"Mom, cant God do something about it?"

Well my 10 year old son came and asked “Why is everyone so worried about this Swineflu? Can’t God do something about it?” I am sure that the many talks his father and I have given him about washing his hands, the brochures the school sent out,the news reports of how GLOBAL it is and the lectures from his teachers have him really worried. But the second part of his question got me to thinking.....and so I started to blog. LOL...the rest is history.

You know we all learn as little kids to pray “God is Good, God is great...” So it’s only natural for us to believe that if God is good then He will make life GOOD for us. So when things are going well we're inclined to think that God is indeed good, and when they don't, we question His goodness or even His existence. This is when we must understand that we aren't the center of the universe, not the reference point against which goodness can be judged. Sometimes we act and feel as though God's goodness depends on how well we like what's going on. To many times we ask ourselves “Why would God allow this to happen?” This is when we must understand that WE are NOT in a position to judge the actions of our God. We are just a teeny tiny small part of his overall picture. I personally think that the ONLY way for each of us to know in our hearts that God is good is to get to know him and his character one on one. Once you do there is no denying that God not only exists and is GOOD but that he brings Good from sufferings and tragedies. Trust me, when God reveals himself to you, then you know GOD IS GOOD! His goodness is pure, true and beyond anything you ever imagined. So is God always good? Yes, God is the source of EVERYTHING good, but in order to see it you must first form an active relationship with him. Now I agree that faith doesn't come easily. We all see the power of evil and wonder why God doesn’t stop it. You pray on occasion, but feel that our prayers don’t go anywhere. You may have gone to church but just find no connection with it, leaving you to try and convince yourself that believing in God is irrational. Let me assure you though of this, when you begin to doubt, then your allowing the enemy to win. He wants nothing more than for you to doubt our God. I too once doubted and found it easier to just exist in this world until my time came to leave (not real sure of what would happen after that however). My husbands Granny who is 94 and one of the SMARTEST people I have ever met was the reason for my fast and abrupt turn around. She knew immediately that I was a worrier and cared so deeply for my family that I would worry myself sick (LITERALLY). She gave me bibles and prayer books that I carry with me TO THIS DAY! This lady who I have SO much RESPECT and ADMIRATION for taught me TONS.. she taught me... that I had to start looking for God in EVERYTHING (good and bad), listen and try to absorb without rejecting what you don't understand yet, learn from those who do know, keep a open mind, but first and foremost you have to WANT to believe. Faith is a deep trust, a trust in our God. Once you meet him you will no longer doubt him and your life will be BLESSED! So my answer to my son was this....Nothing happens without the permission of God. When illness like this strikes the reasons may not be apparent, or perhaps even be within our understanding. However God wants only good for humankind. We can therefore be sure that there is great wisdom behind the affliction and that it presents us with the opportunity to develop a closer relationship with God. When illness strikes, the best course of action is to thank God, try to be closer to Him and to do all the things we have been taught to fight against catching it ourselves, all while thanking him for our many BLESSINGS.