Pray for Virginia Tech, but avoid "God didn't cause it, but He can use it for good" . . . amos 3:6

[bravobevo]

“If a calamity occurs in a city has not the Lord done it?” Amos 3:6.

Some Christians are saying “God did not make it happen, but He can use it for good” about last week's shooting spree on the Virginia Tech campus.   This well-intentioned, but ill-advised statement goes beyond, and is contrary to, what the Bible teaches.  And it undermines the very

Comments

[santadechicago]

"Instead, let us be prayerful and cautious of what we say to people who are grieving or who are questioning God, because we do not want to destroy their only hope as they seek help in suddenly facing a bleak future with this unexpected loss." -Very Good!

Question: Did you write that? If so how did you get it copyrighted???

-Christina

[bravobevo]

Christina: I'm not an expert on intellectual property, but it is my general understanding that anything you photograph or write, if you're not plagiarizing someone, can be protected by putting up the copyright symbol, an identifying mark attributable to you (like your name), the date, and the phrase "All rights reserved." In other words, you don't have to file it or anything. It only has to be out there.

Ideas and concepts come from all over (especially the Bible), so when I think that I pull too much from a source I try to be careful not to claim it. Even if I were to say that I had an original thought, it isn't really mine because it doesn't hit me until God puts it there.

[wubbarub]

I agree that we must not charge God with this crime. It is Satan's doing. I read a discussion board that said "If God is responsible for everything that happens, shouldn't we include the bad things in his responsiblities?" (Not an exact quote) I agreed with that statement...

But, as a Christian who tries to follow Jesus, it's sometimes difficult not to ask "WHY?" when bad things happen...

I have had life lessons that taught me that all things happen for a purpose...sometimes that purpose is not revealed for a long time...

I pray that the purpose of this is revealed to those suffering their loss, and that it may bring them closer to God.

Also, as a side note, there was a girl that was a senior at VA Tech, and a freshman at Columbine. Pray for her...

[bravobevo]

I completely agree both with the statement and the conclusion of the statement. God is responsible for everything that happens, and that does include the "bad" things in God's responsibilities. We call things "bad" if they are unpleasant, difficult, dangerous or life-taking, but we see things happening around us as through a dark glass without God's clear vision of how any event intertwines with a person's personal history and with the ultimate glory going to God