November/December 2007 Editor's Viewpoint
Editor's Viewpoint
Prophecies and the Power of Choice

Vicky Thompson

When people experience a crisis of faith, some may turn to the prophecies of ancient cultures and religions to make sense of world events. Mayan prophecies and the cross-over success of the apocalyptic Christian Left Behind series, which has sold more than 50 million books, show that many people want to know how war and conflicts will affect the future of humanity.

But what if these prophecies are just a powerful metaphor about the choice we all hold to create lasting peace or endless suffering in our world?

Launched in 1995, Left Behind is a series of 12 end-times thrillers based on the New Testament book of Revelation. In the story line, when the rapture and final reckoning occur, God draws up millions of Christians to heaven. Millions of non-Christians remain on Earth - left behind. The series covers a period of seven years called the tribulation, during which earthbound humans still have a chance to turn to Jesus as their savior. At the end of the period, Jesus appears and begins a 1,000-year reign, presented in the final book of the series.

Many scholars believe that the book of Revelation can be interpreted as a symbolic metaphor about God exacting his retribution upon the Roman Empire for persecuting early Christians and oppressing the Jewish population. John, the author who wrote Revelation while imprisoned by the Romans, expressed great anger and hope that God would unleash the fury of justice upon the Roman Empire.

Revelation is a powerful example of how humans choose to deal with personal and societal pain and suffering. Its author, John, chose to use his creational power to write a message that damned the very empire that took away his freedom.

Heart of the Issue

You have free will to make choices and take responsibility for the outcome.

We all hold the power to choose reactions, feelings, thoughts and actions in response to situations that cause us pain. We are like master painters, holding our brush of choice in different ways. Some use bold strokes, splattering paint on those around them. Others use delicate movements, staying within the canvas. And some lay down the brush, never realizing that creation needs to be done. We are the master painters of our own lives, and we choose how to create our masterpieces.

Each choice point in our life acts like a moment of creation in the following ways:

Free will. Our little can of paint holds our free will, which represents our creative energy store of potential possibilities that we will choose to create in our lives.

Potential possibilities. When you dip your paint brush into your little can of possibilities, you may choose to create many realities, and some may be different from your divine plan.

Separate realities. As you lay your brush upon the canvas of your life, your thoughts, emotions, feelings and actions act like the bristles on the brush, creating realities separate from your divine plan. Using your little disconnected can of creation, these separate realities often do not reflect the essence of your higher spirit-self. The energies and experiences of your life are often not a true reflection of your divine plan.

Divine plan. As master painters, when we decide to pull from a greater source of creation, we access the power of our divine plan with God, the great Spirit of the universe. The energy of the little can of possibilities and separate realities merges back into God's great creational energy. Using our free will as master painters, we choose to create our divine plan on Earth through experiences that provide opportunities to choose greater reconnection with Spirit.

Heaven on Earth. Through an open, loving connection with the God of our hearts, we become master creators and instruments of Spirit, letting the power and love of God illuminate the world through our choices.

The dark destruction of the world becomes a viable choice when we forget the love and compassion dwelling within. Through a spiritual practice of listening to the still, small voice within, we can choose to create a peaceful world of the heart.

-Vicky Thompson