Why would you worship god?

Question

This was one of my late night questions that commonly keep me up for 4 or more hours in deep thought, but anyway. Think about what goes on in the world today. Terrorism, disease, natural disaster, destruction left and right, crime, and the increasing threat of nuclear war. So why would you worship a god that does nothing about it? God supposedly loves everyone, and yet he doesn't lift a finger to save even a single person.

I was watching a Katrina aftermath show and it had a man whose entire family was killed. Several children, a baby, and his wife. He said "Any god who does this to me is no god of mine". Makes perfect sense doesn't it? So why would anyone want to worship a god who doesn't protect his own followers?

It can't be that all those people who died deserved it, correct?

Answer 1

I understand your frustration and confusion when looking at the tragic events that occur in our world. Acts of nature are probably a little more difficult to understand than the others you refer to: wars, crime, etc... Where do those latter problems originate? While many are quick to fault God, the problem really is on us. How many millenia have to pass before the human race gets its act together? We have freedom of choice; seek out that which is good and beneficial, or dwell in hate and selfishness. If all people chose the first wouldn't this world be a much better place? Unfortunately, people ignore the simple wisdom of Christ: 'Love God with all your heart. Love your neighbor as yourself". Is it God's fault we turn our backs on that? Is it His responsibility to "clean up the mess" that we continually make? If he did simply "remove all of our problems" would we ever learn and grow as people?

No one likes hardship or tragedy. Yes, God could remove those from our lives. Question is, how would we respond? Would we thank and praise him? Or, would we become more complacent and self-centered? Christ never told his followers that they would all be rich, healthy, and live happily ever after. Instead, he told them to expect the problems of this world. Christ was not foreign to hatred and abuse. God's statement against the violence done to the one he sent was to raise him from the tomb. God didn't remove hatred and strife, he simply triumphed over it. He would call us to the same in our lives. God says that He is with us in hardship...not to remove the problem, but to help us get through it.

Our time in this world is short. I live like expect to reach 90 years of age. Do I get ticked off at God if He only allows me 40 years? God does not punish us (or we should all get the same)....and, no, that is not why Katrina happened. We are fragile beings who live in an unpredictible world. Does God prevent some disasters from occurring? For every Katrina could there have been 20 more? Who knows. What we do know is that God wants us to realize that there is more to our time here than selfishness, greed, and hate. Like a parent watching a child mess up their life...sometimes you have to sit back and watch them deal with their problems until they finally decide/learn to get it right.

Answer 2

Why do so many overlook the fact that this is the devils world, as he told Jesus? Mathew 4:8-10, Luke 4:6.

It is temporary. God will reverse all the evils including raising all the dead in Paradise. Luke 23:43.

Correct. King Solomon said...time and unforseen occurrence befall us all. Ecc.9:11b.

Notice at Rev.21:1-4 how God will correct all Satan and Adam and Eves ills, and his tent will be with mankind.

All the evidence is mounting that rulership by Satan and humans only leads to suffering, not joy.

It will be great when evil ends, and will not be tolerated any longer in the universe.

Answer 3

"Worship" isn't quite the right term, since I approach my Gods upright rather than on my knees.

From what I've observed, I've concluded that human happiness is NOT at the top of the concern list of any Deities that may exist. It's a complex world, and human beings are only one life form among many. The natural processes of the universe are vast, and individual human motivations are not always based in compassion. I consider that human beings who act harmfully and cruelly are acting of their own will -- they might be without compassion or out of balance, and certainly they should be stopped, but that is a job for other human beings to carry out. The Gods I honor do not micro-manage the universe.

I honor the Gods because They are the source of all life, in my opinion -- and we all receive exactly the same gift, life itself. All life enters a world where it is one day fated to die; death is not something to be constantly resisted, but simply a basic condition of existence. They encompass all things: life and death, light and darkness, creation and destruction. The hurricanes, earthquakes, and tides of disease that claim human lives are natural processes; there's nothing "deserved" or "undeserved" about the deaths that result, any more than could be said of the deaths of the many animals who perish under such circumstances.

Other people might not choose to honor the same Gods I do, but that is their choice and I do not judge them either positively or negatively for it. As a Wiccan, however, I see no conflict between belief in my Gods and the acceptance of the basic operating parameters of the world around me. Further, I do not take the "evil" of other human beings as a reflection on the overall qualities of the Gods I honor.

Answer 4

I worship God because He did do something about it. When He sent Jesus to die, He did that so we could go to a perfect place someday and be free from this pain. Pain is in the world today because of sin and free will, not because of God. God sent His son to die for us so that if we love Him and accept His free gift, than we can someday be free of this pain. Very soon. And why concentrate on the bad things only? Why don't you think about all the people God did save? Yes, He didn't save every body that suffered, not on this earth, but lots of the people who weren't saved from the hurricane are now in heaven with Him living in perfect happiness! I'd say that's a good reason to worship Him.

Answer 5

as far as human destruction of one another - god gave us our minds and the ability to use them. it is up to us as to how we use them. it is gods hope that we choose to love and respect fellow humans but ,not everyone makes the right choice. i don't believe, as some do, that god purposely allows bad things to happen to good people so that good things can come of it. some would say that man has also created natural disasters.ie-global warming, which comes back to my first point. so you see, it isn't cut and dry. life and god are great mysteries and like any good mystery, we have to wait till the end to find out .

Answer 6

I don't know...still trying to figure out why the i comes before e in science ;-)

I guess my thoughts are that it's not a perfect world--this is life when Satan is in control. If God hadn't given Satan the reins temporarily, we wouldn't have Katrinas...

Answer 7

The Christian loophole is that they will tell you if you Satan rules the earth and if you don't worship God you are not His child, you belong to Satan and that's who caused your grief.