Where are you, God? (vol 40:2, April-May 2008, page 12-13) PDF Print E-mail
Aware of the rising crime rate in Malaysia, my wife, Mee Lin clutched her bag tightly as she waited for our friend’s automatic gate to open. Those who had brought her there were waiting in the car. I was already in my friend’s house, with other church members. Suddenly, a snatch thief struck at her from behind, undeterred even when the driver sounded his car horn. Those of us in the house didn’t suspect anything amiss at first, as Mee Lin’s screams were muffled by the loud horn. We later rushed out to find her lying on the ground in a state of shock.

Bleeding

The thief had taken her bag and jumped onto his accomplice’s bike. When a friend gave chase, the pillion rider alighted with knife drawn as if ready to attack. Our son, Shen Han, wanted to pursue them but he was stopped by our friend—a wise move, considering the fact they would slash anyone who resisted. The thieves then rode off into the dark. Mee Lin was bleeding badly, so we rushed her to the nearest hospital. None of us realised the severity of her injuries: a bad cut on the lower lip and two tendons in her right hand severed. Another cut narrowly missed her left eye. At that critical hour, we focused on getting treatment for Mee Lin, who was more concerned about the impact of the incident on the church children. However, they weren’t the only ones who were perplexed. Why did God allow this to happen to his child? Why didn’t he intervene? Where is his goodness, love and justice? What is the purpose of this incident? It’s easy to theorise when it happens to others but perplexing when we experience it firsthand. I wanted to help us, as a church, understand this in the light of Scripture.
 

Innocent

First, God does allow the innocent to suffer: We see this most vividly in Jesus’ Passion. Christ suffered the excruciating pain of crucifixion not because God was powerless. Rather, it was God’s will from the very beginning. If Christ had not suffered (unjustly) and died, God’s salvation plan would have been aborted and Satan would have triumphed.

Not punishment

Second, the injuries were not God’s punishment for sin in our lives. True, there are instances of immediate punishment by God, as in the case of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3), Cain (Genesis 4), Achan (Joshua 7), and Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5). However, these examples are the exception rather than the norm. If God were to punish us every time we sinned, none of us would be left standing, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)! On the contrary, God does not always act according to what our sins deserve, for he is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love” (Psalms 145:8).

Justice

Third, our yearning for justice must be surrendered to God. His judgment is perfect in every way, including its timing. He is patient with us, “not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Though I was angry with the robbers at that time, I prayed that they would repent. We must leave it to God to administer justice, for he says “vengeance is mine” (Romans 12:9).

Evident love

Fourth, we might we tempted to ask, ‘Where are you, God?’ But we know God was with us in this ordeal. His love was evident in our friends who spent long hours beside Mee Lin in the hospital, praying for us. Mee Lin knew God was with us through his people during our crisis. Jesus said that when his people stand in union with each other and with him, the world will know that the Father sent him (John 17:21). The gracious Lord provided us with everything we needed from beginning to end—a good hospital nearby, a skillful Christian orthopaedic surgeon, getting Mee Lin’s replacement IC and driving licence within a day, and being able to postpone our flight back to the US, despite the peak season. We flew back to Newark the day after Mee Lin’s last visit to the surgeon. After the longhaul flight we took a four-hour drive back to Washington, D.C., arriving without a hitch at 3am. The next day, Mee Lin consulted a renowned orthopaedic surgeon and a hand therapist in Washington, D.C. and the initially painful rehabilitation process began. Both commended the surgeon at home for an excellent job done. More than six months have elapsed since the incident. Mee Lin has now regained most of the functional capacity of her fingers. Maximum recovery will take a year. Throughout this experience we continue to cling on to God, giving glory, honour and praise to him who alone is wise (Romans 16:27).
 

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