Why Does God Allow Tragedies? (3 of 5)

This is the third part of a five-part series. If you missed the earlier posts, you can read the first part here and the second part here.

Background:
The points presented in this series are in response to a friend's questions a few months ago. She asked questions like:
- Why doesn't [God] save more from tragedies?
- Young girls are being raped and murdered. Why won't he save that kinda stuff?
- Why does a sweet, kind God not save children?

I will do my best to address these and answer the question about why God allows tragedies, understanding that I don’t have all the answers myself either. There are many resources in print and online about questions such as these, some of which I'll share at the end of this series.

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Here we go with a few more thoughts about why we have tragedies and why God would allow them.

       6.  God can use hurt to save others. What we learn as we go through hard times (or as we go alongside others as they go through hard times) can help us be more empathetic of others. We might be able to understand their needs, feelings, concerns, wishes, as well as ways to support and encourage them. Also, as one of my mentors told me once, not every message from God (nor everything with which we deal) is meant for us specifically. We are not meant to live in isolation, but rather in community and fellowship with each other. I have had friends go through cancer diagnoses and treatments who have impacted doctors, nurses, and others through their ordeals, which were personal, but not kept private...just like our Christian faith should be.

a.   In John 9, we read about a man blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples ask who sinned, he or his parents, to cause him to be born blind. “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Then, Jesus healed the man’s blindness. His healing did not come when he was a child, but when he was a grown man, which means that he still had to deal with the hardship for many years before healing came. His healing brought glory to God, leading people to seek to know Him more.
b.   Think of Job. He was a righteous man who was greatly afflicted, with God’s permission, and yet glory was (and is) brought to God through his tragedies. Also, Job was blessed even greater afterward than he had been prior to the tragedies in his life.
c.   Joseph (whose half-brothers planned to kill him, threw him down a well, and then sold him to slave traders) said to his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives,” (Genesis 50:20).
d.     “Our pain can keep us focused on ourselves and how difficult our circumstances are. Or we can focus on the comfort that God promises to us so we can make it through anything. Then we are better able to share what we have received with other hurting people. Hope is found when you let your pain make you more compassionate to the world around you,” (Live Hope Minute: Become a Champion of Hope).

e.       We receive comfort so we can comfort others. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God,” – 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

       7.  The devil is real. So are demons and angels. We all have personal temptations as well (and the devil knows this). There is a plethora of verses about this, and below is just a small sampling.

a.       “but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when It is full-grown, gives birth to death,” – James 1:14-15

b.       “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of the dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” – Ephesians 6:11-13

c.       Matthew 4:1-10 is the story of when, after his baptism by John the Baptist, Jesus went into the desert and fasted. The devil met him there and tempted him.

d.       “The great dragon was hurled down – that ancient serpent called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is fill with fury, because he knows that his time is short.’” – Revelation 12:9-12

e.       “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” – James 4:7

f.        “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” – Matthew 26:41 and Mark 14:38 (and similar wording in Luke 22:40)

g.       “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” -1 Corinthians 10:13

h.       “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” – 1 Peter 5:8-10

       8.  Heaven will be better knowing how different it is from earth. No sadness, crying, pain, death… Sometimes it is harder to appreciate something when we don’t know what we are missing, what the alternative could be.

a.   "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." - Romans 8:18
b.      “he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace from his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.” – Isaiah 25:8

c.       “’Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” – John 14:1-3

d.       “Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” – Revelation 7:16-17

e.       “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’” – Revelation 21:4-5

f.       You may want to read all of Revelation 21, Revelation 22:1-5, and Revelation 4 to read about the beauty of heaven.

g. "The thought came to me and I don't believe the mountains would be nearly as beautiful, magnificent, or awe-inspiring without the valleys. In fact, I'm not sure there'd even be mountains without the valleys. But later someday...'Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken,' (Isaiah 40:4-5). Other verses I found for this idea include Isaiah 41:15-16, 45:2-3, 49:11, and 54:10," (from http://strivingforgodsglory.blogspot.com/2017/06/glad-for-hard.html).

See you next week with more thoughts. 

I'd love to know what you are thinking about this topic.

(Please excuse the formatting issues below; I couldn't get the text to move back to the left margin.)

