Re: Getting What We Want. I would love to see you expand on the first sentence: “…we determine the course of our lives.” I’m thinking that is our free will. Yet, does or doesn’t God determine our lives, or the purpose of our life? The people that come into our lives and also, our circumstances? Or does HE just know the outcome, the beginning and the end? And, when you say that ‘God helps us bring them (our choices) to their ultimate conclusion’, I just can’t see God ‘helping’ anyone bring bad to themselves. I do see Him letting or allowing ‘bad’ to happen, if that is where our consistent choices are made.
Like I said, God has a plan for our life but needs our permission to implement it (Romans 12:1-2). While He does bring people across our path and create circumstances for us, we always have the choice of living out His will, or going our own way. Otherwise He would be responsible for all the wasted, hurtful, and rebellious lives people live.
As for helping people do bad things, how about the way He hardened Pharaoh’s heart against Moses (Exodus 7:3), or how He’ll make Israel’s enemies turn on each other (Ezekiel 38:21), or how He’ll send a powerful delusion among people who’ve rejected the truth to make them believe a lie (2 Thes. 2:9-12)? All this was and will be done to help those who have rejected Him take their desires to their ultimate conclusions.