Romans 6:16 NKJV [16] Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that ones slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? Deuteronomy 30:19 NKJV [19] I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; Romans 8:28 NKJV [28] And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. ~Suffering~ Why does God allow it? Lets look at a few reasons for it. 1.) Suffering comes from the freedom to choose. Some things cant be prevented...natural disasters, incurable diseases, but there are times we suffer because of choices we have made. As parents, overprotection of our children can backfire. They need a little freedom to make their own mistakes. Thats how they learn to make good choices. They dont learn if we make all decisions for them....and I think maybe God sees us the same way. He wants us to love Him because of choice, not because He forced us. Hes not gonna do that. 2.) Pain can warn us of danger. How does a tired body know to rest? How does someone who is sick know to go to the doctor? Sometimes, pain is necessary. Its for our benefit. 3.) Suffering often occurs at the hand of others. But it has a way of revealing what is in our own hearts. Capacities for love, mercy, anger, envy, and pride can lie dormant until awakened by circumstances. Strength and weakness of heart is found not when everything is going our way but when flames of suffering and temptation test the mettle of our character. As gold and silver are refined by fire, and as coal needs time and pressure to become a diamond, the human heart is revealed and developed by enduring the pressure and heat of time and circumstance. Strength of character is shown not when all is well with our world but in the presence of human pain and suffering. 4.) Suffering gives opportunity to trust God. Job is the most famous sufferer of all times. He didnt know why God was allowing all those things to happen to him. According to the Bible, Job lost his family to “a mighty wind,” his wealth to war and fire, and his health to painful boils. All the while, God didnt reveal to him that Satan had challenged him. Job placed his focus on a Gods greatness, and he decided that if a God had the wisdom and strength to create this universe, he had reason to trust Him during suffering. He knew God had a reason. He didnt know what it was, but just trusted Him. 5.) Have you ever noticed that times of crisis bring us together? Remember 911? Oh the suffering! But for a moment we recognized life for what it is...brief and uncertain. Sometimes it takes suffering to bring us to our senses. Life was brief and uncertain before the tragedy, but we chose not to think about it until we were forced to. We wont ever have all the answers and understand why certain things happen, but its ok. We dont need to understand. If we did, He would allow us to. Instead He wants us to believe in His sovereignty, His love, and His faithfulness. Nothing on this earth lasts forever...good or bad. Lets be thankful for both because God knows what Hes doing:) God bless and happy Tuesday!!!!
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 11:16:30 +0000
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