Seniors have a great time sipping coffee and reminiscing: We did this, we did that, and on and on we go, day after day. It’s kind of fun, and perhaps even helpful in this thing called growing old quietly, growing old with a tender spirit. But then all at once the conversion will change and we look at one another and ask the question “why”? Why all the pain and suffering. Everything hurts and what doesn’t hurt doesn’t work anymore. Then we question why people hurt one another. Why there is so much hatred in the world? Why must innocent bystanders suffer because of all the bad things other people do? And why doesn’t God just rid this world of everything that is evil? Powerful question: This question “why” doesn’t have an easy answer. This questions “why” creates a real problem for us at times because either we can’t or we don’t want to understand what the “cause” part of the question is.
You see; if God would rid this world of all things that were evil. He would have to get rid of you and me as well. We have all done things that were not right: we’ve said things to people that were hurtful, we’ve been known to say things that weren’t true, and we’ve even gone so far as saying things about other people that perhaps slandered their good name; and the Bible calls that sort of behaviour sin. Sin is defined as anything that is contrary to the will of God. In short, we have all sinned. In fact the Bible says that “all of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) That is our problem with the “cause” part of the question.
Another thing! God has created all of us with the freedom to choose. When He created the human race, He placed into the heart of every man and every woman a soul; we’re not some mindless machine. He gave us the ability to choose between right and wrong. Can you imagine what life would like if we didn’t have the freedom of choice? Life wouldn’t be worth a whole lot, would it? Our lives have purpose, and our choices determine whether we fulfill that purpose.
God really hasn’t dealt with us according to our sinful, fallen nature. He has in fact, provided a Savoir for us. He sent His only Son Jesus Christ into this world to suffer along with us: because sin had turned this world into a murky swamp. Jesus came into this world and was tempted in every way as we are. He suffered cruel treatment, and finally He was nailed to a cruel cross, all for us. So you see; Christ endured the effects of this sinful world to a greater degree than any of us ever could. He knows and feels the hurts we do. But He also knows how to comfort us.
I suppose the hardest thing for us to understand is the “Why” of everything. I’ve seen people rise up in rebellion against God when they are seriously sick, when they are facing eternity. There are times when it’s hard to believe that God is really good when we have to watch our loved ones suffer so much. But it is at this point where we must choose to trust Christ. We have the power of choice, either to commit ourselves totally to His will; our too reject him. Sometimes that is a difficult task indeed.
Our moment of meditation: How anyone can endure the pain and suffering in this world without a faith in God is hard for me to understand. Somehow I cannot comprehend that thought. It’s not possible for me to believe that there is nothing beyond the grave. I cannot accept that. If that were so, life then would be absolutely hopeless. But if we have accepted Christ as our Saviour, well then life has meaning. Because–and I’ve experienced this—in Christ even the most hopeless situation can have meaning. If we have a living faith in Christ He will give us the grace to endure suffering. He will infuse an attitude of praise and worship deep within our heart; that praise and worship attitude will bring confirmation that life is not hopeless . . . but full of joy.
Would you pray this prayer with me . . . “Lord Jesus, come into my heart. Forgive my sins. I want my life to change. My thoughts and my attitude need to change. I don’t have peace in my heart, I really want that peace, joy and happiness that I long for. Please let the Holy Spirit help me be the kind of Christian that will bring honour to Your Name.” Amen