Why?

Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword. —Acts 12: 1-2

Why did God miraculously deliver Peter, yet allow Herod to kill James? Why is life so full of sorrow? Why does God allow righteous people to suffer? God doesn’t give us answers to those “whys.” And when there is something we don’t know, we must rely on what we do know. What we do know is that God is good. We know that God loves us supremely. We know that God is sovereign, that He is on the throne, and that nothing happens without His permission. We know that all things are working together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose. We know that God’s thoughts towards us are good, not evil; that He is working out an eternal plan for our lives.

**We don’t always understand the reason why God permits suffering.

When pain or trauma comes and we have no answers for why we are suffering, we can hold tightly to the knowledge that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8: 18). Sovereignty is working out an eternal purpose through our circumstances. We don’t always get to know God’s reasons for the things that He permits. But we don’t need to know why. We need to know Jesus.

Father, even though we don’t always know why things are happening to us, we know You. We trust You. We believe in Your goodness and in the great love You have for us. Teach us to trust You more and more. In Jesus’ name, amen.