Nat Crawford - Executive Coach, Speaker, Leader

Proverbs 19:21 says "Many are the plans in a man's heart; but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." This is why I strive to not cling onto my plans too tightly. This week I was delivered unexpected information. Life changing. I have told hundreds and hundreds of people "Today is normal and tomorrow your son has cancer. Today is normal and tomorrow you are raising your kids by yourself. Today is normal and tomorrow you hit the jackpot." It was one of those weeks for this guy. I am still sorting out the event. But a good friend ask me "What changed about  you  from last week till now?" The answer: Nothing. I am still me with the same skills, abilities, experiences, degrees, etc. It is only information that has changed. Thank you, Tom. Having said all this I have taken advice given very seriously about dealing with unexpected events. The next time life throws you a curveball try these 5 steps. Don't panic.  Where's The Hitchh...

Sorry to keep everyone waiting over a month for my conclusion. School, work, family and my other blog have been consuming me. I will not abandon this, So without further delay, here is my conclusion on 4 Views of Divine Foreknowledge. As I read these books I felt torn between two positions: Middle-Knowledge & the Augustinian-Calvinist view. For the record, I come from a background of 5 point Calvinism. I good resource to understand what that means is on R.C. Sproul's website .  I think both hold powerful arguments for an understanding of God's foreknowledge. Molinism (middle-knowledge) would posit that God knows all counterfactuals. He knows all possible universes He could have made. He chose this one because it accomplished His will and His purpose the best. The Augustinian-Calvinist view posits that God determines all things. This does not mean he makes bad people do bad things, rather He allows it in His good and sovereign plan.  After thinking, praying, and ta...

This past Spring  I read a book called  Divine Foreknowledge: Four Views  by James Beilby. If you are interested in purchasing this, you can do so on  Amazon.com . This is a comparison of four views of God's foreknowledge from different scholars. What do we mean by God's foreknowledge? We mean what does God know and when does He know it. My last post, I summarized William Lane Craig's view of God's foreknowledge: Middle-Knowledge.  Check it out here . This week I will look at the divine-foreknowledge view, which is fleshed out by Paul Helm. I will refrain from commentary until then last addition. Let me reiterate, I am not claiming which of these is my view, but rather a concise summary of the authors explanation and view of these opinions on God's foreknowledge.  Divine Foreknowledge The first argument for the Calvinist view is the “straight causal sense: God’s knowledge is the cause of things.” [1] This means there is no difference between what God...

This past Spring  I read a book called  Divine Foreknowledge: Four Views  by James Beilby. If you are interested in purchasing this, you can do so on  Amazon.com . This is a comparison of four views of God's foreknowledge from different scholars. What do we mean by God's foreknowledge? We mean what does God know and when does He know it. My last post, I summarized David Hunts's view of God's foreknowledge: simple-foreknowledge.  Check it out here . This week I will look at the middle-knowledge view, which is fleshed out by William Lane Craig. I will refrain from commentary until then last addition. Let me reiterate, I am not claiming which of these is my view, but rather a concise summary of the authors explanation and view of these opinions on God's foreknowledge.  Middle-Knowledge View by William Lane Craig Counterfactuals is a key concept in formulating the middle-knowledge view. Counterfactuals are “conditional statements in the subjunctive moo...

Just to recap, this past Spring  I read a book called  Divine Foreknowledge: Four Views  by James Beilby. If you are interested in purchasing this, you can do so on  Amazon.com . This is a comparison of four views of God's foreknowledge from different scholars. What do we mean by God's foreknowledge? We mean what does God know and when does He know it. My last post, I summarized Gregory Boyd's view of God's foreknowledge: open theism. Check it out here . This week I will look at the simple-foreknowledge view, which is described by David Hunt. I will refrain from commentary until then last addition. Let me reiterate, I am not claiming which of these is my view, but rather a concise summary of the authors explanation and view of these opinions on God's foreknowledge.  The Simple-Foreknowledge View by David Hunt A general affirmation among Christians is that God is omniscient. God therefore knows all truths. His very nature is all-knowing, therefore withou...

This past Spring I read a host of books ranging from topics including: Orthodoxy, the creation debate, philosophy of religion, postmodernism, arguments from the existence of God, and God's foreknowledge. What does this mean? If time allows a lot of content for the blog and website. This is the first of the blogs I will be writing. I read a book called Divine Foreknowledge: Four Views  by James Beilby. If you are interested in purchasing this, you can do so on Amazon.com . This is a comparison of four views of God's foreknowledge from different scholars. What do we mean by God's foreknowledge? We mean what does God know and when does He know it. Over the next four weeks, we'll summarize four views starting with open theism as explained by Gregory Boyd. I will refrain from commentary until then last addition. Let me reiterate, I am not claiming which of these is  my view, but rather a concise summary of the authors explanation and view of these opinions on God's fore...

We are only 3 weeks away from my 3 week class on In Defense of the Resurrection. If you want a brief snapshot of what we'll be learning, watch this 3 minute video. If you want to get answers to these questions, you'll want to attend. Can we trust the Bible's account? Is there any extra-biblical evidence for this account? Did Jesus really die? Was the tomb really empty? Isn't this just a fable? How can I defend the resurrection succinctly? Join us, Sunday mornings at 9am March 30 - April 13th, at First Free Church. Three great resources for this topic: