A Confuzzling Question
Today, I attempt to answer the question that perhaps humanity has wondered about more than any other. It is a question that ordinary folk and renowned philosophers have attempted to answer. It's a question that has puzzled billions throughout time: Why does God allow suffering in the world? Many get confused about this and think that God must not love them, or that there is no God at all. The best way I know to answer this confuzzling question is by examining the sources of trials: Our decisions, other people's decisions, the fallen world we live in, and Heavenly Father.
Note: The credit goes to my old seminary teacher, Bro. Shepard. This post is based very heavily off of a lesson he gave that really stuck with me.
Disastrous Decisions
The first two sources of trials (our own and other people's decisions) have a common factor, poorly used agency.
Here's a scenario: Once upon a time, I took my beat-up 1992 Buick to Costco to get some muffins. Once I arrived, I bolted for the muffins and my mouth started watering. Overcome with the joy that Costco muffins can bring, I decided I wanted to have one right then. I quickly tore a box to pieces and plunged my face into a delectable blueberry muffin. I let the chompers fly, creating quite the scene. Five muffins later I looked up and saw two Costco workers staring me down and walking briskly in my direction. I followed my gut instinct; I grabbed as many boxes of muffins as I could carry, and bolted for the fire escape door that was just down the aisle. Before I could even get back to my car, I found myself being tackled by two burly police officers who cuffed my hands behind my back.
So, the results of this disastrous decision: A night in jail, a $250 fine, swollen wrists, the loss of my job as McDonald's janitor, a hungry and embarrassed family that was unable to fend for themselves because of my job loss, unhappy lawyers, $1000 spent on court proceedings, and two disgruntled Costco security men.
Can you see how poor choices have negative effects on yourself and others? I spent a night in jail, paid $250, lost my job, let my family go hungry, and dealt with swollen wrists from cuffs that were a tad too tight. My family was embarrassed because of me and went hungry. Two Costco security men were annoyed. McDonald's was embarrassed to have me seen working in their store so they fired me, losing their best toilet cleaner. Some lawyers had a stressful day, and the nation had to spend $1000 on my court proceedings.
So clearly, trials come from your own misused agency and the misused agency of others. But why does God allow that to happen? Why doesn't He force us to make good decisions so we don't have to suffer?
Heavenly Father's goal is for us to return back to Him. He wants us to live with Him and be like Him for eternity. If we were forced to make good decisions would we ever learn? No. We would have no idea what it's like to forgive others, fix relationships, or feel guilt and sorrow for sin. If we don't understand what these things are like, could we become God's? No, because "God[s] comprehendeth all things." - Alma 26:35. If God were to take away agency it would be a direct contradiction to His Plan of Salvation. It is better to let His children endure suffering (even extremely terrible, heart-wrenching suffering) than to deny them the opportunity to re-enter His presence. The good far outweighs the bad.
Natural Causes
What about things like sickness, natural disaster, and other trials that aren't affected by agency?
These kinds of things are a product of the fall of Adam and Eve. They bring opposition into the world. 2 Nephi 2:11 teaches that there needs to be opposition in all things. A world full of opposition is the perfect place to learn in. It makes it so we can experience so many different trials, challenges, and emotions all for both good and bad. These things aide us on our journeys to become like God. Mortality is the perfect place to learn how to forgive, what to do with your time and a whole slew of other things. Mortality is the perfect time and place to change. It certainly assists the process when we experience pain. It humbles us. It gives us the motivation to become better and to become more God-like. Heavenly Father doesn't want us to hurt. But He understands that some suffering now is a much better option than never giving us any motivation to repent or change. He knows if we don't sufficiently repent we will have an eternity of suffering, an eternity of just wishing we had done better so we could have all of the joys of God's Kingdom.
From Heavenly Father (Maybe)
This is a tricky one. I am not aware of any scripture or quote from a prophet that says Heavenly Father deliberately puts trials into our life. I'm not going to make the call on if He does or not. What I do know is that Heavenly Father helps us learn from our trials. When the prophet, Joseph Smith was suffering in Liberty Jail, he received a revelation that no matter what he goes through it can be to his benefit. The Lord listed out 10 jillion gruesome trials then said, "know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good." - Doctrine and Covenants 122:7. The God of Heaven is teaching that no matter what we go through - whether it be depression and self-harm, the death of a spouse, sibling sexual abuse, crippling phobias, paralysis from a serious injury, watching your parents divorce, having $60,000 of student debt, schizophrenia, being convicted or falsely convicted of a serious crime, living in an abusive home, OR ANYTHING ELSE - we can use those experiences to our benefit. Are these experiences good? No. Does God want them to happen? No. Can we use them for good? Yes.
What Can We Do About This?
- Ponder how to use a specific trial for good.
- Explain these doctrines to someone who wonders why they're suffering.
- Pray for strength to keep the commandments in order to not hurt yourself and others.
