I think that just about everybody has asked themselves this question at one time or another. If you haven't, all I can say is keep living and you will one day. I confess that the information below is not my own and was recently handed to me on the street in the form of a pamphlet, which beared the title you see above on the church sign photo. In light of the recent events in Haiti, the economic recession, the two wars that are raging on, the state of our environment, the incurable diseases that are dropping people like flies, our own personal day-to-day trials and tribulations, and the list just goes on and on... I felt that this information might be timely and worth sharing to bring some comfort to those of us who aren't afraid to admit that, despite our faith and undying love for our Father in heaven, we still struggle with this question in the deepest, darkest corners of our mind... Why, God? Well, relax yourself and know that He can handle the question. We just need to learn how to "accept" the answers that have been given to us through His word...
1. Suffering Comes With The Freedom To Choose
Loving parents long to protect their children from unnecessary pain. But wise parents know the danger of over-protection. They know that the freedom to choose is at the heart of what it means to be human, and that a world without choice would be worse than a world without pain. Worse yet would be a world populated by people who could make wrong choices without feeling any pain. No one is more dangerous than the liar, thief, or killer who doesn't feel the harm he is doing to himself and to others.
(Genesis 2:15-17)
2. Pain Can Warn Us Of Danger
We hate pain, especially in those we love. Yet without discomfort, the sick wouldn't go to a doctor. Worn-out bodies would get no rest. Criminals wouldn't fear the law. Children would laugh at correction. Without pangs of conscience, the daily dissatisfaction of boredom, or the empty longing for significance, people who are made to find satisfaction in an eternal Father would settle for less. The example of Solomon, lured by pleasure and taught by his pain, shows us that even the wisest among us tend to drift from good and from God until arrested by the resulting pain of their own shortsighted choices.
(Ecclesiastes 1-12; Psalm 78:34-35; Romans 3:10-18)
3. Suffering Reveals What Is In Our Hearts
Suffering often occurs at the hand of others. But it has a way of revealing what is in our "own" hearts. Capacities for love, mercy, anger, envy, and pride can lie dormant until awakened by circumstances. Strength and weakness of heart is found not when everything is going our way but when flames of suffering and temptation test the mettle of our character. As gold and silver are refined by fire, and as coal needs time and pressure to become a diamond, the human heart is revealed and developed by enduring the pressure and heat of time and circumstance. Strength of character is shown not when all is well with our world but in the presence of human pain and suffering.
(Job 42:1-17; Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-5; Peter 1:6-8)
4. Suffering Takes Us To The Edge Of Eternity
If death is the end of everything, then a life filled with suffering isn't fair. But if the end of this life brings us to the threshold of eternity, then the most fortunate people in the universe are those who discover, through suffering, that this life is not all we have to live for. Those who find themselves and their eternal God through suffering have not wasted their pain. They have let their poverty, grief, and hunger drive them to the Lord of eternity. They are the ones who will discover to their own unending joy why Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
(Matthew 5:1-12; Romans 8:18-19)
5. Pain Loosens Our Grip On This Life
In time, our work and our opinions are sought less and less. Our bodies become increasingly worse with wear. Gradually they succumb to inevitable obsolescence. Joints stiffen and ache. Eyes grow dim. Digestion slows. Sleep becomes difficult. Problems loom larger and larger while options narrow. Yet, if death is not the end but the threshold of a new day, then the curse of old age is also a blessing. Each new pain makes this world less inviting and the next life more appealing. In its own way, pain paves the way for a graceful departure.
(Ecclesiastes 12:1-14)
6. Suffering Gives Opportunity To Trust God
The most famous sufferer of all time was a man named Job. According the Bible, Job lost his family to "a mighty wind", his wealth to war and fire, and his health to painful boils. Through it all, God never told Job why it was happening. As Job endured the accusations of his friends, heaven remained silent. When God finally did speak, He did not reveal that His archenemy Satan had challenged Job's motives for serving God. Neither did the Lord apologize for allowing Satan to test Job's devotion to God. Instead, God talked about mountain goats giving birth, young lions on the hunt, and ravens in the nest. He cited the behavior of the ostrich, the strength of the ox, and the stride of the horse. He cited the wonders of the heavens, the marvels of the sea, and the cycle of the seasons. Job was left to conclude that if God had the power and wisdom to create this physical universe, there was reason to trust that same God in times of suffering.
(Job 1-42)
7. God Suffers With Us In Our Suffering
No one has suffered more than our Father in heaven. No one has paid more dearly for the allowance of sin into the world. No one has so continuously grieved over the pain of a race gone bad. No one has suffered like the One who paid for our sin in the crucified body of His own Son. No one has suffered more than the One who, when He stretched out His arms and died, showed us how much He loved us. It is this God who, in drawing us to Himself, asks us to trust Him when we are suffering and when our own loved ones cry out in our presence
(1 Peter 2:21; 3:18; 4:1)
8. God's Comfort Is Greater Than Our Suffering
The apostle Paul pleaded with the Lord to take away an unidentified source of suffering. But the Lord declined saying, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Paul said, "Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, than I am strong." Paul learned that he would rather be with Christ in suffering than without Christ in good health and pleasant circumstances.
(2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
9. In Times Of Crisis, We Find One Another
No one would choose pain and suffering. But when there is no choice, there remains some consolation. Natural disasters and times of crisis have a way of bringing us together. Hurricanes, fires, earthquakes, riots, illness, and accidents all have a way of bringing us to our senses. Suddenly, we remember our own mortality and that people are more important than things. We remember that we do need one another and that, above all, we need God. Each time we discover God's comfort in our own suffering, our capacity to help others is increased. This is what the apostle Paul had in mind when he wrote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
10. God Can Turn Suffering Around For Our Good
The truth is best seen in the many examples of the Bible. Through Job's suffering we see a man who not only came to a deeper understanding of God but who also became a source of encouragement for people in every generation to follow. Through the rejection, betrayal, enslavement, and wrongful imprisonment of a man named Joseph, we see someone who eventually was able to say to those who had hurt him, "You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good." When everything in us screams at the heavens for allowing suffering, we have reason to look at the eternal outcome and joy of Jesus who in His own suffering on an executioner's cross cried, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
(Genesis 50:20; Matthew 27:46)
Pamphlet Source: RBC Ministries, P.O. Box 2222, Grand Rapids, MI 49501-2222
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