
Why does a good God allow so much pain?
A devotional by Leslie Bake
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”— John 16:33 NIV
Have you ever noticed how quickly we try to eliminate physical pain and suffering, especially in the western world?
Those of us who are mothers are quick to dose our kids with Tylenol, Ibuprofen or Dimetapp to bring down a fever, quiet a cough or Pepto Bismol for the tummy ache? We take medication to ease our pain. In this culture, we will do whatever it takes to avoid suffering. The devil has sold us the lie that whatever is comfortable and easy is what we should desire and seek after.
On my prayer wall is a poster from Voice of the Martyrs magazine displaying three people walking a small footpath to a village, each carrying a bundle of Bibles in baskets attached to their backs. It’s a remote location in Africa where Bibles are illegal, and yet Christians in Muslim-dominated areas are willing to sacrifice their lives to smuggle copies of this life-changing book into these places.
Isn’t it fascinating how radically different suffering is viewed from one side of the globe to another? When self-pity and frustration over “not having enough time” to read and study my Bible overwhelm me, one glance at that poster reminds me to snap out of it and surrender to the challenges God puts in my path and view them as growth opportunities.
I tread very carefully when sharing my suffering, because I don’t want to come across as seeking pity, but I have suffered loss. I lost a grandmother to breast cancer who, from my youthful perspective, consistently showed me the love of Jesus Christ. I was at the cusp of understanding basic theology from confirmation classes while watching her suffer from chemotherapy treatments, praying God would heal her. God said no. Her death shattered my faith for several years. Infidelity and other problems plagued my first marriage as I asked God to heal my husband’s addictions. God said no, and it changed the trajectory of my life. In my second marriage, I lost a pregnancy after many prayers that it would continue. God said no. I watched my precious mother suffer from ovarian cancer for five years, and despite all my prayers for healing, God said no.
What about you, friend? What are you enduring right now? What’s keeping you awake at night? Has your suffering felt like God’s punishment? Sometimes suffering is directly related to our sinful choices. But nevertheless, our pain always has a purpose. God taught me so much by not answering my prayers the way I wanted, and He gave me so many more answers of “yes” than the dreaded “no”.
Multiple blessings abound on the other side of our sufferings. Trials teach us patient endurance and obedience. Difficulties enable us to comfort others. Suffering connects us to others in a way nothing else can. It is the means to a unique sharing with Jesus. God lovingly weaves enough struggles into our lives to keep us dependent on Him. The Bible says in James 1:2-4 (NIV), “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
We can’t know the strength of our character until we see how we react under pressure. I admit that I don’t always respond “gently” or “sweetly” when I’m under pressure. Just ask my husband. He will tell you that I’m still working on that. It’s easy to show kindness and gentleness when everything is going well, but are we still willing to make the effort to be kind when others treat us unfairly? That’s a tough one. It’s easy to give up, lose heart and quit when you’re overwhelmed.
For me, my daily challenge is writing time. It’s easy for me to blame my family for lack of writing time when it feels like their needs and maintaining a house are consuming my time and energy. But God always melts away my resentment and helps me view mothering from a more grateful perspective. As I pray to Him, I become more aware of small pockets of opportunity when writing is possible rather than scrolling on social media.
The Bible describes the many challenges, hardships and sufferings of the Apostle Paul whose God-inspired writings give us insight on the why and how of suffering. Let’s read Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NIV). He said, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
We are to fix our hope not on this life, but on the life to come. Our temporary sufferings shall pass. Don’t forsake your eternal reward because of the intensity of today’s pain. Your temporary weakness allows the resurrection power of Jesus Christ to strengthen you moment by moment.
Friend, what is your “hard” right now? What’s your “something” that God has allowed in your life to keep you seeking Him? Do you have a special needs child? Are you struggling with caring for aging parents? Are you dealing with chronic illness? Are you taking a difficult but required class? Hardships are part of the human condition. We cannot avoid them in this sinful world. We need to meet each other’s struggles in kindness and compassion and prayer.
Let’s Pray:
Heavenly Father,
I sense in my spirit a heaviness in believers who are crying out to You in their suffering. Please hear our prayers and comfort us in our sorrow, in our frustration and in our overwhelm. You promised us that in this life, there will be trouble, so we ask, Lord for Your comfort and peace that You also left with us. Help us sense Your presence and develop that patient endurance.
In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.
Song of Reflection: “Ooh Child” by Donnie McClurkin feat. Kirk Franklin. Listen to it here.
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Author Bio:
Leslie Bake grew up Lutheran in Des Moines, graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with an undergraduate degree in English, and with a new understanding of what a relationship with the Lord could look like.

She spent a few years reporting and editing in small town journalism and then began pursuing a master’s degree at Iowa State University in teaching English to speakers of other languages. Then she got married and later went through a divorce, which deepened her relationship with God and transformed her life.
Leslie taught English as a second language for three years at Kansas State University, then returned to writing and earned a master’s degree in creative non-fiction in Pittsburgh. Her memoir will eventually be published. It details the process of how the Lord created beauty from the ashes of divorce.
Pittsburgh is also where she met and married her second husband. They are now the parents of two wonderful children—one in fifth grade and one in first grade.
Leslie and her husband make their home in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Leslie has been a stay-at-home mom for the past 11 years and actively growing her writing career alongside her two growing children.
She now maintains a monthly blog of her own and is working toward expanding her writing ministry on Substack. Her heart’s deepest desire is to help others connect with God through writing.
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Connect with Leslie:
Website: lesliejoybake.com
Substack: lesliebake.substack.com
E-mail address: Leslie.bake@yahoo.com