Why does God allow so much Suffering

People often wonder why God allows so much suffering. They wonder why an omnipotent God can be so indifferent to evil. Some think He lacks the Power the Bible claims. Some think He is not as good as it teaches. Many people think the existence of evil and suffering in the world somehow casts doubts regarding God Himself. They think this because they do not understand. They do not understand his ways and they do not understand his judgments. They do not understand real love.  

 

Why people suffer from their own consequences

Most of the suffering found in the world is really of our own making. We have reaped what we ourselves have sown. Many times, the grief we experience can be directly related to the consequences of our own personal behavior. Is it really God’s fault if you suffer from your own poor choices? Real Love is not always about giving us what we want, but rather giving us what we need for our own personal well-being. Real Love may allow pain at times. Pain gets people’s attention. Everyone knows something is wrong when they suffer. Pain demands being attended to; it has the power to sober people like no one else. Human beings rarely change their course of actions when all goes well with them. If pain holds the power to reform behavior and bring about change, can you really blame God for allowing people to experience it at times? No one likes suffering and pain. But if pain brings about the needed change, then perhaps experiencing it for a while is not a bad thing. Can you question omniscience when He deems it necessary? What better instruction can be had than allowing a person to experience the direct consequences to their own actions? The school of hard knocks can often get through to people in ways no other method can.
 

Why People suffer at the Hands of others

Of course, some of what we suffer is not always because of our personal choices. We do not live in a vacuum. How other people choose to behave also has an impact on us. Many of our pains can be directly related to the sinful behavior of those around us. God gave laws showing how we should live that everyone might be blessed. Is it really God’s fault if other people choose to behave contrary to this? Is it God’s fault that we make life on earth for each other bad? Most people have a habit of condoning the behavior of others until it conflicts with their own personal welfare. Suffering at the hands of others makes this too difficult to ignore. Our pain can make us agents of change. It drives us to make some social changes to our culture. Whether we like it or not, sometimes our suffering occurs for the greater good of society. The Bible teaches that the world will get a lot worse before it gets better. This occurs because human being will often not properly address an issue until it begins to hurt. God may allow evil for a time in the world, but He cannot really be blamed for it’s occurrence. The Bible records how God made everything good, but that people have chosen for themselves to become evil. God did not even endow men with the capacity for evil. He made a tree in the garden embodying the knowledge of good and evil. After warning the man of the consequence to eating it’s fruit, God gave him the freedom to choose. Real love gives people a choice and that choice still remains today. No one doubts that giving someone a choice is the loving thing to do. In bestowing this choice, everyone must be prepared from the outset for the possibility that things will not always be a pleasant experience. Not everyone will choose well.

Why People Suffer from Acts of God

Then again there are those catastrophes that cannot be clearly attributed to anyone. They are simply acts of God. The Lord gives but He also takes away. Everything you have been given will eventually be taken away. All that you build in this present life will eventually be knocked down. The Bible attempts to prepare everyone for this reality. Nobody likes losing something they had cherished. We do not have to like or even understand everything God does. God alone has the difficult task of working the actions of all people out for good ends; to condemn evil, reward good, and redeem what has been lost. Suffice it to say that this is a very complex process. As God told Job, who are you to instruct him on how best to work all of these things out? It is necessary to believe that omniscience always knows what is best for us. This is where trust comes into play. Just know that a good and loving God only allows pain and suffering because it is necessary. God never intended the things of this life to be permanent. Naked we come from our Mother’s womb and naked we shall depart. God has something more enduring in store for his Children. Many people often feel God is absent in such times of trouble. This does not make God any less real; any less worthy to be praised. If what He has to cut from your life is good, then He will ignore your plea and finish the task. Just getting it over with is always the better approach. Long drawn out explanations to people under the knife does not make them feel better about it; it can only prolong the pain. The Bible says that God does not take pleasure in grieving or afflicting the children of men. The sooner His painful task is finished, the better it is for everyone. As people emerge on the other side of it, they will come to realize why God did what He did and they will praise Him in the end for it.