Why God? Why is This Happening?

Everywhere you turn you hear of different tragedies happening all around us. There are hurricanes, earthquakes, flooding, fires, wars, rumor of wars, shootings, suicides, marriages on the verge of breaking up, and the list goes on. We hear the cries… daily. It is so heartbreaking. People are crying out, Why God? Why is This Happening? And why now… why ever? Aren’t You supposed to be a God of Love? Why don’t You, and why didn’t You stop this from happening?

How we wish we had answers for the heart cry of those around us. Just last night Steve was called to the scene (he is a Fire Department Chaplain) where a young boy committed suicide. The mom kept crying out, “Why… why… why?” And there are no logical answers to give to her. Comfort and help her… yes. But no real answers.

I opened up the monitoring system to post comments that came in over night on the Marriage Missions Prayer Wall. There is one prayer request dealing with a spouse filing for divorce after meeting someone else, and the other is from a wife walking in on her husband having an affair. Why? Why is this happening to good people?

Asking, Why God?

This morning a news story tells of people who are crying out to God as an evil shooter killed and wounded a huge number of people at a concert. Then there are bombings, stabbings and people ramming cars into crowds of people. And all around people are crying out, why? Why God? Why is this happening? There are so many people that never even thought much about God who are now blaming Him for the tragedies that are happening. Some were close to God before the horror hit, and others lived on their own terms. But most of them are wondering why God didn’t stop these things from happening. Why didn’t He at least protect them or their loved ones when it did?

Honestly, I don’t understand it either. I do know though, that sometimes there are dark clouds that surround our understanding of what “in the world” is going on. We look up and we are clueless. We have no idea of what God could be thinking in allowing certain horrible things to occur. That is especially true when they occur to “good” people. We want someone …in particular we want God, to help us make sense out of all of this. But I’m afraid on this side of heaven, we really can’t.

I know God has a plan. And I also know that He cares and He loves us. But our finite minds just cannot grasp the complexity of this type of love. We wonder what is He thinking? What good could come out of so many painful circumstances? I don’t know if it’s happening because we are nearing the last days, or what. It could be, but only God knows that. And whether we are, or not, we still need to “make the most of them.”

Tribulations

Jesus said that in the last days “there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” (Matthew 24:21) …“Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, along with fearful sights and great signs from heaven. But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you.” (Luke 21:10-11)

We’re told in Matthew 24:6 that Jesus said that in the last days “you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.” For this reason, we should not panic. We just don’t know if this is the end, or not.

We’re also told, “There will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self…” (2 Timothy 3:1-5) And don’t we see this? Please personally read those scriptures. We believe you will see the Word of God come alive. We need to “be on the alert” because the enemy of our faith wants to “sift” us and cause us to fall. Jesus “said to his disciples, temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come!” (Luke 17:1)

Fearful Hearts

With all of this, fear could easily grip our hearts. But grabbing and then holding onto fear will only render us helpless. There are numerous scriptures that support this point. Fear introduces hopelessness into our hearts and pushes it onto those around us. But what good will that do? None of us knows if we are living in the “last days” or if it just looks like it. Only God knows. But God tells us through His Word to, “Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish…” (Ephesians 5:15-17) We highly encourage you to continue reading what we are told in scriptures from there. You can truly see a lot of this happening in our world today.

On this issue of dealing with the “why’s” in life, former Major League Baseball pitcher Brian Holman gives an inspiring message in a Focus on the Family radio broadcast aired October 6, 2017. In his talk he tells about going back to the basics of the Christian faith and trusting in God’s promises, which helped sustain him when his family was faced with a series of devastating losses and medical challenges. We encourage you to go to Focusonthefamily.com to hear Brian’s testimony titled, “Going Back to the Basics.” It is compelling. But after so many losses, illnesses, and more, Brian gives the following (plus additional) sound advice:

He says:

“When you’re struggling and you’re going through these hard things and you’re dealing with tough times, [the enemy of our faith] is going to come in there and hammer you. I’m going to give you some advice. Make His Word your hobby; dwell on this. Study it. Learn it. Know it, so that you go back to the basics every single time you’re going through tough things.

“Remember to trust God and His promises. Isaiah 41:10 says, ‘Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.‘ God upholds us. No matter how hard things get, don’t ever, ever quit—ever. Keep your eye focused on the prize and the goal.”

We’re reminded of what we’re told in 1 Peter 3:15-17:

“But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.“

Please prayerfully consider what we have written here. Don’t panic… pray, and pay attention to the way in which you can make “the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Do this in the world, your community, and your marriage. Work to combat that, which the enemy intends for evil. We hope you will join us in this mission. And “may the Lord direct your heart into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.” (2 Thessalonians 3:5)

Cindy and Steve Wright

— ADDITIONALLY —

Here is something Dave Willis put together that may bring you comfort:

• 14 Bible Verses to Give You Peace in Difficult Times

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