Sources (listed in the order in which they first appear in this post):

1. Holy Bible, New International Version. East Brunswick: International Bible Society, 1978. Print. (some quotes also came from the NIV version (not 1978) on biblecc.com)
2. Smeby, Mark. "Live Hope Minute: Become a Champion of Home," Broadstreet Publishing, on YouVersion Bible app, Accessed: January 2018.
3. Shuman, Christa. "Glad for the Hard." Web blog post. Striving for God's Glory. Blogger, 16 June 2017. Web. January 2018.

Stubborn Child!

So, when you first read the title of this post, to which child did you think I was referring? Well, no matter which child you picked, you'd be wrong. The stubborn child is none other than me. Yes, me.

Two nights ago, something got said and, although it held some truth - a truth I've known and wanted to work on for a while, too - it still hurt. I felt misunderstood and unappreciated. That night, I tried to get control of my thoughts and turn to God with them. I prayed and asked Him to help me find a solution, but at the time, my mind seemed to be working overtime on the hurt side, feeling more and more hurt and unappreciated.

I decided to take an "I'll show them" kind of approach - which never works! It always ends up making it harder on myself than anyone else, and often they don't even notice! I was determined to do whatever I could to show my significance, to be appreciated, to not fit the mold into which I felt pressed. So, you know what happened?

It was an extremely rough day yesterday. My mind was all mixed up with sour thoughts and feelings. It affected the way I spoke to people. It affected the way I cared for myself (avoiding meals, work too hard without a break, take unnecessary and unsafe risks, etc.). My children noticed and responded differently to me, even though I think I managed to keep things nice enough and they still had a really good day. (They had baby praying mantises hatch that they got to watch, got school done quickly, and played in water outside).

So, back to me being the stubborn child. I've been in that place before, when my mind is attacked with lies, and the longer I allow them to be there, the larger and more destructive they become. I know how to combat them, but I rebelled. I refused. I stewed in my anger, hurt, and frustration. My prayers were affected. My praise was affected. My hearing my Father was affected. I actively refused to go when He called. Stubborn child!

Last night, when my mind had finally calmed and settled, I was able to look back and think about it more. Again, I could pinpoint and tell you times when God had actively sought me throughout the day, to instill His truth in my mind and redeem my thoughts, and I had turned away. It reminded me of a time two weeks ago when I saw a boy get angry. When a mother figure/teacher moved toward him to talk to him about it and draw him back into a right relationship with others, he said, "Leave me alone!" and did his best to move away. At times, he stomped his foot and balled his fist. His voice was tight and forceful. He actively refused the help. Last night it hit me that I was the stubborn child, resisting the help of my heavenly Father.

I've been in a Bible study about the armor of God, described in Ephesians 6. This week, we were studying the helmet of salvation, and how it is there to protect our minds. Not only can our salvation thwart attacks on our mind, but it can also work to redeem the negative thoughts and habits, making them new and in alignment with God. I knew that helmet was there for me to pick up and put on (which, by the way, is important about the helmet - you have to actively pick it up and put it on!), but I wouldn't.

I am in a better place now. I began to soften and accept God's help. I confessed my wrongdoings to the Lord last night. I apologized for turning away from Him and refusing Him. I asked for forgiveness. I know who I am in Christ. I am hopeful that I will be quicker to grab onto truth next time and refuse to allow the lies to take ahold like they did this time. Satan got a temporary foothold yesterday, but he has been kicked out and, with the Spirit's help, I will win the next battle!

I started writing down some verses to post to help me with the battle. Here are the ones I've found so far. As I wrote them for myself, I added my name or "I" as appropriate, to make it more personal for me.

[I] demolish arguments and every pretense that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and [I] take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.     2 Corinthians 10:5

[I will] not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but [will] be transformed by the renewing of [my] mind. Then [I] will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.     Romans 12:2

Finally, [Christa], whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - thing about such things.     Philippians 4:8

[Christa], be made new in the attitude of your mind; and put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore [I] must put off falsehood and speak truthfully..."In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.     Ephesians 4:23-27

I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him."     Lamentations 3:19-24

The LORD is good to [me when my] hope is in him, to [me when I seek] him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.     Lamentations 3:25-26     (Oh, how I need to quiet my mind so I can hear him and receive my sanctifying salvation and blessing!)


If you know other helpful verses, please share! I'd love to have those as part of my battle plan.

 When Satan attacks your mind with lies, fight back immediately! Don't allow him to get a foothold in your life. Hold to truth and reject the lies. Don't be a stubborn child; run to the Father.