Where is God When Evilness Occurs?

If you are back reading my second post ... THANKS! I am glad you are here. I wanted to address the question I posed in the last blog about where is God when there are evil deeds or in disasters.

We all know what evilness is. Someone chooses to do something that is mean, that is hurtful, that is unimaginable. There is evilness in every murder. There is evilness all around, really everywhere we turn. There would be no 24-hour news stations if evilness didn't exist.

First, let's examine why there is evil. Sadly it didn't have to be this way. As you may or may not agree, but what I believe is true, is that God created the world. In the Old Testament book of Genesis, chapter 1, verse 26, it says that God created human beings. When God created humans, he created them to reign over the earth. And he provided every plant and tree so we could b e nourished. And while it was no surprise to God, something there in the Garden of Eden where God's first human creatures resided, when awry.

You see, Eden was perfect. And I don't mean really good. I mean it was perfect. Beautiful. Luxurious. Without fault of any kind. God's only requirement was that Adam and Eve not eat from just one tree in the garden - the tree of knowledge of good and evil, or they would "surely die." Up until this point, Adam and Eve only knew the good. They only knew what they needed to know in order to live in this perfect place. They were in charge. They were provided enough food forever and they basically had it made.

Enter the serpent. The serpent throughout the Bible and throughout modern times represents evil. Eve was tempted. Somehow, she allowed the serpent to convince her that she wanted the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. She needed that fruit. The serpent tells her in Genesis chapter 3, "You won't die ... God knows your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it."

And with just a little more convincing, Eve ate the fruit. And then Adam followed.

Thud.

Evilness was born into the world. Man and woman fell. Their eyes were indeed opened. Opened to evilness. And because they disobeyed God, even though God knew it would happen, there were consequences to their actions. Adam and Eve became afraid. Even though they were deceived, they still disobeyed God, resulting in sin. God tells them that their sin would result in curses and torment. It was the price they paid for eating that fruit.

Do you ever disobey someone and have to suffer the consequences? It's with 100 percent certainty that I say we have all disobeyed. It is in our legacy. As early as we can think for ourselves, we choose to disobey, just like Adam and Eve chose to disobey. It is our nature and our instinct. If you doubt this, then meet ANY child who can start to make his own decisions. You won't wait for long to see the child doing something he knows he shouldn't.

So how does evil relate to what happened to Adam and Eve? When the serpent tempted Eve, and Eve first gave in, evilness entered. So we struggle with it.

So why did God allow evil? He didn't want to. He wanted us to live in utopia, just like Adam and Eve started out living in. But by their choices, we now have the knowledge of what is good and what is evil. So evil exists and we know it.

God also gave us free will (an excellent topic for a future blog). So just like when my two year old disobeys me and he has consequences for his bad choices, so do we.

Our lives are filled with temptation and tolerance. We are tempted to do whatever we can to feel good. We are tempted to spend beyond our means. We are tempted into promiscuity. We are tempted into putting others down to make ourselves feel better. Have you ever done any of those? Yeah, me too.

We are not perfect and we never will be. So we fail. We can't resist temptation. Now sometimes we can, but we never bat .1000. It's probably more like .350 for season pros at resisting and .75 for the rest of us.

So we make bad choices. Then we pay the price. Evilness occurs.

So, you might be wondering, does that mean the people who have evilness done to them had it coming? Of course not. None of the people killed in the Virginia Tech Massacre or the Oklahoma City Bombing or Columbine had it coming. They didn't do something specifically to pay for not resisting temptation.

The evilness that murders many times comes from sick and twisted minds of people who are desperate for help. Sometimes we recognize it and help. Sometimes we recognize it and don't know how to help. And sometimes, we just miss it. We are imperfect.

But God has a lot to say in a lot of places about evil. But I think I can take the liberty to sum up his message. Don't do or be evil. It's a sin. And if you do it, you will suffer the consequences.

So why doesn't God throw down big lightning bolts and stop tragedies and disasters from happening? It is a question for the ages. But I believe based on my limited knowledge of the Bible, is that although God hates evil and it breaks His heart when evil occurs, our free will prevents Him from stopping it. He loves us so much, He has given us the ability to make choices ever since the beginning in the Garden of Eden. The choice to do the right thing.

And since He knows we won't always make the right choices, He allows us mercy and grace. There is hope. And that hope came in the form of a man name Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus, the true son of God, was sent to the earth more than 2,000 years ago. He lives a little more than 33 years here on earth. Then he was persecuted and nailed to a cross and died in my place. He also died in your place.

If we accept Jesus as our savior, if we say, "Please let Jesus' death on the cross pay the price for all the things that I have done wrong. Let Jesus' death be the substitution for the consequences for my mistakes, my giving in to temptation, my disobedience," then there is hope. WE don't suffer the long-term consequence of death. Instead, if we ask that Jesus' death apply to my sins, we can spend forever in Heaven. And God promises Heaven is too amazing for words to describe.

We still pay earthly consequences for our bad choices. But the eternal one - death in a fiery pit - isn't our consequence.

And what about that thing I said in the last blog. What about my statement that God works all things for our good. Someone asked if that was a utilitarian move on God's part. In other words, is God just going for the greater good for as many as He can?

No. He is in it for YOUR good and mine. It isn't a greater good situation, or a survival of the fittest. It is a personal thing He does for each of us. He turns all the bad things that happen in all of our lives to good. For each of us. Personally. For everyone who believes, accepts and loves Him.

