Sooner or later we all ask the question of why does a loving and sovereign God allow some of the trials and difficulties He does in our lives. For me the most recent issue took place over a week ago during a regular eye exam. Going into this appointment, I naively assumed my eyesight was a good as ever, but I soon discovered that I couldn’t see nearly as well as I used to out of my right eye. I used to be able to see a weak 20/20 in both eyes, but that day my right eye was down to a hazy 20/40 or 20/50. Before I left the exam, I was also told that I had the beginnings of macular degeneration in my left eye (the same problem that Helen has in more intermediate level in her eyes in recent years) and a repeat of the same retina problem I had 10 years ago that had led to a six-year series of eye injections to correct that problem.
Yesterday I went back to the same retina specialist I had seen before. This time the problem was not identical to what I had experienced previously, but it was similar. And before I left, I received another eye injection, and I was told that it probably would require another year’s worth of repeat visits with eye injections every month or two. Fortunately, he is a friendly person I appreciate. The bad news is that this medicine has become more expensive than before. (At the moment, we are still waiting to see what insurance covers and how much our cost will be.)
But here is my question. I believe in a loving and sovereign God who controls every detail of my life. So why then does God allow difficult experiences in our lives?
There are many things we don’t understand in life. When I was in college many years ago, it was at the height of the Vietnam war and many of my classmates were drafted. That wasn’t a part of God’s plan for me, so I never was drafted. But my father was drafted many years before and served in World War II. Or consider someone we know who has served as a first responder and seen things that the rest of us thankfully have never seen or needed to deal with As I look at it, God has a different plan for each of us—and even a different plan for each new day as we go through life. And none of us know what God may call us to experience even later today or tomorrow.
The good part is three-fold. First, God promises to go with us as believers through all of life, including the trials and difficulties He allows into our lives. The concluding part of Hebrews 13:5 reminds us of God’s promise to us, “he has said, “I’ will never leave you nor forsake you.’”
Second, God promises that He will bring good out of all the challenges of life He allows in our lives, including those things that are most difficult for us. Romans 8:28 sums up this promise, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Third, God promises that there is always an answer—or a way through all the problems and difficulties of life. God gives us this promise in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
Because of God, everything in life can be different.