Did God Mess Up?



My buddy told me about a recent conversation with his four-year-old daughter in the car. Somehow, they conversed about God and his daughter asked who God was. My friend replied that God is the creator of all things. The little girl looked out the window, pondered the answer for a moment, and then said, “Did He make a mess?” Out of the mouth of babes.

When we look out our window and reflect on the division within our country and the events worldwide, it’s not hard to wonder about the same thing. Did God make a mess? This is a worthwhile question and one that is asked by churchgoers and unbelievers alike. If the proof is in the pudding, then one could make a reasonable case that He did.

But the Bible tells a different story. It’s a story that tells us that God created all things and they were good in His sight, but things went terribly wrong when we humans chose ourselves over God. We would rather be in charge and trust our gut feelings rather than God’s. You know what happened next: things quickly got out of sorts.

The Bible reminds us not to take everything at face value; the chaos of this world does not undermine the everlasting goodness of God. That God desires to make all things new, though we have made a mess of the precious gift we have been given, only solidifies the fact that God is good and merciful. Instead of throwing all of us in the eternal trash can and starting again, God decided to redeem His wayward creation.

We often rush to sit in the judge's seat and put God on trial. However, we must never forget that Jesus has taken on the judgment we rightly deserved, allowing us to “evermore dwell him and he and us,” as the Prayer Book says.

We may have made the mess, but God is the One who cleaned it up. Thanks be to God!