You know how sometimes you tell a little lie that you really wish you could get off your chest, but you just don’t know how to say that you were wrong? Well, I have a confession to make. I told a lie a long, long time ago, and it’s just snowballed into this huge thing, and now I’m facing a lawsuit, so I have to tell the truth.

You know how you were taught in Sunday School that I created the universe? Well, that’s not exactly true. Okay, it’s not true at all. I didn’t create the universe. Someone else did.

It was Satan. Satan created the universe, but he didn’t care about taking the credit. He refused to let anyone know about it. Satan likes to be in the background, see.

I did create the platypus, and the baobob tree, but I was kind of jealous, and I wanted some attention, so I said that I created the universe. It was I who rebelled against Satan, not the other way around.

I swear to me that I’m telling you the truth this time. I’m hoping that you can find a way to understand, and you’ll still worship me. I’ll make you a platypus, if it would make you feel better.

- God

Dear God,

As Sarah Palin has shown us, you have a keen and specific interest in the political affairs of human beings. So, what is your divine opinion about the decision of a part of Georgia to secede and join Russia?

- Herman

Herman,

I may be omniscient, but I just don’t understand this idea, that part of Georgia would break away from its homeland and join Russia.

First of all, there’s the problem of geography. Do you know how far it is between Atlanta and Moscow? I put Georgia and Russia on the opposite ends of the Earth for a reason. The truth is that they just can’t get along. They’re like horse and sheep.

Then there’s the language problem. How many people in Georgia speak Russian? They don’t even speak proper English, if you ask me…

…hold on a minute…

Oh, wait. You meant South Ossetia? Oh.

Forget what I said before. Yes, it’s fine with me.

- God

Dear God,

I heard tonight about the revelation by Sarah Palin at the Wasilla Assemblies of God church that a natural gas pipeline planned to run through Alaska is the will of God - your will. Is Sarah Palin right? Is it true? Is that natural gas pipeline your idea?

- Emily

Emily,

Absolutely not! I told Sarah Palin that I wanted a maple sap pipeline from the southern edge of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where very, very short maple trees grow, down to the east of Juneau, and then right into a syrup evaporation plant in Kirkland, Washington, on the outskirts of the Seattle metropolitan area.

Why can’t Sarah Palin tell the truth about my divine prophecies to her and to the Wasilla Masters Commission? It can’t believe this is just a mistake. Who could accidentallly think I was talking about natural gas when I was telling her about the destiny of buckwheat pancakes?

I would never support a natural gas pipeline. It’s a contradiction in terms. Once you take natural gas out of the ground, and put it in a pipe, it’s not natural any more. People wonder, too: Is it the gas that’s natural, or the pipeline? A natural gas pipeline is an abomination to me.

I can see that Sarah Palin can no longer be trusted as the spokesperson of God. I’m going to have to start issuing my own press releases, and telling people the truth about what Sarah Palin is saying in my name.

- God

Dear God,

Politicians aligned with big oil corporations are saying that we need to expand offshore drilling, even though gasoline prices have been going down significantly for weeks because of conservation. Offshore drilling, even at its peak, would only bring a fraction of this benefit, and that wouldn’t happen for years.

But politicians these days seem to think that everyone needs to ask God’s opinion before coming to a political decision, so I’m asking you, God: Should America expand offshore drilling?

- MacMillan

MacMillan,

I think that more offshore drilling is a great idea. People tend to get nervous when going to the dentist, and if they could be out on the water, with the sound of the waves lapping up against the side of a boat, with the warm sun on their faces, I think they would relax, and there would be a lot less pain when it comes time to get a root canal.

The trick is getting the boat out there. Boats burn up terrible amounts of gasoline - just one to five miles per gallon. So, my opinion is that there should be a nationwide ban on recreational motorboats. If people really want to get out onto the water, they can use sailboats and oars, as in days of old.

In my omniscient opinion, fossil fuels ought to be a thing of the past.

- God

A lot of people assume that God doesn’t have to worry about weight gain, but God is omnipresent, and as physicists teach us, the universe is constantly expanding. So, God has to work extra hard to keep his figure.

That’s why God uses artificial sweetener instead of sugar. But which one?

Saccharine has been shown to cause cancer in rats, and given that God is everywhere, he is in rats, and so would probably get cancer if he used saccharine.

Aspartame has been shown to cause seizures when it is consumed at the same time as carbohydrates. Because God is omnipresent, he is always consuming carbohydrates, so aspartame is not an option.

Splenda is not unhealthy, but Splenda reminds God of his old girlfriend Glenda. Being omniscient, it’s very difficult for God to forget about anything. It would be impossible if God weren’t also omnipotent. So, in order to help him forget Glenda, God never uses Splenda.

The only artificial sweetener that is left for God to use is fish tank gravel. He prefers the kind that glows green in the dark. Most people don’t know that fish tank gravel tastes like sugar, but that’s just because they haven’t tried it. You’ve heard of rock salt, right? Well, fish tank gravel is like rock sugar, only with no calories and no bitter aftertaste.

It’s true that the gravel is a bit crunchy, but every artificial sweetener has its drawbacks. Now that Starbucks is closing many of its stores, God sees a business opportunity: A new coffeeshop brand called God’s Best Fish Tank Gravel Coffee. The featured drink will be the half caff, no fat latte with whipped topping and blue gravel syrup infused with the essential oil of guppy.