The below excerpt is taken from a book by D. A. Carson titled: How Long O Lord?: Reflections on Suffering and Evil. He tackles this issue head on and gives compelling, biblically-based arguments for the conclusions he reaches. This has been by far the best handling of the topic on suffering and evil from a Christian perspective that I have read. I encourage you to pick this book up, especially if you want a biblically grounded understanding of suffering and evil and how they fit into creation ruled by a sovereign God.
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A pastor is cutting his front lawn. He looks up from his task just in time to see a heavy dump truck back out of his neighbor's driveway--right over the neighbor's eighteen-month-old son, who had been squatting behind the huge tires. The pastor accompanies the hysterical mother and ashen father to the hospital in the ambulance. There is no hope for the little boy; he has been crushed almost beyond recognition.
Where is God?
After five years of marriage, Jane wakes up in the night to find her husband Dan poking her, and pointing to his mouth. As she hauls herself out of sleep, she realizes that her husband has awakened to find he cannot speak, and is badly frightened. A quick phone call to the doctor issues in a swift trip to the hospital. The next day, the surgeons operate for cancer of the brain. They cannot get much of it. The trauma of the surgery is worse: it wipes out all learned memory. Dan no longer knows how to read and write; he cannot recognize his infant son. yet somehow the operation has administered such a shock that the cancer stops growing. Dan's personality, however has been altered; he is frustrated, angry, irritable, and needs someone to watch him twenty-four hours a day. After three years of minimal recovery; the cancer starts its insidious growing again, and kills dan four months later.
Where is God?...
If you have questions concerning the recent tornados that devastated parts of the mid-south including Jackson, TN and Union University, this would be a great book for you to pick up and read so as to obtain a biblical understanding of such events.
You can read a little more here.
You can purchase the book here.
Some questions:
-How would you answer the question: "Where is God?" in the situations above?
-How does scripture answer these questions?
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