What's the Deal with Dinos?

I've always had a fascination with dinosaurs. There's something very mysterious about that subject that has always been very thought-provoking.

Recently, I asked some fellow staff members about "dinosaurs and the Bible," and got some interesting responses. The bottom line is that none of us really know when (in terms of the Bible) dinosaurs roamed the earth.

Scientific evidence shows that dinosaurs existed between 65 and 150 million years ago. Evidence also points to a meteorite smashing into the earth around 65 million years ago (coincidence? hmmm) that wiped out almost the entire dinosaur population. Changes in the climate as a result of this catastrophic event likely eliminated the rest of them over time, as they were unable to adapt quickly enough to survive.

However, some staunch Bible "literalists" don't think that is true, despite virtually foolproof methods of dating fossils. This line of thinking holds that dinosaurs co-existed with man only four or five thousand years ago, before the Flood (yes - the one with Noah).

If scientific evidence shows that the earth is billions of years old, I tend to believe that. I don't think that our God - the Creator - would deceive us into believing that the earth is only a few thousand years old, when all evidence shows that adaptations, climate changes, and geologic changes in the earth have been transpiring for hundreds of millions of years.

Again, I could be wrong. It's just my opinion. But, either way, I wouldn't claim to know all the answers. God gave us minds to think, to ponder, to ask questions, and to dig deeper for answers. Some questions have been answered over time, and many others remain great mysteries. And, I have no problem with that.

My problem lies with groups on both sides of the coin who say it MUST be "this way" or "that way." It's either totally a literal interpretation of scripture, or it's 100% scientific explanation. God and science - like it or not - DO co-exist.

Could God have created everything in the bat of an eye? Yes! He could have! But, time - to God - is likely much different that what our feeble minds can fathom. The Bible says, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." So, who can really know what "the beginning" means? If God has always been (YHWH - "I AM") then what signifies the beginning?

OK, this could go on forever. Suffice it to say that we don't have all the answers, and we never will. God left many blanks in His creation. Why? Because, "without faith, it is impossible to please God" (Hebrews 11:6). Having it all figured out would require no faith on our part.

I believe God takes great pleasure in our discoveries of His creation. Little by little, He allows us to catch another glimpse of His awesome creativity.

But, He's not going to play His entire hand. Not just yet. That will come when He shows us once again what His creation was supposed to be like. Until then, we'll just have to wait - and debate - and trust - that God has it all under control. His control.