Is Life an Accident? (Part 1 of 2)
Carey Kinsolving
2011-10-31
Editor's Note: Carey Kinsolving is off. The following
column originally was published in 2007.
"If life were an accident, why would we be here on
the Earth?" asks Jenna, age 6.
The "why" question is what separates humans from
animals and other living things. Animals don't ask
"Why?" They don't question their destiny or pose
existential questions. Dogs don't long to be cats. They
instinctively chase cats.
"Why?" is reserved for human beings. We long for
purpose, meaning and destiny. Without it, we turn into
mush.
Kill desire, and we languish in apathy and
indifference. People who express feelings of
hopelessness are sent to counselors. Isn't this the
height of irony to those who think life is an accident?
If we're just accidents spinning through the universe,
why should we have purpose?
"There is a reason for everything!" says Whitney, 9.
"God doesn't make mistakes, and we aren't. We know God
made us for a good reason. God loves you!"
What is it about movies like "Braveheart," "Chariots
of Fire" and "Gladiator" that stir men's hearts? Women
flocked to "The Princess Bride," "Gone With the Wind"
and "Sleepless in Seattle." Why? As author John Eldredge
says in his book "Dare to Desire," men long for a heroic
battle, an adventure and a beauty to rescue. Women long
"to be pursued and fought for, to be swept up in a great
adventure, to be the beauty."
"In the long run, it doesn't matter how well we
perform or what we accomplish — a life without heart is
not worth living," Eldredge writes. "To lose heart is to
lose everything."
The Bible says God has placed eternity in our hearts
(Ecclesiastes 3:11). People who listen to their hearts
will hear the question "Why?" Those brave enough to
follow this inner voice will find God.
Those who don't listen to their hearts live
contradictory lives. No one gets out of bed in the
morning without some purpose for living. If I'm just a
blob of cells that came together by accident, why not
stay in bed and become a bigger blob?
"God created all things on purpose," says Carlee, 7.
"He wanted something to enjoy, and that thing is you and
me."
"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and
He (God) delights in his way," wrote King David (Psalm
37:23). God created us for his good pleasure, but he
also made us to enjoy fellowship with him.
The accidental or evolution worldview can never
satisfy our deepest desires. Many who embrace this
worldview cast off all restraints. Why not? If there's
no purpose and no God, why not go for max pleasure?
King David, the man after God's own heart, had a
radically different view of pleasure from the one we see
portrayed in the media. Speaking of God, he wrote: "You
will show me the path of life; in your presence is
fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures
forevermore" (Psalm 16:11).
Pleasure with the right purpose confirms our reason
for living and fulfills our deepest desires. People who
live as atheistic hedonists settle for too little
pleasure. God wants to take that deep cavern in our
souls and fill it to the point where it overflows with
joy, purpose and spirituality, which Jesus described as
rivers of living water.
We can't have purpose in life without the source of
life, says Aaron, 10, "God created you for a good reason
because he loves you. Just imagine when you are older,
and you have only one son. Would you give him up for
people who sin? God did that for us."
Part 2
Listen to a talking book, download the "Kids Color Me
Bible" for free, watch Kid TV Interviews and travel
around the world by viewing the "Mission Explorers
Streaming Video" at www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org. Bible
quotations are from the New King James Version. To find
out more about Carey Kinsolving and read features by
other Creators Syndicate writers, visit the Creators
Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2011 CAREY KINSOLVING
DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.
