Parent Connection - 2.16.2020

A Bigger Little World

Objective: Students will understand how to have an intelligent conversation about evolution and will be challenged to trust God’s design.

Key Scripture: Genesis 1:24-25

Key Thought: What do you mean by that?

Lesson Summary: Tonight’s lesson was the second in a four-part series called “What? A Conversation About Worldviews, Creation, Evolution, Darwin, Consequences, Facts, Faith, Science, Semantics, Finches, Fossils, Microscopes, and Mousetraps.” Having conversations with people about evolution (or any other worldview) is difficult. This week, students learned how asking the question “What do you mean by that?” allows them to have an intelligent conversation about evolution without being confrontational. This question helps us get clarity on what other people mean when they use words like “evolution.” People can mean several things when they say the word “evolution.” We focused on the two most common:

1. Microevolution – Microevolution is simply change within kind or species and it is perfectly compatible with what we know to be true.

2. Macroevolution – On the other hand, Macroevolution teaches that over millions of years creatures can change into other species through the process of mutation and natural selection.

One important concept that debunks macroevolution is called Irreducible Complexity. In a nutshell, an organism that is irreducibly complex is one that could not possibly have evolved through numerous slight modifications over millions of years because all of the pieces would have had to be there for the organism to operate in the first place. (Think about how a mousetrap is useless if one of the pieces is missing.) As it turns out, there are several organisms that fit this category, putting macroevolution on shifty ground.

Students were reminded that God is orderly and there is no chance or accident with Him. Each of us is made the way we are for a particular reason, even if it’s hard to understand. Our lives are meaningful and purposeful, not the result of chance or mistake. We can trust God’s design.

Have you ever asked God, “What do you mean by that?” Take some time this week to share with your student an experience where you questioned God’s design and intention. What did you do as a result? Encourage your student to deal with their doubts and trust God’s design. Help them find answers to the questions that are challenging their faith. Great resources are available at Stand to Reason (www.str.org).

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