Tag: Christian response to suffering

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What We Get Wrong About Suffering

👉 If God is good, why does pain still exist? Does suffering mean you’re being punished—or could it be part of God’s plan?

Let’s just say it:
Suffering messes with your theology.

It’s easy to believe in God’s love when the bills are paid, the body’s healthy, and the prayers are getting yeses.
But what happens when the pain drags on?
When the diagnosis is bad?
When the waiting seems endless?

And the scariest part?

You’re doing everything right.
Praying. Serving. Obeying.
And still… the fire won’t let up.

What do you do with that?

🔥 “God, I Thought You Loved Me…”

Let’s not sugarcoat it—suffering hurts.
And when it hits, it usually whispers one of two lies:

  1. “God is punishing you.”
  2. “God has abandoned you.”

But here’s what Scripture shows us:

  • Job was righteous—and still suffered.
  • Paul wrote most of the New Testament—from prison.
  • Jesus, God’s perfect Son—was “a man of sorrows.” (Isaiah 53:3)

So if pain meant punishment… God would owe Jesus an apology.

❌ Suffering Isn’t Always Because of Sin

We’ve inherited a sneaky prosperity mindset—even when we don’t preach it.
We think, “If I do right, good things should happen. If bad things happen, I must’ve failed.”

But the cross destroys that thinking.
Jesus did nothing wrong—and yet He was crucified.

God doesn’t only use blessing to speak.
Sometimes, He uses brokenness to shape us.

✅ Suffering Can Be Part of God’s Plan

Hear that again:
Not everything painful is outside God’s will.

Ask Joseph.
Sold into slavery, imprisoned unfairly, forgotten by men…
Yet later he said,

“You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.” (Genesis 50:20)

Ask Jesus.
He sweat blood in Gethsemane but said,

“Not my will, but Yours be done.”

Ask Paul.
He had a thorn in the flesh that God didn’t remove.
Why?

“So I wouldn’t become proud… His strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Sometimes the thing you think is trying to kill you…
Is the very thing God is using to form you.

🧠 What We Get Wrong

Let’s break it down:

  • Myth: Suffering = God is mad at me.
    Truth: Suffering ≠ absence of love. Sometimes it’s proof of God’s refining fire.
  • Myth: Pain means I’m outside God’s will.
    Truth: Pain may be the exact tool God is using to align you with His purpose.
  • Myth: Good Christians don’t struggle.
    Truth: Even the strongest believers weep, doubt, and wrestle.

đź’ˇ What Should You Do in Seasons of Suffering?

  1. Don’t fake it.
    God isn’t impressed by forced smiles. Bring your honest heart.
  2. Lament.
    Read the Psalms. Even David cried, complained, and questioned—but always came back to trust.
  3. Lean into community.
    You’re not meant to suffer in silence. Jesus had Gethsemane—but He also had friends close by.
  4. Let suffering shape—not shatter—you.
    The fire refines gold. The wilderness prepares warriors. Suffering is not your end—it’s a process.

🙏🏽 Final Thoughts

Suffering doesn’t always make sense on this side of eternity.
But it isn’t meaningless.

Every tear you’ve cried,
Every night you’ve groaned,
Every prayer you’ve whispered through clenched teeth—

He sees it.
He holds it.
He will redeem it.

“After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace… will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
— 1 Peter 5:10

It might not look like victory right now…
But hang on.
He’s working something deeper than you know.

And your scars?
They’re not just signs of pain.

They’re proof that something holy is being written in your story.

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Why Did God Allow That? – Wrestling with Suffering, Pain, and the Problem of Evil

“If God is good, why did He let this happen?”

It’s one of the hardest, rawest questions people ask—whispered through tears, shouted in anger, or left unspoken in quiet despair. A tragedy hits, betrayal crushes you, suffering lingers, or loss rips away something dear. And deep inside, a question burns:

Why did God allow that?

For some, this question is intellectual—a theological puzzle to solve. But for many, it’s deeply personal. Maybe you’ve lost someone too soon. Maybe a dream shattered. Maybe life’s unfairness seems unbearable. You pray, you plead, and yet… nothing changes.

Where is God in all this?

1. The Hard Reality: We Live in a Broken World

Let’s start with a truth that no one enjoys hearing: this world is fallen.

God made the world good, but sin broke it (Genesis 3). From the moment Adam and Eve disobeyed, suffering, sickness, and death entered the world. And since then, things have been messy. The Bible doesn’t sugarcoat this:

Jesus Himself said,

“In this world you will have trouble”.

(John 16:33)

Paul calls creation “subjected to futility” (Romans 8:20) and describes it as groaning under the weight of brokenness.

This means pain is part of life on this side of eternity. Not because God delights in suffering, but because sin corrupted the world.

2. “But If God is in Control, Why Didn’t He Stop It?”

This is where things get really difficult. If God is sovereign, couldn’t He have prevented that car crash? That abuse? That diagnosis?

Yes. He could have.

But the Bible shows us that God doesn’t always intervene the way we expect. Instead, He allows human choices and natural consequences to unfold—sometimes with devastating results.

  • He didn’t stop Joseph’s brothers from selling him into slavery (Genesis 37).
  • He didn’t prevent Job from losing everything (Job 1-2).
  • He didn’t keep Jesus from the cross (Luke 22-23).

And yet… in every case,

He was working something greater through the pain.

3. God’s Plan is Bigger Than Our Pain

Let’s revisit Joseph. Sold into slavery by his own brothers, falsely accused, thrown into prison. Where was God?

Right there, turning the worst moment of his life into the very thing that saved millions from famine (Genesis 50:20).

Or Job. He lost his family, health, and everything he owned. Yet, in the end, he encountered God in a deeper way than ever before (Job 42:5).

And Jesus—beaten, mocked, crucified. It seemed like the greatest evil in history. But that very moment became the source of salvation for the world.

What does this tell us?

  • God sees beyond what we see.
  • Pain is not wasted.
  • What Satan or others intend for evil, God can use for good.

It doesn’t mean every tragedy will make sense immediately. Some things we won’t understand this side of heaven. But God is still in control, even when life feels out of control.

4. The Cross is God’s Answer to Suffering

When we suffer, we want answers. But God doesn’t just give an explanation—He gives Himself.

Jesus didn’t stay distant from suffering; He stepped into it.

  • He was betrayed, abandoned, beaten, and crucified.
  • He felt the depths of human pain.
  • On the cross, He cried out: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46).
God doesn’t just watch our suffering—He experienced it Himself.

This is why Christianity is different from every other worldview. Many religions say, “Just accept suffering.” Atheism says, “Suffering is meaningless.” But Jesus says, “I have suffered with you, and I will redeem it.”

5. “So What Do I Do With My Pain?”

If you’re hurting, here’s what you can do:

  1. Be honest with God. He can handle your anger, doubt, and confusion (Psalm 13).
  2. Trust that He sees the bigger picture. Even if you don’t understand, He is working all things for good (Romans 8:28).
  3. Remember, suffering is temporary. This world is not the final chapter (Revelation 21:4).
  4. Lean on Jesus. He’s been there, and He walks with you now (Hebrews 4:15-16).

God doesn’t promise a pain-free life. But He promises that one day, all pain will end. Until then, we hold onto Him.

So, why did God allow that?

Maybe we won’t fully know. But we know who He is. And that is enough.