You might ask: If God is truly love, then why does He let bad things happen to "good" people?

First, you have got to stop blaming God for everything. (I never realized I did this until I read what is now my favorite poem, God Hath Not Promised.) It's natural to quickly blame God, but remember this...

The next most important thing is: Are you a "good" person? Have you ever said anything that hurt someone else? There might be people who appear to be holy, but God alone knows what is in our hearts. Where do you draw the line between what is "bad" and what is "good"? If God were to remove all of the "bad" things from the earth, who would be left? ANYONE?
 

True or False...	Answer
God punishes people by making bad things happen to them.	False.  God wants us all to be happy and safe.  Satan causes bad things to happen and then places doubts in some people's minds about God.
God loves us all, so will we all go to Heaven after we die.	False.  He does love us, and he has given us free will.  Up until the time of our death, we have many, many chances to accept Jesus -- the way to Heaven.  After we die, it's too late.  God loves us and wants us to be with him for eternity,  but if we don't love him back, then why would we want to be with him, and why would he want us to be with him?
Hell is not real.	False. Hell is a real place. It is not a happy there and it is painful because people are separated from God. Once there, you cannot get out. You need to choose right now, before you die, where you want to spend eternity -- in Heaven or Hell?
The world is good.	False. The world is evil. Satan is in the world. The doubts you hear in your head about not being good enough, pretty enough, smart enough, ... are ALL from Satan. He delights in your doubts and fears. Life is not fair. We are fortunate that most days are good. But, there is sickness. Tragedies occur. The world is not perfect, but Heaven is. In Heaven, there is no sickness, no sorrow, no fear.

Our attitude is important. "When you get lemons, make lemonade." It's also possible for adversity to make us stronger.

God inspires us to help one another. He instills a desire for people to become doctors, missionaries, good neighbors, and so on.

When we respond to life's unfairness with sympathy and righteous indignation, that is God's compassion and anger working through us. God is just as offended at the bad things as we are.

Stop looking for fairness, and start looking for love. God the Father loved us so much that he was willing to send his son, Jesus Christ, to us -- to show us what love really means. He suffered so much for us and paid the price for us so that we'll be able to live in Heaven forever. The Holy Spirit is in us to, among other things, help us live our earthly lives as best as possible until we get to Heaven.

Are you capable of loving and forgiving God? Are you capable of loving and forgiving the people around you?

"And if you can do these things, will you be able to recognize that the ability to forgive and the ability to love are weapons God has given us to enable us to live fully, bravely, and meaningfully in this less-than-perfect world?" -- Harold S. Kushner

Last updated: January 25, 2005                             [ myHome ]