if God is our creator why would he let so many horrible things happen in the world?
343730
Do not forget, God gave humans free will.  If God controlled all our thoughts and actions, life would not be worth living.  And do not forget how many good things come from bad events.  9/11 is a good example.  Thousands of people tragically died, but, if you remember, the days after this attack made America closer.  So many different people came together and proclaimed themselves all Americans.  Also, God told us that he will never give us something that we cannot handle and he said that he will always be there walking with us.  Remember, death is not the end, it is the beginning.  Trust in Jesus, you will be ok.
271097
Wow what a great question. So I understand. God created everything, he created the devil, and therefore he created sin. (which is the breaking of Law.. which he created!)\nSo when people say oh... its the devils work, its is just as much gods work too, just as much as a pretty flower is his work, so is the the Tsunami and 9/11... Ok so god is good.. but god is Evil too!\n\nHe doesn't deserve my worship.
810873
Why is there evil and suffering in the world? \nThe question implies that if a good God exists, then evil shouldn't because God, being all powerful, should stop it. \nWe need to ask and answer two questions. First, what is evil? It is that which is against God. It is anything morally bad or wrong. It is injurious, depraved, wicked. Some acceptable examples might be murder, rape, stealing, lying, and cheating. Second, if we want God to stop evil, do we want Him to stop all evil, or just some of it? In other words, if just some of it, then why? If He were to stop only part of the evil, then we would still be asking the question, "Why is there evil in the world?"\n     Let's suppose that someone was about to commit murder. God would have to stop him, maybe whisper in his ear, or if that didn't work, do something a little more drastic, like have something fall on him, or stop his heart, or make his hands suddenly fall off. Anyway, God would have to do something.\n      What if somebody wanted to steal? God would have to stop him too, right? Undoubtedly, God's imagination would permit a more practical method than I have suggested, but the end results would be the same.\n      What about lying? If someone were to tell a lie, then to be consistent wouldn't you want God right there to stop that person from lying? After all, He couldn't let any evil occur, could He?\n      Let's take it a step further. Suppose someone thought something evil. Then, of course, God would have to step in and prevent him from thinking anything bad at all, right? The end result would be that God could not allow anyone to think freely. Since everyone thinks, and no one thinks only pure thoughts, God would be pretty busy, and we wouldn't be able to think. Anyway, at what point do we stop - at the murder level, stealing level, lying level, or thinking level? As your question implies, if you want God to stop evil, you would have to be consistent and want Him to do it everywhere all the time, not just pick and choose. It wouldn't work.\n      Evil is in this world partly because we give it its place but ultimately because God, in His sovereignty, permits it and keeps it under His control.\n      Then you might say, "Couldn't He just make us perfect and that way we wouldn't sin?" He already did that. He made a perfect angel, Satan, but he sinned. He made a perfect man, Adam, and he sinned. He made a perfect woman, Eve, and she sinned. God knows what He is doing. He made us the way we are for a purpose. We don't fully understand that purpose, but He does. \nGod is sovereign; He has the right to do as He wishes. He has the right to permit evil for accomplishing His ultimate will. How can He do that? Simple, look at the Cross. It was by evil means that men lied and crucified Jesus. Yet God in His infinite wisdom used this evil for good. It was on the Cross that Jesus bore our sins in His body (1 Peter. 2:24) and it is because of the Cross that we can have forgiveness of sins. \nConsider the biblical example of Joseph in the Old Testament. He was sold into slavery by his brothers. Though they meant it for evil, God meant it for good (Gen. 50:20). God is so great that nothing happens without His permission, and in that permission His ultimate plan unfolds. In His plan He is able to use for good what man intends for evil. God is in control.
1048119
God is soveriegn, and everything that happens is according to His will. Sometimes God even has to allow bad things to happen to make people turn to him or to help people trust in Him.
781978
Bad things happen to us all and so do good things that is life. It is how we deal with the bad times though that define what kind of person we really are. Somewhere high above us or all around us, depending on how or what you believe, God is watching and waiting to see how you deal with life. It is the choices you make here that will define the life you have after this one is done.
