The following is an excerpt from a new book by Richard Wolfram, published by Winged Publications. MISSION: Remember is a Christian fiction novel for teens, especially boys. It attempts to teach articles of faith in a subtle way within the story line. You can find out more at www.richardwolframauthor.com.
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“Sandy, tell me more about your ‘God thing’ stuff. My dad getting killed in a car wreck didn’t make sense to me. It still doesn’t. My dad, a good guy, a great father and an outstanding Marine always said, ‘Marines and God go together like spit and polish.’ If there is a God, He wouldn’t have let him die like that. My dad talked with me about God often. But since his death I can’t believe it.”
Sandy probably saw the pain in Jake’s eyes. “I pray God will help me say what you need to hear,” she said. “And say it in a way that reflects His love and strength for you.”
Sandy looked Jake square in the eyes and said, “Have you ever heard it said that God is love?”
“As a kid I remember my mom saying that all the time.” Then Jake remembered what Mic had told him about being lost in the forest. I bet Mic has a big smile on his face right now. He would know what a loving way Mom had with me. He would know that with a mom like her, I would experience what I needed to learn. He wants those memories to help me understand His love and move me closer to Him.
“Have you ever thought about what ‘God is love’ means?” Sandy asked. “‘God is love’ means nothing can come from Him but love. He loves me. He loves you. In fact, he loves everyone. So, when something happens that isn’t loving it isn’t of God. It’s from sin and Satan. That might sound too simple, but it really is simple. You just need to understand it in the context of life from the beginning.”
“From the beginning of what?” Jake asked.
“From the beginning of the world. I believe what it says in the Bible that in the beginning God created everything. When He completed His creating, He looked at everything and it was good. It was all perfect. Adam and Eve, the first two people He made, were good and perfect too. They had a perfect life in a perfect place that the Bible called the Garden of Eden. God loved them and provided everything they needed to live.”
“Yeah, yeah. I heard all that from my mom and church as a boy.”
Sandy continued, “It’s important to understand the beginning so you can understand God’s love. A lot of people think wrongly because of that lack of insight. Many don’t understand that there are evil forces at work against God and His love in the world. Forces that cause every kind of pain and discomfort imaginable. Forces responsible for sickness and death and heartache. Those forces came into being after God created His perfect world.”
“If that’s true,” Jake replied, “and only good can come from God, and God made everything perfect, then where did the evil forces come from?”
“That’s an age-old question that many people have asked,” Sandy said. “God’s Word tells us that an angel called Satan wanted to be on an equal level with God and rebelled against Him. He and his follower angels were kicked out of heaven to roam the earth. The ones who remained loyal to God will be with him forever serving Him as He desires.”
“So, angels serve God,” Jake said. That agrees with what Mic, Ace and Cal said.
Sandy said, “Satan, through a snake, tempted Adam and Eve with the same idea of being more like God by eating fruit from a tree that God had told them not to eat. They ate and the perfect relationship Adam and Eve had with God broke and resulted in them being cursed and kicked out of the Garden. The whole world received the curse.”
“I guess that doesn’t exactly answer the question but it’s all the Bible says about it,” Sandy said. “Someday when I’m with Jesus I might ask him about it.”
“So, you’re telling me that I can’t hold God responsible for my dad’s death? A true God could have stopped it, couldn’t He?”
“Death is the result of the broken relationship with God that Adam and Eve brought about because they went against God’s will. The Bible calls that sin. Sure, God could have prevented your dad’s death. But He didn’t. Only He knows why. What I do know is that God uses situations like that for His loving purposes. I know this because of God’s response to Adam and Eve after they rebelled against Him. Their punishment matched the result of the rebellion. It brought about physical and spiritual death, and painful labor in making a living and in childbearing. But He also gave them a promise that He would make their relationship right again by sending a descendant of Adam and Eve who would destroy Satan and sin and death.”
“Wow!” Jake said. “I’ve heard some of that before but never in a way that I could understand. I need to think about it.”
“There’s more I can tell you, but God has blessed us with such a beautiful day. Let’s go for a walk.”
