Where Is God When Trouble Hits?

When troubles and sorrows swoop down on people like vultures over road kill, we almost immediately ask one of three questions, if not all three. "Where is God?" "Why me (or her or him or them), God?" "How could God let this happen?" Some people insist that God doesn't exist because a real god would not allow some catastrophe occur. However, when bad things do happen to good people, God is where he has always been - waiting for us. We often suffer as a result of our own actions, the actions of others, or the effect of evil. We often do things to our bodies that cause agony or tribulations later. A good friend of mine lay on her death bed, ravaged by cancer. A visitor commented, "How could God allow this to happen to you? You're such a good person." Jane gave a wan smile before answering, "God had nothing to do with it. I was the one who insisted on smoking all those years." We often suffer the consequences of our own actions and then blame God when we do. God doesn't force us to smoke, take risks that result in injuries, over indulge, use alcohol and drugs irresponsibly, or involve ourselves in other behavior that harms us. He doesn't cause us to be careless, either. Nor is God responsible when people put others in harm's way. Three members of a family of four died as the result of a drunken driver swerving off the road. In the blink of an eye (an all-too-true clich