Why Do We Suffer?

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

When hard times come--illness, losing a job, a family member or friend passing away, or any number of difficult, painful experiences--the question of why usually follows close behind. Whether it’s our own difficulty or someone else’s, we want there to be a purpose for it, and we grapple with how to understand why it’s happening. Often, we go for the easiest answer, but the book of Job shows us that the easiest answers aren’t always the truest answers when it comes to suffering.

Photo Credit: Flickr User sszdl, Creative Commons

In the beginning of the book of Job, we learn that Job was “blameless and upright,” and was a wealthy man in his time. Verses 2-3 say:

He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.

Very quickly things go downhill for Job. By the end of the first chapter, all of Job’s children and servants had been killed and all his livestock had either been killed or stolen. When Job’s friends show up, they give Job easy answers for why he is suffering--clearly there was sin in his life and God was disciplining him, or perhaps his children had sinned and brought death upon themselves because of it. Job, however, will have none of it. Repeatedly he tells his friends of his innocence and grapples with why God is allowing terrible things to happen to a good person such as himself.

So why did Job suffer then? Why do we suffer?

It would be simpler if God sat down with Job and listed all the reasons Job had suffered and how God was now using that suffering in a bigger way.

God doesn’t do that though.

Instead, he pretty much tells Job, “I’m God.” Job 38:1-2 reads:

Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said:   “Who is this that obscures my plans     with words without knowledge?

There are two different ways we can read this and, in turn, respond to suffering. The first is to see God’s reply as callous, and not much of a reply at all. It doesn’t come across as very compassionate or loving, and doesn't seem to acknowledge any of the pain Job has been going through. Does God really not care that Job is hurting? Why is his first reply to point out that Job doesn't know what's really going on, instead of God telling Job about the plan so Job might glean some understanding? This response can lead us to lash out at God in anger, blaming him for our pain, questioning why he isn’t acting the way we expected him to, and ultimately moving away from him. It’s natural to wonder why God, whom we believe to be powerful enough to stop it and good enough to want to stop it, won’t stop it.

The second way to respond is to follow the example of Job. He certainly questioned God and lamented the suffering he was experiencing, but the difference is that it was all directed towards God, not away from him. Job got angry, he questioned God, and he didn’t understand why things were happening, but instead of allowing his questions to move him away from God, he took those questions back to God. When God replied, Job listened. Job's first response, chapter 30 verses 4 and 5, is almost an apology to God:

“I am unworthy—how can I reply to you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
I spoke once, but I have no answer—
twice, but I will say no more.”

As unsatisfying an answer as it may be, Job gets it--God is God, and Job is a man. God is God, and we are humans. Our "whys" may never make sense in this lifetime, which isn't a neat, tidy answer that takes away the pain and heartache of suffering. Ultimately though, God is redeeming the world and all our pain and suffering along with it, even if it doesn't seem that way when we're in the thick of it. If we're willing to lean into God during hard times, we may not find understanding, but we may find more of God. 

[Brianna DeWitt believes in Jesus, surrounding yourself with good people, and that desserts are best when they involve chocolate and peanut butter. She writes about faith, growing up, and whatever else pops into her head on her own blog, and tweets (largely about food) at @bwitt722.]

Sitting at the Feet of Jesus

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]


If you ask my family or closest friends, they would love to tell you about all my control issues and constant need to plan everything. My life is organized by spreadsheets and to-do lists.

When my husband and I found out we were expecting our first baby (due in July!), it was no

Photo Credit: Flick User Butterfly Orbs, Creative Commons

surprise that I immediately went to Pinterest and started planning. My pregnancy board contains pins like “50 things to do while you nest & prep for a new baby,” “Weekly pregnancy to-do-list,” “8 tasks to prepare financially for your baby,” and “7 things I wish my husband knew before baby.” I went into planning mode and created at least three budget sheets for possible post-baby job situations, researched remedies for morning sickness before I even experienced it, and stocked up on pregnancy books and blogs. Before I knew it, my focus was on the giant to-do list and must-haves for our future life with this baby.

While these might all be good or useful things on their own—possibly even expected—I was putting my focus on controlling my future in any manner that I could. Planning for this baby was my everything. I lost sight of the bigger picture and the fact that God had created a sweet little miracle growing inside of my body. I forgot to make the connection between the Creator of life and His own creation. It was all about me and my life, and not about God and His plan for our lives and our new child.

