Why Does God Allow Suffering?

Posted on October 8, 2014 by Andy Stoddard

The other night someone text me and asked me, in three sentences, to give my opinion why God allows suffering. Wow, that’s a tough thing to do, especially in just three sentences.

Many folks smarter than I am have written books about suffering and why God allows it. So, what could I possibly have to add to that conversation?

But, I thought about it. Why would God allow suffering? There really aren’t many good or easy answers, because in short, we don’t fully understand the mind of God, we don’t totally understand His power and His control, and the complexity of human free will.

All of these factors come into play on this issue.

I thought it would be interesting to share my answers with you, and do this a little bit different from our normal devotional. What do you think? Do you agree with my thoughts? Do you have a different perspective? A different view? I’d love to hear it, if so comment below, I’d love to hear it.

And I will also say; something I do when thinking through complicated things is do not depart from scripture. I believe that in all things, scripture must be our guide.

Here’s my one bullet point about God’s power and suffering. I believe this as much as I believe anything in life:

The power of God is not that He stops bad things from happening. The power of God is that He can bring good out of anything.

That’s who He is.

Also, remember this. Through the cross, God, through Jesus suffered as we suffered. He knows what it is like feel pain and hurt. Listen to what it says in Hebrews 2:17-18:

Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

God knows our pain. Has suffered as we suffer. Hurt as we hurt. Was abandoned as we are abandoned. We don’t suffer alone. God is with us (Psalm 23).

So, with that said, here are my three sentence on why God allows suffering, along with a biblical foundation and explanation.

1. He uses all things in life; even those we can’t understand at the time, for our good. (Genesis 50:20) God is at work in ways that we can’t understand, working out all things, even ours and other’s choices, for our good. That passage in Genesis says that what man intended for evil, God intended for God. God uses everything, in time, that is key to remember, for good. We man not know or understand it now. But looking backwards, we will see something good come out of everything.

2. He uses suffering to reveal to us who we really are; he knows us, it is we who sometimes need to know ourselves. (Genesis 22 – Abraham sacrificing Isaac). Abraham was tested, but this test and suffering wasn’t for God’s benefit, but for his. He had made mistakes, and this test shows that he was more faithful than he thought he might be. He was more than his mistakes. Testing from God’s perspective isn’t about us. God knows us, knows what we will do, knows our choices. Testing is for us. It is our chance to see who we are. When we suffer, and we hold on fast to Jesus, we see that we are more faithful than we can ever imagine. It is in times of suffering we find our who we really are. God uses those times to let us know ourselves.

3. He uses all things, in the end, to bring glory to His name. (Romans 8:28). All things, not only work for our good, but most importantly, all things work for God’s glory. God is glorified through our suffering. How? Well, He may do amazing things in our suffering that give us a testimony, and that may impact someone else. He may give us strength to stand that we didn’t know that we had. He may change some life through what we go through. In the end, even terrible, terrible events, God will ring something good out of it. He will. Perhaps because of what you are going through, you may be able to show grace and mercy to someone that needs it. You may able to understand their pain, and be the hands and feet of Jesus to them. You may be able to to change their life.

I hope these are helpful to you in your walk.

What do you think?

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When God Delays

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Andy Stoddard

One of the stories that may be most famous for us in scripture is the story of Golden Calf. This is a story of ideology, of the people of Israel making an idol, and worshiping it, instead of God, while God is literally right above them

And it gets bad. And it causes a lot of trouble, almost ending in their destruction. But how did it all start? What happened? Listen to what the word says in Exodus 32: 1-4:

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

The people saw that Moses delayed in coming down. They had a schedule and time for everything to happen, and it didn’t happen on that schedule.

Moses delayed. Things did not go according to play. Things didn’t go according to their schedule.

And they turned away from God. They turn from Him and made idols at that time. Because God delayed.

God was late.

God was not when they wanted. God was not where they wanted. God didn’t do it they way that they wanted it done, when they wanted it done.

So they doubted. They turned aside. They looked away. They did their own thing. Instead of trusting in God, they did their own thing.

What about us? What do we do when God delays? What do we do when God’s schedule is not our schedule? What do we do when God’s time is not our time?

Do we turn to other things? Do we put our faith in something else? Do we turn away from God? Do we get angry and storm off?

God delayed. And they people made terrible mistakes. When God didn’t work on their schedule, they turned away.

What about us? What do we do when God delays?

