A real highlight of my year is when I get to speak to young kids at camps, churches, and schools. I love being around young kids and the more I do it the more I realize why Jesus encouraged us to come to Him like little children. They’re honest, trusting and have some great insights. At a camp a few years ago one of the boys I was having lunch with asked if God created computers and another one asked if I had homeowner’s insurance. I asked him what he was planning.
Here are a couple questions kids have asked me in the past and hopefully some accurate and scriptural answers.
If God is Good, Why Does Bad Stuff Happen?
At the very beginning of time God created the world and it was
perfect. There were no hurt feelings, no sickness, no pain, everybody
got along, and people could talk to God just like you were talking
to a friend. But when Adam and Eve, the first people God created,
disobeyed Him, their actions did two things: they broke their relationship with
God and they invited evil into the world.
And now even nature is messed up. We have hurricanes and fires and
all kinds of natural disasters. And because God has given us the freedom
to make choices for our lives, people end up hurting one another.
People hurt each other, they get sick and sometimes even die but that
was never God’s original plan for all of us. Whew. Sounds bad huh?
Yeah but the good news is there’s good news. And God has a plan to
bring us all back to Him.
And sometimes it’s the hard stuff like pain, sickness and loss
that opens us up to getting closer to God. Always remember that
God is in control of everything, and He wants only the best for us,
even when things are hard.
What’s God’s Favorite Thing?
This is an easy question to answer. You want to know God’s
favorite thing in the entire universe?
It’s YOU!
Even though God created the Pacific Ocean and
Utah and The Grand Canyon and the Rocky Mountains and
India, His favorite thing He ever made is you.
In fact, the Bible says God thinks of you as His special treasure.
You’re His Masterpiece. And even though God can do
anything and everything and He loves what He’s created, still
His very favorite creation is you. He loves you so much that
He even sent Jesus down here to let you know what God is like.
And He even had Jesus take the punishment for all the bad stuff
you’ve ever done so you and God can be close. We’ll talk about
that in a few chapters.
I realize these are quick and simple answers to questions that theologians have wrestled with for centuries but hopefully they’ll give you some encouragement today.
Remember “This is the day the Lord has made,” it wasn’t an accident or just a 24-hour period. He made it with you and me in mind “So let us rejoice in it!
