God and the Girl

The body of a little girl laid lifeless in the hospital, tubes and wires were strewn about her bed, and the doctor was announcing her time of death.

She had passed away due to COVID-19, and her last thought was of her parents telling her that God does things for a reason, even the bad. You see, she was wondering why she had to die in such a way, but her parents were not allowed in the room with her due to quarantine protocol, and she was scared to ask the staff in their intimidating hazmat suits.

The little girl could rest easy knowing that she was about to get the opportunity to ask God, directly, why it was He let her suffer and die alone.

The little girl had passed on and entered the outskirts of Heaven, the fear and sinking loneliness she felt was now gone. Going through her head, the only thing, was the burning desire to know "Why?"

She wanted to know why it was that God would allow her, and others, to die in such a terrible way.

Noticing there was a line to get through the pearly gates, she took her place in the queue and the line kept forming behind her.

Time seemed to stretch on forever, just like the line never seemed to shorten nor move. So she took it upon herself to begin asking the people around her why they thought God let her die.

"Excuse me, stranger," the girl tugged at the stranger's shirt in front of her as she inquired, "Why did God let me die?"

The stranger yelled at her, "That is a pretty silly question, when God has given you the answer straight from His mouth by His Word, the Holy Bible. If you really want to know what God has to say about this instead of asking your question to just anyone, you should study His Word and it will become quite clear to you what God's reasons are!"

This scared the girl, tears began to well in her eyes and she tried to run to the front of the line. Another person reached out and grabbed her.

"Let me go!" the little girl screamed out and thrashed about, but the stranger would not relent.

"Calm down, little missy," the stranger said wiping her tears away, "I'd like to answer your question for you."

The little girl trusted this stranger and listened intently.

"God killed you for the same reason He gave to all of the children He drowned in the great flood. Whatever that reason was!" and he burst into laughter.

This made the little girl uncomfortable, though it made more sense than the last guy, but another person beckoned her to come forward in the line having overheard the conversation.

She did not notice that the line was growing shorter quite quickly, and she was nearing the pearly gates.

As the girl approached this stranger, the stranger called out, "Stop listening to these people. The answer as to 'why' is, sadly, that death is a part of life and nobody can control how they die or when but death isn't the end; it is only the beginning and eventually you will see your family and everyone you love again."

The girl felt this did not answer her question at all, and the confusion only continued to well in her heart and mind.

Suddenly, a deep voice called out to the girl and a bright figure gestured her to the front.

"Come to me my child," the voice intoned deeply, "For I am the one who will seek to answer your question without bias nor spite."

The girl was entranced by the warmth she felt in the voice, and soon found herself standing before God.

"Why, God, why did you do it?" she asked on after him as he bent down to pick her up and carry her through the pearly gates of Heaven. As they walked down the streets paved with gold, he answered her question softly and in earnest.

"Because, my innocent child, you were placed on Earth to teach humans a lesson. I'm sorry to have used you as a pawn, but it seems humans only learn by way of pain and anger. They haven't heard our wildlife cry. They haven't learned that the sky is actually falling. The only way to get through to humans, who have lost what life is all about and only care for monetary gain and power, is to strike them directly in their hearts."

This answer shook the girl to her core, but she understood now, and valued what God had to say. Her confusion, and curiosity were sated.

"My child, please, continue to ask such wonderful questions of me whenever they arise. This is why I made you, to hold me accountable and spread my love of everything and everyone. Just as your questions carried you to me, so shall I now carry you through paradise evermore."

God and the girl wandered Heaven for eternity, her in His arms, and Him offering her everything her heart desired. They could be found swimming in the lakes, painting the skies, and playing in the halls of Heaven. All the while, God answered every question she had, and they were happy with one another.

Should God exist, He is not rigid nor is He dogmatic. God created us to be curious, and we created religion to subjugate one another. The only thing that God wants from us is to live our lives, to cherish all that we have and all those around us. Yet, for the sake of the writings of man, even outside of the pearly gates, people will cling to their dogma and see themselves standing in the line to heaven forever, denied by their own rigidity.

God wants your questions, your every question, good or bad. God wants you to explore every facet of life, good and bad. God is not some dogmatic, rigid ideologue, who would sooner act like a human than a God. Stop projecting your ignorance onto the Almighty, and question every teaching brought forth by the follies of man lest you be spreading the works of Satan.

• Person 1: T "tsadjatko"
• Person 2: Randy Godwin
• Person 3: Steven Escareno
• God: Shauna L Bowling

I feel it is appropriate to thank all those who contributed and participated in the forum post I made, especially the lovely, beautiful Shauna who so splendidly answered the girl's question. She really hit the nail on the head as far as doing God some justice is concerned.

May we all continue to strive for knowledge, love, and excellence in this world; the first progressive step is always the one that goes beyond the self.