woman who shared her doubts about the existence of God. I asked her if she saw evidence of love in the created universe. She said that she saw it in the warmth of the sun, in the tender care animals give to their young, in human kindness and nurturing. She saw plenty of evidence of love in the universe. I then asked if she saw evidence of wisdom in creation. Yes, she saw it everywhere—in the intricate pattern of veins on a leaf, in the amazing sequence from seed to plant to fruit and back to seed again, in the marvels of the human body (she was a nurse). She could see that everything in the universe is from love by means of wisdom. I then suggested that her doubts might be based on the fact that there are some things about life that seem very harsh, and even unloving. Before attempting to reconcile the harsher parts of life with our picture of God, we need to remember that the divine love operates wisely. Sometimes the love is evident. Sometimes it is not. There are aspects of life permitted by God out of wisdom, because in the long run they lead to some good end. God operates according to principles of wisdom, or divine laws. It is as if the divine love says, “I want to give the gift of life to others and share my love with them” and the divine wisdom answers, “These are the principles that will enable you to accomplish these desires.” The Lord runs the universe from love, using wisdom, and this government is what is called “providence.” Implied in this concept of providence is the idea that God’s creation has a purpose. The love behind the universe is infinite—and therefore is beyond any idea of love we can grasp. Just as it is hard to imagine the intensity of the heat of the sun, so it is impossible to grasp the intensity of the love that resulted in God’s creation. That love is not just some blind energy or force. Mindless love can be terrifying. We tend to avoid people who are affectionate but have no common sense. We can feel smothered by this kind of love. It is reassuring to know that the divine love always acts intelligently and wisely and follows principles of order. We live in an orderly universe, at the heart of which is love. When people doubt the existence of divine providence because they see pain and evil in the world, they are questioning how their experience can fit in with the idea of a loving God. Remembering that divine love operates wisely, we can ask a different question: How does life as we know it fit in with the idea of a loving and wise God? Viewed more deeply, things that otherwise do not make sense might be evidence of a more profound love than we ever realized and a greater wisdom than we suspected. Instead of seeing the harsh laws of survival in the world of nature as unloving, we could see the wisdom in a necessary method to avoid a disastrous overpopulation of animals. Instead of saying that nature lacks wisdom because of some part of it that seems to have no purpose, we could remember that there are things, like the ductless glands of the body, that used to be viewed as useless, but are now recognized as a vital part of some system. A loving and wise God would be just as concerned about the unfolding of the universe as he would be in its original creation. It is a simple step to say that not only is creation an evidence of love operating wisely, but also that the way the universe runs reflects the same combination of love and wisdom. The ongoing care that God uses in running the universe is what is called “divine providence.” CHAPTER TITLES 1. What Is Providence? 2. Unity: the Main Goal of Providence 3. Why Did God Create? 4. Knowing the Way 5. Freedom and Rationality 6. Resisting Evil Actions 7. People Must Not Be Compelled 8. We Must Be Taught By the Lord 9. We See Providence Only in Retrospect 10. Providence Never Sleeps 11. Providence Takes the Long View 12. The Divine Ratchet 13. The Tolerance of God 14. Waking Up 15. Providence Takes Care of Everyone 16. We Are Vessels That Receive Life 17. Our Destiny 18. Providence Is Always Working |