When life hits us with problems and obstacles, we ask: “Why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve this?” If we believe in God, we direct these questions to Him. In Classic Christianity, Bob George shows an example of this when he talks about a man preparing himself for a wildness trip. Each day he pushed himself harder to get ready. He wondered what his body would say about his preparations. “Why are you doing this to me?” “What have I done to deserve this?” Were the two thoughts that came to his mind. We do the same thing with God. We wonder why the Lord is punishing us. The Lord doesn’t punish us; He loves us unconditionally. The Lord is preparing us to face even greater challenges in life with perseverance and faith. The epigraph of this report is: "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."(Jeremiah 29:11 NIV) The Lord knows the future and has a plan for our lives. We might not know why the Lord is letting difficult things happen but the Lord doesn’t punish us. He only wants the best …show more content…
My family has fostered dogs for the last 6 years. Two years ago, my mom came home with a foster named Layla. This dog was terrified. People found her at 6 weeks old and kept her for 9 months. They tied her to a tree and rarely interreacted with her. Her basic needs were met. She was given food and water; but she was not given love. Being a baby tied out with no way to escape from the strange noises of the night, she developed PTSD. For the first three days that she was at our house she wouldn’t come out of her crate at all and defecated on herself if she was forced to come out. We finally had to take the crate away from her as it was not helping. She took up residence on the landing of our stairs where she remained for the next several months in a catatonic
One of the biggest dog busts of the century was in 2007. The man in charge’s name was Michael Vick, a quarterback football player in the NFL. Under the name “Bad Newz Kennels”, dogs were beaten, murdered, and gambled on. The dogs found alive were some of the most damaged possible. Missing parts of their jaws, lost eyesight, or non existent limbs, one would wonder why they kept going, striving for acceptance from their owner. These dogs, to the public seemed dangerous, after all they had killed their entire lives. However, Best Friends Animal Sanctuary was willing to take up the task of these gorgeous animals, ultimately saving their lives. The sanctuary took in 22 dogs, 10 of them, now adopted and living in homes of their own.Through rehabilitation the dogs were taught how to trust, interact and most importantly what love truly is with different trainers daily. Even the dogs who can not be adopted out are by any means not dangerous. Meryl, had been one of the dogs found who was deemed dangerous by the state, meaning she could not be adopted out to a home. Nonetheless, when walking into her kennel, dangerous is the last word you would use to describe her. One of her trainers remarks, "She really doesn't mind new people…. She's very happy and loving. I feel totally comfortable with her. I can grab and kiss her." As she embraces Meryl, "I am building a relationship, ...She needed to see that when
In life we are given obstacles. Some obstacles may be a lot worse than others, but everyone faces them. The only way to overcome them is by keeping faith in God. During these challenging times in life, people start to question why keep faith in someone or something that is causing pain and suffering to themselves and/or the rest of the world. They start to give up hope and start losing their faith in God.
Sometimes God allows the rug to be pulled from underneath us, putting is in situations beyond our control. The world likes to appeal to our ego, giving us the false sense of security by telling us we ultimately have control over our lives. If you're not lukewarm, expect to be put to the test as God will refine us.
This is a reason why people still believed in God, because they had nothing, everything was taken away the only thing keeping them going was the thought that everything would go uphill from now they were rock bottom and that it could not get worse. They believed that this was a test from God and that everything would be better. Everything that God has or will do is for a reason. They thought that, who were they questioning God and his mysterious ways “I know no one has the right to say things like that. I know that very will. Man is too significant, too limited,to even try to comprehend God's Mysterious ways, But what can someone like myself do? I'm neither a sage nor just a man I’m not a saint . I’m simply a creature of flesh and bone I suffer hell in my flesh .I also have eyes and I see what is being done here. Wer is God's Mercy? Where is God How can I believe how can anyone believe in this God of Mercy” (76,77). God was being a sign of hope for some and a sign of disappointment for others was he even their at
This question had always been brought up throughout history; If there is a God, and He is all loving and powerful, why would He let there be suffering in the world? There are a few answers in which I think would answer this question, such as human’s free will, and God’s desire to use suffering to exercise and to teach people. As a Christian, I believe God created suffering to give us the freedom to choose to rely and to turn toward Him or to turn away from Him. In some sense, it is as if it was a test, if we believe in God, regardless of the suffering and pain, we will trust in Him to bring marked the end of the suffering for us.
