Does God Really Dictate our Death?

I don’t know why it even dawned to me when I wasn’t even thinking about who basically dictates our death. I was then simply sitting alone in our front yard facing the grotto of “Our Lady of Fatima” I handcrafted a few years back. After finishing a session with the Rosary, prayer for enlightenment and bible reading, I relaxed and sat there alone taking my time idly. It was during that time when it occurred to me why God would employ an untimely, tragic or horrible kind of death to some people. I wasn’t serious in my reflection, though, but it did strike me a bit.

Out of nowhere, I came into realization that death isn’t actually singly dictated by God. The thought came to me like somebody just put it there in my head at that time. I haven’t even read an in-depth spiritual philosophy about death. I wasn’t so keen to find answers. However, it came anyway, like a bird that landed from nowhere. I like to claim that it came as enlightenment. It sounds reasonable.

The thought and realization was that not all deaths are actually God’s accountability. We too, ourselves are responsible over the timing and manner of our own death. Logically, there are three dictators to our own death namely; God, our own selves and persons other than ourselves. Simply stating, any of these three dictators could cause the manner and timing of our own death.

Firstly, as an example from real-life scenarios, I may die any day, in any way according to God’s will and plan. Nobody stops Him and nobody could reverse that reality. In that case, God being the owner and giver of life is the real and irrevocable dictator of my death. Secondly, I may also be my own dictator of my death if I commit suicide, knowingly abuse my body, neglecting my health, intentionally ignoring safety traffic signs or any other irresponsible actions I take that could cause me to lose my own life sooner or later. In which case, I myself am solely to blame for my own untimely demise. Lastly, anybody other than God and me could take my life away. A friend, relative, stranger, any other third or second party could cause my death by way of murder, irresponsible actions, selfish interests, or foolishness.

In other words, God has no hand in the second and third set of scenarios exemplified above. Though He has absolute power to stop anything in this world, He allows tragedies to happen because He gave us absolute free will. That’s why, it is always unfair of us to blame everything to Him. It’s true that He knows and sees the past, present and future. However, because being a holy and perfect entity that He is, He lovingly could not take back his great gift of bestowing mankind a “free will” when He created them. He honors His intent. His greatness put all the laws of physics to make the universe function and interact by itself. He let things be as they are, unless we move his heart through our prayers for intervention and protection. That said, He could change the course of events if He wills it. Ultimately, it’s time for us to change our biased and closed perception about the reality of death and not put all the blame to God.

Man's God-given Supernatural Power

We don't know it but I should boldly claim that, mankind have been bestowed by God supernatural faculty to change the course of events even without direct and humanly physical intervention. However, that power to change things is an indirect ability and depends on our time investment to develop, strengthen and put into constant practice the formula to make it work. The formula is somewhat challenging because it is based on spirituality, virtue and relationship with God. It is a four-action package that is easy to think or say but actually a little harder to keep up with, especially during the trying times in each of our life when we need it the most. I'm actually talking about the most commonly known act of praying.

The act of fervently praying that goes with strong faith, humility and righteousness is one formula for the power to influence things. I say it because it worked for me in too many different, major or small occasions in my life. I should find no reason why it can't work for everyone else. It works because it is even more powerful than any of the supposed mystic practices such as telekinesis, mental telepathy, magic,etc. The reason it might not work is the absence of any one of the four elements of the formula.

You can pray anytime, but without fervor you already miss one element to make it work. If you don't believe that God will make things work for you when you pray then that's another hindrance to your intentions. If you pray with pride like the the pharisee versus the tax collector in the bible, God will not be pleased. Lastly, but not the least, if you pray for the wrong reasons that is, selfishness, grudge and malice nothing will certainly happen because that goes contrary to the will of God.

The power of prayer transcends beyond the mere physical world. It is bigger than the universe because it comes from God's own hands. His love for us, his masterpiece creation, allows you to invoke that power in a disciplined and measured conditions. He only intends it to be used if it is for your good and without harming the good interest of others. You cannot fool His infinite wisdom to misuse that ability. Therefore, the great and freely available God-borrowed power of man is only as good as God intends it to be. Given that you invoke that faculty, it will often work in an unexpected, non-dictated, surprisingly beautiful and timely manner. God's ways sometimes work mysteriously and perfectly as planned.