Kay Arthur - Lord, Where Are You When Bad Things Happen?: A Devotional Study on Living by Faith

B OOKS BY K AY A RTHUR

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Lord, Is It Warfare? Teach Me to Stand

Lord, Im Torn Between Two Masters

Lord, Only You Can Change Me

Lord, I Need Grace to Make It Today

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God, Are You There? Do You Care? Do You Know About Me?

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As Silver Refined

Our Covenant God

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L ORD , W HERE A RE Y OU W HEN B AD T HINGS H APPEN?
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Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible. (NASB). Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Arthur, Kay, 1933

Lord, where are you when bad things happen? : a devotional study on living by faith / Kay Arthur.1st WaterBrook Press ed.
p. cm.
1. Bible. O.T. HabakkukTextbooks. 2. TheodicyBiblical teaching. I. Title.

BS1635.52 A78 2001
224.9506dc21 00-068621

v3.1_r1

Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
All you who hope in the L ORD .

P SALM 3 1:24

I ts hard today to look at the chaos, at the tragedies, at the broken relationships, families, and lives and explain how a sovereign God who is seemingly all-powerful and all-wise could allow these things. Compound this with the wars and the manmade and natural disasters occurring throughout the world and the question becomes, If God really is who He says He is, how can He allow these things? Why doesnt He intervene, if Hes God?

If this is not your question, it certainly is the question of multitudes. And you and I need to have the answera right answer, a truthful answer. The answer God would give.

This, Beloved, is why this devotional study was written: that you might know God and understand where He is when bad things happen and why He, as God, would ever allow such things.

You are about to discover the answers to those questions, to solve the dilemma. And yet more is going to happen in the process. You are going to encounter God, to come to understand, love, and appreciate Him to a greater depth. And in the process youre going to be equipped so you can be strong and courageous and minister to others.

As you study this book, you will notice that each weeks devotional study is divided into seven days. This is for a purpose. You need to be in the Word of God on a consistent basis, day in and day out, gathering spiritual bread so you can be sustained and not grow weary and faint through lack of spiritual nourishment. Believe me, this makes such a difference in your outlook, your peace, and your confidence as you face and deal with the varied issues of life. Daily time with God helps you keep your focus where it needs to beon God and on truth.

As you launch into this study, Beloved, please read what follows before you begin the first chapter. If theres a possibility of your using this as a group study in which you would be a facilitator, then read Guidelines for Group Use in the Study Resources section at the back of this book, where youll find other valuable tools to enhance this study.

For many, the blessing of this study has been enhanced by the companion video and audio teaching tapes. For more information on these, simply call Precept Ministries International at our toll-free number (1-800-763-8280) and let one of our staff members help you. It would be their pleasure. We also provide training if you would like to develop your skills in handling the Word of God more accurately or in leading others in group studies designed to minister to people of all ages at any level of commitment while respecting the restraints on their time. Were known as The Inductive Study People: everybody, everywhere, any time, any place, any language, any age. One message: the Bible. One method: inductive. Please dont hesitate to call us.

Finally, let me share my visionits the possibility of a new avenue of ministry for you, Beloved of God

A new beginning

An avenue of ministry

A sense of doing something that has eternal value

These are three things I think are so important for you and for me. Theres so much to learn, to know, to experience, to doand we never want to lose sight of that. To do so would be to miss what God has for us. To fall short of the tremendous potential of our livesa potential that is ours because we are His, because we are children of the Creator of the Universe, indwelt by His divine Spirit and given the mind of Christ. You and I, Beloved, are Gods workmanship gifted by the Spirit of God and created in Christ Jesus unto good works that would absolutely stagger our minds if we were to see them before they ever happened.

And what has God put into your hands? What are you holding and reading right now? Is it an accident? A coincidence? No! You are holding a devotional study that first and foremost will be the beginning of a new depth of understanding about Gods sovereignty over even the most horrible things that happen in our lives and in our world.

God is going to speak to you because through this book you are going to come face to face with the living Word of Godthe Word that not only discerns the thoughts and intentions of your heart, but becomes the means of throwing His light on the direction your life is taking so you can know with absolute confidence where you are headed. If you listen to what He saysand by that I mean ordering your life accordinglythen there is, in a sense, a new beginning of understanding, of purpose. A new level of Christlikeness is attained. You will be, as Paul would say, pressing on and attaining that for which Jesus Christ laid hold of you.

Which brings me to my next pointan avenue of ministry. What you have learned, God intends for you to share. I have a vision, and you, Beloved, are part of that vision. Our Lords commission in Matthew 28 was that we make disciples of all menthat we teach them to observe all that He has commanded us. Acts 1 tells us that when we are saved and receive the Holy Spirit we become His witnessesyet the question is often, How?