Our Biggest Battle

Posted on October 6, 2014 by Andy Stoddard

Our biggest battle in life is not external. Our biggest battle in life is not them. It’s not their sin. It’s not their mistakes. It’s not their faults. It’s not their stuff.

It’s really not.

Our biggest battle is not them. Our biggest battle is us. Our biggest battle is our stuff, our faults, our mistakes, our sin.

I have no control over “them.” Most times, I have very little control over “me.” But here’s the thing. I still have more control over me than I do over them.

I think that’s one of the reasons why Jesus says things like He says in Matthew 6: 16-18:

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

He says when you fast (by the way, to my detriment, he doesn’t say “if” you fast. But when. I haven’t, and most churches haven’t taught fasting as we should) don’t make a big deal about it. Don’t walk around looking sad. Don’t act like it’s a big deal in front of others.

Don’t do it for them. Don’t do it for them to see. Do it for you. Do it so you can learn. So you can grow. So you can be more faithful and learn.

Do it to fight the battle within you. It’s not about them. It’s about you.

So is your biggest battle. It’s about you, and your daily battle to be faithful and to grow.

So, when you fast, or do any other act of faithfulness, it’s not about them. It’s about you and your own walk. Do it for that reason.

If you do it for your own pride, or your own recognition, that’s it. That’s all that you will receive from it.

But when you do it for your own soul, God will do amazing things in your life. That’s our biggest battle. Not with them, but with us.

Today, may we fight the good fight. May we look within. And may God do amazing things within us.

Not What it Seems

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Andy Stoddard

One of the things that we see with faith, is that things aren’t always what they seem. What looks to be good sometimes isn’t. Think temptation. It looks so good, and well, tempting, but in the end is a very bad thing.

And likewise, things that look to be awful and terrible can, in the end, turn out to be very good things. It’s those things that can cause us to grow and become more faithful.

It’s in the times of trial that our faith becomes real to us, and we better become the people that God needs us, created us to become.

Things aren’t always what they seem. Listen to what Jesus tells us in Luke 6: 20-26. These are words that you’ve heard before, but listen like you’ve never heard them:

And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.

Nothing here that He promised us or told us would be “good” is good, in our eyes. Jesus tells us that we are blessed when we are poor in spirit. When we are hungry. When we weep. When we are hated.

Why? Why would these awful things make us feel as though we are blessed? Why would these terrible things seem good?

Because great is our reward in heaven.

This world is not our home. This world is not our home. This world is not home.

Hear me friends, this world is not our home.

We were made for something better. We were made for something that is truly life. Something that can’t be taken or corrupted or destroyed.

We are made for our true home. Remember that today. This world is not your home. You are made for a better place.

Keep your eye on that. Live today. Laugh. Love. Serve. Enjoy every sacred moment that God gives you. Enjoy it all. Drink it all in.

But this world is not your home. Don’t be satisfied with the earthly, when the eternal awaits.

Remember, when things are tough, this too shall pass. Something better is coming. Hold on. Don’t give up. Keep the faith.

You were made for more than this. And blessed will we be when we remember that.

Help is Coming

Posted on October 1, 2014 by Andy Stoddard

Sometimes in life we just beat up. Sometimes, nothing goes right, something it falls apart, sometimes we know what we should do; what we should believe.

And we just can’t. We can’t do it.

Life is hard. We are tired. It’s not working. We just want to lay in the muck and sadness and just sit there for a while. We are at our wits end; we are just done.

Every felt that way? You may feel that way right now. You don’t know what to do; where to go; how to handle it all. It’s just about as bad as it can be.

You can know this, at least. You are not alone. We’ve all felt that way. All of God’s children have felt that way. I was reading in Exodus recently when I read this passage I forgotten about. Listen to what it says in Exodus 6: 6-9:

Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

God comes to the people through Moses and says, soon, very soon I will save you. Soon I will deliver you. But they could not hear. They were too defeated. They were too broken. They were too defeated.

Even though, their deliverance awaited. Even though, it was soon to be there. Even though it was soon to happen. They just couldn’t believe. The pain, the hurt, the fear of that moment, it clouded their eyes.

They couldn’t see help was coming.

So is it for you today. No matter where you are today, help is coming. Even if you can’t see. Even if you can’t believe. God has not forgotten His promises to you. He has not forgotten you.

He hasn’t. Hold on. Help is coming. Don’t give up. Don’t quit.

Keep going. He doesn’t forget His people. They didn’t believe it at the time, but help was already there.

The same is true for us today. God is with us, even if we can’t believe it. Help is coming. Hold on. It’s coming.

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Monthly Archives: October 2014