After going through years of drought, what is going on? According to a hydrologist with the Bureau of Meteorology, the flooding which is afflicting large parts of New South Wales is “a once in 20 years event”. While all the rain would have been welcome during the drought years, most would agree that there is just too much of it now!
Many news reports carry stories of farmers who had hoped that the rains would bring some relief after so many barren dry years. But now there is too much of it. Even the vines are suffering from the damp. “How can a good God allow such a terrible thing to happen?” will be one of the questions which will be asked. Those who don’t believe in God will be spared this question as a non-existent God cannot be responsible for any events in the world, good or bad. Those who do believe in God however are left with tough questions. Is God really good? Does He really care for us? How could He let something like this happen?
As to the question, “Why?”, the Bible does not disclose much. We know from the book of Job, that God does not give Job an answer for his suffering. All he is left with is the realisation that God is God and Job is not. For tough questions such as the recent flooding only God knows the answer and we are just asked to trust in His wisdom.
But we live in hope. The Bible teaches that the world suffers from the fall (Romans 8:22) but that God will one day inaugurate a new age when there will be no more sadness or suffering (Revelation 21:4). Our hope is ultimately in God and the next world. We can also be comforted knowing that we have a God who is intimately familiar to the human experience of grief and pain. For those who have put their faith in God, we have the promise that we are not and will never be alone. God walks with us (Matthew 1:23) and will bring us safely home one day.
No comments:
Post a Comment