But God Why?

3 simple words, 3 letters each, and a question mark. We use these words individually in our everyday life, but when used together, they form a question that people have been asking God since the start of mankind. Scientists have been trying to give scientific answers, theologists have been trying to give theological answers, spiritual people have been trying to give spiritual answers, but nobody is able to give a definite answer to this question.

Why do innocent people (including children!) have to die? Why do the evil-doers run wild? Why do we exist to suffer? Why do bad things happen to good people?

All these questions don't seem to have a good answer. An answer which I personally received is "God allows us to go through all this, to build Character."

What is Character? After attending a course recently, I found that Character is what we are when we think that nobody's looking. How we act when everyone around us doesn't know us. What we really are when we take down our "masks".

We all wear "masks" in our daily life. Things that we put on to make us look like what we are not, and things that we do when we know that somebody is watching. Well, Somebody is watching us all the time. God is. He sees all that we do, and He knows all that we do. Things that people do when they say that they need some "private time" alone. Things that people do in the privacy of their own homes.

Is it starting to sound unrelated to what I was talking about earlier? Not really. Why does God allow us to suffer? What comes into our minds when we suffer? Does the question "But God Why?" come into mind at those times? God's reply is "For your own good, to build your Character."

Not good an answer enough? When we are put through challenges, we learn to rely on God's good planning. We learn to realise that He knows what is good for us. When we have to make a choice, we learn to stop and ponder the choices. "What would Jesus do?" Does that sound familiar?

When a building collapses in front of your very eyes, what would Jesus do? A typical Singaporean with a kiasee mindset would walk off pretending he didn't see, didn't hear, and it isn't his responsibility to act. A "hero" would go through the rubble to try to find survivors, disregarding his own safety. What WOULD Jesus do? I believe He would pray for the remaining survivors, that their lives would be sustained till help arrives, and until then, pray that a miracle would happen that all of them would be Saved. Not just saved from the rubble, but Saved from the gates of hell. Too spiritual? Not realistic enough in this world? Did the Bible not say that we are in this world, but not of this world?

When a close (unsaved) friend goes through a terrible patch, what would we do? No, what would Jesus do? I believe that He would pray for them to grow from the experience, to learn from the experience, and to come out from that experience stronger, and be able to help others who will may eventually go through a similar or the same experience.

Brings me back to the Amplified translation of John 3:16. "For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life."

What hit me when I read this translation was that "believes in" is not enough. I believe that you can make it, I believe that Jesus died for my sins, I believe that the Bible is God's love letter for me. But does that mean that I (have complete and absolute) trust in Him? Cling (on tightly, never letting go) to Him (despite anything that happens?) Rely (totally) on Him (in all that I do)? Until that happens, will I perish (or be lost), or have eternal (everlasting) life?

Just something to ponder on...