Where is God When it Hurts?
In his Gold Medallion Award-winning book, Where is God When it Hurts, Philip Yancey brings forth the very realistic questions and dilemmas about human pain and suffering in this world. If there is a benevolent, loving God, why is there such a substance called “pain” in this world? Do they have any specific meaning for human lives? Does God decree and orchestrate every heartbreaking and sobering tragedy to convey his divine message to people? Or is God unwilling and unable to cope with the ongoing havoc and chaos caused by evil in this world?
Even though no one desires pain, it still exists. Are the hands of God not long and strong enough to pull his people from the pit of pain? Where was God when six million Jews, God’s chosen people, were dumped in the burning oven? Why did God not intervene when those children who did not know right from wrong were thrown into the oven and the surrounding atmosphere was full of the smell of burning humans? Was he watching from the distance? Do these wicked acts of human beings, in fact, not make God the author of evil?
These questions linger in the minds of humans who are seeking answers that often feel unfulfilling. Yancey looks at three distinctive areas of life where pain has affected them: physical, emotional, and spiritual. By employing decent numbers of examples from the Bible and his own experiences in life, he helps us to look into this kind of scandalous topic, like undeserved pain and suffering and why we suffer.
Yancey says that the Son of God suffered in this fallen world like all humans do. Pain and suffering are not abstract concepts for God. He knows our suffering through his experience on the Cross.
The author argues that we suffer as a result of the first man and woman abusing their freedom of will. However, the intriguing stories he presents in this book seem surreal, and God and life do not make sense of a man who is in such circumstances. There were no verdicts against those sufferers that justify their being punished for their sins. In this sense, there is no plausible reason to explain why someone suffers. It is completely mysterious and incomprehensible to the human mind. Those in physical pain also face emotional distress. A glimmer of hope can rejuvenate them, but fear of loneliness and rejection also may rule out that hope and shake their faith. They eventually shrink together, causing more pain for those seeking the source of their suffering.
Thus, the wise sufferer will not search for a cause. Instead, he shifts his inward quest for meaning in his suffering to the outward world, where he finds other afflicted people. This ultimately aids in the healing of his scars. Otherwise, he will always wander alone in search of the cause and meaning of his suffering.
But there is hope—unlike optimism and wishful thinking that deny reality. Realistic hope provides dying sufferers strength to confront the reality of death. It brings the realization that any form of healing is not a resolution of the problem of pain and suffering but merely a postponement of suffering for a while. God promises to produce good out of infirmity, and he never fails. Jesus also suffered with us and became one of us. Our pain creates space for God to reveal his strength in our weakness. Therefore, there is a final hope that through Christ Jesus we will have life hereafter without pain and suffering. Our trust in his promise of a future home and hope for life hereafter affect how we die and how we live.
Evaluation
“Where is God When it Hurts” is more akin to a classical work addressing the issue of pain and suffering. Yancey’s biblical knowledge and personal experience make this book realistic and a guide for those who want to help the suffering. His thoroughly researched data on pain nerves are also very convincing as to why pain, as usually defined as unpleasantness, is a wonderful gift for humankind, though nobody wants it. The sophisticated and intricately designed nerve cells and systems are one of the solid arguments for the design. The complexity of human pain nerves cannot be a byproduct of mere chance.
Regarding pain and suffering, the basic two principles that God established in his creation—consistent natural law and human freedom—are the main cause of suffering. Our erroneous freedom of will can distort God’s motion-fixed laws into evil by defying all the rules of the universe, since these laws are pervertible. As Yancey states, the abuse of human freedom is the active factor contributing to the increase in pain and suffering in this world. [1] That being said, the falsified will and the misuse of human freedom are primarily responsible for much of the suffering in the world. We are the cause of holocaust. We are solely responsible for inventing the atom bomb, nuclear warheads, and weapons of mass destruction (WMDs); this responsibility does not lie with God.
