However suffering can be a gift because when people

happens to us (Sharpe, 2015). However, suffering can be a gift because when people suffer, it
causes them to reflect on life and everything God has given them. In the Bible there are
multiple stories of people suffering but being relieved by God. For this reason, we should
turn to the Lord when we experience suffering. Romans 5:3 states it best “ Not only so, but we
also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance…
(BibleHub)” God uses our suffering to build character.

The Christian worldview of pain and suffering is that God has all power controlling it, it
may not seem fair at times and as if God may not even be seeing/feeling your suffering
but he is. God feels all the things we do including our pain and just because it seems to be
lasting longer than we have thought, it does not mean that God is sitting back and letting
it happen. There is lesson being taught through these times of suffering and the more we
give ourselves to God, the more he will take this burden off our shoulders. The problem
with a lot of people who are suffering, they have not given themselves to God, they have
decided to create their own success and go down their own paths which means they will
have to face the world on their own without the stability of God’s heart.
4. Everyone Responds to this Question Individually:
Imagine that a close friend has just suffered through a great personal loss (death of a
loved one, natural disasters, disease, job loss, divorce, or a broken relationship) and your
friend asks you why God would let such a terrible thing happen. How would you respond
to your friend?
Michelle: I would say to my friend first that it is going to be okay. When my friend asks
“why God would let such a terrible thing happen?”, I would say that God allows
everything to happen for a reason. That God is using this experience to either teach or
help you or someone else in this world. No matter what happens in this life and on this
earth, God always has a plan for us. He created us in His image, which means that He

also created a plan for us and our lives. God uses us as pieces of His puzzle to create a
full picture of His vision. How I think about it is that we go through this horrible
experience that sin has done to us, but God takes that experience and transforms it into
something we or someone else can benefit from. I would tell my friend my personal
experience with my mom and her disease and tell her I understand where she is coming
from. I would tell my friend that talking about it really helps because someone can be
there for you when you need to be there for someone else. When someone has your back
at times of pain and suffering, they can push you to keep going when you want to give up
and quit. God is that someone who has your back always. At times we feel as if God is
distant and is not there but He is and it is totally okay to feel that way because we are
humans and we have emotions. God will always be there for us no matter what we do and