Psalm 80:5

Psalm 80:5

Why suffering?

More often than not, the travails and sufferings of this world are attributed to circumstances and to causes that are outside of our control. As we have commented before, there are those who feel entitled to ask, “Why does God allow this suffering?” We tend to scoff at their naivety but maybe their questions are closer to home that we think? Israel could have answered, with some conviction, “He does allow it and we are the victims.” “We have been fed with the bread of tears and we have been made to drink tears by the bowlful.” They didn’t have to ask where the suffering came from and why it had been allowed! They knew, yes, it was God! They also knew that their behaviour and their unbelief had been the cause. They knew that their imprisonment in Babylon was down to the actions of an angry God, and He wasn’t being unjust. Because He was the cause, He could also be the solution. The suffering need not go on forever, that is why they cried, “How long?”

If we blame circumstances and fate for our difficulties, there is no resolution but to try harder, work harder and throw ourselves on the mercy of experts and other human beings. If we believe God to be involved with our troubles, then we can turn to Him and seek a way out. So that even in our suffering He is our hope and our deliverer. Hallelujah! 

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