When physical or mental strife attacks a fellow believer, Christians may struggle to dole out compassion.
Instead of reaching out in empathy, we might feel compelled to offer spiritual insight. Furthermore, it might seem like the sickness is a punishment from the Almighty.
One reader asked Billy Graham: “I’ve always had physical problems that limit my ability to walk or do most of the things that normal people do. As a result, I have very few friends and sometimes I wish I’d never been born. Why did God let this happen to me? Does God hate me?”
The wise evangelist responded:
I don’t know exactly why God allowed this to happen to you—or for that matter, why He allows evil of any kind to exist. In heaven we’ll fully understand this—but not now. The Bible speaks of “the mystery of iniquity”—and that’s what evil is: a mystery (2 Thess. 2:7, KJV).
But I do know this: God does not hate you. In fact, the opposite is true: God loves you, even if you doubt it. From one end of the Bible to the other, God repeatedly assures us of His love for us, even in the midst of hardship or conflict. And because He loves us, He wants us to become part of His family and live in His presence forever.
How do we know this? We don’t know it because life is always perfect or trouble-free—because it isn’t. We know it instead because God did something that is almost beyond our ability to understand: He came down from heaven and became a man—Jesus Christ. And by His death and resurrection Christ conquered the powers of sin and death and Hell. The Bible says, “Just as Christ was raised from the dead … we too may walk in the newness of life” (Rom. 6:4, MEV).
By a simple prayer of faith turn to Jesus Christ and open your heart and life to Him. Then ask Him to guide you to a church where you can grow in your faith and be surrounded by people who will love you.
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