A Huge Myth About God

One of the myths, of human understanding, is that if we live well — being kind and good, following all the rules and making wise decisions; that  life will always go well with no major bumps in the road.

The myth enlarges by this addition:  When we live this way — being good — our lives will always be surrounded with peace and harmony.  That God will protect us from all misfortune.

Untrue.

You see, the truth is, as I understand it, God does not promise that we will not stumble and fall.  At least that is not something that I have ever read about in the Bible. 

What God does promise is his guidance and strength -- his loving presence -- as we move in and out of life’s offerings.  

God surround us with his wisdom and comfort as we experience the not-so-nice part of living here on earth.

You see, human life is an excursion, on a road that twists and turns over rolling roads, leading to places we don’t expect. 

Think for a minute of times in your life when impossible circumstances cause you great emotional pain. 

Or times when you suffered physical trauma.  Or lost a dear one to death — sudden or not.

As I look back at my long life these memories pop into my brain:  

Being treated mean, in grade school, by girls I thought were my friends.

Finding out that the love of my life, in my senior year of High School, kissed Stephanie in the Club pool.  I was sure that was the end of my life.

Then, after 24 years of marriage, my husband telling me he didn’t love me anymore. I felt like someone had thrown me on a cement floor and my entire being broke into thousands of jigsaw pieces; and none of the piece fit together.

That was in the spring of 1984, just before entering Seminary that next September.

So you see, no matter how much faith one has.  No matter how hard we try to be as perfect as any human can be.  Awful does happen. 

That is just the truth whether we like it or not.

One of the ways I like to think about this, human truth, is to compare it to the seasons and cycles of nature.  

We have just heard of it in hurricane Dorian; where thousands of people experience unbelievable tragedy and loss.  

Did God cause such disaster?

Some would have you believe that he did. 

I remember in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina destroyed the Gulf Coast.  The comments were that: “God was punishing the people of New Orleans for their sinful behavior."

Really?   

I am sorry, but that is not the God I believe in.

As the book title suggests, "Bad Things Happen To Good People."

What I want you to hear this morning is that God never, ever, lets us go through the unfortunate alone.  He is right there to see us through; offering strength, courage and comfort along the way.

Often in hindsight we can look back and realize that those awful times have helped us to learn, and grow, in some amazingly positive ways.  Even though, at the time, life often seems impossible to bear.