Highlights from the past few weeks
When I first heard of the book by Rabbi Harold Kushner that deals with the issue of suffering, I thought the title was "WHY bad things happen to good people" but I learned that the title is actually "WHEN bad things happen to good people." So I do not ask God why. I understand that I do not understand the bigger picture other than God allows (and I choose that word carefully, He is not a puppet master) bad things to happen because it is part of His design. What I pray for when bad tings happen is God's grace, strength, and assistance in persevering. I place my trust in Him but not always right away. I sometimes need time to get there through a process of discernment and prayer.
Barbara, you are certainly recognizing that we need to change the question. Understanding the "Why?" is impossible. I like the idea of what do we do when circumstances are difficult, this opens the door for deeper discernment and prayer. I don't want to say too much about chapter 42 right now. but we are on the same track, pigeonhole God is dangerous.
Chapter 38 begins with God questioning Job. Basically, each question is saying "Who do you think you are?" You tell me "if you have the understanding" that God has and, of course, Job cannot. Nor can we. God is putting things in perspective for Job, reminding Job that he is not God and that God has created the world as it is carefully and purposefully. In Chapter 42, after listening to God, Job say, "now my eye has seen you." Now he understands that he had put God in a box and that God surpasses our human understanding.