What good is it for God to be with you, if he doesn’t help?

aiki

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Yes, it was Adam and Eve that made the choice, but God knew what choice they would make when he put the tree in the garden. If God, hadn’t known, that would be an entirely different argument (God isn’t omniscient). Since he did know and went ahead anyway he chose that a vast majority of people would burn in Hell for eternity the instant he put the tree there.

There isn't a single couple who has believed when they became pregnant that their child would never sustain an injury, or never get sick, or disobey, or make foolish choices, or suffer heartache. No parent thinks their child will live an utterly perfect life. Knowing this, do parents do evil in allowing their unborn child to come into the world alive? Have they done evil in becoming pregnant? They know the suffering and hardships that their child will face; they know their child will even one day die. Ought they, then, to prevent such events entirely by never having a child? Is the right and moral thing to eradicate all chance of hurt by never having any children? Obviously not. Without life, their child cannot also love, and laugh, and delight in the many pleasures of the world God has made; their children cannot study, and grow, and deepen in wisdom, courage and faith; their children cannot experience joy, achievement, friendship, beauty and peace.

Like the parent who cannot birth a child who will enjoy all of the good things of life without also tasting of the bitter, God, too, could not make a world in which people could freely choose to love Him without making a world where people could choose also to hate Him. But God has done everything He could, short of making all of us His puppets, to ensure that any who would know and love Him could do so. What's more, He bestows a common grace upon both those who love Him and those who do not, causing the rain and sunshine to fall upon the just and unjust. I cannot, then, fault God for making the world. I am grateful beyond words that He has made a way for me to know, love, and enjoy Him forever. It is a sad thing indeed that this could only happen in a world where so many have chosen to reject Him. But, apparently, the precious few who do embrace God as Father, who freely trust in Christ as Saviour and Lord, are, to God, worth the billions who have used their free agency to reject Him.

The whole of Creation, though, is, at bottom, all about God; it all exists as a display of His power, glory and excellence. God reveals His holiness and justice in His wrathful punishment of the wicked; He reveals His love, mercy and grace in His redemption of rebellious, undeserving, evil humanity; He reveals His power and wisdom in the intricacy and vastness of the cosmos. We are not the Big Deal; God is. Until we get this straight, we will find ourselves feeling entitled, and prideful, and defiant of the One who has given and sustains our lives at every moment rather than grateful, awestruck and joyful.
 
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Questioning Brother

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If I have to go through it, it is already an irredeemable loss. Without actual help from Him, I don’t care about His comforting or his strength. The comforting is a lie, and if he doesn’t help, who cares that he is strong?
 
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Questioning Brother

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So if a parent leaves a gun out and a young child shoots themselves, we blame the child? No, we blame the parent. Same principle, except even worse, because while parent might not know their kid would shoot themselves, God knew EXACTLY what was going to happen.
 
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aiki

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If I have to go through it, it is already an irredeemable loss.

That depends upon what you believe. With God, suffering always has a good, even eternal, purpose. But, if you will persuade yourself suffering has no use except to bring you loss, well, that's all it will be to you.

Without actual help from Him, I don’t care about His comforting or his strength.

Actual help? God actually helps in many ways - ways you cannot begin to understand. But God's priority isn't that He suspend all difficulties in your life but that in them you will go deeper with Him. But, if you aren't really looking for such a thing, if all you really want is for God to bail you out, you will find yourself disappointed. As I said, God's eyes are on the eternity for which He made you and He will work to prepare you for that future even if it means allowing your present to go to hell in a handbasket. Unfortunately, it is often only in serious trouble that we start to take God at all seriously, to press up to Him in dependence and humility.

The comforting is a lie, and if he doesn’t help, who cares that he is strong?

Speak for yourself. God does comfort - with Himself. But if all you really want is His material provision and actually care little for Him, you will find you cannot be comforted by Him. God is also strong and would bend His power to help, but not in service to one who, by suffering, has exposed a demanding, rebellious heart.

So if a parent leaves a gun out and a young child shoots themselves, we blame the child?

Not an apt analogy. God left no "gun" laying around for Adam and Eve to pick up and fire injuriously. They had been clearly warned off of the Forbidden Fruit and set in a garden filled with a multitude of wonderful alternatives. What Adam and Eve did they did with their eyes wide open, fully cognizant of their disobedience, knowing it would bring death. They weren't naive children picking up a loaded gun they didn't understand could harm them. Far from it.

Same principle, except even worse, because while parent might not know their kid would shoot themselves, God knew EXACTLY what was going to happen.

Yes, God did know what would happen and has acted to remedy the terrible error of His wayward, selfish human creatures at enormous cost to Himself. He did so, not because He was in any way obliged to, but because He wanted humanity to have the chance to know Him, love Him and dwell eternally with Him. I don't see God bearing any fault in any of this. I suspect, though, that no amount of reason can persuade you from your emotional, entitled anger at God. Your anger has little to do with reason, but with a powerful, visceral response to pain.
 
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charsan

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God repeatedly promises to be with you in the Bible. What good is that if when trouble strikes and you need him to act , he won’t? My faith is dying due to repeated prayers for healing for my wife(multiple strokes and all the attendant situations that come with that), financial issues, and all of the stress from the other stuff. So what good is it for God to be with you if he won’t do one damn thing to help?

I can sympathize with you on many things. I, myself have Cerebral Palsy and this last summer I took real sick with cellulitis in my leg, lost a ton of weight because of it, and had a diabetic scare and because of all this my lfe has never been the same. My wife is often dizzy and the Doctors are no help, she can not even go to bed and has to sleep in a chair she has not been able to go to bed for a year and a half because every time she tries to lay down she gets very, very dizzy. I need a lift van, a hospital bed. We barely have money after the bills are paid. I pray all the time for healing for me and my wife, a lift van, and hospital bed. I pray every day and at all meals yet we are still not healed and we do not have things we need, why do I pray then? CS Lewis has the best answer:

“I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God. It changes me.”

One other thing my Priest said in his homily was that we Christians are to nice, go to God with how you feel and even if your mad. God knows how you are feeling and He can take it.
 
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witness12

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God repeatedly promises to be with you in the Bible. What good is that if when trouble strikes and you need him to act , he won’t? My faith is dying due to repeated prayers for healing for my wife(multiple strokes and all the attendant situations that come with that), financial issues, and all of the stress from the other stuff. So what good is it for God to be with you if he won’t do one damn thing to help?
You are calling God a liar by saying He is not true to His word and promises. You are putting yourself over Him and that is why your pride and self pity will bring you death. You can repent and live a life of love towards God and man. God bless you.
 
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Questioning Brother

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You are calling God a liar by saying He is not true to His word and promises. You are putting yourself over Him and that is why your pride and self pity will bring you death. You can repent and live a life of love towards God and man. God bless you.

I never said He lied. He IS here with me, but if I have to go through the problems I am having, what good is that? If He stands by and watches me get beaten down to the ground and does nothing, why should I bother to WANT him around? If he isn't going to help, He isn't any good to have around.
 
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witness12

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I never said He lied. He IS here with me, but if I have to go through the problems I am having, what good is that? If He stands by and watches me get beaten down to the ground and does nothing, why should I bother to WANT him around? If he isn't going to help, He isn't any good to have around.
Galatians and James should help you
 
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witness12

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I never said He lied. He IS here with me, but if I have to go through the problems I am having, what good is that? If He stands by and watches me get beaten down to the ground and does nothing, why should I bother to WANT him around? If he isn't going to help, He isn't any good to have around.

if I can, I would like to speak to you in private. You can reach me at TheEndTimes17@gmail.com
 
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DreyDay

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God repeatedly promises to be with you in the Bible. What good is that if when trouble strikes and you need him to act , he won’t? My faith is dying due to repeated prayers for healing for my wife(multiple strokes and all the attendant situations that come with that), financial issues, and all of the stress from the other stuff. So what good is it for God to be with you if he won’t do one damn thing to help?

You can't blame God for everything and expect him to do everything for you. I know many of these things can be outside of your control but I believe you can see the world from a fresh set of eyes. I think that if you're in this downward spiral of a mental state you will continue to attract more situations that confirm your mentality. Jesus says "Be it unto you according to your faith." Everything starts from your mind.

Start reshaping your mind, and it starts with reshaping your physiology. Do you exercise regularly? What is your diet like? I firmly believe that your biochemistry and mind are intimately linked, and if you can retrain it to be in optimal shape, you can become somebody who's faith is stronger and is able to manifest better situations in life.

Finances and sick family members: go on a 3 day water fast. I've seen countless testimonies about people experiencing breakthroughs with sick or backslid family members after going on an extended fast; I've heard people experiencing financial breakthroughs you can't even imagine. Do it! What more do you have to lose?
 
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Questioning Brother

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You can't blame God for everything and expect him to do everything for you. I know many of these things can be outside of your control but I believe you can see the world from a fresh set of eyes. I think that if you're in this downward spiral of a mental state you will continue to attract more situations that confirm your mentality. Jesus says "Be it unto you according to your faith." Everything starts from your mind.

Start reshaping your mind, and it starts with reshaping your physiology. Do you exercise regularly? What is your diet like? I firmly believe that your biochemistry and mind are intimately linked, and if you can retrain it to be in optimal shape, you can become somebody who's faith is stronger and is able to manifest better situations in life.

Finances and sick family members: go on a 3 day water fast. I've seen countless testimonies about people experiencing breakthroughs with sick or backslid family members after going on an extended fast; I've heard people experiencing financial breakthroughs you can't even imagine. Do it! What more do you have to lose?

The ONLY thing that will fix my mental state as you put it is direct material intervention by God. Spiritual intervention won't do it.

I hate pretty much all forms of exercise.

I have fasted: No effect, or as usual for my prayers an intensifying of the situation.
 
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