Destiny

Destiny is an interesting thing. And sometimes, I think the idea of destiny is misunderstood. So today we're going to take a look at what destiny is as defined by the world's standards, and how the Bible's use of destiny differs.

As always, we have to look at the definition of a word before we try and understand all it implies. Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines destiny as:

A predetermined course of events often held to be an irresistible power or agency.

 It also points us to destined, which is defined as:

To decree beforehand; to predetermine; to designate, assign, or dedicate in advance; to direct, devise, or set apart for a specific purpose or place.

So in its simplest form, destiny is a purpose or event that has been selected to happen in advance, usually by a "power" we have no control over. For example: an apple is destined to be eaten; a person is destined to die; becoming the president is his destiny. Now that we have the definition, we can look at the different views on what destiny actually is.

The world looks at destiny as if it were some power or force that exists to control the events and purposes people have (they're half right). A classic example of this is found in the Star Wars series. Jedi Master Yoda tells many other Jedi that something is "their destiny" (Darth Vader does too at one point). That one specific person is the only person who can do this, they must do it, and eventually will do it, whether they like it or not.

While this view is right on some things, it gets a number of things wrong, mainly that people are locked in a certain destiny and cannot change their course. You'll find that when people realize this, they usually reject the idea of destiny as they want to choose what happens to them. They want to be in control. And while their right to reject the notion of a fixed course, they're terribly wrong when it comes to control.

This is where the Bible's view of destiny comes into play and helps us to iron out the wrinkles in the world's view. You do have a destiny, but it's not some fixed course you're stuck on. Your destiny is the final destination that you will end up at, as well as the plans that God has for you between here and there. These plans aren't entirely fixed, but they're still fully under God's control. Confused? Let's try and fix that.

If you live in a larger city, chances are you've got at least a couple churches near you, maybe a whole bunch. You could go to any of those churches, but you choose to go to a specific one. Well, that's part of God's plan. If you had chosen a different church, then that would have been God's plan too. You see, God's the one who put you in that city and put those churches there, so He provided all of the choices for you. Regardless of which one you pick, you're picking a church that God put there in His planning for you to choose from.

So what does this mean for destiny? It means that the "chosen path" for you, isn't a definitive set of things you must walk in per se, rather it's a specific set of choices that you have to make where the options have been decided by God. Yes, sometimes God allows bad things to be among our choices, not so that we can choose them, but so that we can grow by not choosing them and choosing a right thing, of which there could be a few. Sometimes it's a yes or no choice, in which one thing is wrong and one thing is right, but sometimes it's multiple choice, either with all right things, or some right things and some wrong things.

Regardless of how the choice works out, your path isn't set in stone. What is set in stone is this: if you believe in Jesus and follow Him, you'll start to change from who you were to who God wants you to be (that's called sanctification); you'll find yourself living forever with God one day; and through it all somehow you'll bring God glory (not sure how God does that part, but He does... 'cause He's awesome). These are your "final" destiny.

As for the destiny immediately in front of you, that is, your path in life, I've learned that it works best when you simply choose from what God brings to you, rather than try and make things happen. To quote Master Oogway from Kung-Fu Panda, "You will never realize your destiny until you let go of the illusion of control." Sure you get to make choices, but that's not really control. God's the one who provides the choices, so that makes Him in control. When you let go of what you think is your control over something, and let God take care of it instead, things turn out a lot better. When God's in control, you get to realize and live out your destiny, and God even let's you shape parts of it along the way by giving you some choices to make.

I had a run in with destiny recently. God decided to drop something into my life to see if I would let Him have control. In all honesty, just a few months ago I was struggling with this. I was trying to keep myself in control and on a certain path, but it just wasn't working. It took me coming to an end to finally learn to let Him have control. So when I ran into destiny, I let God handle it, and things turned out a lot better that way.

The point of this post, as always, is to help you grow through what I write. So learn from my mistake and let God be the one in control of your destiny. Put Him first and do what He says. You just might find your life's a lot better that way.

Godspeed!

- Jason