I saw “Unstoppable” last night with my family – a one-time movie event starring Kirk Cameron in which he asks the question, why does God let bad things happen to good people.  While the movie answered that question to some extent (it is the fall of man therefore sin), I thought it failed to dig deeper so a wider variety of people could understand.

That’s where I come in.  I want to see if I can help explain what it is that a Christian (or maybe just me) thinks as to where God is and what in the world he’s doing at these awful times.

In order for me to think I can answer this I must ask some questions first.  What if God WAS with us, all the time (He is), but instead of being on the sidelines (He is) He interfered with everything we do and say?  What if He walked and talked with us and we just loved on Him all the day long because that’s simply how we were born.  What kind of love would that be to God?  He made little, tiny images of Himself just so they could love Him?  What kind of true love would that be?  It wouldn’t be.  Just like the millionaire who wants to find his or her mate, they often go “under cover” as a poorer person just so they can tell who loves them for them and not just for their money.

Okay.  Now that we understand God didn’t create us as little love robots, let’s go a step further.

Because we are given a choice, given FREE WILL, we can CHOOSE to love God.  Or not.  If we do (and I do), then God truly knows our love and loves us even more in return (although He loves everybody cuz that’s how awesome He is, and He doesn’t like what people do most of the time, but that’s a different blog for a different day).

So, if we have free will, we can also not love God.  Even hate Him (lots of people do).  Or even think He’s non-existent (cuz people are so smart you know).   So if we don’t love God that leaves a whole open door for a lot of bad stuff to happen.  The enemy (Satan) just loves to love people who don’t love God.  These people are easy for him.  So much so he doesn’t even spend much time hassling them.  Satan’s got more important things to do such as steal souls bound for Heaven.

You’re not answering what about GOOD people, Holly?  Okay, now I will.  But with a few more questions first.  How do we know there wasn’t a 9.5 magnitude earthquake yesterday in California that God stopped before it even happened?  How do we know that spot on my breast was really cancer but until we prayed, and I mean really prayed, He hadn’t already intervened?  How do we know that we could have all been wiped off the map 50 years ago by some cataclysmic meteorite.  We don’t.  Even when a miracle DOES happen, we are quick to come up with another excuse.  Well, it could’ve been a wrong c-scan image…it probably was the doctor’s fault as he was pretty busy that day so how do I know it was really God.., etc.

But what about the good people who pray and He decides NOT to intervene (as in a death)?  What happened there?  First of all, like Kirk said, dying for a Christian is the best thing that can happen.  I mean, they get to see Jesus.   Like now.  Today!  They won’t miss you (they will be happily numbed to the fact there even was an earth) and won’t even think about you until you get there and join them!  But for US, it’s absolutely gut-wrenching at home.  We miss them!  Life is not worth living without them!  Where is God?  He is right there with you.  Holding your hand.  Speaking to you in your very soul.  Sending warm tingles down your body as you feel His Holy Spirit wrapping around you.  Gently telling you that you are brass.  Brass being put through a fiery furnace and being molded into fine, no ultra-, ultra-fine, bright shiny gold, perhaps even gold dust.  To be sprinkled all over the earth.  To tell more people about Jesus.  To enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and being able to be told, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

You see, if there is no dark there is no light.  If there is no lack of oxygen you wouldn’t know there is oxygen.  If there is no rich there would be no poor.  Get it?  You have to have polar opposites to know what is and what isn’t.  Therefore you need to have BAD to have GOOD.  HATE to have LOVE.  PAIN to have PEACE.  It is there, too, that an unbeliever most calls out to God..in their hour of darkness.

God lets these bad things happen (it hurts Him, too) so an ultimate plan can unfold.  A plan that is bigger than you or I or anyone can even imagine.  Let God and Let Go.