#bad things happen to good people

I don’t like the phrase “God is in control” or “God has a plan”. It makes it seem like every bad thing that happens is from God, is part of “His plan” or whatever, which ultimately makes God seem like a pretty horrible being. Recently, though, I found myself thinking about the phrase “God will know what to do”, and I realised, that’s it. That’s how the disparity between God caring about our lives and bad things happening gets mended. Bad things happen in the world. As Jesus says, “in this world, you will have trouble…” . Bad things happening were always hard for me to accept because why does God let some things happen but stops others? How can God be good if he stops some bad things but lets some through his filter?   

But when a bad thing happens, God has a solution. You get cancer? He helps you get through chemo. He puts people in your life who can help you through it. He turns it into a way for you to grow and learn. He knows what to do. You lose your job? He’ll help you figure out your next step and bring good out of it (He’s great at doing that). He will know what to do. You get your heart broken? He helps you realise things about yourself and learn important lessons from it. For every bad thing in this world, He has a solution, even if it’s not immediate. Covid-19 happens? He equips scientists to find a vaccine and governments to make decisions to protect us in the mean time. Yes, people die, but even death, the ultimate evil of this world, He has an ultimate fix for in eternal life later on. I don’t know why God stops some things but not others, but I do know that he cares about us, and that He doesn’t send bad things to us. Yes he lets trouble happen in this world, but He has a solution to that trouble. There’s a second part to the verse: “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)