858600
good question. God gave us freewill, that means we can do whatever we want to it means your free to shoot the next person you see and God won't intervene, it sounds harsh but God wants us to be humans and not robots. but there's consequences to everything we do, we destroy the earth with our sin, sin doesn't just effect each other it effects everything around us, animals, birds, weather etc etc. God gave us freewill so we'd come to him willingly, he doesn't want to force himself on us...that's not love. He loves us enough to give us a choice to follow him or to not follow him. God hates what is going on in the earth, but he does intervene when needed. the tsunami for example, loads of people helped out with that in a world without God no one would care because why should we ?? without God it's survival of the fittest, it's kill or be killed there's no point in life pretty much. anyway God doesn't allow pain and suffering in heaven there will be none. our sin is the cause of pain and suffering.
345143
Sometimes I wonder why He would want to mess up his creation too!  But seriously, I think God created man and then woman to worship Him--he couldn't worship himself but his creation could by loving him with all of their heart, soul and mind.  He created us out of love and to love Him.  He chose to create us and He knows us before we are even born.
259091
Because it is not necessarily God's will. He created us all and gave us all free will. Also, Satan is the one who is in charge of the bad things that are happening to us all! But, I think that God can(and does) use some bad things that happen to us and he turns them into a test...I think that it is mostly a test of faith. Hope this helps!
293297
The issue is not that God’s goodness, God’s power, and evil’s reality can’t fit together, but that there are additional pieces to the puzzle that fit between them and hold them together.\n\n1. Free Will is a partial answer. \nFree will gives a partial answer to this question of evil and suffering. It goes like this: \n\nGod made humanity with free will. \nEvil is a result of human choices. Our first parents chose to sin. \nAs a result of sin, this world has been plunged into suffering. \nEvil, therefore, finds its origin not in the Creator, but in the creature. God receives no blame for evil—we do. We get the credit for evil because we’re the ones who chose to abandon God.\n\n2. As a result of free will, history is discontinuous. \nThere was no evil in God's original creation. But Adam had free will—he was able to sin or to not sin. And he chose to sin. And Adam's choice affected more than just himself. He represented all of humanity. Indeed, Adam represented the whole world (he had dominion over it), and when Adam was sinning, the whole world was declaring war on God. Thus even the natural world was plunged into suffering—animate as well as inanimate (the ground being cursed in Genesis 3 and thus awaiting full salvation at Christ’s return — Romans 8:19-22). This discontinuity is what Christians call the Fall. The world is good (Gen. 1), but fallen in rebellion against God. \n\nHow could God create a world full of evil and suffering? He didn’t. He created a world in which people enjoyed communion with God, intimacy with each other, perfect harmony with the creation, and everlasting life—a world with no suffering, no sin and no guilt. History is radically discontinuous. The world changed at the Fall. \n\nAnd the fact that the Bible says the world is good but fallen certainly makes sense of life. Human beings are capable of great beauty and kindness, but also great evil. Children are cute, but selfish. Adults are smart, but manipulative. The Bible accounts for both the glory and the shame of being human. We’re God’s image, but an image marred and distorted by our divorce from our Creator. \n\nThe Christian philosopher Blaise Pascal spoke of the grandeur and misery of humanity. We are capable of great things, but are always capable of pondering an existence better than the life we now have. Thus we find ourselves in misery precisely because we have the ability to contemplate a better existence. Perhaps the fact that we can imagine a life without suffering is itself a reminder deep within our human consciousness of the life we once enjoyed in loins of father Adam — a life we have lost and can only regain through the redemptive intervention of God in human history. This is a redemption that will only be complete when Jesus Christ returns.\n\n3. If you want God to eradicate evil, you’re demanding that He eradicate us. God’s alternative to eradicating evil people is to redeem them. \nRemember the words of Peter: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). You blame God for evil in the world? I assure you He can take care of the problem right now — but you won’t like the way He does so. Is there evil in your heart? He can destroy your heart at any moment. The amazing thing, though, is that God doesn’t do this. He made your tongue, and you use it to speak against Him — but He is patient with you. For now. \n\nRedemption is God’s striking alternative to eradication. Rather than destroying his fallen creation, He has chosen to restore a people for Himself, a people who one day will live with Him in a restored creation (2 Peter 3:13).\n\n4. Evil is not a thing, but a privation of the good. \nThis was the point that Augustine made in the fourth century when refuting the dualistic Manichean cult out of which he had come when converted to Christ. Mani h
918617
It is not true that whatever we do, God gets it done by us.\nU don't see God Gave us free will But also Showed the right path...\n\nSo whatever we do is our own deeds.. If we do good, God is happy with us,\n& if we do bad deeds, God Obviously will punish!\n\n\nJust take this example..\nGod is our Creater...\nSimilarly A person or an electronics company creates a TV or VCR of DVD Player...\n\nSO ..\nThe company give an instruction manual with its product..\njust like God sent us to this world with Bible/ Quran etc..\n\nNow see!\nWhen the VCR does not work properly, we take it to a repair shop, if it does not still work properly, we throw it in trash...\nTHIS is a punishment for the VCR...\nSimilarly, when we dont follow the instructions from GOD, God will punish us.
