Thursday, August 20, 2009

Bedtime Stumblings

Every night, my wife Amy and I take turns lying with our six-year-old son Sam before he falls asleep. It’s his favorite time to ask questions, those particular ones I dread trying to answer.

“Dad, is God real?”Oh boy, here we go.

“Some people think so…” C’mon, don’t be a jerk. Tell him what you think. “I think so.”

“Then why can’t I see God? Is God a person?”

“Well, it’s more like a spirit.”

“So God’s a ghost? God died and now God’s a ghost?”

“Well, no, I don’t mean a spirit like that.” Then what do you mean? You’re losing him.

“Then what?”

“It’s like the force in Star Wars.” Idiot!

“But people can’t move things with their mind like Jedi.”

“Well, it’s more like God keeps things together.”

Pause. A long, long pause. I don’t know where to go from here. And then:

“Oh I get it,” Sam says. “The world is in pieces, and God has to hold them all in place or it will all fall apart.”

“Yeah.” I say. “God just keeps it all in place.”

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