As are most people who've frequented this site, I'm a Christian that believes in a ancient universe and earth. And I've always thought the many studies surrounding the Big Bang model for the beginning of the universe to be satisfying. But now a lot of new data and questions are being put forth by various physicists and astronomers that questions whether the Big Bang Model is likely flawed, as some of its predictions don't match the data. However God created the universe is certainly a fascinating subject - but that's ultimately just a debate over the details of HOW, but not by WHOM, it was created! Unquestionably, the creation of the universe required a super-intelligent Being of great power. That the precise elements needed to create a sophisticated, massively complex universe even came into existence, is miraculous enough - mind-blowing, actually. But the fact that such insanely designed, fine-tuned, and perfectly interactive elements functioned as they did (and STILL do!) to build it (and gave it the ability to support life) - well, only God can explain such things. But as for HOW God did it - the debate goes on.
So, here's an interesting short video showing current questions surrounding the Big Bang model: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaouTS072ew
To me, the idea that NON-intelligent things, in just the right proportions, designs and functionalities just happened to exist, and as necessary to build a massively complex universe requiring untold number of elements with mathematically, improbably thin margins - and THEN began assembling itself???!!! In my mind, it would be as if one were in a desert where no one and nothing else existed. And suddenly, all of the elements of a sophisticated kitchen suddenly appeared - along with a high-tech oven, fabulous equipment, utensils, mixing bowls, and tables laid out with an astounding number of the rarest and most-exotic ingredients necessary to create an enormous and incredibly delicious cake. So far, crazy miraculous, right? But THEN the ingredients begin to fly through the air, pop into the mixing bowls, mixers come on, ingredients are poured all by some unseen hands or force, all in unfathomably precise measurements. And all elements are perfectly blended with the same unseen hands, which subsequently pour them into countless layer pans. Then, the pans fly through the air and into the massive oven - which is set to the perfect temperature. And then the cake perfectly times and bakes the layers to a perfect level - and afterward, the layers fly out of the stove, stack completely by themselves. Then, the most glorious frosting is perfectly poured across the cake without any assistance. So, we have the most incredible cake imaginable that was able to assemble and cook itself with all of those magically appearing, but totally necessary equipment and ingredients. And while all analogies are imperfect - you get the picture - a universe requiring massively complex building blocks just happens to have the right ones - and THEN begins brilliantly assembling itself on a scale we cannot fathom. Cake ingredients and kitchens just don't appear in the desert and then mix, prepare and bake a cake BY themselves - and neither do the building blocks, processes and functionalities required to build a universe like ours!
Philip