790899
Why is there suffering?\n\nPeople of various religions have gone to their religious leaders and teachers to ask why there is so much suffering. Often, the response is that suffering is God’s will and that he long ago determined everything that would ever happen, including tragic events. Many are told that God’s ways are mysterious or that he brings death upon people—even children—so that he can have them in heaven with him. As you have learned, though, Jehovah God never causes what is bad. The Bible says: “Far be it from the true God to act wickedly, and the Almighty to act unjustly!”—Job 34:10.\n\nDo you know why people make the mistake of blaming God for all the suffering in the world? In many cases, they blame Almighty God because they think that he is the real ruler of this world. They do not know a simple but important truth that the Bible teaches. \n\nThe real ruler of this world is Satan the Devil. The Bible clearly states: “The whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.” (1 John 5:19) When you think about it, does that not make sense? This world reflects the personality of the invisible spirit creature who is “misleading the entire inhabited earth.” (Revelation 12:9) Satan is hateful, deceptive, and cruel. So the world, under his influence, is full of hatred, deceit, and cruelty. That is one reason why there is so much suffering.\n\nA second reason why there is so much suffering is that, mankind has been imperfect and sinful ever since the rebellion in the garden of Eden. Sinful humans tend to struggle for dominance, and this results in wars, oppression, and suffering. (Ecclesiastes 4:1; 8:9) A third reason for suffering is “time and unforeseen occurrence.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11) In a world without Jehovah as a protective Ruler, people may suffer because they happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.\n\nIt is comforting for us to know that God does not cause suffering. He is not responsible for the wars, the crimes, the oppression, or even the natural disasters that cause people to suffer. Still, we need to know, Why does Jehovah allow all this suffering? If he is the Almighty, he has the power to stop it. Why, then, does he hold back? The loving God that we have come to know must have a good reason.—1 John 4:8.
57586
God allows things to happen, but he still hurts for us when me make poor choices and he is always there for us.  We have free will.  If we did not have free will, we would be like robots.  God gave us forgiveness through his son Jesus.  I am praying for you right now, that your you will learn from your mistakes (and that we all will) and that you will call up God to hold you through the pain.
567751
our creator is the one and only God. he gave us free will because he loves us. the devil tricks us into committing sins, we are not forced.
315468
Good questions!  I like good subjest matter.  God is not some bug eyed monster up in the sky.  Why would he be all hateful when he needs us as much as we need him?  We do have free will, and i can do whatever i want because of it, but heres the rub, i was created by something with a view of the bigger picture.  So by virture of where i was born and my personality there are huge sections of human reality that will never even occur to me to do because of who and what i was made to be. Example : kiss my boyfriend, you betcha!; eat chocolate covered ants, hell no!
175131
one cant, at least THIS one cant.  When something terrible happens and you question gods "wisdom" a religious person will most often come back with god has a plan we just don't know what it is.  Well my point is if there is a god and this god is omnipotent then this god allows all of this terrible stuff to happen.  Now if this god has a plan that lets these things happen FOR WHATEVER REASON then it is not something I would want in my life.  If a person stands idly by and lets pain and suffering befall his fellow man when it is in his/her ability to stop the suffering then they are as much at fault as whatever is causing the suffering.  If a "god" dose the same thing, well its just a perverse sort of thing to put your faith in.
1170559
I have thought about it- a lot! I don't have any answers, just more questions; if God is omnipotent ( all knowing, all powerful, etc ) than why is there such suffering in the world? Why do children get cancer, why do bad things happen to supposedly God-fearing people who are doing exactly what they are supposed to be doing in His eyes? Why indeed...
76747
Because free will is all about choices. God know before a person chooses but HE doesnt choose for that person...its up to the person...People are finite, GOD IS INFINITE. That's what makes HIM GOD!!! And if you dont get it...be not dismayed...neither do I...but I believe and have faith in HIM who created heaven and earth.  He wants our love and He wants us to choose HIM...ptl