Do You Believe God Made Our World?

Claire Black: This is True Girl, a podcast for girls and their moms. Together, we’ll explore God’s truth for us one drive at a time. Buckle up! You’re about to grow closer to each other and closer to Jesus! 

We’re about to drive much farther that you were probably planning today. Our destination: the Garden of Eden. It’s where we’ll help you explore an important question: Do you believe God created our world?

Let’s get moving for season 3, episode 6 titled, “Do You Believe God Made Our World.” Here’s Dannah.

Dannah Gresh: Welcome back true girls! It’s me, Dannah.

Staci Rudolph: And me, Staci. 

Dannah: Staci, do you believe God created this world?

Staci: Absolutely! I mean, it’s just all too perfect. I think the things I look at the most are like the ocean, the way the moon controls the tide so the oceans don’t flood the earth. 

Dannah: Yeah, right. 

Staci: And the way the sky looks painted with all kinds of colors at the sunrise and sunset. 

Dannah: Beautiful. 

Staci: It’s just too calculated and beautiful to be a mistake, if you ask me.

Dannah: Me, too! I believe God created our world. But lots of people don’t believe that. They believe in a theory called evolution. In fact, if I’m honest, you hardly even hear the world “theory” anymore. A theory means it is just an idea and no one can prove it. Of course, we can’t prove creation either.

Staci: True, right.

Dannah: I find it easier to believe that all this intelligent, beautiful life was created by an intelligent, beautiful God rather than to believe it happened by accident. And every now and then, I like to just slow down and fill my mind with truth by reading the Creation story. And we want to invite you to do that with us today. 

Staci: We’re gonna hear all of Genesis 1. Listen to it with us. There’s something really special about letting these words of truth sink into our hearts. 

Dannah: Chizzy is going to read Genesis 1 to us, and I have an important assignment. Everytime you hear the words “it is good” or something like that, I want you to say it out loud with your mom or whoever is with you. Okay, let’s practice! “It is good.”

Staci: It is good.

Dannah: Okay. Think of what you are about to hear like a story rather than just reading Scripture, because it is actually a story. Here is our great story-teller, Chizzy Anderson.

Chizzy Anderson: 

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 

And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 

And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” 

And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth. 

And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.”

So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” 

And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (Gen. 1:1–31)

Dannah: Hmmm. I love that chapter of the Bible. 

Staci: It is just such a good reminder of God’s goodness and faithfulness to us. 

Dannah: Okay, let’s dig into it a little bit. What does it mean that God kept saying “it is good?” 

Staci: I think it’s kind of like when you put a red, ripe strawberry—you know the real juicy kind—right in your mouth, and you go, “Mmmm. This is good!” You’re saying, “I enjoy this!” It’s the bomb.

Dannah: Exactly! When God made His creation, He liked it so much, and enjoyed it so much that He said, “I enjoy you!” 

You know what, Staci? I like to say it back to God when I look at His creation. Whether I’m looking at a beautiful sunrise or sunset like you mentioned earlier, or if I’m watching my horses run in a field, I sometimes whisper, “God, it is so good.” I’m saying it to God. I’m agreeing with Him. I’m saying, “God, when I look at your creation, I enjoy it, and I enjoy you!”

Staci: That is beautiful Dannah. There are so many psalms that say “I will bless the Lord.” That is such a great way to praise Him, by telling Him He is good!

Dannah: Well, I love these three words so much, “it is good,” that I had some friends write this song so that you could sing “it is good” back to God anytime you sing this song.

I said last time that my favorite song to hear you guys perform on stage is “Celebrate.” But my actual favorite song on the whole True GirlOriginal Album is this one. I cried when I heard it for the first time. It’s kind of my prayer that you might look at something He created, whether it’s a horse, or your dog, or a sunset, or the ocean, and listen to this song and say back to God, “It is good.” The song is titled, of course, “It Is Good.”

The morning light,
The birds that fly,
Creation comes alive when You speak.
The day, the night,
The water under the sky,

You breathe life into everything.
I believe you,
See the beauty that You make.
Rocks cry out, praise Your name,
Forever, they sing forever.

You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
It is good.
It is good.

From deep inside,
To the color of my eyes,
Every detail is a masterpiece.
You made me whole,
My dreams You’ve always known.
When I feel broken I will still believe.
Oh . . .

I see the beauty that You made.
I’ll cry out praise Your name.
Forever, I’ll sing forever.
You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
It is good.
It is good.

It’s in Your image everything holds together.
And I stand in awe
’Cause You govern the stars and You hold my heart
In Your hands.
You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
You make all things,
You make all things,
And You say it is good.
It is good.
It is good.

Staci: Did you need your tissues, Dannah? 

Dannah: You know, I do every time I hear that song. 

Staci: I’m sure that you guys spotted a thousand and one lines in this song that are based off of Genesis 1. We hope this helps you believe that God created this world. Take time later today to notice one specific thing God created—-maybe it's your dog or a sunset—and in that moment we want you to praise Him for His creation. Tell Him, “It is good!”

Dannah: That is a great challenge, Staci! I’m going to take you up on it. 

Claire: “It is good!” I hope you can listen to this song whenever you feel like praising the Lord for creating this amazing world. On this whole season of True Girl, we’ve been evaluating how music makes us feel. Well, that song makes me feel peaceful. 

You can download the whole True Girl Original album and find more resources to bring moms and daughters closer to each other and closer to Jesus at MyTrueGirl.com.

Well, I don’t want to put any pressure on you, but I sure hope you’ll be with us next time when we talk about resisting peer pressure. 

The True Girl podcast is produced by Revive Our Hearts, calling women of all ages to the true source of beauty: God’s Word!

“It is Good” music and lyrics by Rachael Lampa, Carmen Hadley, and David Thulin.