Murder is evil, but it is not a total wasted life. God will use it for good for everyone involved. Again, it's not to say that even one life taken is worth the good that will come of it. It is saying that even though the evilness occurred - and it grieves God immeasurably - He will make good things happen as a result.

If you are exploring God and wondering if Jesus' death on the cross might apply to you, if you are wondering if God will turn the bad things that happened in your life to Good, then the answer is yes. All you have to do is ask that it all apply to you, and you can be saved. You could pray this prayer:

"Jesus, I want your death on the cross 2,000 years ago to apply to me today. I want to accept your death as the way to not pay eternal consequences for my bad choices. I want to live in Heaven. I am so sorry for the things I have done I shouldn't have, for the temptations I have succumbed to. I know that I won't be perfect, but I want to do better. Thank you for loving me. Amen."

If you prayed that prayer from the depths of your soul, your new life starts right now. You have just been welcomed in to the most loving family on earth. Welcome, my brother or sister.

If you are still thinking about it, open your Bible and read about forgiveness and mercy and grace. Look in the back in a concordance and see what you find. And post your thoughts or questions.

Today I leave you with my own personal prayer: "God, use me to write your words and spread your message of hope and good winning out over evil. I pray for the people who read this today and ask you to touch them and speak to them in a special way. Thank you for loving me. Amen."

Praying for each of you,

Michelle

Copyright, Michelle Sutherlin April 29, 2007

Where is God in the midst of the Virginia Tech Massacre?

I know some of you are thinking about that question. Maybe some of you have uttered it aloud. And it is times like these that people start wondering how a loving God could let a tragedy like this happen.

I can relate. Two tragedies had me asking this question. The first was the Oklahoma City Bombing on April 19, 1995. I covered it for my college newspaper, The Oklahoma Daily, when I was just 20. The other was the May 3, 1999, tornadoes that included the largest tornado ever recorded. I was working for the American Red Cross at the time. I was 24 and saw some horrible things that most people never see.

I can relate to wondering where God is in tragedy and disaster. I can relate to being so angry that you have to have answers to why He let something like this happen. I was so angry after the tornadoes that I literally shook my fist at God and demanded to know where he was.

Strangely, God answered me. I didn’t expect that. He didn’t answer me all at once or right away, but he did answer. The first thing he did was put a friend in my path who believed God was loving. She invited me to church to get my questions answered.

I went in that first day with my arms crossed determined to prove that God wasn’t really so loving. I mean, if he were, how could he let this happen.

But instead, God used that church to speak to me in a way I have never been spoken to. And again, it wasn’t all at once. It was always just enough to have me come back the next week.

Skip ahead now eight years. God has been answering my question about tragedy and disaster – as well as many other questions – on a regular basis. And what I have learned is that it isn’t so easy. The answers aren’t so cut and dried.

But there are some things I have come to understand during my search for answers. And this terrible event at Virginia Tech that resulted in the death of 33 people has reminded me where God is at times like these.

God is right here. He is right here by my side. He is right by yours, too, whether you acknowledge Him or not. And you are wondering, I know you are, how can I be so sure?

I am sure because I believe His words in the Bible are real and true. And God promises us he is with us. In the book of Matthew in the New Testament, Jesus says, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

You are also wondering, I know you are, how a loving God could allow such a disaster, any disaster to happen. I will speak more on this topic in my next article, but let me shortly address this question. Evil exists in our world, plainly and simply. And with evil comes evilness. What happened Monday was evilness.

And maybe you have watched the news or read articles. But God’s name has come up much more than normally. People who don’t pray are praying. People who don’t seek answers from God are seeking answers. People who don’t normally love each other are coming together in unity and compassion. God, as He always does, is using a horrific event to do some really wonderful things. In the book of Romans chapter 8 verse 28 in the New Testament, it 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.”

This is God’s promise that he will use really bad things in positive ways. I have seen this first hand over and over. In fact, this very principle is what led me to seeking God in the first place. In the Oklahoma City Bombing, a sheer act of evil that killed 168 people but changed lives of thousands of others, I saw first hand acts of kindness that changed my life. I saw people offering the clothes off their back and shoes off their feet to rescue workers. I saw people come to Oklahoma City to help, at their own expense. I found a place with people so kind and wonderful, that they wanted to feed me, give me warm clothes and pray for me, when I didn’t even know that’s what I needed.

So I am not saying there is anything so good that will happen that will justify even one life lost. That is not the case. Life is precious. But the lives lost are not wasted.

When I watched the pictures of the dead scroll across the screen last night, I wept. I was so sad for the families and friends of the murdered. But I also knew that each person had a story. And now it is a story millions will know. And even though most were very young, the very thought of their loss will send people, like you, on a search for answers to why and how and who could do this.

Good will prevail. Families will be drawn together. Strangers will love each other. As a nation mourns, God will be lifted to a place of importance and immediacy. Some will find God as a result of this disaster. Maybe it will be you. Maybe it will be in 10 years, but, like me, you will look back at a time of uncertainty and anger and see your search for why started on April 16, 2007. Like mine started on April 19, 1995.

Keep on looking for answers to your questions. And if you want to submit a questions to me I will gladly take a stab at it. I am not a Bible scholar or a Bible expert in anyway. I am just one person with a passion.

In the New Testament book of Matthew 7:7, Jesus tells us, “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”

Copyright Michelle Sutherlin, April 20, 2007