DEAR REV. GRAHAM: Why doesn't God do something about all the suffering and evil in the world? I'd believe in Him if He really seemed to care about us, but I have a hard time thinking He does.
-- C.Y.
DEAR C.Y.: I suppose I've asked myself this question hundreds of times -- standing in a typhoon-ravaged village in India or a city destroyed by an earthquake in Guatemala, or by the grave of a close friend, or at the bedside of a colleague riddled with cancer. Job declared, "Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward" (Job 5:7).
I don't know all the reasons why God doesn't intervene and stop all suffering and conflict and injustice. Someday we will know -- but not yet. But I do know two very important truths. First, this world is not the way God intended for it to be. The world was perfect when God created it -- but then something intervened, and that "something" was sin. The human race rebelled against its Creator -- and like a deadly spiritual cancer, sin invaded the world and brought death and destruction in its wake.
Second, someday God will intervene, and all the evil and pain and sorrow we now experience will be destroyed. Satan, our adversary, will be banished forever, and God will make all things new. The Bible says, "But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells." (2 Peter 3:13).
Don't leave God out of your life; don't confront this world's evils or death on your own. Instead, turn to Christ and discover the peace and joy and strength He alone gives to all who put their trust in Him. Jesus said, "But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
Write to Billy Graham in care of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C. 28201 or visit the website at
billygraham.org
Style on 11/01/2016