If Your God is So Good, Where was He?

“If God is so good, why did He let all of this happen?”

I was eleven years old and someone asked me this question in reference to an unfortunate series of traumatic events that had occurred. I stood there speechless. I had no answer. “Why did God allow bad things to happen? Is He really good?” I thought to myself.

Fast forward fifteen years. I was sharing my story with a group of people, showing them how God can take a broken life and turn it into something beautiful. Everyone received my words well except for one older man. He asked, “If your God is so good, where was He when all that bad stuff happened?”

My thoughts instantly raced back to being asked that similar question as a child. Except this time around, I had an answer.

I can explain why bad things happen. We live in a fallen world where nature sometimes causes unfavorable circumstances. Natural disasters, disease, and death are all part of living in this world. Furthermore, bad things sometimes happen as a result of the free will God has given each person. That free will allows people to make choices that hurt themselves and/or others.

But this man’s question was not “Why did He allow bad things to happen?” His question was “Where was He when all that bad stuff happened?”

I can tell you where He was: He was there when 10-year-old me needed a friend, and I ended up with two elderly neighbors who daily invited me into their home. He was there when 12-year-old me needed a father figure and a teacher stepped in to fill that role. God was there when I was 15 and planned to commit suicide, but minutes before doing so a relative showed up to the house and took our gun to clean it. He was there when I was in high school and my secular history teacher told me I should go back to church. He was there when I ended up homeless during my junior year of high school, and someone took me into their home. He was there when He filled me with His Spirit and gave me victory to overcome my past. He was there helping me heal. He was there for so much more. God was always right there.

In light of recent events, many people have been asking, “If God is so good, why is He allowing these things to happen?”

To reiterate, we know many of these things are happening because of nature and because of people’s choices. That said, instead of focusing on asking why, perhaps we should be asking where? Where is God in all of this?

He is here working through the people who are serving others. He is here working through those who are giving to meet others’ needs. He is here giving us peace in the midst of fear and anxiety. He is here working miracles when all hope seems lost. He is here filling people with His Spirit and giving them a new lease on life. He is right here.

Look around you, see where God is showing Himself present, and rejoice in the hope He has given His people. “…for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” -Hebrews 13:5c