Why do Bad Things Happen to Good People
We spend our lives following God. Doing His will and still bad things happen to us. It just doesn’t seem fair does it? Didn’t God promise us joy? Aren’t we under his covering as His children? Doesn’t he want to bless us abundantly? Why would God allow this to happen?
We’ve all asked ourselves these questions before and many times there are no answers. Then the answers we do get, seem hollow and cliche. The fortunate thing is that we are not alone. People all throughout time have asked these questions. Just a cursory reading of the Bible would show this.
Adam lost two sons.
Noah watched all the people of the world die.
David was hunted and almost killed.
Jeremiah was thrown into a well and left to die.
Paul was given a thorn in his flesh.
Jesus was crucified on the cross.
There is one thing all of these men had in common. None of them wanted to go through what they did. Even Jesus, the night before he was crucified asked if God would “take this cup” from him.
The sad truth is that sometimes bad things do happen to good people. It doesn’t matter how much faith we have. It doesn’t matter how many good deeds we do. It doesn’t matter how many people we lead to Christ. It doesn’t matter how much money we make or even where we live. It just doesn’t matter.
Many of us want God to just take away the pain. We know he can do something miraculous, and so we ask him. However, sometimes God allows these things to happen to make us better people.
Paul when talking to the Corinthians about his “thorn” said that God gave him this gift so that he would not be conceited. James says that we should count it as pure joy when we undergo trials and tribulations so that our faith can be perfected.
It’s hard to realize this, and we should still pray for deliverance. However, as you pray, be open to the possibility that God is trying to teach you something, and you will be much better when you’re on the other side. Above all. remember that God is in control.
