The Theology of a Kindergartner

I did an audio interview with my five year old son Luke, on his understanding of the Christian faith. Here is a transcript of our interview.

Me: Luke, who made the world?

Luke: God

Me: Can you tell me what happened when God made the world?

Luke: He made grass, He made trees, and He made water, and He made animals, and He made dolphins, and He made every single fishy, and He made the sky, and He made birds, and He made people, and He made trees and grass.

Me: Were the people good? 

Luke: A little bit and then the devil turned into a snake and tricked them, that they could eat the apple and they got sent out of the garden.

Me: What is it called when people do bad things?

Luke: Sin.

Me: Is there anyway to stop sin?

Luke: Um . . . um.

Me: Do you sin?

Luke: Yes.

Me: Do I?

Luke: Yes.

Me: Well, how can we stop it?

Luke: By . . . um, fighting it

Me: Fighting it?

Luke: Yes.

Me: And if I try really really hard, I won't be a sinner anymore?

Luke: You still will be.

Me: Well, then who could stop it?

Luke: God.

Me: How would He do that?

Luke: By dying on the cross for us.

Me: Why did He need to do that?

Luke: To ... um ... take our sins away.

Me: How does that take away our sins?

Luke: Because He's powerful.

Me: Right, but why did He have to die? Can't He just forgive us?

Luke: Yes.

Me: Without dying?

Luke: But He forgived us and died.

Me: Did Jesus stay dead?

Luke: No. He came back alive.

Me: Where did He go after that?

Luke: To Heaven.

Me: What's He doing?

Luke: Watching us and . . . listening to us.

Me: Why?

Luke: Because He is watching over us.

Me: What do you mean listening to us? Does He like to listen to us?

Luke: Yes. When we speak to God.

Me: How do we do that?

Luke: By praying and singing songs about Him.

Me: You can talk to Him by singing songs?

Luke: Uh huh, singing songs about  Him.

Me: Why do we go to church?

Luke: To learn about God.

Me: Can't you learn about God at home?

Luke: Yes, in the Bible and you can read the Bible wherever you want.

Me: Then why do we need to go to church? What is different about going to church than reading the Bible at home?

Luke: There are more people at church than at home.

Me: Do we sometimes give at church?

Luke: Yes.

Me: What is that called?

Luke: Um . . . Giving to God.

Me: Offering?

Luke: Yes.

Me: What do you think they do with the money?

Luke: God takes it.

Me: Why would God need our money?

Luke: . . . I don't know.

Me: They use it to pay for the building and the lights and . . .

Luke: No! It's up in heaven when God gets it.

Me: The money?

Luke: Yeah.

Me: Why would He need money in heaven? The streets are made out of gold.

Luke: Because . . . the money is for the streets. 

Me: So, He uses our money to make more roads?

Luke: Yes.

Me: What should people who follow Jesus do when they see someone who is hurt?

Luke: Help them.

Me: What if we see someone who is homeless?

Luke: You give them a home.

Me: What if we don't have enough money to buy a new house for them.

Luke: Then we should chop down trees to make a little house for them. 

Me: But you would have to own the land that you put the house on. What could we do instead of giving them a house?

Luke: We could let them stay at our house.

Me: For how long?

Luke: Until they have enough money to buy a home.

Me: If you are a follower of Jesus and someone is mean to you, what should you do?

Luke: If you don't like what they are saying then just walk away.

Me: What if they hit you?

Luke: Then just ask them to stop.

Me: What if they don't?

Luke: Then go get a grownup.

Me: What if they are hurting someone else?

Luke: Then I would stop them.

Me: What do you think the worst sin is?

Luke: To kill.

Me: Why?

Luke: Because that's very very very bad. 

Me: Why is it worse than lying?

Luke: Because killing is making people die.

Me: Why should we read the Bible?

Luke: To learn more about God.

Me: Why do we need to learn more about God?

