How could God be real in the midst of so much suffering?
Today’s world is a messed up place, full of pain. You look at the Middle East and you see people who’s lives have been torn by war. You look at North Korea where citizens are starved and have information withheld from them. You could even look within the walls of the United States; there is a good amount of poverty and grieving. And then we could look at the country of Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The poverty is unreal, and the trauma these people have faced is insane.
I have met so many people these past few weeks that have been through so much. Their stories are stories of pain, poverty, trauma, oppression – the list goes on and on!
I met a woman who was married to a Voodoo Priest. Voodoo has a very large following in Haiti; it affects so many people. Her husband has control over the marriage. He has control over what she does. He, essentially oppresses her. This is awful. This is suffering.
About a week ago, we walked into the home of a young woman and her parents. The younger woman was there first, so we began to talk to her. She has a few kids, all of whom were at school at the moment. We stood between two houses; both were very small tin huts. Behind the woman stood an unfinished home. So we asked about the house. “Who is building the house?” She replied, “My husband was.” Someone spoke up and said, “When does he think he will finish it?” Her response was, “He will not. Someone killed him.” First off, she is already in an impoverished situation with a few kids, and then we find out her husband was killed? That is awful. Then we met her parents. We began talking to the mother and asked how many kids she has. She told us that she has seven kids in total, one of them being the girl we were talking to. “Where do the others live,” someone asked? The mother responded, “The other six are dead.” How much suffering has this family been through? That is so awful!
Also sometime last week, we visited an orphanage. There was about fifteen kids, give or take. They all came out to greet us. The majority of them looked healthy; all except one, actually. One came out in a wheelchair, could barely talk and had a deformed body. Come to find out, he was born with HIV. We eventually got a tour of the orphanage itself. The whole thing was three, very small, rooms; a common room, a boys’ room and a girls’ room. All these kids must be cramped. Oh, and by the way, they sleep on concrete. There’s no beds! Talk about suffering!
Lastly, I heard a story of a family associated with Voodoo. The son of that family ended up making a decision that the father disliked. So what did the father do? The father attempted to murder his son, on multiple occasions, until his son eventually escaped.
Looking at all these things, it all seems absolutely awful. If God was real, He would not let things like this happen, right? But what if I told you that there is more to all of these stories?
The woman who was married to the Voodoo Priest is, perhaps, one of the happiest people I have ever met. As we talked to her, she would respond with a very enthusiastic voice and easily engaged in the conversation. You know what we found out? She does not believe in Voodoo! In fact, she sometimes sneaks off to Church so she can practice her own faith. She chose God and God rewarded her with joy.
The woman, as well as her mother and father, who’s story is so disheartening, love God. After we found out that the woman’s husband had been murdered, but before we found out all of her siblings had perished, told us that she loves God because “He has been so good to me in my life.” She has suffered so much, but still loves God and tells people that He has done so much for her. How amazing is that? Her father and mother were very enthusiastic about God as well. They love Christ and are so passionate about their faith!
The children at the orphanage did not seem like kids that were suffering. Their smiles were so wide. They came out, introduced themselves and then sang us a song. We played with them for a while and then we had to leave. But you know what they did before we left? They sang us another song and then they … prayed over us. These kids, who sleep on concrete, who are packed into a small orphanage, who suffer from various diseases, such as HIV, prayed for US. WHAT?
The last story is the wildest. The decision that the son made that the father disliked was the decision to pursue Christ, to become a Christian. His father tried to murder him and he stayed with his faith? Not only that, but he went to Seminary to become a pastor. But wait, there’s more. His seminary ended up doing some outreach in a nearby village and converting a bunch of people. His father happened to be in that village and also happened to be one of the ones converted. Now, him and his father live as though nothing ever happened. They are both active Christians and have a regular father-son relationship.
You see what the constant was in all of this suffering? God. God is the constant in all of it. Why would someone that has nothing, that has gone through so much, believe in God, put all their faith in God? The answer is quite simple. There is obviously something moving within them. The Spirit resides in their bodies and points them towards the father. These testimonies are so powerful. If there was not enough proof of God’s existence before, there is certainly an abundance of it now.
So I would like to restate my original question: How could God NOT be real in the midst of so much suffering?
