Why?

   When I contemplate God and all He has done there are so many questions that I would love to have answered.  Though I can never fully understand His plan in this world I pray that He will grant me greater understanding in the next.

   As I think of God, the most common question that arises is why.  Why did He create the world?  Why did He make man and woman?  Why did He give us free will?  Above all why did His only Son become man and live among us, giving His life to free us from our sins?

   Why did He create the universe?  Certainly He didn’t need it.  As pure spirit He needs no physical place to exist.  Yet He desired to create and so created a universe that continues to expand and grow.  Uncountable stars and planets move in sync, never disrupting His design.

   He filled our world with animals of all kinds; mammals, fish, birds, and reptiles.  The world was designed to provide all the needed water, flora and fauna to support the animals He had created.

   Then He created humans.  He could have stopped with the animals and had a world that would have never rejected or defied Him.  Yet He created man and woman and gave them dominion over His creation.  We are to be the stewards of all He created.

   Genesis tells us that He created humanity in His image (see Gen 1: 24).  He gave us free will; the ability to choose rather than simply follow.  Our free will is our greatest gift yet we have used it to deny Him, reject Him and ignore Him.  He asks us to accept Him and love Him freely rather than demanding that we do so.  We have the choice of loving or not loving.

   We have repeatedly failed in our efforts to love Him and follow His plan.  We have sinned and have nothing of enough value to pay for our sins.  Jesus became man to pay the price for us.  He paid for the remission our sins by His death on the cross.

   When I consider all the “whys” I come to only one conclusion.  God did all these things because He loves us.  He loves us enough to give us all we need in this world; enough to show us the way to eternal happiness.  He loves us enough to die for us.

   As we prepare to celebrate the birth of our savior let us contemplate the depth of His love.  So great that He came to die for us and pay for our sins.  Let us give Him our love in return.