Why?

As a pastor I am asked one question more than any other: "Why?" And that's a question I am probably least prepard to answer because there never is a good answer. Here recently we've had to ask that question a lot. Just this weekend we've had 90+ people killed by a madman in Norway, a shooting at a car show, and a crazy guy shooting his wife and some of her relatives, plus himself, at his son's 11th birthday party at a skating rink. Then we've had drought all summer, devastating tornadoes in the spring, economic issues, the country going down the toilet, and other various tragic events. This year is the 10th anniversary of the September 11th attacks and I'm hearing the "why" questions related to that. Hurricane Katrina brought plenty of "Whys?" But it doesn't have to be a "big" event. Even little events in life can cause us to wonder, "Why?"

And it's not like I'm immune from asking the question just because I've spent years studying these issues. I may be educated, but I've still wondered why when one of my closest friends was diagnosed with cancer, when my brother-in-law was killed in a motorcycle accident, when my own son was diagnosed with, and almost died from, diabetes, when Renae and I lost our first child, and when I've had struggles here at the church. None of us are immune from it. I'm going to give you the answer right now to this age old question. Ready? Here it is: there is no answer. There is no purpose to it. Sometimes bad stuff happens because people are evil or stupid and sometimes stuff happens just because we live in a messed up, fallen world. But there's no divine purpose which causes any of this bad stuff to happen. I'm not being morbid or fatalistic when I say that. It's just simple truth.

That answer seems so very difficult for us because we want an answer. We want to know there's some redeeming purpose behind our suffering (or the suffering of others). The most common phrases I hear during times of suffering and struggles are, "God had a plan." or "God has a reason for this." No, he doesn't. Or, if He does, then he is not the totally holy and good Being the Bible presents Him to be because a totally holy and good Being cannot do anything that would cause suffering in others. God does not make moralistic choices for "the greater good." If He is who the Bible says He is (and I happen to believe that He is) then He always makes the right choice, which would never lead to anyone suffering. Some folks try to get around that by saying, "We finite beings simply cannot fathom the plans of the infinite God." While I will Amen that statement all day long, it's still a cop out and avoid the issue of God's character. Either God is completely good and loving, and therefore incapable of causing suffering, or He's not the God we know from the Bible. Take your pick in that scenario. I choose the former, which means I have to look for another answer to "why?" So, if God is incapable of causing suffering, does that mean He's impotent-incapable of preventing suffering? Well, that doesn't match up very well with scripture, either. The Bible says God is all-powerful and all-knowing. God affirms those attributes on several occasions. Well, that leaves us with a dilemma then. If God is all-good, and therefore incapable of causing suffering, and it also all-powerful and all-knowing, meaning He knows about our suffering and has the power to stop it then why does suffering still exist in this world? And that, friends, is what is known in philosophical circles as "theodicy," or "the problem of evil." And affirming those attributes is why most people want to say there must be some reason or plan behind all suffering.

What we can't leave out is that God has given us the ability to choose. Those choices lead to sin, which almost always leads to some form of suffering - either great or small. At least eventually. Then why give us the choice? Because God wants a love relationship with us and love can't truly exist without the possibility of rejecting that love. I know I'm simplifying a very complicated issue, but so many people struggle with this I want to put it where "the goats can get it." There is also "natural evil" - which are tragic events (like tornadoes and hurricanes) that happen simply by living in this world. None of the tornadoes of April 27 set out with malevolent intent. The people that died did not perish from some evil plot of Satan or a divine reason from God. The died because their house just happened to occupy the spot where a very violent column of wind rolled through.

All of this may feel frustrating, like I'm saying life is meaningless, or as Kansas put it, "All we are is dust in the wind." That's not what I'm saying at all. What I am saying is don't look for meaning in the event itself. Don't look for some divine purpose or plan, or some evil plot, behind every tragic thing or struggle in life. If you do, you'll be left empty-handed with more questions and no answers. This leads to frustration and people walking away from God, blaming Him for not revealing His plan without realizing it was never His plan to begin with. Then how do we cope with the tragedies and struggles of life if not from some hidden divine plan behind the event? The answer is Romans 8:28 where Paul writes that God causes all things to work for good for those who love Him. The key is the word "all." It doesn't say some or those things that are small enough for God to handle. It says all. From a national event like 9/11 or Katrina to a personal event like Caleb's diabetes or Kevin's cancer God can bring good from it. But will you look for the good? Again, God allows us to choose (dang it). We can let an event drive us away from God or we can seek the good. Suffering is only meaningless when we ignore Romans 8:28. But, if we choose to look at all events through a Romans 8:28 lens then even the worst events in our lives can be redeemed for God's purpose. That's truly God's plan and desire, but the outcome is up to you.