HERE in the beginning of the human story it all seems so idyllic. God surrounds man with a beautiful world and gives him dominion over it.

But this is not really the beginning of the story. Before the first burst of light scatters the darkness, before the first wave splashes on that prehistoric shore, before any seed sprouts, before the foundation of the earth is ever laid, God had to make a choice. He knew before He created us what it would cost to create us.

The plan of salvation was not an after thought, a plan B quickly put together when the original Edenic plan failed. Before the first sunshine, God knew the day would come when the sun would refuse to shine. Before He broke the earth to shape the first Adam, God knew the day would come when a second Adam would have to be broken. Before there was a creation, there was a cross . Unbelievably, God created us anyway. Knowing the trouble we would bring, knowing every horrible headline history would write, still God created us. Why? Because somehow we are worth the pain, worth the risk. I used to think the cross was the ultimate expression of God's love, but perhaps not. Perhaps it was creation.