God Against Us?

In Sunday school the other day, we were again playing with words. The Bible translation we were using said that God is "on our side." The teacher asked us about this. What do we think of the translation that "God is on our side"? The consensus was that it was to easily abused. Perhaps a better translation is that God is "by our side."

As we were discussing this, someone said that sometimes God is not on our side, but is against us. The evidence she sited is the torrential rain that caused the flooding. God makes it rain.

I don't believe that God makes it rain and therefore causes flooding. Do I think God could do it? Yes. Do I think God does do it? No. I think nature is set in motion, and it rains Sometimes it rains so much that horrible floods happen. It's tragic, but it's not God at action.

God is our redeemer, and in the flood, we can see the action of God, if we look. We see God in the helping hand, in the recovery, in the love expressed, in the rescues made, in the lives of those who make a difference, in the lives of those who are suffering. In this, we see God.

God is, indeed, by our side.