Every Friday, Kate Motaung and writers across the web join Five Minute Friday for five minutes of writing on the word of her choice. There are no major edits, no second guesses, just five minutes to write. I join to grow as a writer. Here is this week’s Five Minute Friday. This week’s prompt: Because.

“Why?” He asks again.

It doesn’t matter what I’ve said before or what I’ll say after, he’ll continue to ask, “why?”

Some days I just want to respond with, “Just because!”

Or worse, “Because I said so.”

Sometimes I do.

But I try not to. Because because is such an important word.

It’s important to explain to our kids our whys. Even if it’s followed by another why.

“Why can’t I climb the railing?”

“Because it’s not safe.”

And sometimes, there is no real answer other than, “Because you need to trust me.”

I’ve struggled so often to know why God has called me to do certain things or why He has allowed certain things to happen. For years I was angry that He asked us to stay in Colorado when all I wanted to do was move back to Minnesota. Move back to family, and support, and love instead of staying in the middle of the loneliness I had here.

I thought I knew why. But I never asked. I just thought it was what God expected of me.

But awhile back, I truly did ask. I cried and pounded the steering wheel and I asked, Why did you take me away from love?

He said two things, “Why didn’t you ask why before? Because you needed to learn how I love you.”

The because made all of the difference.