Monday, June 16, 2014

Simplistically Beautiful

   Recently, since my son was born, I have been taking greater notice of the wonderful and simple things that God has so wonderfully created. For instance, the simple way that my son looks around at things, his tiny little hands and feet, or the way he already recognizes who is talking. These things are truly amazing to me. God created a small human being that has so many little body parts and yet God created them to be exactly as they are, to work in accordance with his little body and to function as a whole to show the glory that God deserves.
   I have seen the plants in my garden begin to grow rapidly and begin to bear some fruit. To know that they came merely from a small seed, that seems dead until placed int the ground, only to sprout forth new life is truly amazing. The way that plants grow truly shows the wonderful creative and sustaining power of God. He causes plants to grow, bear fruit and sustain us. It is hard to believe that anyone can look at such things and not be amazed by the beauty of God. However, we know that even though the creation screams the existence of God, there are many that choose to suppress the truths that God continually displays to them through His creation. (Romans 1)
   This is one of the reasons that I believe in a sovereign, reigning, wonderful God. There would be no way that we could sustain life, or hold life even together without God's continual sustenance. My son could not make his lungs work, to breathe in and out on his own. He could not make his bowels work to process the food he eats. He could not have even learned how to eat unless God had given him that insight and guided him throughout his formation and life so far. Plants will not just grow on their own. Yes, we know scientifically that there are certain things that are need to make plants grow and live, and yet, why do those things even work? Because God is there causing His creation to continually function in the way that He so sovereignly created it to. There has never been anything created that has always been there without failing to work or deteriorating. So, why then do we even begin to assume to think that God does not guide and shape everything that happens. If He wasn't doing so, the whole world would just fall apart and that would be the end of it. Particles are held together by seemingly nothing, at least scientifically. Yet, things still hold their shapes when created, and grow into the actual things that they sprout from, and little babies grow into adult humans. Why, because God's hands and words commanded it to be so. God sustains every part of creation and causes it to scream that He is there, and yet, so many people just turn away and say that they don't care, that they would rather honor themselves instead of their creator.

Thursday, June 12, 2014

My Son is Not Perfect, Merely Perfectly Created

   It has been just over two weeks now since my precious little son was born. During those two weeks I have continually heard people say that "he is perfect". Now, I know what they were trying to say. That he is beautiful, precious, sweet, wonderful, peaceful, joyful, calm, and created by God. However, my son is not perfect. Before you stop reading and think that I do not have a love and utmost pride in everything about my son, hear me out.
    People want to say that my son is perfect, well I cannot and will not ever say or agree to such a statement. To say such a statement, even in trying to say something else, is to say that you think my son is actually perfect. This cannot be. We see in Luke 18 that Jesus, in talking with those around Him says, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." (Luke 18:19 ESV) So, knowing this, how can I allow people to claim that my son is perfect? If no one except God is even good, how can I, or anyone else, claim that my son is perfect?
    I love my son with every ounce of my being and would do anything and everything for him. He can't take care of himself, feed himself, or even clean himself. Yet, I have no worries about his well-being. Scripture tells us that God will care for all of the needs, not wants, but actual needs of His children. So, not knowing the future or what God has planned for my son, I take my own strength and courage from the fact that God knows everything about my son. He knows that as he gets older, all those people that called him perfect will see his faults and sinful nature begin to show. God knows every piece of my sons body, He created it and knew him before time even began. I mean, if I cannot rest in knowing that God knows my son, created him, and knew him, actually knew him before the world even began, then what hope would I, am mere man, have in making sure that my "perfect" son has everything that he needs? I don't even stand a chance.
   Therefore, I rest. I know that my son has been born with his own quirks and sinful longings. Just because he is so small and helpless and cannot manifest them yet does not mean that they do not exist. In their existence, my son is so wonderful and sweet, and cuddly that I couldn't have even thought that God would bless me in such a way as to be given such a precious bundle to love and care for. And yet, the great part is that I can't even love him on my own, so God gives me love to be able to love my son as He has called me to. I don't have to worry about my ability to love my son enough. If I love God with all my heart and teach my son those same things, then I will love my son enough.
    Now, I know some people may read this and think that I am saying that God created my sweet boy with sin raging in his body. Quite the contrary, I believe that my son was perfectly created by our most wonderful Heavenly Father, but that due to sin entering the world upon the sin that occurred in the Garden of Eden, that my son does have a sin nature. I know that many people think that children learn to sin, but how would they do this? They begin doing things that they have never seen before and therefore they can not have learned them from someone else. This is what leads me to reject the statement that my son is "perfect". Not because I do not love him and think that he is the most wonderful little bundle that I have ever seen, but because scripture clearly tells us that no one is perfect but God alone. It is because of this that I must assert that even though my boy is amazing in every way, God's designs are positively incredible, he is not perfect, but merely perfectly created.