Answering The ‘W hy ’ Questions
One of the hardest questions I am ever asked as a chaplain is “Why . . .?”— “ Why did I get cancer?” “Why did my daughter die?” “Why did God allow the Trade Center in New York to be bombed?” I ’m not God, nor do I presume to speak for God, but may I offer a few reflections I hope you will find helpful. 1. God is still in control. God has not hit the panic button. Lean back and leave the driving to God. If God is your copilot, switch seats. Remember, “Oops” is not a word in God’s vocabulary. 2. C.S. Lewis once wrote that “[Pain] is His [God’s] megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” — Whether we like it or not, when it comes to war, disease, or pain of any kind, it definitely gets our attention. It is like the old farmer who had the most stubborn mule in the county. No one was able to break him, so, rather than getting rid of him, the farmer hired a big city mule trainer with the reputation of being able to train any animal. When the mule trainer arrived he walked out into the barn lot, picked up a two-by-four board, went over to the mule, reared back, and hit the mule right between the eyes. The mule fell to the ground and got back up shaking its head. The concerned farmer ran out and said, “Why did you do that?!!” The mule trainer replied, “I had to get his attention first.”—Have you noticed how much spiritual awareness has come as a result of the terrorist attacks? Though God is not the author of evil, God can certainly use it to get our attention. 3. When it comes to war or terrorism, we often mistakenly think that they increase death. Not so. They merely speed up the process a bit. 100% of every generation still dies (latest statistics). The real issue of life is not that we die, but rather the fact that each of us lives one breath and one heartbeat from eternity. War, terrorism, pandemics, or terminal illnesses simply bring to our consciousness conditions which have existed ever since Adam and Eve, namely death.
102
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online