Dear Gatlin,

God gave us an incredible ability to recognize one human being from another. Babies learn to identify the faces of their parents at a very early age. So it is not surprising that we concentrate on the physical features that seem so obvious to us. But from a scientific point of view, there is no way to divide people into distinct groups. This is because we are much more alike than we are different. Race is not a biblical idea, either. Although some Bible versions use the word "race," the ancient Greek and Hebrew writers used words that simply mean "nation" or "people."

But we do see differences. How and when did these differences come about?

The variety we see today came from changes or mutations in our genes. But a tiny change is enough to make a difference between, say, curly hair and straight hair.

This can explain why you don't look the same as your best friend, of even your brother or sister. But why are there differences from one part of the world to the next?

The answer has something to do with the Flood. After Noah and his sons came off the ark, God told them to fill the Earth (Genesis 9:1). But a few generations later, we find everyone working together on the Tower of Babel. God solved this problem by giving each family group a different language (Genesis 11:1-9). You see, as long as people stayed together, any changes in their genes would mix and mingle. But if the families are separated, they might go on to form a distinctive group. For instance, one family might have a lot of tall people with high cheek bones. If this family stayed apart from other because of their language, then a lot of their descendants would be tall and have high cheek bones. This is how the different groups of people could have arisen.

Always keep in mind, though, that God looks on the inside, not the outside (1 Samuel 16:7). Our soul, and our attitude to God, are more important than the way we look.