Yesterday I watched on TV a young man inflicted with an ugly, ugly skin disease all over his body and incredibly swelled testicles--the size of 5 watermelons. He looked like Santa with a bag of goodies under him. The conditions made him look like a monster or a creature from outer space. His teen life has been totally eradicated by the diseases. He used to be an active little boy before they set in. All his teen life and young adult life he just stayed at home, useless to his family.
I wondered why God allowed him to be like that. He seemed to be a good young man--his family said so--and even if he were not as good, I'm sure he wasn't like the Abusayaf or Ampatu-ans who mercilessly kill the innocent as if they were pigs. He never raped any girl. Yet, why was he suffering thus? His family had no money for his treatment. His dad said, it's difficult when those who have no money are chosen to suffer diseases that require a lot of expenses. It's hard to see your son waste away like that for no reason, and you just helplessly watch him. I can understand how painful that is.
I know God is merciful, but why does he stand seeing such suffering and do nothing for a long time? I know he knows all things and there's nothing on earth that goes on which escapes his notice. He can easily fix that problem with a snap of his fingers, and yet this young man's problem continued for years--wasting probably more than half his life.
People may say I should be thankful for not getting the same problems. Thankful? Why? I should be asking God on the young man's behalf, that's what I should do--what anybody should do--and not just be thankful for having been spared the kind of trouble this man was suffering. That would be selfish. I thank God for everything, but yesterday I was also asking God why for this young man.
If you see someone suffering, don't just give thanks that you're not suffering likewise. That's very insensitive, callous, and stupid of you. Do bring his or her concerns to the Almighty. Petition. Ask God for total relief for the suffering.
I'm aware that God does great things in a person through suffering, and that asking God to take away suffering that empowers people means working against his will. Thus, I often pray, "Your will be done." But I also pray that God expedite the empowerment process and relieve the person of suffering. It's not fun to suffer, especially when you see that the suffering seems useless. Jesus suffered for our sins so we can be saved from hell. That's quite useful, even at a glance. The apostles suffered because of Jesus' Name. But suffer debilitating skin diseases and swelling testicles? For what? For sure, it's not to save the world. It's not for Jesus' Name either.
Why should the young man suffer thus?
Once, Jesus said the blindness of a certain man was not due to any sin of his or his parents but for God's glory. That man suffered blindness for years, and the key to his healing was the appointed time when the Messiah would meet and heal him for God's glory. So, in the meantime that the Son of Man had not yet met with him, he had to suffer blindness. And that took years. Wow.
Why? Does it take years of cruel suffering to gain one short moment of God's glory? Can it be not the other way around--one short moment of suffering for years of God's glory? Well, yes I know that sufferings on earth are but a short while compared to eternal glories later in heaven, but try saying that to a suffering man who cannot understand why he suffers thus. Try telling that to the young man with the ugly skin disease and swelling testicles.
Worse, what if the young man does not get saved and goes to hell later after an entire life of miseries? Suffering on earth is no guarantee that God will bring you to heaven when you die because of his pity. What if the young man above rejects Christ?
Be thankful? Well, I always give God thanks. He knows that. And it's all by God's grace alone. But when I see pointless suffering, I want to bring the case to God for resolution. I can't bear to leave the suffering person just like that and thank God that I do not suffer thus. I have to take hold of him or her and look at God and ask why...why can't he or she not be relieved of pain and suffering, too?