As we heard from Luke 10 this week, Martha had a very similar problem. She was concerned with what was expected of her as hostess to Jesus, and not very concerned with Jesus himself. She kept busy cooking and cleaning, preparing for Jesus’s stay. When her sister Mary failed to lend a hand, Martha was upset that she was doing all the work by herself. Jesus answered her with a gentle correction:

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “You are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41-42).

Mary had chosen to sit at Jesus’s feet, to spend time in His presence and let her world revolve around His. So often we are like Martha, preparing and planning, only to miss what might be right in front of us. To become like Mary we cannot look toward simple “life hacks” or “50 ways to follow Jesus” in order to truly experience the fullness of God. Instead, we must spend time in relationship with the God who can satisfy our every need and accomplish true change in our lives.

2 Corinthians 5:17-19 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.”

When we become new in Christ and have a relationship with Him, true change starts to trickle out into every part of our lives. We no longer need Pinterest boards or life hacks to prepare us for what might come in the future. For me, I no longer need to hide behind my controlling ways and planning tendencies; I can simply bring my fears about being a mother to God. Only he can truly calm those fears and prepare my heart for the future.

What are you putting at the center of your life? What occupies most of your time, efforts, and thoughts? Redirect your focus this week and spend some time sitting at the feet of Jesus, the only One who never disappoints and always satisfies.


[Megan Stephenson is a recent graduate of Grand Valley State University and works for a private education group in Grand Rapids as an Assistant Registrar. She loves spending time with her husband, Ben, trying out new breweries, restaurants, and local attractions. She also self-identifies as a crazy cat lady, despite owning no cats of her own, thanks to her loving and allergic husband.]

Does Jesus Walk Here?

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

Photo Credit: Flick user Barbara Olson

My house is full of kids, cats, construction and one messy adult (I’m the messy adult. Caleb is super clean!); it gets unkempt over here at Bupp Manor. When people are coming over, I pick up the four thousand Legos and vacuum up the Rice Krispies, but I hope that the undusted baseboards behind the toilet go unnoticed. Christmas this year brought five extra adults to our house for six days; family sees the toilet baseboards (and the expired condiments in the fridge, and the pile of outdated school fliers)! I tried to hide some of the chaos in drawers before they got here, but family does not ask before opening the junk drawer (and they’re not shy about pointing out dust bunnies!). 

I’d like to keep a consistently cleaner house, but something is always higher on the priority list than tidying up every last corner. Someone needs breakfast or a kiss for a boo-boo…or, you know, Netflix.

John 14:23 says:

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”

When we love Him, God will make His home with us. I was concerned about a handful of family members seeing my mess while they were spending a few days here; Jesus has come to dwell with me! If I picture my life like a house that Jesus dwells in, there are the rooms I feel like Jesus would be comfortable in: The Sunday Morning room, the Tuesday Night Small Group Room. But the Angry-Place-in-my-Heart Closet? The Selfishness-Dust-Bunnies that lurk in the corners? The Junk Drawer? I’d rather steer Him toward the Volunteering With Youth Group space. I always intend to clean things up, to spend more time in my Bible and less with my TV, more of my brain space on loving others and less on myself, but the busy demands of life seem to get in the way.

The beautiful thing about Jesus coming to make a home with us is that He doesn’t illuminate our shortcomings and broken places to condemn them (John 3:17). He dwells with us to bring us to fullness; He is the one who can fix and heal and change our broken places. He can reorient our desires and transform our minds as He walks our lives with us (Romans 12:2, Philippians2:13, Hebrews 13:21).

This week, Pastor Dirk shared the story about the Israelites rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem in the time of Ezra and Haggai. A few Israelites remembered Solomon’s temple (which was destroyed when Israel was conquered by Babylon), and were disappointed with the new, less glamorous and less swanky temple. God told them, through Haggai, that the glory of the new temple would far outweigh the glory of Solomon’s temple. How could their bare bones temple ever be more glorious than the gold and bronze one? Jesus would come to this temple: He would be dedicated there, He would return there during feasts as a young man and during His ministry. This was the temple Jesus would walk in.

