Spiritual guidance powered by AI and grounded in Scripture
Your Question:
Why does God allow suffering when we're trying to do what's right?
Answer:
The question of why God allows suffering when we're trying to do what's right is a complex and age-old one. As a pastor, I've had to grapple with this issue many times in my ministry. One thing that's clear is that we can't always understand God's reasons for allowing suffering. We can't see the bigger picture, and we don't have all the information. It's like trying to understand the outcome of a chess game when we're only seeing a few moves ahead. I think it's also important to recognize that suffering can be a result of living in a sinful, fallen world. We're not in a perfect state, and that means we're going to experience pain and hardship. But even in the midst of suffering, God can use it to complete our sanctification. He can use it to refine us, to make us more like Christ, and to bring us closer to Him. It's not that God is punishing us, but rather that He's working to make us more like Himself. Ultimately, we have to trust that God's ways are not our ways, and that His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. We can't always understand why He allows suffering, but we can trust that He's working everything out for our good. As the Bible says, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).
Sources:
warranted christian belief
alvin plantinga
on guard
william lane craig
depression
edward welch
job
francis andersen
systematic theology
wayne grudem
confronting christianity
rebecca mclaughlin
jesus on trial
david limbaugh
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