Impact of Choices? and a verse of trouble

[BrotherMatthew]

Hello everyone,
Firstly, sorry for the possible lack of coherence in my writing it is early morning and this was writing more or lease stream of consciousness. The summary form for anyone not following is:
1. Do our choices have any real effect on an eternal outcome if God has predestined it all?
2. Acts 16:31 in a plain and clear reading seems to place salvation as following belief or faith, yet I understand that faith is from God and no one believes without already being reborn, how are these reconcilable?
...
Here is a question I'm sure can be clarified and it stems from my own personal experience, I do consider myself be of Calvinistic theology but as of late I've been working through inconsistencies in my beliefs one of these is:

I am very much missional minded, I have as i believe a God given passion for missions and evangelism, however since all are predestined is there any ultimate effect if I were to choose to not go evangelize today? is there any ultimate effect if I were to go down one street and not another for example?

While I firmly support the work, the though has crossed my mind that it is commanded but doesn't really change anything.

In a more general sense, does anything I do change anything? How does sin change anything in relation to everything being predestined, is it possible to be less than what God has 'planned for you' if its predestined?

Basically to what extent do our choices actually change anything?

Also on a different topic I was somewhat stumped by a question I answered last week,

Acts 16:31 in the most plain and clear reading presents salvation as a consequence following believe, yet it is my view that belief(faith) is of God and thus when one has faith they are already saved.

My response was along the lines of it being true that if one can believe then it is evidence they are already saved, anyone have a better response?

 

[heymikey80]

Hello everyone,
Firstly, sorry for the possible lack of coherence in my writing it is early morning and this was writing more or lease stream of consciousness. The summary form for anyone not following is:
1. Do our choices have any real effect on an eternal outcome if God has predestined it all?
2. Acts 16:31 in a plain and clear reading seems to place salvation as following belief or faith, yet I understand that faith is from God and no one believes without already being reborn, how are these reconcilable?

1. Yes, and 2. yes.

And maybe it'll help answer some of your questions that follow.

1. You're part of Creation. What you do factors into what Creation accomplishes.

There're some isolated things that God alone does in people to save them.

There're other things that we are intensely involved in. Check out Romans 10 -- Paul sees preachers as essential to spread the Gospel to others. Check out 1 Cor 9. Paul sees himself as winning Christians.

If today changes into tomorrow, your actions change things.

Now, that's not all there is to it. We get the impression somehow that we can make people Christians. But we can't. We have a role, and it's important to winning people to Christ -- but God is doing the conversion, not us. We're a "means" -- we're the step-stones people walk on. But the One moving people along the path to salvation is God the Holy Spirit.

So we shouldn't go into a missionary endeavor thinking that if we work hard enough, we shall save this or that person. God brings the life. We bring the Bread.

2. People are saved through faith. Faith is relying on Christ. We "sit in the ark" that saves us.