There is no bigger test of Faith than when someone who is not a Christian asks you perfectly reasonable questions. They're not even surprising questions. They're the questions that most of us step around so that we have no chance of being wrong and sounding like idiots for believing the way we do.
I have been asked the same question multiple times. It's the one question that I struggled with myself before I believed: If God is so great, why do bad things happen?
A lot of people think that bad things happen from God neglecting us. A lot think that God is like a kid with a magnifying glass, burning ants in the sun. A lot think that God cannot exist because bad things happen. A lot think that God should only to bad things to those who deserve it.
I am going to address all of these because frankly, I think there was a time when I believed each and every one of these.
Bad things happen from God neglecting us:
God does not neglect. Plain and simple. There was a time when I thought bad things happened to me because God chose to ignore me. Everyone else had His grace. God ignored me because He just didn't like me. I thought that if bad things happened to you, God neglected you, and that if good things happened to you, God was blessing you.
Now, some may not see that God does not neglect. They may not see my opinion because I believe the way I do only because I am a Christian. However, even if I was not a Christian, I would still think that bad things are essentially good because they teach us. I can honestly say that.
Look at the natural disasters that happen in the world. Tsunamis, Tornadoes, Land Slides, Hurricanes, Forest Fires, etc. They all affect lives. "Duh, Janie. Thank you Captain Obvious." But seriously here. What better way to teach someone or move them than when they are most vulnerable? Anything can be a lesson. No joke.
I consider bad things as not a sign of neglect, but a sign of love. If God is willing to hurt Himself in order for us to learn, that's some serious love. It's true. God does not want to hurt us. Let me say that again. God does not want to hurt us. So why does He do it? To help us. To make us better. It's tough love people, but it's just as tough for Him. This leads me directly into the next one.
God is a kid with a magnifying glass who wants to see us suffer:
God is love. He is. He loves each and every one of us. Consciously, you may not believe that. But He does. So if you love someone, why in the world would you want to see them suffer?
That's the thing. God does not want to see us suffer. It hurts Him too, believe it or not. Do you think God wants to see a little girl dying of cancer? Do you think God wants to see a mother lose her son in a car accident? Do you think God wants to wipe out hundreds or thousands of people with a natural disaster and see the lives of those that remain torn apart? The answer to that is a loud and resounding NO.
God loves us enough to see the necessity of hurting us. That may sound weird, but it's a parent to child mentality. Your parents teach you hard lessons so that you benefit from it in the future. God does the same thing, only with everything coming together in the end. God is much smarter than your parents. No offense.
Be honest here. If no bad things happened in the world, would you learn anything? No. You'd be...well...an idiot. God loves us so much, He is willing to hurt Himself than see us learn nothing. I don't know about you, but that makes me really happy. The lessons are hard, I am in no way denying that. But if they were easy, they wouldn't be lessons.
Because of bad things, God cannot exist since He is love:
So, if I were to fully go into this one, I'd pretty much be reiterating what I've already said. But basically, God does those things to teach us and to glorify Himself. He deserves the glory. Let Him have it. If there were no bad things, we would not appreciate the good things.
Personally, if there were no bad things, I would not be a Christian. The bad things tear me down and make me want to scream, but even when I catch myself getting angry with God, I know that God does not deserve my anger. Each time I feel that badly, I learn from it. I get better and I get stronger as a result. God is not the cause of my anger. He is the thing that makes it go away.
Honestly, if I did not believe in God, I would not be alive. I know this to be a fact. Now, I am only saying this to be honest with you. No doors here. No walls. God Saved me, in more ways than anybody could ever dream of; in more ways than I have tried to dream of. God brought me back from my own personal Hell.
God should make it to where only bad people deserve bad things:
Who are we to judge who is good and who is bad? First off, we do not have that power. Bad people do not deserve God's wrath any more than good people do. Bad things happen to everyone. It's a part of life. Good people result from bad things, and just as often, bad people result from good things. We can't determine what results will come from which events. Only God can.
That being said, one of my above statements was a poor choice of words (on purpose, I promise). "Good people result from bad things, and just as often, bad people result from good things." I said this for a reason. There are no purely good or purely bad people. There are only people. There is no method of distinction or separation between us. So if only "bad people" deserve bad things, then everyone deserves bad things. Yep, we all deserve it. "Bad" things already happen to everyone so...good job, God. *thumbs up to God*
The most frequent example I hear that is used to refute that statement is: what about if a newborn child dies?
Then God didn't want that child to live. I am not even going to attempt to guess His reasons, but I assure you that He has them. God isn't rash or reckless. The death of that child would then be used to teach the parents a lesson, which would then teach someone else, and so on. Everything has a purpose, even if we may not like it at the time. But honestly...we're all going to have to get over that. We don't know more than God, so we should just stop wishing that everything would happen differently.
So. If you do not believe in God and you're reading this, I really hope this helped. If you're a Christian and you have been asked this, just keep God's love in mind and allow His words to come to you. He knows what's up.
If you're a Christian and you think differently of someone just because they have asked these questions, stop it. Do not (I repeat, DO NOT) think of them any differently. I guarantee you that whether you admit it or not, these same questions have crossed your mind at some point. That being said, don't shove your beliefs down their throat because that's a tad obnoxious. (Actually, more than a tad, but I'm trying to make this sound less harsh.)
Every believer has been a nonbeliever at some point. It's a hard thing to realize for some, but it's true. A nonbeliever who asks you this question today may be a believer who answers it tomorrow. You never know.
If you have any questions, you can contact me anytime. Seriously. If you disagree with this, e-mail me. If you somewhat agree, e-mail me. If you agree, e-mail me. I am open to anything. Obviously, I don't mind a bit talking about this stuff. My e-mail is janie_sanford0902@yahoo.com.
Love you all! :)
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