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God is testing me, my faith?

Posted: Jul 6, 2011

What do you think when someone that's going through something horrible says 'God is testing me, my faith'? It's one of the many reasons I doubt there's a God....if there were, and one is a believer, why should they be tested? Sounds like torment to me, and why would someone that loves his children torment them in such a way? Would God (if there is a God) be so insecure that he'd need constant proof of one's faith? I thought God knows everything? So wouldn't he know that said person is a believer?

The whole 'God is testing me, my faith' thing sounds like rationalizing when something happens to believers, rationalizing why God would do that....but honestly, why would he? Doesn't make a lick of sense to me.

;

This is one of those questions that - s/m

[ In Reply To ..]
theologians far better than I have been batting back and forth for hundreds, if not thousands, of years, and there's no such thing as an easy answer. Especially not one that can be answered in a forum such as this one!

Having said that, and with the disclaimer that I am not a theologian, nor do I play one on TV, I'll take a small stab at it, and hopefully others will weigh in as well.

To the best of my own understanding (inadequate as it is) it's not so much a matter of "proving" someone's faith; it's a matter of learning, often the hard way, what really, REALLY matters, and sometimes the answers will only be found in eternity, because we, as finite human beings, have no way of seeing or understanding the entire picture, past, present, future, and all the ramifications thereof.

I don't believe God actually CAUSES bad things to happen to us, or does things TO us; but he does ALLOW them, because we live in a fallen, sinful world, and as they say, *stuff* happens. Even to people of faith, and sometimes, it seems, ESPECIALLY to people of faith! And God uses all things, awful as they may be, to eventually work incredibly good things, again which we might not understand outside of eternity.

Yeah, I know--tell that to a parent who has lost a child, or anyone who has lost anything they valued. Case in point--Job. That's a really tough one; always has been, always will be, and I certainly can't answer it.

There's a really good book out there called "The Shack," which does a very good job of tackling the really hard questions. It's stirring up some controversy in various theological circles, for various reasons. I would urge anyone who is wrestling with these kinds of questions to check it out, and make up your own mind.

As to why believers should be tested... hey, I don't know! You'll have to ask God that one! His universe, his rules! We don't get to decide what "should" or "should not" happen! Life truly is NOT fair, and nowhere is it written that it is.

I knew when I started writing this post that I didn't have any real answers, but I hope I've shed perhaps just the tiniest bit of light on a very difficult subject.

through my own experience, I've come to believe - what doesn't kill you

[ In Reply To ..]
that it is possible you are being prepared for something even more important. I went through many years of really, really hard times. I stayed depressed. I wondered why these things were happening. Then because of something going on in someone else's life, it became clear to me that during that hard time I was being groomed to do something more important. If I had not been challenged during that hard time, I would have failed at this really important thing. The thing that I remember best during those hard times was that I kept asking what it was I was supposed to learn. I didn't understand it. But now that I am in this really important thing, I can look back and give thanks for having gone through those hard times. I live a much richer life now for having survived. My hard times haven't resolved completely, but I am in a much better place and can deal with things better.

So I guess my theory is not to test one's faith, but to prepare us for something or to help us grow/learn something we need in this journey.

Very well said, thank you. - I was going to mention

[ In Reply To ..]
the metaphor of the refining fire in my post above, but forgot to.

References:
Isa 48:10
Zec 13:9
Mal 3:2

Two of these mention that silver is refined by fire.

(I don't actually remember ever mentioning 'silver' as one of my 'what do I want to be when I grow up' choices....) :)

I guess we can also look at it as an ongoing maturing process. We have to learn plenty of hard lessons as we grow up, from childhood to adulthood; nobody ever said those hard lessons will magically stop when we reach a certain age.

I have to remind myself (often) that God loves me so much, he wants me to be the very best that I can be, and that process can be painful, especially when it comes to knocking off all my sharp corners that I didn't even know were there.... I have also been reminded recently that he is preparing all of the true believers to be Christ's perfect bride.

