I struggle with blaming God when things go wrong. If God controls all things, why does He not prevent wrong things from happening?
Suggested Daily Reading: Psalm 73
Asaph struggled with similar thoughts in Psalm 73. He observed righteous people who suffered many problems and ungodly people who did not seem to experience so many troubles. While we do not fully understand God or His dealings, the following truths may be helpful.
Disasters, disease and death are the results of our sin. When mankind chose sin, God had already warned us that sin would bring death (Gen. 2:17). Would it be right for a young person who is being punished by his father for serious wrong-doing to blame his father “Because he could have prevented this punishment from happening”?
God will often take sinful and disastrous happenings and use them to serve a good purpose. Often we cannot see the “good purpose” at the time we experience the hardship, but we often can later. Do you remember how seriously wrong Joseph’s brothers treated him, and how they sold their own brother into slavery in Egypt? This was seriously wrong and very sinful, but God used these terribly painful experiences in Joseph’s life for a very good end, to keep thousands and millions of people alive. Later Joseph looks back on these years and says to his brothers that what they did was very evil, but God used it for a good purpose (Gen 50:20).
In the end of time God will right every wrong and His perfect judgment and righteousness shall be seen. When Asaph realized this in verse 17 of Psalm 73, a shift in his thinking occurred. He saw the end of the wicked and of the righteous, and he could rest in and be comforted by this truth.
Read Deuteronomy 29:29. Why should we strive to avoid trying to understand the secret things of God? Instead, why should we focus on the clear instructions God has revealed to us in His Word? Are you praying and working to learn, live and love according to God’s will, as communicated to us in His Word, the Bible?