However, human wickedness is not always the causative factor for unbearable suffering in the world. Yancey gives some examples about tragic accidents in Yuba City, California, and Toccoa Falls Bible College, Colorado. He draws a distinct parallel between the traffic tragedy in California, a dam break in Colorado, and two biblical events: the accidental collapse of a tower that killed eighteen people and the slaughter of a religious minority group by Roman soldiers during a political oppression. The reasons behind those tragedies had nothing to do with their actions. Their behavioral actions were not a result of the underlying cause. Jesus shows that no one is more innocent than the accident’s victims. The perceptive observation of the events is to convey a wake-up call to everyone to repent for their sins.
The book also touches the area of misconceptions about Christian faith. Faith in God does not guarantee freedom from pain and suffering or protect us from feelings of doubt and betrayal. [2] In this regard, pain and suffering are integral parts of our fallen world. No Christian is exempt from experiencing pain. These tragedies simply point toward the vulnerability and disorder of this world. In the same way, suffering also can be an effective instrument in “accomplishing God’s goal for human beings.” [3] Thus, the Bible consistently avoids answering “WHY” questions about pain, but it always provides valuable insight about cultivating and fashioning Jesus-like characters in us.
Yancey fairly treats the topic of Sovereignty of God throughout the book. He also criticizes Rabbi Harold Kushner for his screwed-up view of all-powerful God in his book, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. He borrows words from Elie Wiesel: if God is not all-powerful, then he ought to be released from his dominion over the world and let someone more competent and capable than him take his place and govern the world. [4] Hence, the author spends an amount of time and space on God as not the cause of the suffering but as a faithful comforter who reveals himself to people. In return, he only wants a genuine admission and response even in the midst of hardship and pain.
The Biblical character Job is the epitome of an innocent sufferer whose faithfulness is antithetical to his positive response to God. The author has made the story of Job a solid base to present his arguments on how one should respond in the face of suffering. Though Job does not deserve that horrible fate, he remains faithful to God. In addition, one who does not chase after causes but responds positively has a positive impact on life. Our response to suffering matters; “God is not in the things that hurt, but He is in us.” [5] Therefore, we have confidence to say that God can turn evil into good according to his plan in our lives for his glory.
Yancey’s treatment of poverty, along with suffering, is another mechanism that drives us to be dependent upon God. When we discuss poverty, hunger, famine, etc. in the world, it seems God is only watching and doing nothing, or he lacks the redeeming power to transform those pandemics and make the world a better place to live in. The book does not talk much about it, except for a lesson from Apostle Paul’s battle “against a ‘thorn in the flesh’—an unknown ailment.” [6] The author is trying to say that we don’t know why, but we do know how to respond to tormenting affliction. The ultimate conclusion is that God’s power is fully realized in our weakness.
Here is the example of productive and creative suffering by Reger, the Holocaust survivor and colleague of Dietrich Bonhoeffer—”I learned to know the Who of my life. “He was enough to sustain me then, and he is enough to sustain me still.” [7] This statement tells us that philosophers like Nietzsche can be inaccurate and vague in their ideas of suffering, as he teaches that a man can undergo torture if he knows the reason for his life. Saints and believers of Christ throughout history persevered through affliction and execution not because they found the answer to their question of WHY, but because they discovered WHO He is.
Yancey digs out suffering as a buried treasure. He writes that one should look in the forward direction—the result of suffering—instead of hanging on to the past and looking for a cause of suffering. [9] No matter what the cause of suffering, our responsibility as a Christian toward a sufferer is to dispense grace and be a partaker in his suffering. “The shared meaning of guilt is not judgment, but forgiveness.” states Yancey, “The shared meaning of suffering is restoration and union with the sufferer.” [10] No sophisticated educational system in the world can offer such a tremendous lesson on the meaning of suffering that one can learn from being alongside a sufferer.