Luke: 'Cause if you don't know much about Him, then read the Bible.

Me: What if someone doesn't want to know about God?

Luke: Then you just . . . um . . . tell them about God.

Me: Why do we need to tell them?

Luke: Because if they don't know about God and they don't know about any other gods, then tell them about our God.

Me: What if they do know about other gods? should we still tell them about our God.

Luke: Yes.

Me: Why?

Luke: Because, there gods are fake and our God is real!

Thanks for doing the interview buddy.

Randumblog's Interview With Jerry Jenkins

     There are very few people (with a pulse) who have not heard of the Left Behind series from Jerry Jenkins and Tim LaHaye. They have sold over 70,000,000 copies and still continue to climb. Jerry Jenkins has a new book out called The Brotherhood (my complete review here).


     He agreed to do an e-interview for Randumblog about the book's release. I am excited about the chance to interview a writer who has authored over 175 books. Please feel free to share this article with others so we can get the word out about this amazing book.

Nate: Good morning Jerry. Thank you for agreeing to do this e-interview. I know you are a busy man so I will keep it brief. In fact this may be your first interview in a while that does not mention the sweeping success of the Left Behind series. Oops, I guess I just blew that one.                                                                                The Brotherhood is coming out on February 1st and I must say I am excited. What inspired you to do a cop drama?

Jerry: As the son of a police chief and the brother of two cops, I was raised in the milieu and always fascinated by it. I love police thrillers and cop shows on TV. And in a previous life (in the sixties) I actually worked three cases as an undercover drug buyer--a narc. Believe me, writing is an easier way to make a living. Plus, I set this story in Chicago, where I lived for 35 years, so this was sort of a labor of love. 

Nate: This is the first book that has actually moved me to tears and I am not just talking about the sniffles. I had to stop reading it for the rest of the day. Were you going for tears when you decided to take the story in a painful direction? 

Jerry: I teach that if there are no tears in the writer, there will be no tears in the reader. It's only fair that you cried while reading, as I cried while writing. I wasn't necessarily "going" for tears; I was just telling a story that happened to move me.  

Nate: The story's main character Boone Drake is very easy to relate to. Is he based off of anyone you know? 

Jerry: My characters are always composites of people I know. I might use one person's name, another's gender, another's hair, another's voice, etc. And I have lots of cops in my extended family, so their personalities, histories, and even elements of their cases find their way into the story. 

Nate: The plot involves police drama, loss, and even the mafia. I have always been a fan of mafia movies. How much research did you have to do on Chicago's seedy underworld? 

Jerry: Yes, I always do lots and lots of research. And I'm still doing it, as The Brotherhood is the first of a trilogy. 

Nate: The Brotherhood really handles the, 'Where's God when I'm hurting' question in a way I could understand. What would you like to see people take away from Boone Drake's experiences? 

Jerry: Hopefully each reader takes a personal message from the story--whatever he or she needs at the time. As you say, where-is-God-now is a big element here, so whether the reader is going through something as deep as Boone or just the normal struggles of life, there should be something here for him or her. 

Nate: Last question Jerry. I have been reading some interesting things on your Twitter account (@JerryBJenkins) about your recent trip to China. What was the single best moment of your trip? 

Jerry: On the way home Dianna and I stopped in Bangkok and met our sixth grandchild, an almost-four-year-old boy named Max. Our son and daughter-in-law haven't even met him yet, though they have been in the process of adopting him for three years. It was bittersweet. He's so cute and precious, and he's happy and in a good place, but it killed us to leave him. He needs a home and family, and we pray that will happen soon. 

Nate: Thank you again for your time. The Brotherhood is available in stores now or for order online at Amazon and other retailers. I am already looking forward to the next book in this series. 

Jerry: Thanks, Nate. Happy to say The Brotherhood is available for Kindle too.

Want more on The Brotherhood?
Check out author C.J. Darlington's interview with Jerry Jenkins
Get Randumblog for your Kindle