Why do BAD things happen to GOOD people?

“Is it good unto Thee that Thou should oppress, that Thou should despise, the work of Thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?” – Job 10:3

Do good things come to good people only? And do bad things come to bad people only? If something “bad” happens to you, does it mean you are living in “sin”? Does it mean we deserve what we get in life? What happens when bad things happen to good people? Does it mean they are really not good people to start with?

One of the most impactful books in bible is the book of Job. It tells of Job, a righteous man, a wealthy man. Satan went up to God and placed a bet, that if Job loses his wealth, his family, his health…Job would turn away from God. God “allowed” satan to put Job through the ordeal. Job, however, stood firm in his trust in God and was fully restored by God.

But before his restoration, Job cried out his anguish and despair to God. “Why are You letting these things happen to me? You made me, but now you destroy me. You made me out of clay, will you bring me to the dust again?” Job really let it all out. What made worse his plight, is that his 3 friends condemned Job that all this was a result of his sin, that he deserved all his misfortunes.

Did something bad ever happen to you? You got terribly sick, or you had an accident, or lost a job, or something similar. And instead of comforting you, the first thing your family or your friends tell you is, “hey, you gotta go back to God. You have to live a clean life. You need to do this or do that.” As if its all your fault why it happened in the first place.

Imagine, walking up to the relatives of those mercilessly killed in Maguindanao and telling them, “God has a purpose for this. You have to repent and turn back to God.” How do you think they’ll react? We have to be a little slower in condemning, and a little better in showing people that we care.

Why can’t we just accept that bad things happen to good people. Period. Can God teach us something from the experience? Definitely. But is there a reason why it happened? Probably yes, but we can’t “presume” that there is all the time. We can’t “presume” that this guy is a sinner cause he isn’t active in church, and so bad things will happen to him. Or that this guy is “holy” because he is visible in church always and that only good things will happen to him. Only God knows that. All things work out for the good of those who love God. It doesn’t mean that only good things will happen, it means ALL THINGS, whether good or bad, WILL WORK OUT for the good of those who love God.

In all Job’s questions to God, God didn’t give him an explanation. Instead, he asked Job a series of questions, “Where were You when I laid the earth’s foundation? Do you give the horse its strength? I control nature. Do you know how?” God didn’t explain to Job, He showed him who He is.

We can cry out our sentiments to God. We can even ask Him why such things happen to us. But before we do, we have to know WHO we are questioning.

So, why do bad things happen to good people? I don’t know and I can’t answer this question. All I know is that God is good, all good things come from him. All bad things DON’T come from God, but that God can take a “bad” thing and USE it and TURN IT AROUND  and make it into something great. All I know is that when something bad happens, that is an opportunity for the glory of God to be made known.

New Moon for the Believer…which Team are you?

so for my second post, i choose a controversial topic…the second in the twilight series, what is NEW MOON for the BELIEVER???

Let’s lay down some “disclaimers” for those who don’t know me…

1. I believe in the Almighty God and in His written word, the bible. I believe there  is a heaven and a hell as well.

2. I don’t believe creatures like vampires, werewolves or any such “monsters” exist. I do believe however, that the devil does, as stated in the bible.

3. I am not promoting that you watch the movie. But yes, I have watched twilight and new moon…

4. If you haven’t watched the movie, this may contain some spoilers…

5. I am neither team Edward or team Jacob; i am definitely team JESUS!

This is probably the hottest movie in the planet now, and in the secular world, a love story between a girl and a vampire may be appealing. But in the Kingdom of Christ, we know that this story is just that, a story.

Yes, i was curious enough to watch the first 2 movies, and probably curious still to watch the whole series.  But it is not for the faint of heart, nor for the wobbly faith. I am not saying that i am a mature christian, that i can handle such plots. In fact, it is best to stay away form these things altogether. For there is something “dangerous” about being an avid fan of the story line, both of the books and the movies. Have you heard of those edward-fanatics who cut themselves and show their bleeding wrists and necks to the movie star? Really weird. But that is not the dangerous stuff. What is dangerous, as promoted also in some other movies, is that “bad” is portrayed as “good”; that there is really no “absolute right” and “absolute wrong.”

In New Moon, it is “implied” that it is ok to be a vampire (as long as you don’t bite?); that it is ok to disregard the feelings of your parents for the one you love; that it is “ok” to lose your “soul” just to be with the one your heart desires. For fans, this may be the most “romantic” things, but in reality, this is all a lie.

The big lie of the story is (and there are other blockbuster book/movie series that promote this lie) practically the non-existence of God. No, it is not vehemently said in the movie that God does not exist. But to talk about immortality, eternal life and damnation in the terms of vamps is like saying “there can be a happy life with out need for God.” Other movies have portrayed this such as the one showing “witchcraft” as good if used for good. A movie that promotes “non-absolutes”; no true good, and no true evil, is definitely promoting the non-existence of God.

God is good. God is holy. God created all things good. God never created evil. His good creation fell and sinned, and that resulted in the evil in the world. God is absolutely good and holy. Things, principles and principalities against God is absolute evil. It’s that simple. There are only two (2) teams in reality, Jesus’ Team and the devil’s team. Which team do you think edward and jacob belong to? More importantly, which team do YOU belong to? You have to take a side, there is no neutral ground.

So why did i watch the movie? For curiosity? For entertainment? For research? It’s like watching starwars, superman, and even dora the explorer; it’s all fiction, but it’s amusing. It’s like bible students studying apologetics, how to defend the faith, by studying what the other religions believe in and practice. This is not to justify watching the movie. But before you watch this, and any other movie for that matter, ask yourself: What is your heart’s content? What is the condition of your faith? What is your purpose in watching this film? Unless you can glorify God in what you’ll do, then just don’t.