It's one of the first rules you learn in Chemistry: add acid to water, not the other way around.
We do this because if you add water to acid, reactions occur that can cause the acid to boil and splash everywhere. Adding acid to water means that when the acid boils, it is the water that splashes. If either is going to splash on your skin, water is usually preferred.
I grew up as a Christian. I've known the "right" answers for as long as I've been alive. I went to Sunday School and Children's Church, went to the Youth Services and Christian schools. I've been surrounded by what people call "The Christian Bubble." But the bubble didn't keep the icky stuff out of my life, and the bubble didn't teach me the love of God.
I learned the love of God because the icky stuff reached me through the bubble.
That's not to say that I needed the bad things in my life for God to reach me. It's not to say that God put the bad stuff in my life to create an opening for himself. Sin has consequences, regardless of who sinned first, and the consequences tend to splash, like acid being mixed with water. You pour the acid into the water because if anything splashes on you, it's better for it to be the water and not the acid. But when we're surrounded by sin, it's as if someone forgot the basic chemistry rule and poured the water into the acid. Regardless of whether the sin was caused by you or not, the splash of the sin in the people around you burns you, too. No amount of "Christian Bubble" could have stopped the sin from reaching me.
So because of the acid burns caused by others to me, me to myself, and me to others, I needed a doctor. God is the only person capable of dealing with the acid burns of sin. It was because I was burned that I understood the love of God. It was because I knew it was unavoidable, both for me and the original splashes of sin, that I was able to be overwhelmed by God's care for me anyway.
The concept of the saying, "You've made your bed, now lie in it," seems to make the most sense. I made the acid burns. I should have to deal with them.
But through the grace and love of God, he deals with the burns so I don't have to.
God, the creator of the universe, loves you, and wants to be in relationship with you. Will you take the chance to be in relationship with him?
J. J. Hanna is a writer and reader who loves God and wants to help encourage others with what she knows and what she's learning. Answer her questions with a quick note and connect with her on social media. She's excited to hear from you!