When the innocent perish 

‘For we know in part.’ 1 Corinthians 13:9 NIV 

God does not punish the innocent for the sins of the guilty. Listen: ‘The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child’ (Ezekiel 18:20 NIV). Leonard Pitts says, ‘In times of crisis, God has more spokespersons than Avon. Some claim to know His mind as surely as if they had read His diary. What you discover is that these people have created God in their own image. They interpret Him according to their biases and predispositions, attributing to Him their political party, motivations, hatreds and even their timetable.’ God’s character never changes! On Mount Sinai, He introduced Himself as ‘merciful and gracious, long- suffering, and abundant in goodness’ (Exodus 34:6 KJV). If you’re used to thinking about Him any other way, change the way you think! Jeremiah writes, ‘This I call to mind and therefore I have hope: because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness’ (Lamentations 3:21-23 NIV). When Billy Graham was asked by family members of the Oklahoma City bombing victims, ‘Why did God let this happen?’ he humbly replied, ‘I don’t know.’ Paul says, ‘We know in part’ (1 Corinthians 13:9 NIV). Let’s not act as though we know more than we do! God stamps some things ‘will explain later’. One thing you can be sure of, God’s too wise to make a mistake and too good to do anything bad. So trust Him, He’s earned it! 

Prayer Point:

Lord, I come to You with, ‘Why did it happen?’ I know one day I will see the bigger picture so, until then, I’ll treasure the question. Help me not to live in the moments of lost friendship, help me to strengthen the friendships I have and look forward to making new friends with people I don’t yet know. Amen.