God made the apricot.

And in the center of the apricot, God placed a Hershey’s Kiss.

The same with the apple.  And the cherry, and the peach.  Delicious, sweet fruit, and in the middle, a nice lump of chocolate.  Or warm caramel.  Maybe nougat?

No, this is not a game of Candy Land.  (Or Candy Crush.)

It’s just the way I think things ought to be.   Doesn’t it make sense that if God created everything, and called it good, and created us to enjoy the bounty of this earth, there might have been a few more gumdrops and a few less pits?

I think so. However…

Do you know what’s really in the center of those fruits, listed above?

CYANIDE.

That’s right.  Right in the middle of your favorite fruits, a deadly toxin.  It boggles the mind.

Now don’t worry.  The cyanide comes from the seeds and kernels and pits, and you’d have to ingest A LOT of those innards to get sick.

Still…

It seems like a strange arrangement for creation.  Something tasty and sweet and lifegiving on the outside, but poisonous at the core.

It sounds like the kind of a gift a wicked witch might give in a fairy tale, but not the sort of thing a Loving God would create.

Apparently, God is more complicated than I thought.

Apparently, God is not Willy Wonka.  God did not create a world where we can eat every bit of the scenery, and lick the wallpaper too.

Apparently, God did not set the world to be our buffet, where everything is just laid before us, easily accessible.

I’m not just talking about food, now.  I’m talking about Life on Earth.

It did not come gift wrapped for us.  In fact, we come crying and innocent to it.

Our lives have pits in them.  Tough places.  Toxic places.  Challenges and cautions that we must face.

Life, the way God designed it, is not chocolate filled.

Life has pits.

But somehow, in the confronting of those daily perils, have you noticed?

Life is sweeter.

Have a great week,

Mitch