Why Do Bad Things Happen?

Why do bad things happen to good people? This is the wrong question because it is the one question God never answers: Why.  The Old Testament prophets lamented; even Jesus cried out “My God, Why?”  God didn’t answer.  God never answers the ‘why’ because the person who asks it doesn’t really want an explanation; he wants an argument.  If God answered one why, we would come up with another.  There would be no end to it.  The right question is: What happens to good people when bad things happen?  Jesus answered: They are blessed.

Crisis gives notoriously little warning before it bursts into your life.  It doesn’t call ten minutes before it arrives.  It refuses to knock politely and wait for you to answer the door.  More likely it simply rams the door off its hinges and there it is, unannounced, unexpected, unwelcome, and unwilling to go away.  Now… what do you do with it?  Does it stagger you… or strengthen you?  Does it ruin you… or refine you?  Does it plunge you into despair… or draw you closer to your Lord?

Important questions.  Important not just for you but for others as well.  The way you handle sudden crisis has a lot to say about the reality of your faith in Christ Jesus.  You may talk a good faith, but the way you move through stressful situations in your life reveals to every watching eye the actual fiber of your faith.  Is it just window dressing, or is it an inner power that gives you peace and perspective in the midst of pain?  That’s the kind of faith that compels others to sit up and take notice – they will want to seek the source of your strength. [Wilkinson].

The Lord has chastened me severely, but He has not given me over to death (Psalm 118:18).

While God is in absolute control of all life, He is not the cause of all life’s mishaps. Rather His plan allows mishaps to train us.

God’s purpose is not to punish but to correct and nurture.

God’s questions to Job are not intended to teach but to stun. They are not to enlighten but to awaken. They are not to stir the mind but to bend the knee.

We may not know what God is doing in our lives, but as long as we have trust, God will see it works out.  It’s a risk to say of circumstances “This is what God is doing,” but it is not a risk to say “God is present and active.”  This we can actually rest on!  [Wisdom 11:15-16]

Trust in Jesus doesn’t remove obstacles. Rather it gives strength to overcome them. So we learn even more.