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 The Whole World Plays Hurt
How Can God Be Good if He Allows All This Evil?
What is God Doing While We Suffer?
Pain: God’s Bullhorn
Refined Like Silver
Exemplary Suffering
God Has a Better Idea
God Has Scars Too
Comfort for Julie
God Wants to Comfort You
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God Wants to Comfort You
We have seen that God brings good out of suffering in five different ways.
- Pain works as a bullhorn, warning us to turn back to the God of love.
- As silver is refined by fire, God refines our character through trials.
- Like Job, some endure sufferings so that their example may teach others of God’s faithfulness.
- The Lord may allow us to go through trials, so that matters will turn out more favorable for us than we ever could have dreamed.
- Jesus Christ willingly endured the harshest suffering in our place.
All this proves that “in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). What is God’s purpose? To restore people to a living relationship with Him. He actively calls everyone to be reconciled to Him and to know His love. The Lord is calling you right now, to find comfort in His forgiving love. To respond to His love, all you need do is repent of the past and place your confidence in Christ. The following questions will help you determine where you stand with God.
- Do you believe that Jesus Christ died to right all the wrong that people do, including your own disobedience?
- Do you desire the full and free forgiveness that Christ won for you on the cross?
- Do you wish to live with God guiding all the events of your life for good?
- Do you desire the certainty of knowing you have eternal life in heaven?
If these are your sincere beliefs and desires, then tell God how you feel, either in your own words, or by using the following thoughts.
Heavenly Father, although the world is full of strife and pain, I know that You are not to blame for it. People have caused all the sorrow and suffering. And I confess to You with a heavy heart that I also am guilty, I also have sinned against Your will. But I thank You, Father, for sending Your Son Jesus Christ to take upon Himself the eternal punishment that I, and all others, deserve. I believe that Jesus died for my sins, and I ask You to forgive me in Christ’s name. Help me, by Your Holy Spirit, to renew my faith in You each day, no matter how tough my life may be. Although I may not understand the meaning of every problem that comes my way, I believe that You have a plan for my life and You will work it out for my good. Thank You for Your daily care and comfort. Amen.
Rest assured, God accepts you as His forgiven child. “The blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:7–9).
To grow in your faith, you are invited to explore God’s Word and discover more about His love for you. For a more detailed discussion of the question of why bad things happen, read Philip Yancey’s excellent book Where Is God When It Hurts?
In conclusion, remember this. The great French painter, Pierre Renoir, became crippled with arthritis. One day a friend was watching him paint, enduring excruciating agony with every stroke. The friend asked, “How can you paint at the expense of such torture?” Renoir replied, “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.”
You have learned that God works some good purpose out of every heartache, every tear, and every misfortune. Through our trials God warns us and calls us to Himself. He disciplines us for our own good. He guides us through difficult times, so that all may turn out to be a blessing in the end. And He grants to some the honor of demonstrating their faith in Him in the midst of sorrow. One day you will look back and see that your time of suffering was just a brief period of preparation for the never-ending joys of heaven. Never forget, dear friend, “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.”
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