Nature, Nurture or Choice?

Nature, Nurture or Choice?
What really shapes us? What role does nature play (biology, genealogy, DNA/genes etc.) What about nurture (stages of growth, influence from others, environment etc.)?

How does my personality develop? What is the key that makes one identical twin so different from another twin in personality and choices?  Do I really have a choice in life or am I determined by forces around and within me? Do I have control? If so, how much? What causes mental illness and other conditions like addiction?

I have a fundamental belief - or let's call it a theory. I call it the three intersecting rings of causality. Essentially, all three work together, shaping us, but choice is a key determining factor. This comes from my Christian belief and observations and experiences in working with mental illness and addiction for over 38 years.

Simply put, God made us with the power of the freedom of choice. However, when we are not connected to God - not born again - our lower nature (or sinful nature) will always tend to impact our choices negatively. Humanity is in pain due to this disconnection from God. I call this primary pain. This disconnection the Bible says results from sin and says we are born into sin. This is explained in the "doctrine of man" in theology.

Paul says it well. "The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. Rom 7:14,15

The Bible, in Romans 7 explains this "the law of sin and death" that affects us all. In other words, where the three rings intersect and overlap we have another key factor, our lower nature - which potentially impacts and contaminates everything.

The scripture below gives the Christian enormous HOPE because it says we can break the negative, destructive cycle by CHOOSING to let the Holy Spirit control our mind and produce the fruit of the Spirit, life and peace. This is part of the "doctrine of Salvation" in theology.

"So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. Romans 8:6 NLT