¨Helping vulnerable animals and keeping pets in safe and loving homes requires a commitment from all of us—advocates, pet owners, shelters, leaders, and entire communities.¨ They are animal doctors because if an animal comesentire communities.¨ They are animal doctors because if an animal comes in and it is in bad shape the doctors have to give it medicine to help the animals get better.¨ It was a hot day in June when we first met Baxter. The tiny pup’s soulful eyes welled with gratitude when we rescued him, along with more than 300 other animals, from a neglectful shelter in Moulton, Alabama. He could barely breathe when we found him, and it was clear that the three-month-old puppy had already experienced more suffering than most dogs will ever know.Baxter was quickly
These illnesses can make it hard to do actions needed in everyday life when they return home from the battlefield. Since these illnesses are often more mental rather than physical, one of the best ways to help soldiers who suffer with PTSD or TBI is to provide a service dog to help their needs. A service dog is “any dog that is individually trained to work or perform a task for the benefit of an individual with a disability” (“Service Animals”). It may be hard to train a service dog or even find a dog to train. Approximately 3.9 million dogs enter shelters nationwide each year and of those 3.9 million, about 2.7 million are euthanized each year (“Pet Statistics”). Many of these dogs that are in shelters are strays as a result of improper care from their previous owners. Much of the nation’s animal cruelty is a result of conflicts between their owners. A 2011 survey states that about 10.2 million men and women are physically assaulted by their partner in the United States every year, and 62 percent of the nation's households have at least one pet ("Animal Cruelty Facts and Statistics”). Animals are just the victims of the prejudice that is going on around
Therefore, the suffering and sorrow that you and I face today isn’t because of a “bad God”, it has come down through our generational line and we suffer because we are sinners. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Some people may say “ I lead a good life, I am not hurting anyone, I give to charity… ”But this isn’t good enough in Gods eyes, people need to overcome sin and selfishness which is within all of us. We are all born into a nature of sin, which has been passed down from Adam and Eve.
As Christians, we claim that God is all powerful and compassionate, and that he is omnipresent, meaning he is everywhere all the time. The biggest argument against the presence of God here on earth is that, even with these characteristics, God seems to be incapable or reluctant to put an end to the infinite amount of hardships, darkness, and suffering in the world. While I understand this stance, I believe that God’s intentions are always pure and good, and come with perfect intent. Without pain and suffering in our lives, God would be nothing more than a genie in a bottle that we go to only when we need something. This idea is described perfectly in an article called, “How God Uses Suffering for His Glory” written by, “Randy Alcorn”, it states, “God uses suffering to purge sin from our lives, strengthen our commitment to him, force us to depend on his grace, foster sensitivity, discipline our minds, and impart wisdom. And once he accomplishes such great things, often we can see that our suffering has been worth it” (4). This explains that God has a purpose for everything, even suffering. His purpose is to make your spiritual life obvious to everybody you came into contact with, and make it apparent that he is in fact present, here on earth, all of the time! God wants to be sought out, so if you are waiting for God to come to
Our blessing isn’t just for us, but for the recovering owner. This duality makes the sacrifice of our time that much more special. The idea of sacrifice, and the concept of fostering has taught me to be more aware of other people. I have broadened my perspective of not what is just good for me, or good for my family, or even friends, but what is good for complete strangers and the world as a whole. I have learned that any good act can be rewarding even if it doesn’t have direct or clear benefits. While fostering this dog, whenever I was brought down by the inevitability of losing him, I pictured his owner overjoyed at seeing this tiny puppy.
Lately shelters have been promoting fostering of dogs to help relieve some of the burden and also to be able to accept more dogs and save more lives. Due to the increasing population of dogs that come to shelters this new option is the best opportunity
Her name is Peanut, she sits in a cold, hard cage alone. She once had a home, but does not understand what happened to her loving family. They had to move to another state unable to take her with them. Now she sits here in the pound waiting to see if her family returns. Her gaze is always low since the day she arrived as if she knew what would happen to her if she does not get adopted within three days. Consequently, many animals face this tragic situation every day because many pet owners eventually leave their pets. There are resources out there and options to help with this transition. If the decision to surrender a pet is the only reasonable option, then consider leaving the pet in a place where it will receive
Pet adoption brings myriad health benefits. One of these benefits is the loyal companionship of shelter animals. GAWS shelter’s acting chief executive, Mia Shaw states, “There are big positives for a person’s mental and physical wellbeing in adopting a pet – there are so many benefits to adopting a dog or cat, including companionship and friendship” (qtd. in Sum 19). These animals help human beings physically and mentally by providing another incentive to exercise, and by providing a steady companionship. These benefits could potentially save the lives of depressed people and improve the lives of incapacitated people. Inclusively, shelter animals reduce stress and other health-related issues. Rescue cat owner, Lisa Barley notes, “Not only will you benefit from the joys of a furry friend’s unconditional love, but a pet can have a positive impact on your health, from helping you stay physically active to reducing stress and lowering blood pressure” (48). Adopting a pet is much like obtaining a best friend, who will provide unconditional love and support when the person needs it the most. Furthermore, most of the shelter animals are caged for days or even months, resulting in being restricted from social environments. Consequently, these animals end up being friendlier when they are adopted and placed in a steady home, unlike the ones obtained
If God loves us, why does He allow us to suffer? The central question in Shadowlands challenges traditional religious and moral conventions. It is a question asked by many, with few satisfactory answers. Before attempting to answer the question, and explore its relationship to Shadowlands, let us first define the question, so its implications may be more clearly understood. At the heart of the question is a doubt in the goodness of God, "If God loves us". From the beginning it is clear that God is being judged and criticized by the question. Then the second phrase follows"Why does He allow us to suffer?". The assumption made in the second phrase is that God has enough control over the world to prevent suffering. If He can prevent
Why Does God allow suffering? This question is probably as old as religion itself. It is a stumbling block for some of us, and for many more at given moments of tragedy. There are as many answers to this question as there are people who care to engage in theological dialogue. One understanding is that yes, God allows "bad" things to happen; God does not cause them to happen.