Suffering

Where Is God in a Tsunami?

In the aftermath of any natural disaster, especially one so brutally and indiscriminately devastating as the Japan tsunami, the cries “Where was God?” and “How could a loving God . . . ?” grow louder than usual. Adam’s sin in the Garden of Eden is the ultimate cause of the death and suffering we see in the world today.

Why So Much Violence?

The peace, or shalom, of the original creation’s order was disrupted by humanity’s early insurrection against our Creator. When the man and the woman exalted themselves as gods—in league with the serpent—God pronounced a curse upon everything under the rule of humans—and that curse impacted everything.

Is God There When I Suffer?

We are not going to have all the answers as to why things like sickness have been allowed to happen. God has a sovereign plan far greater than we could imagine. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3).

A Lesson From a Hurricane

Reach out and help where you can as the Bible commands us. Be ready to give answers about how Christians can reconcile a God of love with death, suffering and destruction. But the most important issue that we should all make our highest priority concerns the state of people's souls. After all, each soul will live forever in heaven or hell.

Articles About Suffering

  • Sept. 4, 2006

    I woke up on the Labor Day holiday in the USA (September 4) to hear the news that the famed “Crocodile hunter,” Steve Irwin, died in Queensland Australia.

  • Living After the Loss
    April 4, 2005

    How can the tragic, totally unexpected death of a 17-year-old young man produce anything good?

  • The “Why?” Question—Why Is School Violence in the Headlines Again?
    March 29, 2005

    Why did a 16-year-old Minnesota student go on a shooting spree and cause the deadliest school shooting in the USA in six years?

  • Auschwitz, Pedophilia, and Tsunamis
    Feb. 14, 2005

    What sort of God would allow mass murder—the systematic extermination of at least six million Jews and millions of others—to happen?

  • Magazine Article
    Why Us?
    June 1, 2004, pp. 21–23

    Numerous books have been written to try to explain what seems to be an irreconcilable problem—Christianity’s claim of a God of love in the face of the evil, death, suffering in this world.

  • Final Lessons from Ground Zero
    Sept. 11, 2003

    How should we view the horrific terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001? Serious situations require serious answers—from the Word of God.

  • Magazine Article
    Tragic Truth
    June 1, 2003, pp. 10–15

    What do you say to help survivors of a horrific tragedy? Pastor Gino has recently faced this tough question, not once but twice.

  • September 11—a Tragic Reminder
    Sept. 11, 2002

    September 11 is a solemn reminder about our need to pray for one another in our efforts to give real answers to a troubled nation.

  • Answers for One of Our Oldest Dilemmas
    Aug. 5, 2002

    Why do righteous people suffer? Why do the worst things sometimes happen to the best of people?

  • Magazine Article
    Genesis at Ground Zero
    March 1, 2002, pp. 10–15

    Ken Ham interviews Ralph DiCosimo, a New York police officer with first-hand experience of the aftermath of the horrific happenings of 11 September 2001.

  • New Witnessing Booklet Addresses Tough Question
    Nov. 22, 2001

    On the morning of September 11th, I was on my computer writing an article entitled ‘The Two Histories of Death.’

  • Terrorist attack leaves writer asking questions
    Oct. 11, 2001

    Four questions asked by a writer in a letter to the editor of The Daily Courier (Forest City, North Carolina, USA)

  • April 1999 Newsletter
    April 5, 1999

    An explanation of how the world is full of death and suffering and God, at the same time, be good.

  • Why Would a Loving God Allow Suffering?
    March 19, 1998

    Many people have understandable anguish over the suffering in the world.

  • Technical Research Paper
    Creation, Suffering and the Problem of Evil
    Dec. 1, 1996, pp. 391–404

    The problem of evil continues to be a supposed ‘safe haven’ for the skeptic. He believes that issue gives evidence to support his rebellious attitude toward God.

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