Why does God allow pain and suffering?
A few months ago someone asked if there was a God why does He allow so many bad things to happen. This is a good question now that we see all the things Katrina has done to Louisiana. I did not have a good answer for that question. I am not a Bible scholar. I wish I did have all the answers, but I don't. Maybe this will help.
This is one of the best explanations of why God allows pain and suffering that I have seen. It's an explanation other people will understand.
A man went to a barbershop to have his haircut and his beard trimmed!
As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: "I don't believe that God exists."
"Why do you say that?" asked the customer.
"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving a God who would allow all of these things."
The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument.
The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.
Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.
The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber:
"You know what? Barbers do not exist."
"How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber. I just worked on you!"
No!" the customer exclaimed. "Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."
"Ah, but barbers DO exist! What happens is, people do not come to me."
"Exactly!"- affirmed the customer. "That's the point! God, too, DOES exist! What happens is, people don't go to Him and do not look for Him.
That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."
Author Unknown
I hope this helps a little.
Please pray for our brothers and sisters who have lost homes, property and lives due to hurricane Katrina.
God bless,
Joe
Why does God allow pain and suffering?
posted by JOE B @ 1:23 PM 14 comments 
14 Comments:
If we knew all the answers then there would be no need for GOD.
Psalm 119:28 I weep with grief: encourage me by your word.
Turn to God's Word in times of loss, for there you will find God's wisdom.
I like the story. It does make a point clearer.
I heard that story at church not too long ago. Beautiful.
I live in Miami and experienced a Category 1 hurricane, but seeing the damage it did to Louisiana takes my breath away. I can't believe this was the same storm!
Let's pray for these people.
Glad to have found your blog here....and the analogy is priceless. Thanks for sharing. Come visit sometime!
like the way how you put it!! may the Lord bless those who are suffering from the hurricane
michelle
http://momo4ever.com
Joe,
Consider the words of Job, when he said "shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?"
God allowed Adam to sin, and this is all a result of the original sin. Also, I would not want to give anyone the impression that by coming to Him, all of our troubles will simply vanish. Consider what Jesus told Ananias about Paul: "For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake." One thing I have learned - God does not care about the outcome of a situation, He only cares about our response to the situation.
That was a very good illustration of why people draw wrong (notice I said wrong, not stupid) conclusions from a set of facts or non-facts.
Please pray for my mother. Her name is Billie. She was transported to the ER last night with a failing heart. She made it through the night, but the outlook is not good. Thank you.
Joe,
Not sure I understand your last comment, although I am assuming it was in response to my post. Can you please clarify?
I will most certainly keep your mother and the rest of your family in prayer during this time.
Thanks, Joe. You brought a complex issue down to a simple, yet paradoxical answer. I've been dismayed because of the tone of so many people trying to put blame on someone for this disaster. I've written what my response is on my blog.
Beer, Barbecue, and Bible Study
I'm trying to encourage ALL OF US to do something, quit complaining, and show the rest of the world who we really are.
Thank you Joe, what a nice post. I am a Christian too. More spiritual than religious though, I rely on my bible and my relationship with God to lead and help me.
This disaster makes us all more humble and thankful watching these poor people suffer. My heart breaks and I feel so helpless.
Take care and God Bless you!
P.S. Just reading your comments before publishing - I stopped and said a prayer for your mother Billie, hoping her recovery is speedy. I too suffer being as young as I am with a very serious heart problem so I do understand how serious this is. I pray she will get better very soon.
This is my first time to your blog, I think it was meant for me to find you this morning.
Hey everyone, Thanks for stopping by. I just wanted to clarify something real quick. It is Joe over at Joe's Jotting who is the one asking for prayers for his mother. She has been very sick.
My mom ALWAYS needs your prayer because she has me for a son. hehe.
Please go by Joe's place and let him know you are praying for him.
While there is no way to adequately explain such things, one thought to keep in mind is that this life isn't all there is.
If all we had was this life then pain and suffering would be very cruel indeed.
The eternity to come means that this life is no more than a small, insignificant speck in comparison. That doesn't mean that God doesn't care about what we experience now but we do need to keep perspective.
The barber analaogy is a good one but obviously falls well short. There are many people who do come to God and yet still suffer. I'm sure that many men, women and children who loved and followed God were killed during Katrina. There are Christians being killed for their faith in various places around the world. Young children who call Jesus Lord are still abused and hurt at the hands of others.
All those who go to the barber are able to get a haircut. Not all who go to God will avoid suffering.
Hey Joe, just going through my prayer list, how are you doing with your health????
Take care!
Cool story, dude. Keep serving the Kingdom!
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