Today in Sunday school, my four year old boy was taught about how God created the Earth. And then he was given the opportunity to create. A blank sheet was placed in front of him. A clean slate. A fresh start. He was given flower stickers to choose from, to place where he wanted to. He was given star stickers, tree leaves, acorns, and many of God's other creations to place anywhere he'd like. And it was so. It was a lesson he enjoyed and he spoke highly of his creation on the ride home. When we walked thru the door, he showed his daddy what he had created with conviction. Then, as I made lunch, my four year old son sat on the kitchen floor and piece by piece dismantled and destroyed his creation. When asked why, he matter-of-factly stated because he "wanted to". My husband pointed out that God does the same thing. God created the Earth and then he rips it apart. "We just had a Hurricane, right?", he used as an example and then sarcastically added, "Maybe God is a four year old boy." I thought about that. I thought about how God grants people blessings and then... in the spur of the moment... without any warning... he destroys some aspect of their lives... leaving behind a trail of collateral damage. Or at least that is the way it seems. At times. Maybe God IS a four year old boy??
Or maybe God protects us because he knows things that we don't know, but to nip-it-in-the-bud he has to re-arrange the landscape, re-adjust relationships, bring grief, terror and fear to re-shape us. Build us up. Make us stronger. For what we MAY encounter down the road. To give us a clean slate. A fresh start. Because we are forgiven. Time and time again.
I choose to believe the latter.
