Where was God?!

That piercing question has probably been on the minds of many people after the tragedy at the Century 16 Movie Theaters Complex in Aurora, Colorado. I will spare you the details of this horrible event because, first it may detract from the question at hand. Second, because you might have now been overwhelmed by the repetitious and constant analysis of ‘experts’ as to why this happened.

So, where was God?

I watched a news program as the question was answered in various ways by many people. The agitating sense of, ‘why could a loving God allow such an atrocious thing to happen to innocent people?’ permeated the program. The overpowering smell of ‘where did this evil come from?’ surrounded this question.

One particular answer that got my attention went something like this, “He was where He was when the holocaust happened, when countless Africans were forcefully taken, some killed and others sold into slavery”.

I couldn’t agree with this statement more! God has always been where He is, when evil rears its ugly head. Think about it!

From genocides, to simple assaults, from wicked lies to the colorless assortments, from skilful deceptions like the Bernard Madoff variety, to innocent gossips that tarnish others image and destroy relationships. From cheating spouses, to fleeting sellers of houses, and everything in-between like, abandoned, devastated children, and the breakdown of families. From deep-rooted rabid bitterness and hatred that often erupts into a volcano of repulsive misbehavior of all sorts; the list could go on and on.

So where is God when all these happen? A variation of the question is, ‘where does evil come from?’

This question is often thrown in the face of Christians and Christianity, with a smug as though to challenge the very existence of a loving God who is all-powerful, sovereign and controls everything.

The irony is that, Christians have the answer which has been rejected and stifled. But that answer still remains the truth. The truth that we humans are rebels against God, our Creator. That there is a deep-seated psychology of hatred for God and His created order in the human heart, which creates a bias in our minds. And that, unless we properly align ourselves with our Creator and His ways, we will be incapable of doing anything right!

This truth has been replaced by a pernicious lie that has enslaved mankind for as long as it has been perpetuated.

This subtle lie is the belief that mankind and human nature is basically good. This dangerous belief and the rejection of the truth claims of the Creator are largely responsible for the heartaches in our world today.

Again, the bitter but liberating truth is, mankind is basically evil and left to ourselves we will exhibit the very nature of our wickedness in various forms. What James Eagan Holmes, the 24 year old graduate student did is a clear proof of what anyone can do without a direct connection to, and a right relationship with the true God.

So God is everywhere and He, in His infinite wisdom has called us all to gaze into His face, from where real life and living begins.

Have you gazed into His face lately?

I hasten to convey my deepest sympathy to the victims, their family and friends as they go through this painful time. My prayer for them is that somehow they will be consoled, strengthened and come to terms with the truth about a caring God who will never leave them or forsake them.