Dear friend,
Many individuals have gone through difficulties and affliction, either directly or indirectly during this time.
Losing a job, depression, debt, business failures, relationship breakdowns, and incurable diseases can cause unconsolable distress to us. We might be happy to follow God during our normal, comfortable situation. But when we get into a storm in our life we ask, “why all the suffering? Where is God in the amid suffering?” These are not simple questions. But let’s explore the answers based on what God has revealed to us through scripture.
Perfect world to Imperfect World
When God created the world, He found everything was perfect. The Bible says, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” There was no fault in God’s creation. He gave the perfect world to humanity and asked them to rule it. He also gave us free will to choose between life and death, right and wrong, blessing and curse. The choices we made slowly changed the world to what it is today.
By nature, we want to own something for ourselves; we love the power to control, manage and dominate. The statistics show how few percentages of the population control almost the entire wealth of the world. It reflects our human nature. The super-rich is not on the wrong side. If we get to become super-rich, our behavior would not differ from them. It’s just our underlying human nature. The exception to this nature is rare.
God’s perfect world had a very different meaning. He made sure everything is sufficient for everyone. But in the current scenario, a few own almost everything. Any alteration to the natural design of God in nature, human relationship, and behavior cause irreversible destruction and deviation from the original purpose for which the world was created. Only the creator of the world can fix the deviation created by us.
Our greediness for power, position, and possession has caused immense suffering for us and others. We can sense the greediness in our personal life, family, working place, among friends and relatives. Again, greediness is an inherent human nature. It results in hurt, heartache, pain, and finally results in associated physical and mental conditions in us. Greediness is a choice we consciously make not to be content with what we have. God never intended us to be greedy.
Our choices and the inherent human nature lead us to some pains. God wants to mend our lives. He sent His only son Jesus Christ to make us right with Him. Whatever critical condition our life is right now, Jesus is willing not only to forgive us but also can help us change our attitude. If we go to Jesus with a humble heart, He can change our perspective about life.
Human nature and inherent attitude made the world imperfect. But this is not the reason for all the difficulties in the world.
The Ruler of the World
Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” We can ask how the trouble entered the perfect world God has created. When Adam and Eve, the first family of humanity ate the forbidden fruit they not only disobeyed God but obeyed satan. Through obedience to satan, he surrendered his authority on this earth to satan. The Bible says, “The thief’s (satan) purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.”
The satan, who became the ruler of the world, comes to steal our happiness, take away our peace, depress our thoughts, tangles us in obsessions, and finally, he tries to destroy our soul forever. He fills our minds with fear; fear about the future, fear about our health, family, and kids. He clogs our thoughts with bondages, irritations, and worries.
Jesus came to give victory over all the plans of satan. Jesus said, “Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved.” He has given us a wonderful companion in the form of the Holy Spirit. When we believe in Jesus and accept Him as our Lord and Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit. The Bible says, “Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” The power of the Holy Spirit can break all obsessions, bondages, irritations, and peace-less life.
Satan wants to destroy the perfect world God has created. He wants to inflict pain and suffering on God’s most beloved creation, i.e. humanity. By doing this he wants to hurt God. Jesus wants to give us a victorious Christian life because He has already overcome the ruler of the world. We also can be victorious and overcome satan in life by completely depending on Jesus every day.
God is a righteous judge
What if there are no courts, laws, judges, and police officers in a country? The world would be full of crime scenes. God is a compassionate God. He is also a righteous judge. God says, “Therefore, I will judge each of you, O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord.” He warns people before he judges them. Jesus cried out to Jerusalem, “How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me.” Few years after Jesus told this, the city of Jerusalem was burnt to the ground in AD 70.
Dear friend, God will judge us too when we do not obey Him because He loves us. The Bible says, “For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.” We should allow the Holy Spirit to correct our mistakes, which are buried deep inside our hearts. Let’s ask him to plow our hearts and show us the areas that need correction.
The world – Work in Progress
Ben Carson, Nelson Mandela, Abraham Lincoln, and Benjamin Franklin all have something in common. They were born dirt poor. All of them struggled in their early childhood. Nobody would have expected them to be world leaders. But their life transformed over time. It teaches a precious lesson. We can never predict the end based on the beginning. As a human, we cannot foresee the future. God is still at work. He wants to bring back his perfect world. He will never rest till that happens. But we cannot visualize the perfect world with our human mind. We may not understand the transformation that is happening and the reason behind it.
Bible starts with the creation of the earth and heaven. It ends also with the creation of new heaven and the earth. To establish the new heaven, He has to sacrifice His only son, wage war against the evil forces, and punish those who followed the evil path. God is a God of love. He is constantly in the business of correcting, changing, and transforming the imperfect world. We do not know why certain things are happening. But we will get to know when we see perfection. The Bible says, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”
Dear friend, one day Jesus will take us to heaven and tell us all about how he has transformed the world. Our partial understanding will be complete when we hear it with our own ears. Jesus will clarify our doubts. Our sufferings will flee. No more pain. No more tears. We will be amazed at the wisdom of our God. What a joy it will be to see the perfect world once again with our own eyes.
Let’s bow down and pray to Jesus.
Dear Jesus, I humble my heart and come before you. Please forgive my past. Search my heart and show me all the hidden sins in my life. Help me to correct my attitudes. Wash me with your precious blood. Protect me from the evil plans of satan. Let me find the shelter under your mighty wings. I do not understand all about my future. But I know you are at work. One day I will get an explanation for all the ups and down I am going through in my life. I know you are listening to all my prayers. I believe I will get answers for each of them. Let me rest in your comforting arms. Hold me and walk with me. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
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Dear friend, Jesus has listened to your prayer. He will surely answer it. Please seek Him and follow Him with all your heart. We are praying for you. May God bless you and make you a blessing for many.