I Don't Know. And That's Okay.

I came across this quote today,

"We embrace the hand we've been dealt, because we know the Dealer, and He never deals badly." - John Piper

My first reaction to this quote was not an amen; rather, it was quite the opposite. My thought process was something along the lines of thinking that that was total bullshit of a quote. Because life isn't all roses. He never deals badly? Please. My dad dying suddenly while I was on a missions trip to Cambodia was NOT a good hand. Friends' family members committing suicide was NOT a good hand. Women and children all over the world being trafficked into brothels is NOT a good hand.

Sometimes you just don't embrace the hand we've been dealt. When life throws curve balls at us, we want to scream and rant because something huge happened and it will change life as we know it. And it's just not fair.

And that's okay.

It's okay to go through storms in life and not feel like praising God. He loves you anyway.  

A teenager asked a very compelling question at one of our worship nights. He asked why God allows bad things to happen. And you know what? I don't know. I don't know why suicide rate is so high in Ireland. I don't know why the older generation has failed the younger generation and refuses to invest in them. I don't know why children are born into alcoholic families. And I still don't know why my dad, my best friend, the best man I knew, is no longer here for me. To be honest, I still have trouble seeing God in all of that.

So we told him the honest answer: there is no one answer. There is no cookie cutter reply. Sometimes life is just a total shit storm and it just happens. I mean, Jesus was overwhelmed with grief to the point of death (Matthew 26:38).

You guys, He gets it. He's been there. So we can take comfort in knowing that Jesus went through those  not so good deals too. 

John Piper also said this quote:

“If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.”

And those are words of wisdom indeed.