Once again our nation is gripped with the horror of watching an entire community deal with the aftermath of tragedy. This past Monday an EF-5 tornado that was at least a mile wide and stayed on the ground for forty minutes, according to some reports, dismantled the town of Moore, Oklahoma. It destroyed homes, businesses, schools and lives. As I am writing this on Wednesday afternoon the death toll stands at 24, with at least seven of those being children. Amazingly the number of dead has decreased from original reports, rather than increased. Even as we rejoice that the number is going down rather than up, we are reminded that each life is sacred and the loss of even one, is devastating to those who are personally affected.
In the immediate aftermath, social media like Facebook and Twitter began to explode with expressions of prayer for the victims and survivors. Thousands have used these and other social media to offer expressions of comfort, love, hope and prayer to God. This is good.
However, not all who post about God are doing so in a positive way. Some have used these media to express anger, frustration and even outrage that God would "allow" such a thing to happen. Rather than calling upon God to help during the aftermath they would drag God into the courtroom and convict Him of apathy at best and cruelty at worst.
How are Christian believers to react and respond to such posts? How are we to answer the critics who blame God for heartache on such a large scale? Most of us have wrestled with the difficulty of knowing if, when and how we should respond. I want to offer a few thoughts that may be helpful.
First, we must not be surprised that some people get mad at God. God can handle it. He will be just fine without our feeble attempts to defend his actions or inactions. The immediate aftermath of a natural disaster is not usually the best time to explain the deeper mysteries of how God interacts with a fallen creation. This is a time for compassion, support and tangible expressions of the love of God. The friends of Job did their most effective work when they simply sat with Job, offering no explanation or theological theories about why he was suffering.
Second, we must be very careful about making judgments that are not ours to make. In our attempt to make sense out of chaos, we often come to foolish conclusions. 24 people were killed in Moore, Oklahoma. This is a heart-wrenching tragedy for those family members. It is a stark reminder that we still live in a world of pain and death. Over 56,000 were spared. Were they somehow better in the eyes of God than the 24? Not at all. Jesus made this abundantly clear in Luke 13:4-5. Why some died when others were spared is a question that we are not equipped to answer. When hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans some were quick to assume that this was certainly the judgment of God on a wicked city. Believers must carefully avoid this kind of rhetoric.
Third, there will be a time to help people understand why bad things happen. Bad things do not happen because God is apathetic. The evidence of His love for all creation is seen in the agonizing death of His own son for all people. Though we still suffer in this life, God has provided for our ultimate freedom from suffering after this life in a place called Heaven.
Bad things do not happen because God is weak. He has chosen to allow human beings to operate with certain freedoms. He is not a puppet master controlling each and every decision made by people. That was clear in the Garden of Eden when He allowed Adam and Eve the freedom to obey or disobey. They chose the latter and plunged all creation under the affects of sin. Sorrow and suffering. Tumors and tornadoes. Diseases and disasters. These are all affects of sin, not indications of a powerless God.
I am not surprised when tornadoes come, when cancer invades, when death knocks. I understand that I live in a world that is thoroughly infected with sin and its consequences. Evil people inflict pain, suffering and death on fellow human beings. Prejudice, hatred and selfishness abound. Power, greed and lust are growing exponentially. Natural disasters occur frequently. I am not surprised by any of this. All of creation is groaning under the weight of sin.
But this is not all there is. There is another world for which I am longing. A world where tears will not flow, disease will not flourish and death will not be found. A world without hospitals, hospice homes or cemeteries. A world without bruises, scrapes or broken bones. A world without fear, frustration or failure.
The pain and sorrow of this world just makes me long for that world even more. The knowledge of that world enables me to endure this world with grace and contentment.
"For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith." 1 John 5:4