The idea of Jesus dwelling in our lives might make us want to try harder to give Jesus more space. Life is already jam-packed; where will I find more time to give to Jesus? Can I gather up all of my extra minutes somehow to give Him more space and attention? Pastor Dirk’s encouragement this week was not to resolve to give God more of our time, or money, or relationships, not to push other things to the side so Jesus can have more room; rather, we need to ask ourselves regarding all of those areas, “Does Jesus walk here?”

Do I invite Jesus to walk in all areas of my life? All of those rooms in my house? This could sound like an impossible call to spend all of our time in Bible study or at church; it’s not. Jesus is with us, everywhere all the time; He holds it all together (Colossians 1:17). He’s already there, but we forget and live like He’s not.  Do I see Him in the Friday nights as much as the Sunday mornings? Do I listen for him when I’m behind a bad driver or stuck in a long grocery line as easily as I listen during my designated quiet time? Worshipping on Sunday morning, I’m acutely aware of His presence. When I’m losing my patience or gossiping, I forget that He’s there, inviting me into greater love and fullness in Him.

Adding more time for Jesus on to the endless to do list adds to the crazy busyness of life. Instead of resolving to give Jesus more time this year, let’s ask Him to walk every area of our lives with us. 

[Robin Bupp is married to Caleb, and they are from many places east of the Mississippi (but are calling Michigan home for the foreseeable future). A former high school science teacher, Robin is slowly turning the two Bupp kiddos into tiny nerds while they teach her lots of things, especially humility and patience.]

Quitting The Busy Games

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

The Busy Games are popular these days. When I was in college, which is where I first became aware of this phenomenon, they sounded like this: “I’m taking 18 credit, working part time, and volunteering at the soup kitchen,” would be met with “I’m taking 20 credits, working full-time, and volunteering as both the preacher and worship leader every week at my church, and I’m married with 2 kids.” Now that I’m out of college, they sound like: “I work 60 hours a week and walk my 2 kids to and from school every day and am learning Russian in my spare time,” or maybe, “l have 5 kids and they’re each involved in at least 3 extracurricular activities and I run an online business from my living room.” No matter what The Busy Games sound like, the reality is that they never have a winner.

Photo Credit: Flickr User schmollmolch, Creative Commons

Having a full calendar can be a way of making us feel important. We like to show that we’re busy because being busy means we matter to the people and places we devote our time to. If there are lots of demands on our time, then certainly we must have value as a person.  But this busyness can take its toll in unexpected ways, often so slowly we hardly recognize that it’s happening. Not having time to relax and do what we enjoy is one thing, but suffering relationships with God, family, and friends, are less immediate effects that can ultimately be devastating.

In the story of King Ahab, as told in 1 Kings 20 and the surrounding chapters, we see a classic case of divided loyalty. He wanted safety for his kingdom, but to gain it, he went against the express orders that had been given to him by a prophet of God. Ahab took his eyes off God and allowed himself to be distracted by other things. When we look at our own lives, we may find that much of our busyness is chosen busyness. The ways we spend our time are a major indicator of what we truly value. We may say we value our faith and our family, but if we’re not investing in them in tangible ways because we’re too busy with other things, it’s hard to see that our commitment to what we claim to value most is strong. 

Oswald Chambers writes in his book My Utmost for His Highest:

The busyness of things obscures our concentration on God. We must maintain a position of beholding Him, keeping our lives completely spiritual through and through. Let other things come and go as they will; let other people criticize us as they will; but never allow anything to obscure the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). Never let a hurried lifestyle disturb the relationship of abiding in Him.

It's easy to get caught up in playing The Busy Games, but much of what we brag about isn't worth bragging about at all. What would it look like if our conversations instead revolved around the ways we are working on our relationship with God, sharing with others what we discussed in Bible study, where we've seen God at work, how our Christian community is challenging us to live more fully for him? These all take time as well, but their ultimate payoff stands to be much greater than we may ever fully realize. There are no winners in the The Busy Games, but we can be winners in an eternal sense if we fix our eyes on the God who truly matters. 


[Brianna DeWitt believes in Jesus, surrounding yourself with good people, and that desserts are best when they involve chocolate and peanut butter. She writes about faith, growing up, and whatever else pops into her head on her own blog, and tweets (largely about food) at @bwitt722.]