My 12 year old asked me why God lets bad things happen
Had one of those conversations yesterday that just hit different. My son asked why God let his best friend move away and why kids get cancer if God loves us. I tried explaining free will and how God works through suffering but honestly I was winging it. How do you answer these questions without sounding like you're making excuses for God? He's at that age where he's thinking critically and I want to give him real answers not just platitudes.
That's a heavy one to process. I'm still figuring out how to talk to my son about the harder stuff, but your willingness to engage with the question instead of shutting it down is already great parenting.