Is it God's will?

We started looking at the Leslie Weatherhead book The Will of God. We discussed tonight the idea of how people use the phrase, "It's the will of God" to try to provide comfort to those who are hurting. For example, your child dies, and you are told, "It was the will of God."

Why do people say that? What do they think it will provide comfort? It's a serious question, and I think there might be several different answers.

• Maybe people who say that believe it. Maybe they have been raised to believe that every little thing which happens in this world is completely God's will. I've even heard or read of people who think that.
• Maybe they think it is comforting to believe that God is completely in control -- that nothing happens on this world that he doesn't permit or sanction.
• Maybe they think that having an explanation -- a reason -- for an horrible event makes it easier to bear.
• Is it possible that they don't even think at all? Steve said, at dinner tonight after class, that he thinks if someone who says that were challenged, that he/she wouldn't be able to defend the thought at all -- that it's just something that people say.
• Could it be that there are just times when we don't know what to say, so we say things that we don't mean?

I think that this platitude -- "It is God's will" -- if we believe it, does damage to our faith. It leads us to not trust God. If our understanding of God's will is affected by our image of him as a loving, caring God, then doesn't it make sense that our understanding of God's will can alter our perception of him as our God? If we believe that he will bring horrible things into our lives, then what does that do to our belief that he is loving? Doesn't it make it hard to ask God to give us strength to persevere through hardship if we believe that he brought the hardship into our lives in the first place?

Image: Budding tree in the park. Took a walk today at lunch. Not that much interesting to photograph, but I thought the blog was getting kind of bland looking.