God gives us strength to face tragedy
HARDLY a week passes when we don't have faith tested.
A good man with everything to live for dies in a moment of tragedy, while an elderly patient who has had her life and longs to die lingers on in pain and discomfort.
Why should God allow it?
Why does God allow in His beautiful world hurricanes and earthquakes that can lay waste whole cities and countryside?
Why do people have to starve or die through preventable diseases in the poorer nations when we have more than enough in the western world?
Why do some people go out of their way to kill or maim others?
How can a human heart be so corrupt as to harm or abuse a tiny child?
We could go on with a catalogue of suffering and human pain.
We live in a world in which there is conflict between good and evil, and each one of us is caught up in the struggle.
Some things go wrong deservedly, but other events happen for which there is no easy explanation.
And there are few times in our lives which leave us more helpless than moments of personal tragedy.
Like Job in the Bible we may cry out to God our inability to understand. God will listen. But He may not necessarily give us a quick or easy answer to life's imponderables.
As long as we are this side of Heaven our knowledge will be imperfect and we shall see in a mirror dimly.
The Christian faith does not leave us in despair, however. We have a blessed hope that there will surely come a time when we shall understand fully and see for ourselves face to face.
Life's riddles will one day be solved.
Meanwhile, we must take heart that God knows and understands, and we have to hang on to Him with every bit of faith we have.
Although God may not shield us from all life's ills He is able to give us the strength and inner courage to face them and see them through.
As we cling to God so we need to cling to one another, for adversity has a way of drawing people together for comfort and support.
Part of the Christian message is to show love and point to hope in a broken world and to proclaim in lives and words that Jesus is lord.
The victory over sin and death won by Jesus through the cross and resurrection is ours to be enjoyed in this world and the next.
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood" — from 1Corinthians 13.
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by Sean, Torbay
Tuesday, July 20 2010, 10:28PM
“Religion has caused, and will continue to cause more anger, pain & suffering in this world than all the hate man could possibly dream up.
The church is a narrow minded, brain washed group that judges people on a book written by hundreds of different people, over a vast amount of centuries.
There is no scientific backing (but alot to protest the entire religion), and yet with this world in the worst state it's ever been - with women & children dieing there is still no sign of a divine miracle or offering to us all.
Hundreds of years ago the Bible & Church could easily control the 'village people' into obaying their law. In todays society it has no place, because we no longer choose to shut off our mind.
Constantly the church preaches about how evil the devil is - with the sex, drugs and all other sinful things - personally that sounds a whole lot better than spending eternity with someone who has sent people into this world in his image, (which is a completely different subject altogether, as people are born of all different races, looks, personalities, disabilities, genders etc) and has chosen to kill so many without mercy for no good reason, day in and day out - doesn't sound like much of a good guy to me?
Pray to the Lord! < What? What on earth is that going to do? You pray that something in particular happens, I can promise that there is someone else somewhere promising that the opposite happens, so how on earth does God decide the outcome? Toss a coin no doubt?
All I will say to you is see the injustice in Afghanistan that our boys & girls suffer every day, and the injustice suffered in countless wars - the senseless loss of life and human waste and try and justify religion - where someone will walk into a group of innocent people and blow themselves to pieces - in the name of religion. It is a dangerous disease without our world.
Sitting in a comfy Torquay church is all very well and good when it comes to preaching about God's good work, but I have to question if you've ever seen 'his' bad work?
Blind faith that it all happens for a reason and that the lord is loving? < It's the distinct lack of ability to except reality.
I use to happily allow the Church to do it's thing in peace, but since I constantly get harassed by Christians trying to 'save me' and convert me and so on and so forth i take a very aggressive stand - especially considering these same people that preach love and forgiveness are far from saints in their personal lives.
The whole thing - ridiculous!”
by Old Soldier, Bournemouth
Wednesday, June 30 2010, 3:44PM
“Thanks Reverend Jesus, at last a voice of reason. How's your dad by the way, is he grateful you took on the sins of the World or still his grumpy Old Self?”
by Reverend Jesus, Heaven
Wednesday, June 30 2010, 1:14PM
“Can someone please close this thread it is boring and p******g me off, I have work to do in the Bay, i have just killed off a basking shark and now have to 2000 loaves of bread to bake. I cannot get on with that whilst I am having to keep talking an eye on this load of b******ks. Go and read the Bible my mates wrote 40 years after my death, they never ever met me, you will find the book in the FICTION dept in the new library in Paignton.”
by Damian, Torquay
Wednesday, June 30 2010, 9:49AM
“If you want to live your life following a load of old copied parchments from the 1st century and call it "open minded" then good luck to you John. I pity you.”
by John Dawkins, Paignton
Tuesday, June 29 2010, 5:56PM
“Devil's Advocaat, thank you for expanding my very brief comment about what a Christian is.
Damian, I'm not that bothered about the numbers. All I know is that God is real to me beyond doubt and that my relationship with Him, through Jesus, is a transforming experience. You may think I'm deluded, in fact I know you do, but that's only because your mind is closed to the possibility that 2 billion people might actually be right.
Like the writer of the original article said, we cannot fully understand the ways of God in this life (sounds like a cop-out but it's not). But God's presence in my life, although invisible, is almost tangible. I've seen Him at work in other people, rebuilding broken lives and healing deep, deep hurts. He has provided a loving, supportive community (the church to which I belong), which I and many others use as a springboard from which to serve the community.
I know I'm not perfect and I still make mistakes. But I know God's forgiveness for all my failings because Jesus paid the penalty in my place when He died.
I'd better stop now because I can hear you laughing! Also, this isn't the place to try to 'convert' people as the HE is likely to pull the plug on this thread.”