Hey, there's gonna be a wedding, and I want to be that perfect bride! So what if it hurts some along the way?

At least, that's what I keep telling myself....! :)

The most beautiful diamonds - Old-n-tired

[ In Reply To ..]
used to be an ugly lump of coal until they were submitted to extreme heat and extreme pressure. Not sure I want to be the most beautiful of diamonds, but I also don't want to be a lump of coal, so I'll accept the heat and pressure, though a few flaws might still remain.

No pain, no gain! NM - CrankyOldBroadOnTheBeach

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nm

tests - sm

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I believe he does it so we can see for ourselves what we are made of. We get to be a part of the transformation as participants and observers. Pain is only temporary and a nonfactor when faced with the promises of eternity.

Difficult times do the testing. Not God. - sweetgirlsmom

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The question is whether we will remain faithful to God and believe in his promises, regardless of what happens to us? Some people blame God for the difficult times and walk away from Him because they think a loving God would never allow that?

My personal belief is that God gave us free choice and does not intervene in human affairs. Many bad things are a result of poor choices, like drunk driving and the Holocaust. My brother died from cancer when he was 12 and that was a result of his genetic makeup. People are killed in bad weather that God does not stop. People die from illnesses and injuries and old age. We miss them and we grieve, and God is with us.

Once I stopped blaming God for the bad things in my life, I was free to love Him regardless of my circumstances. I went through a terrible trial that lasted several years. Every day I could feel God in my heart and knew that He would provide what I needed. He gave me the strength to go on when I couldn't on my own. God didn't take away the pain, but worked through the hearts of other people to guide me and heal me. Today I am a much better person than I was before.

That is where my faith has come from. When I recognize God in the good times and accept his mercy in the bad. I will never like the bad things that happen, but with God in my heart I am at peace.

every test is a blessing - yas

[ In Reply To ..]
If one believes God is just, than no "test" is meaningless. It may outwardly seem difficult, but in it lies a chance for even a greater reward from God.

Try to hold on to your faith - Concerned4U

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It just so happens I'm reading a book on this topic right now as being part of a Christian caregiving team. It's called "Why" by Adam Hamilton. He states,"the sweeping message of the Bible is not a promise that those who believe and do good will not suffer. Instead the Bible is largely a book about people who refused to let go of their faith in the face of suffering."
Ex: Joseph (son of Jacob) sold into slavery, Israelites 400 years of slavery by the Egyptians, Moses does God's work and prays for God to kill him, etc...
He then goes on to say that most Christians unwittingly try to comfort people by saying they believe everything happens for a reason. However, God does not want bad things to happen: rape, babies dying, etc..
He later says "God does not take from us our freedom, nor does God miraculously deliver us from the consequences of our actions or the actions of others. But,...God does promise to deliver us, and God promises to sustain us and force good to come from the painful things we experience in this life."
Anyway, it is a good read and I think you may find it comforting. I got it as a free Kindle download. I don't know if it's still free, but you can check it out.

The actual biblical term is "proving" your faith. - A bit of a different concept.

[ In Reply To ..]
The rain falls on the just and the unjust. There are problems for everyone in this life. Those that believe they lived a charmed life because of their faith are flat out deceiving themselves and others. Our faith is not about pretending everything is great. It is about facing our problems and proving the faith within us, living a life of courage. The Bible in Proverbs defines a "righteous" man by the fact that he falls but gets up again, again, and again (paraphrase, of course). Life is not about everything being perfect, neither should we aspire to that. We just need to keep getting everytime we trip and fall and keep on keeping on. There will be rest along the way, happy times, too, but it won't all be what we wish. Now that I see that for myself, it has brought a lot of peace to me because I don't have to feel inferior to others just because I have problems. It is so hard sometimes to keep getting up, and sometimes I feel so tired of it all, but somehow I keep getting up, but I am learning to rely on The Life within. Let your battles and problems break you, and from that place of humility, you will find A Life to rely on that no one can take from you.

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