Why?

READ: Job 13:14-28

Why do you turn away from me? (Job 13:24).

Sipping tea at a café, I saw two women sit down at different tables. One, young and attractive, was downing a drink topped with a mountain of whipped cream. Shopping bags sat at her feet like obedient pets. The other, about the same age, gripped a metal walker as she moved to her table. Thick plastic braces guarded her ankles. The clerk at the register had to help her maneuver into her seat. As I looked at the two women, I wondered, Why does God seem to allow some to suffer much more than others?

When Job lost his children, money, and health, his friends tried to explain why it had occurred. They supposed it was payback for sin, but God said Job was "the finest man in all the earth" (Job 1:8).

Clearly sin isn't always the source of suffering. Yet when we're desperate for relief, we look for answers. We ask questions such as "Why?" and, "Is it God's will for me to suffer?" instead of pursuing God Himself. Job fell into this trap when he demanded: "What have I done wrong? . . . Why do you turn away from me? Why do you treat me as your enemy?" (Job 13:23-24).

Ultimately, Job's questions were left unanswered. God didn't explain that unseen evil had caused his suffering (Ephesians 6:12). But Job wasn't left unsatisfied. God satisfied him by simply revealing Himself. After He showed him His provision and majesty in creation, Job declared, "Now I have seen you with my own eyes" (Job 42:5). And God blessed Job with twice the possessions he'd lost, children, and 140 more years (Job 42:10-17).

Though we might not understand why God allows us to suffer, we can continue pursuing Him, knowing "the Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him" (Lamentations 3:25). -Jennifer Schuldt

MORE: Read Colossians 3:1-4 and consider what the future holds for believers who suffer on earth.

NEXT: How is the enduring love of God a source of comfort for you when you suffer? How does Lamentations 3:33 demonstrate God's goodness?