When I worked at Morningstar, I would give phone support to those called in looking for assistance with our software. One time a man asked me, “When will Morningstar be making an IPO (Initial Public Offering)?” I did not know but I think if I had and I had said something I would have been guilty of giving away inside information and if he had acted on it, it would be considered insider trading. Maybe I am wrong about that, I do not know all the laws regarding that. Its nice to know something that others don’t! However, I believe that I have an inside track on the workings of the universe thanks to knowing the creator of the universe.

One of my favorite stories that Jesus told is the story of the prodigal son. I enjoy it not just for the reminder that the Lord is always ready to forgive me when I sin, but I am inspired by how the character of the older son is reminded of his provision in Luke 15:25-31. The father says in vs. 31: “My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.” To me that means that we have an “inside-track” on the questions of the universe.

You see, the Lord created the universe and everything in it. So obviously, He would have all the answers to everything from a cure for cancer to what is at the center of our planet to how to best change the oil of your 1975 Ford pick-up. I am not saying that answers from Him will appear in the sky or you will magically figure it out. I am also not saying that He wants us to have all of the answers we have questions for. I am saying that since He made us and if we are in relationship with Him, then we should be able to go to Him for the answers for these questions.

An excellent example of someone who took advantage of this was George Washington Carver. He asked the Lord to fill him in on the secrets of the of the universe. The Lord told him that his brain was too human to understand all of that. However, he did say that He would tell him about the secrets of the peanut. Here is a list of some of Carver’s inventions from George Washington Carver Inventions – Food, Paints, and Plastics from Plants (boiled-peanut-world.com):

• Soaps – Laundry, Toilet, Antiseptic
• Sweeping Compound
• Massage Oil
• Castor Substitute
• Goiter Treatment
• Laxatives
• Lotions – Hand, Face
• Creams – Face, Vanishing, Baby, Shaving
• Face Bleach and Tan Remover
• Shampoo
• Oil for Hair and Scalp
• Pomades – Scalp, Skin – US Patent 1,522,176
• Face Ointment
• Glycerin
• Face Powder
• Tetter and Dandruff Cure
• Dyes for Leather
• Dyes for Cloth (30 colors)
• Wood Stains (17 colors)
• Paints
• Papers – White, Colored, Newsprint paper from vines, Kraft paper from hulls, Coarse paper from skins
• Pesticide
• Glue
• Wood Filler
• Metal Polish
• Plastics
• Axel Grease
• Lubricating Oil
• Lamp Oil
• Diesel Fuel
• Ink – Printers, Writing
• Rubber
• Coke (from hulls)
• Washing Powder
• Linoleum
• Wall Boards (11 types)
• Insulating Board (18 types)
• Charcoal (from shells)
• Nitroglycerin
• Soil Conditioner

All of these inventions were available to him from the Lord because Carver was willing to ask the Lord and dared to believe that the Lord would answer. Carver also stayed in relationship with the Lord and was obedient to the limits the Lord put on him. The Lord gave Carver the “inside track” on the peanut!

I am not saying that the Lord’s purpose for everyone is to be a millionaire. I am saying that all of the knowledge we need is available to us because when we spend time with the creator and are obedient to His leading on our lives, it is governed by love and He can show us.

Genesis 9:3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.

———————————————————————W.