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Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” Genesis 18:25 (NLT)

Even someone with the strongest faith has to admit at times that we wonder why God allows the righteous and innocent suffer. We are appalled when news reports tell of women and children being used as human shields by people at war. It seems even more appalling when God seems to condone this activity. Face it; if He is the Sovereign God we claim He is, He certainly should be able to protect the women and children of the world.

In our weaker moments we can understand why some people boldly proclaim that God doesn’t exist or, if He does, He’s completely lost control of the world and its events. An all-powerful God of love and justice would never  allow these tragedies to happen.

Perhaps Abraham had the same thoughts going through his mind when he overheard God talking with the two visitors who accompanied Him on a visit to Abraham. That event, in and of itself is an amazing thing to think about. How would our lives be different is God visibly and personally visited us as He did Abraham on several occasions!

The visit in Genesis 18:25 may have been the most troubling however. As Abraham listens in, God and the other two men with Him (Jesus and the Holy Spirit?) were talking about the destruction of two cities that had become increasingly evil: Sodom and Gomorrah.

Normally, Abraham may not have really concerned himself with the topic. However, Abraham’s nephew, Lot, lived in Sodom. Out of love and concern for his nephew Abraham dared to question God’s plans! He bargained with God: “If you find 50 righteous will you destroy the city? 25? 10? At each level God promised that if righteous people were found the city would be spared.

Sadly, that didn’t happen. The angels had to literally drag Lot, his wife and two daughters out of Sodom moments before the city was buried under burning sulfur. Even then, Lot’s wife perished when she looked back and was transformed into a pillar of salt.

Throughout our lives there will be events that will cause us to question why. Abraham’s conversation with God before Sodom was destroyed shows that we serve a God who is not unapproachable. Abraham argued with God over Sodom for the sake of his nephew and by doing so may have saved Lots life. During those times of struggle in our lives we need to remember that we can come to God and let all of our emotions out. He will listen to you in the midst of your struggles!

Each of us needs to realize that even though the actions God allows seem to be harsh now, His actions seek a better good. We can’t always understand why God acts the way He does. There are times when we need to just accept His actions based on our faith in Him. We see things in a finite way with a beginning and end. God sees things in relation to eternity. When calamity happens it falls upon the guilty and the innocent, the rich and the poor, the young and the old. But God is in control.

When you are in the midst of adversity, even those times when you don’t think you can go on, remember that God IS there. He is NOT silent. He DOES love you. Rely on Him for the strength to carry on especially when you don’t understand the ‘why?’

PRAYER: Holy Father. I confess to you that I don’t understand the way you work. I see so much pain in the lives of others. I’m going through emotional and physical pain myself. There are times when I doubt your existence and your concern. I ask that you would help me to be honest with you and with myself. Help me, in Jesus name, to seek understanding where I need to understand, and faith to trust you when there are no answers. I ask today that if my struggles are not going to leave, you would give me strength and comfort to endure. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.