I struggled with the title of this post. I wanted it to be simple and honest because I believe many people struggle with the problem of pain: how could a fully good, all-knowing, and all-powerful God allow suffering? Or perhaps a more honest and vulnerable question: why does God allow me to suffer? By it's very nature suffering is painful, and we naturally shy away from pain.
Pain challenges our belief in who God is.
Whether it's physical pain, financial hardship, loneliness, or some other form of suffering in our lives, pain challenges our belief in who God is: Does He not know about
my suffering? Can He not stop it? Does He not care about
me? Truly, the essence of all our questions about God come down to how God is relevant to our lives. Who is God for
me?
So when we are hit with a painful situation, our first response can easily be to blame God. I have known more than one atheist who rejected God because of a painful situation in their life. The rationale explaining away God's existence has always followed the painful moment: death or hospitalization of a loved one, personal trials, rejection by others, etc.
Who created pain?
Pain has long been a part of the human condition, and it's normal to feel pain. Some people would rather avoid the origin of pain, and others insist that God would never create suffering. Rather, they would say that God allows it. There are many philosphical specultions. C.S. Lewis wrote an entire book on The Problem of Pain, and I certainly can't do justice to his work in a short blog post. Dr. James Dobson also wrote about this topic in When God Doesn't Make Sense. But does the Bible tell us who created pain?
I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.
The Hebrew word that Isaiah uses for "evil" in the verse above is
"ra" (רַ×¢), which can mean
evil or calamity, but it's clear that God takes credit for creating suffering. God created suffering. Some people will look at this verse and feel vindicated in their rejection of God, but I'd caution everyone to pause and consider a very important question: Is all pain bad? The Bible has
numerous references to pain and suffering, in some cases telling us to rejoice in suffering, such as
Psalm 119:71 and
James 1:12.
Is it bad to suffer?
This is where the topic gets more difficult. Naturally, no healthy person truly enjoys suffering, but pain is actually a good thing, letting us know that something is not right. Someone who is physically unable to feel pain, will likely injure themselves repeatedly and increasingly, not knowing that a part of their body needs time to heal.
Moreover, it is only in suffering that we can truly demonstrate love for another. There is beauty in the sacrifice a loving husband makes for his wife or in how a mother gives of herself for her children. And yes, there is beauty in the way Jesus gave up His life so that we could know the salvation that flows from God's desire to be in an eternal relationship with us.
Suffering helps us to become better than we are.
There is so much goodness that can come from suffering, and yet it is man's tendency to question why God couldn't have found a better way. I would argue that it is the height of arrogance to think we could do better. I have known pain, and I don't like it, but I am grateful for how God has used it to make me better. It has also shown me who my friends are, the ones to stand by me in the midst of suffering versus the ones who pull away so that my pain does not interfere with their pursuit of pleasure.
If you are in the midst of some painful trial, then know this: God is with you in that pain, encouraging you to push through it like a coach encourages his atheletes in both the exercise and the healing process. He is making you a better person if you are willing to join Him in the good work He's doing in you. Find Him. Search for Him. Stop asking "Why me, God???" and ask "What do You want me to do with this situation, Lord?" He is there; He loves you, and He will never forsake you. Don't forsake Him!
Dedicated to my earthly father, who was only healed of multiple schlerosis when He entered through heaven's gates.
