Who’s to Blame?

I believe that one of the biggest problems people have with God is that He allows horrible things to happen on this earth.  We can’t justify the fact that He is a good God because He allows bad things to happen.

I’ve wrestled with this a lot, myself, over the years.  God has created me with a very sensitive heart and I can’t see people in pain without it affecting me.  I find myself looking for the magic words to pray that will get God to intervene and help those who are suffering.

As I struggled with  God through this He responded by speaking what I believe is a powerful answer to this cry of our hearts.  It all goes back to when Jesus walked on this earth.  Not only did Jesus come here to save us from eternal damnation, but His life was the perfect example of how we are to live in a way that honors God and brings His power into the world around us.

I love to imagine the transformation that took place in each town as Jesus entered it.  He greeted the sick, the dying, and those trapped in darkness by the evil one.  One by one He healed them and set them free.  What a different scene it was as he left those villages.  Not one sick among them.  People who had been in spiritual darkness totally set free.  The whole town was singing praises to God as Jesus left to continue His journey.

Fast forward to  Jesus’ final time with His disciples before He returned to heaven.  His words commanded them to go out and continue the work that He began.  He left them the Holy Spirit to empower them to bring His light and power into every corner of the world.

Today we still have the promise of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and the same commission to “Go and Do”.  God gets such a “bad rap” when we don’t do what He calls us to do.  I believe that it’s not God who is falling short, it’s us.  He will move heaven and earth with the power of His love when His church wakes up and begins to follow the example that Jesus, Himself, came to set for us.

I’ve started praying a new prayer.  It’s not calling “God” to do something anymore.  Now the daily cry of my heart is, “God, raise me up to be a light.  Empower me with Your Holy Spirit as I spend time in Your Word.  Fill me with such a demonstration of Your anointing that Your light within me will defeat the darkness everywhere I go.”

In Jesus name…