Tragedy strikes every person at some time; how should we respond?

Tragedy is unavoidable. No matter how rich you are, how high your position, or how faithful a Christian you are, sooner or later suffering will strike your life.

With the pain comes disillusionment. We ask, "Where was God?" Why did he let this happen?

Every single time we come up with the same answer, "There is no acceptable answer."

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We don't often think about it, but somewhere in the world, right at this moment, a tragedy is going on.

With the billions of people on this planet, thousands of them are grieving right at this very moment. When a major disaster happens, we know about it within minutes.

Not only do TV, radio and newspapers report on bad events almost instantly, but they keep reporting on them for weeks after they happen. Why is that?

As a former newspaper reporter, I can tell you that bad news makes news. Good news rarely does. Bad news is still out of the ordinary. It's shocking.

It's wrong.

Evil happens to everyone

As Christians, we usually think we should be immune from tragedy. We think God should put up some kind of protective shield around us so we won't get hurt.

But we know that's not true. We're just as prone to pain as nonbelievers. In fact, we often suffer more over our lifetime than people who ignore God.

No where in the Bible do we find verses that guarantee us a smooth, pain-free life. Bad things do happen to good people, and with great frequency.

In the midst of intense hurt, we're tempted to demand an answer to the "Why did God allow this?" question. It's pointless to ask. We won't get an answer. No one ever has.

Obeying God doesn't give us a free pass in life. All our self-denial and obedience can seem worthless when hardship hits.

What then?

So how can we keep from losing our faith in God when we're in the midst of shock and sorrow?

No matter how bad things get, we need to keep reminding ourselves that as believers, God is on our side. He is for us, no matter how painful life becomes.

God is not capable of evil. Rather, he is the embodiment of love, and that love is never denied to us. In fact, the worse things get, the closer God comes.

God is the best way--usually the only way out of darkness. Blaming him is a wrong interpretation of the facts.

No matter how bad things are, we have to go on. God's love and care provide enough hope to make it from the time your alarm clock goes off in the morning until you fall into bed at night. Sometimes a single day at a time is all you can stand.

Time turns our wounds into scars. Some are never completely healed in this life, but they will be in the next.

God doesn't want us to live the rest of our life in bitterness and anger. If we return to him and let him in, he will begin the long, gradual healing process.

Tragedy always leaves us with a choice. The right choice is to go to God.

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