Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?

Thien,

I know you are having a rough time dealing with your family's bad health. I really do wish that your family would come into better health. I hope that your mom will get well soon, whatever it is that is wrong, and I am very sorry about your dad and will be here for you whenever you need a shoulder to cry on.

However, despite the fact that your family is in bad health at the moment, I want to assure you that you are not "cursed". God has not set his sights on your family as victims He intends to torture. I know I am going to sound strange talking like this to you because your beliefs are not firm, but if you suspect that God is behind this then I must explain to you a little bit of theology. Why do bad things happen to good people such as your family? Bad things happen because there is evil already present in the world.

First, if you believe in creation, you know that God created the world and Adam and Eve. At first, everything was utopia. There was nothing wrong with anything. There was no sin, disease, or death. I believe that if creationism is true, God created mankind for company. We would not be a very interesting race if we all mindlessly followed what he said because we have no choices or decisions to make, no alternatives to take.

God put in the garden a certain tree and told Adam and Eve that they were not to eat from it. This way, if Adam and Eve chose to follow Him, it would be because they actually love Him instead of just a lack of options.

Satan was able to convince Adam and Eve to bite into that fruit, and was therefore successful in his attempt to become an influential force in this world.

Second, if you believe in evolution rather than creation and still believe in God, you should believe that the diversity of creatures is randomly created by evolution. We humans exist not because we live in a perfect world, but because we're good enough to survive as a species. Unfortunately, the human body isn't perfect. Viruses also still exist, and our stem cells can develop into cancer.

Either way, God did not put you into this world just to torture your family. God loves you and put you into a world that is full of beauty despite all of the evil and imperfection that fills it.

You ask why do you suffer from the consequences of the wrongdoings of Adam and Eve? Why does your family, in particular, suffer from sickness when they don't deserve it? Whether creationism is true or not, evil and imperfection already exists in the world. It's like an avalanche that's already started falling, and there's no bottom to its mountain. There's just no stopping it. You were born after it started, and it's nobody's fault. It's just there, terrible as it may be.

You ask why God doesn't just make the world perfect. Is He not powerful enough? Why doesn't he fix what's broken? I believe that if He were to remove all of the evil that already exists in this world, it would be the same as killing us all. We really wouldn't be living anymore. We'd all already be in heaven. He'd have defeated the whole purpose of creating us at all or for our little link in the chain of evolution. We'd just be pawns, and life on earth wouldn't have any meaning. I'm not saying that your life only has meaning because your family is sick. What is happening to you is terrible and shouldn't happen to anyone. It's more evil and bad fortune than your fair share. I know that.

Satan does enjoy spreading pain and suffering. If you believe that you are being intentionally put through these hard times, and you believe some higher power is causing it, I believe that is the one towards which you should point your finger.

Thien, I realize that you must be going through a really tough time. I also realize that I probably cannot comprehend exactly how sad you must feel, since I have not gone through the same situation. I want you to that despite that, I would do anything reasonably within my power to make you feel better. I am here for you. I am praying for your mom's health. I am praying for a miracle for your dad. The world really sucks for you right now, but I'm here for you. Know that I love you. I wish there was more I could do.