Well, how can God be good and sovereign over all things and also allow intense personal

suffering into people's lives?

This is such an important question, really central to some of the things that we do at Desiring

God.

In fact, and it's a question that arrived in the inbox from a young man, hello, Pastor

John, my girlfriend is becoming a respiratory therapist.

And since beginning her training, she has interacted with many patients who are brain

dead or have no control over their bodies, and she has serious questions about where

is God and all of this personal suffering.

How can if he is sovereign be good by allowing certain people to suffer in this way?

What purposes do they serve in this state?

I've spoken to her about these things, trying to answer her questions, and I will continue

to do so for I only desire her to see the Lord's character in all of this, but I also wanted

to ask you for guidance in answering these questions.

What scripture should I walk her through?

What's the best approach to answering her question?

I have found it helpful to distinguish between what I call micro reasons for why people

suffer and macro reasons for why they're suffering in the world, because when it comes

to micro reasons like why this particular suffering, why on this particular person, why

at this particular time, why this particular intensity, why with these peculiar complications,

Lord, why in all these particular relationships, why this particular duration, et cetera, when

we're talking about those micro reasons, we usually don't have answers.

...