Category Archives: Real Life

God’s House of Pain

God causes suffering in order to perfect us God’s goals for His people are exceptionally lofty. He is not satisfied to leave mankind in its fallen state, or to leave the rest of the cosmos broken by sin, for that matter. Instead, He … Continue reading

Posted in Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Idol-Snatching Ninjas

God causes suffering in order to wrestle our idols away from us Pain and suffering play a key role in our sanctification. Without them, we might become content with earthly things, which cannot ultimately satisfy us. When life is peachy, we tend to … Continue reading

Posted in Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

God’s Megaphone

God causes suffering in our lives in order to warn us about sin CS Lewis writes in The Problem of Pain, The human spirit will not even begin to try to surrender self will as long as all seems to be well with it. … Continue reading

Posted in Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

God’s Goodness vs Refining Fire

How can a “good” God directly cause suffering? (Question 5 of 8 in the Goodness of God series) The world is full of pain and suffering, but not all pain and suffering is the same. We’ve already talked about the fact that some of the … Continue reading

Posted in Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

The Person Behind the Practice

The No-Shoes Rule: An Analogy About Love and Obedience Which is more important: to take off your shoes when you enter a man’s house so that his carpet doesn’t get dirty, or to love the man who owns the house and … Continue reading

Posted in Bible Stories, Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

God’s Goodness vs the Reality of Evil

Where does evil come from? (Question 4 of 8 in the Goodness of God series) In our discussion on suffering to-date, we have considered that pain and heartache enter people’s lives in four distinct ways: We suffer when we experience the consequences of our own sin. We … Continue reading

Posted in Real Life, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments