Why do bad things happen to good people?

[LucaJack'sMum]

I have not really been raised with religion in my life, but believe I am a spiritual person, I believe in God and something higher. My question is why do bad things happen to good people?

I believe things happen for us to learn from, but can't see the lessons in so many bad things. Today for example someone very close to me had $650 stolen from them, this person is the kindest most giving person, who helps people as a profession, and who struggles financially day to day.... what is the lesson in this?

Struggling to make sense of it all...

[Eugenia]

I believe that sometimes the lesson does not become obvious until later but sometimes bad things just happen and there is no reason for it.

I have more to say but I'm feeding a baby, I'll be back.....

ETA I'm back! This is an interesting topic as I know that this question has been thrown at me from atheist/agnostic friends when they're trying to convince me that I'm silly for being a Christian.

I think the short answer is that God gave us free will so unfortunately we have the ability to hurt each other, even good people. I'm a bit of a traditional/conservative/fundamentalist (I don't know which word to use as they've all been used to describe Christians in a negative way before) person, I believe that God is interested and involved in the lives of His people. But because he gave us free will then we can do bad things to other people and He can't really stick his hand in there and stop us before we do. For example he gave us a commandment "Do not steal" but anyone can at anytime choose to ignore that and steal from someone else. Now here is the controversial part, I also believe that God can and does interfere in the live of His people, ie those who have a relationship with Him, but not in the lives of just anyone, no matter how good they are. So for example say someone is speeding in their car even though they know it's the wrong thing to do, they could hit a 'good' person and it doesn't mean anything, or hit a believer and write off their car and it might be a way for the Christian to learn a lesson about loving possesions too much, or maybe a believer was kept back at work for an extra 10 minutes which means they avoided the potential accident and that is God's way of protecting them.

And sometimes bad things happen and no matter how much you pray and ask you just can't figure out why, well I think in that situation the only explanation is to wait, sometime in the future God will show why things are as they are.

Unfortunately that probably doesn't help you with your original question but that is why I believe sometimes bad things happen.

[Bathsheba]

I could take this one step further and suggest that (based on my observations) that if you are a "good" person then it's more likely that bad things will happen to you. But the definition of "bad" can be kinda paradoxical, meaning, what we might interpret as "bad" might actually be (in the long run) "good" as Eugenia was saying in her post.

I could talk about this for hours... but keeping it very simple:

I believe that our spirits/souls need perfecting before they can be compatible with the Heaven dimension. So, how better to improve the soul than to actually give it a challenge. It's a bit like a muscle... the only way to strengthen a muscle is for it to exert... to strain against something... to hurt a bit in the process of "excercising". Does a muscle grow strong by being allowed to rest... to recline on a comfy chair? or would it become stronger by joining a boot camp? And what if the person running the boot camp detected a bit of potential in a particular participant? Would they let this person have it easy? or would that person be worked a bit harder then the rest? It would seem understandable that the person who is naturally a bit stronger than the rest be worked a bit harder so that they could maximise their potential.

I consider our lives on Earth a kind of bootcamp for our souls. We are meant to be challenged. It's for our own good. It says in the Bible that God knows our limits and that we have to trust His judgement.... though how on Earth can any mother bear the loss of a child is beyond me (for example)... but at the end of the day i just HAVE to assume that all will be revealed.

I guess it goes without saying that it might seem that "bad" people seem to have it unfairly easy most of the time. It would get up most people's noses if a serial killer won lotto for instance. BUT who knows what's going on between God and/or Satan (who by the way is often described as an "agent" of God) behind the scenes.

[Bathsheba]

How strange.... that post (above) isn't registering in New Posts or back in the Spirituality and Religion main forum site. It still says that this thread has only 1 response (from Eugenia). Ooooh maybe it's so subversive that the universe won't allow it to exist???? ROFL

[paradise lost]

Because the world is Just. Bad things happen to EVERYONE. Most of the bad people had the bad things happen early enough on that it shaped who they became.

There's something about humans which makes us say "why me?" when something we don't like happens to us. Why NOT me? What's so special about me that it wouldn't happen to me?

The universe doesn't seem to distinguish. Bad things happen. What you DO with the bad experiences is what matters, not how many you get.

Bx

[Nelle]

It seems so sucky at times hey.

I'm pretty much with Eugenia, that we are given free will - I do believe that God can intervene, and as for why he does some times and not others...I guess that's where I just have faith that God has his reasons ('As for God, his way is perfect, the Word of the Lord is flawless' Psalm 18:30).

And I think one of the reasons we have free will (I'm sure there are many, and the bible does say 'who has known the mind of the Lord' in Romans 11:34 so I could be way off) is because God wants us to love him, but of our own accord - imagine if someone like your partner only loved you because they had to. I don't know if it would mean as much if my husband loved me because he was forced to, if the decision didn't come from him - a bit like when as kids we cleaned our rooms under duress, or we cleaned our rooms of our own accord - I know which one meant more to my mum!

[Inanna]

I actually don't see it as bad or good.

Things happen. Some things are easy for us to accept as they don't challenge us - they are fun and nice and enjoyable. Some things are really tough. But are they bad or good? I don't think they are either.

I believe that experiences are given to us so that we are challenged to grow, to better ourselves - to develop to our highest potential.

I believe that is what this lifetime is for.

I believe we come into this lifetime with a contract to fulfill. We will be given opportunity to develop that potential. Each of us has a different contract - and different wounds that we bring into this life time.

I have had many hardships in life & the older I have got the more comfortable I am with accepting them. Not putting a judgement of good or bad. For there is always yin and yang - light and dark. Always.

I am not saying it's easy. I am not saying it doesn't hurt hideously sometimes. Just that it is what it is. Asking if it "should" be happening is fruitless. It is happening. Accepting it without judging it as a good or bad thing - just as it is -seeking what lesson the situation may be offering.

Sending you loads of hugs - and understanding...

[helle]

I believe that our spirits/souls need perfecting before they can be compatible with the Heaven dimension. So, how better to improve the soul than to actually give it a challenge. It's a bit like a muscle... the only way to strengthen a muscle is for it to exert... to strain against something... to hurt a bit in the process of "excercising". Does a muscle grow strong by being allowed to rest... to recline on a comfy chair? or would it become stronger by joining a boot camp? And what if the person running the boot camp detected a bit of potential in a particular participant? Would they let this person have it easy? or would that person be worked a bit harder then the rest? It would seem understandable that the person who is naturally a bit stronger than the rest be worked a bit harder so that they could maximise their potential.

I wonder alot why bad things happen to me, I don't think I'm a horrible person and some of the things that have happened I don't think I have deserved, but I do believe they have happened because I had a lesson to learn. This actually makes alot of sense to me, or maybe I just like the idea of it. Eiher way, thankyou very much for sharing it.

[C~Q]

This thread is great, it's something that I have been wondering about recently. I'm learning about balance and how there is no such thing as good and bad...everything has two sides and it's only when you can accept that, that you will understand that life has perfect balance.

It is hard to believe that everything happens for a reason but here is an example that Dr Demartini gives in the book i'm reading...

"A young man named Martin Bryant shot 35 people in Australia, many of them children. As a direct result of that shooting, Australias national gun laws were changed and hundreds of thousands of weapons were turned in, possibly saving many lives for years to come. The entire country stopped for a moment of prayer that no religion on Earth could have accomplished - turning people's minds to thoughts of immortal spirit and physical mortality. Parents all around that part of the world, when they heard about it, probably held their children close that night and thought, Thank you for being alive. I'm grateful I still have you . The life and the love were conserved."

He lists some other examples as well but this one really made me think...

[Bathsheba]

I agree CQ, it's very thought provoking. Great example of perspective too with the Bryant example. I had forgotten about this thread... and I think I needed this timely reminder.

Reading so much about the life of Saint Mary McKillop has also reminded me of the bootcamp analogy I try to keep in the forefront of my mind when life seems unfair. Looking at her life you can certainly imagine her soul being strengthened for the Heaven dimension! Truly an amazing phenomenon.

[ladybird11]

I think things that are dished out to us (both good and bad) occur because the 'higher power' (who I refer to as God, but insert name of your chosen reference ) believes we are up to handling it.

The 'Father' at my church gave me this tip - and I do tend to agree. I can look back at life and think 'wow, that was a tough time / tragedy etc, but hey I pulled through it and I'm all the more wiser and understanding to others going through similar nowadays' .

We may not think that at the time - but in the long run things can act as a blessing in disguise.

Unfortunately with some people they reflect too much on the 'boohoo' stories and think minimal of the 'woohoo' stories in their life.

[MistyFying]

I think suffering produces perseverance. Perseverance produces hope. And hope is a beautiful gift - it doesn't dissapoint us - rather it gives us fuel to go on.