BEGIN WITH GOD By Noel Serrano from The Gala Foundation 2020

Just like he did at the outset of creation, God can take the formless voids of our lives, give them shape, and speak light into them. There is a saying, “First things first.” Well, the first thing is God. Our passage from Genesis begins this way. It says, “In the beginning God . . .” The Bible begins with God. It begins with the account of God creating the heavens and the earth and everything in between: stars and insects, trees and galaxies, planets and animals, the birds of the air and the fish of the sea, not to mention human beings, us. In giving his account of creation the author of Genesis presupposes the existence and basic character of God as the one who creates all things and orders all things. He is the one who has made us. He is the one who has made everything. So if ever find ourselves wondering, where does life begin, Genesis orients us. If we are ever wondering what comes first, Genesis tells us. If we ever find ourselves wondering, where do I begin or where do I start in my own life, Genesis gives us a starting place: God. That is where we start. Or at least that is where we should start. Whatever our views of science and the Bible, of evolution and creation – questions that I am not going to address today – if this passage teaches us anything, it teaches us that life begins with God. God was in the beginning – and, in fact, God was prior to the beginning of creation. God has been on the scene long before we arrived and will be around long after we’re gone. God has always been and always will be. He is eternal. Life begins and ends with God. He comes first, not us.