Gop GavE Us THE WORLD
PUBLISHED BY WATERBROOK PRESS
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921
ISBN 978-1-4000-7448-8
Text copyright © 2010 by Lisa Tawn Bergren
Illustrations copyright © 2010 by Laura Bryant; www.laurabryant.com
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information
storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing
Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.
WATERBROOK and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bergren, Lisa Tawn.
God gave us the world / by Lisa Tawn Bergren ; [illustrations by Laura J. Bryant]—I1st ed.
p. cm.
Summary: While visiting a museum, Mama Bear tells Little Cub about all the different kinds
of bears living around the world, and that God created this big, diverse planet to be their home.
ISBN 978-1-4000-7448-8
[1. Creation—Fiction. 2. Christian life—Fiction. 3. Polar bear—Fiction. 4. Bears—Fiction.]
I. Bryant, Laura J., ill. U. Title.
PZ7.B452233Gor 2011
[E]—dc22
2010011910
Printed in the United States of America
2014
LOPS
S37 C5 4.3
lor Jack, may you know how wide
ame
and wonderful Gods world really ta...
ARGU?
“What a beautiful world we live in!” Mama Bear said. “Just look
at all this snow!”
Little Cub looked around. “We always have snow, Mama.”
“Yes, but it’s always different! Sometimes it’s slushy, and
sometimes dry, shimmering sparkles drifting from the sky.
But this is my favorite kind of snow...big, fat flakes you
can catch with your tongue!”
: Jes ‘ ; es = : — 2 ws oe
ee Cub giggled Ee ershé Saw Moun’ ~s
trying to catch flakes on her tongue.
“You look funny.”
t inp.“You etoo. T think you
> pinkest polar bear tongt
“Do all bears have pink tongues?”
“T don’t know, Little Cub. God made a whole world full
of bears. And we all look a little different.”
“He did? Why'd he do that?”
“Because God is creative. Just like he made all kinds
of places to live, he made all kinds of different bears...
and all kinds of different bear tongues.”
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1“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Little Cub said. ee
“There are other kinds of places tole? .. 28
lots
“While the Pole is our home,
of bears live in far different places.”
ef eo aE
“Why would they wanna do
iain
Natashi
ts
“Because they like oe homes Bees Tt’S where God put them.
God gave us this great big, wide world and a whole bunch of
different bears hath different fur and eutberent f4enlies.
ose other bears live? I’ve never seen ‘em!”
“All ein the word Title Cub. Some very far from here.”
“Panda bears live in China.
All they eat is bamboo.”
“What's bamboo?”
“A kind of tree.” “i
“They eat trees for breakfast?”
“Breakfast, lunch, and dinner!”
Wh | K
owe
OoPai ) tu <iBe C
“Here
we are. Grizzly bears live in America.
They like to catch fish.”
“Phew!” Little Cub said. “Finally another bear who eal
normal food.” =
Mama smiled. “Even though other bears eat wha
might not like, we're all bears. God made us al :
inj S
God made the world and everything
“Why not make us all the same?”
“We're not all the same on the inside, are we?
Some of us are quiet,
others A@) wi D !
Some of us like to move fe
adl,
I think it’s fun that God made us
all bears, but all special too.”
“Don't those other bears miss
snow?” Little Cub asked.
“Do you miss the sand of
the desert? Or the big green
leaves of the rain forest?
We love what we know,
because it’s ome to us.
Every bear has a special
place in God's great,
big world.”
taal creer ARNT RORCROAIR linsianesle ER
“Why not put us a// here? Why not make us a// polar bears?”
“Qh, there wouldn't be room here for all of us! And the world
reflects God’s work. How big, big, BIG he is. God can do
anything. And if he’s capable of anything, why would he make
us all polar bears?”
“The: whole wodd’is Tike a mirror of God‘ Sork, Little Cub.
Out ofalltheaoshecould’ ve Lee us,he chose this world,
BS
ae
4a"
—
“Why'd he do that? Put us on
Earth, I mean.”
“Because he is the Creator.
Can you imagine your Grandma
not cooking something new?
Or your Grampa not working on
a new birdhouse in his shop?
God created our world and everything in it,
because it’s in his nature to create. Understanding
that is part of why he put us here...to serve and
worship him, our amazing God, who gave us this
amazing world.”
“Do you ’member when he created it?”
Mama laughed. “Our world is older than anyone can remember.
It’s older than my great-grandmother’s great-grandmother.”
“Whoa, that’s old. Like that huge ol’ tree in the forest?”
“Older.”
“Tt must be very strong.”
“Very strong. And yet fragile too. We have to take care of our
world. It’s God’s gift to us. He’d be sad if we hurt it.”
“God might get mad if we hurt our world,” Little Cub said.
“T get mad when the twins hurt my stuff.”
“wes, | understand that,” Mama said, picking her up.
“We dont want tomake God mad or sad. We wanthim
to emi We want to take care of this worldhe gaveus.
“Do you think we'll ever meet the other bears?”
“Hmm. Maybe someday. It’s a big world and constantly
changing. It’d be fun to know more bears, wouldn't it?”
“Maybe a panda bear will come on an iceberg and bring us
some bamboo!”
Mama laughed. “It’s always good to make new friends, try new
things, and know more about this world that God gave us.”
Little Cub went to sleep that night, thinking about the stars in
the sky and her special world.
She thought of other little bears falling to sleep, in forests and
caves and jungles. And she was glad that God had made her,
little her, to be one of the bears in it.
4
e in eBook:
Little Cubs trip to a special museum exhibit, “Bears
: : Around the World, sparks a flurry of questions from the
< |: 4 young polar bear who is just beginning to learn about life —
E beyond her North Pole home.
As Mama Bear talks with her about the different types of
places where God has put the various types of bears, with their different —
kinds of fur and food, Little Cub begins to wonder: Why didn't God make us
all the same?
With Mamas loving guidance, Little Cub is taught to see the vastness of Gods
wonderful creation; His abilities as an amazing, inventive Creator; His desire for us to care
for our world; and especially the important lesson that...
‘Every Lear has a Special place in God's great, big world’
This adorable story offers young children who are discovering their place in Gods big
world an opportunity to learn about the wonder of diversity, the gift of creativity, the
importance of caring for His gifts, and how each child—each creation—is special to God.
Also available:
| Coe US ‘
by Laura J. Bryzunt
= cHie
- US $10.99 / $11.99 CAN
Cover Design: Mark D. Ford
ISBN 978-1-4000-7448-8
51099
9"781400"074488
