When Life Hurts

Philip Yancey

• Publisher: Hodder Faith
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN:
  9780340862902
• eBook ISBN:
  9781444724080
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christianity

Many strong believers begin to feel disillusioned with God or to doubt their faith when faced with great pain or suffering. Even the strongest believers may begin to wonder where God is when they need him most or why he doesn't seem to care. In this book Philip Yancey inspires those for whom life hurts to look beyond their immediate suffering and to understand that God is offering an invitation to hope and a doorway to his gracious gifts.

SECTION THREE

When God seems unfair

‘Why me?’ we ask almost instinctively when we face great tragedy.

Look at these questions carefully and you can detect a common thread.

Two thousand cars were driving in
the rain on the motorway – why did
mine skid into a bridge?

Out of all the kids that go to school why was my
son shot by a madman?

A rare type of cancer strikes only one in a
hundred people – why did my father have to be
among the victims?

Each questioner assumes that God was somehow responsible, that he directly caused the pain. If, in fact, he is all-competent and all-powerful, then doesn’t that mean he controls every detail of life? Did God personally select which car would fishtail across the motorway? Did he direct the gunman to his victim? Did he choose a cancer victim at random, out of a telephone book?

Few of us can avoid such thoughts when pain hits us. Immediately we begin to search our consciences for some sin that God must be punishing. What is God trying to tell me through my pain? And if we find nothing definite, we begin to question God’s fairness. Why am I suffering more than my neighbour, who is an outright jerk?

The suffering people I have interviewed torment themselves with such questions. As they writhe in bed, they wonder about God. Often, well-meaning Christians only make them feel worse. They come to the hospital room bearing gifts of guilt (‘You must have done something to deserve this’) and frustration (‘You must not be praying hard enough’).

‘To be commanded to love God at
all, let alone in the wilderness, is
like being commanded to be well
when we are sick, to sing for joy
when we are dying of thirst, to
run when our legs are broken.
But this is the first and great
commandment nonetheless. Even in
the wilderness – especially in the
wilderness – you shall love him.’

Frederick Buechner

Once again, the only place to truly test out our doubts about God is in the Bible. What do we find there – does God ever use pain as punishment? Yes, he does. The Bible records many examples, especially of punishment directed against the Old Testament nation of Israel. But notice: in every case, punishment follows repeated warnings against the behaviour that merits the punishment. The books of the Old Testament prophets, hundreds of pages long, give a loud and eloquent warning to Israel to turn from sin before judgement.

Think of a parent who punishes a young child. It would do little good for that parent to sneak up at odd times during a day and hit the child without any explanation. Such tactics would produce a neurotic, not an obedient, child. Effective punishment must be clearly related to behaviour.

The nation of Israel knew why they were being punished; the prophets had warned them in excruciating detail. The pharaoh of Egypt knew exactly why the ten plagues were unleashed against his land: God had predicted them and told him why they would happen and how a change of heart could prevent them.

Biblical examples of suffering-as-punishment, then, tend to fit a pattern. The pain comes after much warning, and no one sits around afterwards asking, ‘Why?’ They know very well why they are suffering.

But does this pattern resemble what happens to most of us today? Do we get a direct revelation from God warning us of a...

Table of contents

• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Introduction: An invitation to hope
• Section One: When you wonder why God created pain
• Section Two: When you doubt God’s power
• Section Three: When God seems unfair
• Section Four: When you wonder if God cares
• Section Five: When you need to feel God’s love
• About the Author