I want to tell you a few stories. They all have something in common, which you will quickly figure out.
I had a childhood friend named Bria. She was the oldest child in the family. Two years younger than Bria was Paige. When Paige was three, their mom learned that she was expecting another little girl. Jenna was born with Down Syndrome. She was loved and adored by her older sisters. Their mom, Janet, was one of those neighborhood moms that all of the kids loved. She always had a smile on her face and didn’t hesitate to pull whatever kids were around at dinner time inside for a good, home cooked meal. When Janet was 39 years old, she suffered a fatal brain aneuryism, leaving behind a high schooler, a middle schooler, and a child who needed constant care. It didn’t seem fair. The family already had enough on their plates taking care of Jenna’s needs, and now to do it without their mom? Really, really hard.
Fast forward 8 years. Paige, the middle child, couldn’t cope with the loss of her mother, and took her own life when she was 22 years old. This left Bria and their dad to take care of Jenna. It was hard, but Jenna was a light in their life. Only six months after Paige died, Jenna passed away from medical complications. Within a few short years, a family of five was cut down to a lonely family of two. How much pain was one family supposed to endure?
Next story. When my dad was in his early 40’s, he knew that God was calling him into the ministry. But he was afraid to heed the call. He had a wife and three kids, and was concerned about income and being able to pay the bills. Bottom line? He was not obedient. When he was about 50, he accepted a part time position on our church’s staff as the Minister of Education. He still kept his full-time job, but was able to serve in this capacity. He knew that it wasn’t enough, though. So at age 54, he made the decision to quit his job and go on the church staff full time. Right before he officially started, he had to have an easy surgical procedure. Not an emergency and he would be out of the hospital in less than 24 hours. Things didn’t quite turn out that way. The doctors made a fatal error, and he died 3 weeks after surgery, having been in a coma since the surgery occurred. For me, I couldn’t understand what God was doing. My dad was finally going into the ministry full time, and he dies? What?
Do you see the common thread? It’s the thread of suffering, and how things simply don’t make sense to us, especially since God is sovereign and can make things turn out differently if it’s His will. It’s a question that people have asked since the beginning of time. How can God be Sovereign and humans still have free choice?
Randy Alcorn’s book, Hand in Hand, explores this concept and helps us to understand the seeming dichotomy. You’ve heard both Christians and non-Christians ask, “How could God let this happen?” Or, “If there was really a God, how could he let children starve?”
One thing that we realize through reading Alcorn’s book is that there are certain things that we simply don’t have the human capacity to understand. Alcorn explains to us how this is not really contradictory, even though it may seem so. His goal is for the reader to have a better understanding of this principle.
Check out the author talking about the book in this short video:
Hand in Hand is available at Family Christian Stores, and I would highly recommend it. Especially if this is something that you struggle with.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
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