The apex of the book is very intriguing and insightful, as Yancey has to offer realistic hope in knowing Christ, who also suffered and went through all sorts of temptations like any other man does. Hope is a prop that produces potency to cope with pain and suffering. Our faith and trust in the Lord are the hinges on which our ultimate hope rests. The mark of the Cross in Christianity serves as an undeniable truth, reminding humanity to reflect on history and understand that God cares about our pain and suffering. [11] This is very comfortable to know that God’s Son also absorbed the horrifying pain of the world and fully identified with suffering humanity. He is not foreign to our awful pain, suffering, and injustice in this world. He cares about us.
Furthermore, Yancey concludes that our faith really matters. The only inflaming hope in Christ can offer a new meaning to suffering and bestow a new life on the sufferer. “Christians have hope that God will someday restore this planet to its proper place under his reign.” [12] And Christian faith is not about straightening our lives and making us content in this world. Instead, it offers a ‘way to overcome death. Christ represents Life, and his resurrection serves as convincing proof that God does not accept any “cycle of life” that concludes with death. [13] Our belief in Life that comes from Christ and our future hope for a resurrected body will change our whole perspective toward life and death. Certainly, it affects how we live in this world. For this very reason, it is worth knowing Christ, who deserves our loyalty and endures all sufferings until death.
I agree with the main point and conclusion that Yancey makes in this book. People demand a verdict for their indictment when they suffer. The whole world appears to have collapsed before a sufferer, and life does not make any sense in pain. But there is good news: God really cares about him, and God himself has tasted pain and suffering and death. However, suffering is worthwhile if a greater good results from it. And that greater good is an eternal life in God’s Eternity. So, pain and suffering only make sense when we realize we live in a fallen world where the Son of God died but rose again to give the world new hope.
I recommend this book to those who want to help people who are suffering and feel lost. This book can be a wonderful help for ministers too in their ministry. I found that Yancey’s experiences are not any different from our experiences in our daily lives and ministry. So, this book is very helpful for me in my ministry.
We are acquainted with contemporary situations like untimely death, accidents, natural disasters, and genocide, like systematic ethnic cleansing. Someone gives birth to a mentally retarded child. Some people lose their beloved ones in accidents, and they will often be left without any explanation of why “he or she, but not someone else,” had to die. This book addresses various issues, such as automobile accidents, natural disasters, and other incidents that have left people completely dependent on others who wished to die but were unable to do so. Yancey has written about real-life situations where we, as Christians and the church, are called to minister but don’t know how. This book has insightful chapters to learn from other people’s errors. The sense of urgency and sensitivity toward the suffering people is one of the virtues we should foster in our personal lives, ministry, and church.
We have been ministering among Bhutanese refugees here in Grand Rapids. Last year, one of the refugee women had a baby diagnosed with mental retardation syndrome. Her family members wanted her to abort the baby. On the other hand, she was very determined to give birth to that child once she heard the baby’s heartbeat during her doctor’s appointment. Church sponsors facilitated their connection with other parents who had similar babies. The whole family was preparing for the baby to come, but all of a sudden, the baby had to be given birth prematurely because of some medical complications for the fetus and mother. Unfortunately, the baby was not fully developed and had many dysfunctional systems. He lived for 48 hours in the hospital before passing away.
The whole point of this story is: Where was God when a woman so determined to bring a malfunctioning child to this world and take proper care of him, knowing that even a not fully formed fetus bears the image of God, died in the Butterworth hospital? What greater good will come from that shocking news to non-believing refugees who had been preached to that Jesus loves them and cares for them? I know neither what God has for them nor why that happened. But with much assurance in the midst of loss and suffering, I can say that God was right there ministering to them through His people and church. My wife and I struggled to articulate our grief over that loss, but we were able to listen to them and support them with our prayers. That proved much more comforting than babbling too many words. Yancey tells his readers and the church to help those in pain and to avoid explaining away their suffering.
Endnotes:
[1] Where is God When It Hurts, 67
[2] Ibid., 78
[3] Ibid., 91
[4] Ibid., 107
[5] Ibid., 111
[6] Ibid., 150
[7] Ibid., 163
[8] Ibid., 163
[9] Ibid., 203
[10] Ibid., 207
[11] Ibid., 231
[12] Ibid., 233
[13] Ibid., 251
