{"id":38054,"date":"2020-11-04T09:56:46","date_gmt":"2020-11-04T15:56:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.local\/?p=38054"},"modified":"2020-11-04T09:56:46","modified_gmt":"2020-11-04T15:56:46","slug":"gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/","title":{"rendered":"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this column two months ago I wrote about The COVID Crisis Miracle. At that time the nation was six months into the pandemic and not a single case of the coronavirus had visited the residents or caregivers of The Baptist Home network of campuses. Then, on Oct. 1, the pandemic came to our northwest campus. The number of positive cases jumped from one to forty in a period of twelve days. That begs the question, \u201cHow does a believer reconcile months of prayer for protection from the virus against an outbreak of such magnitude?\u201d \u00a0 <\/span>To answer this and similar questions, theologians turn to the doctrine of theodicy. If you are not familiar with the term, don\u2019t fret. Most of my family members and co-workers are not familiar with the word. Theodicy is the doctrine that explores God\u2019s goodness in light of the presence of evil. In other words, why does God allow bad stuff to happen? If you have ever pondered this question, you are more of a theologian than you thought. <\/span><\/p>\n

Consider with me the most serious consequence of the coronavirus \u2013 death. For the believer, this outcome ushers one into the presence of the Lord. As Paul wrote to the Philippian believers from prison, \u201cto live is Christ, to die is gain.\u201d As our families, friends, churches and caregivers weep over the loss a brother or sister in Christ, our grief is softened by the reality of the wholeness the deceased is now experiencing. Suffering also refines us spiritually and practically. Starting in February, I prayed for God to spare The Baptist Home from the ravages of the coronavirus. I tempered the prayer with a \u201cThy will be done.\u201d I must confess, my will and God\u2019s will are not always in alignment. As in every other case where our wills diverged, His will is best. I confidently believe The Baptist Home will be a stronger, healthier and more Christlike ministry as we apply God\u2019s truths to the lessons we have learned in this heartbreaking season.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One observes from Scripture that just because God\u2019s response to our prayers is not what we anticipated does not mean the prayer was not answered. Consider the lessons learned from Matthew 14. In this passage Jesus instructs his disciples to cross over the sea of Galilee while he spends time in prayer with the Father. When a storm arises on the sea, I can imagine the disciples might have said to themselves, \u201cWhy did we listen to Him?\u201d Jesus, of course, was aware of their situation. However, instead of calming the sea, Jesus joins them in the midst of the storm. That is the story of The Baptist Home. God joined us in the midst of the storm, and provided just the right resources, encouragement and hope at just the right time. The story of the Missouri Baptist Convention\u2019s response <\/span>is a story of cooperation. It is a story of weeping with those who weep and celebrating God\u2019s goodness \u2013 even in the hard times. <\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, I am also reminded of God\u2019s providential timing. Due to changes in the compassionate care visit guidelines in late September some family members and one pastor were able to visit with loved ones during this crisis. I am so very thankful the updated guidelines were in place when the crisis visited our campus. <\/span><\/p>\n

Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28, \u201cFor we know that God causes all things to work together for good, for those who love Him, those called according to His purpose\u201d in its proper light when considering our own suffering. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9192395,"featured_media":36318,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_wpscp_schedule_draft_date":"","_wpscp_schedule_republish_date":"","_wpscppro_advance_schedule":false,"_wpscppro_advance_schedule_date":"","_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"","_twitter_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type":"","_pinterest_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_selected_social_profile":[]},"categories":[5,294],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nGod\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\""Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light."\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\""Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light."\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pathway\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/mbcpathway\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1700\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1131\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rodney Harrison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@mbcpathway\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@mbcpathway\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rodney Harrison\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/\",\"name\":\"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d405e3c379f355207b902661541a0702\"},\"description\":\"\\\"Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light.\\\"\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg\",\"width\":1700,\"height\":1131},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/\",\"name\":\"Pathway\",\"description\":\"Baptist & Christian News\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d405e3c379f355207b902661541a0702\",\"name\":\"Rodney Harrison\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7f6285740c50ac92ae1f91ba7fe8b6f8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7f6285740c50ac92ae1f91ba7fe8b6f8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Rodney Harrison\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/author\/rodney-harrison\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak","description":"\"Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light.\"","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak","og_description":"\"Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light.\"","og_url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/","og_site_name":"Pathway","article_publisher":"http:\/\/facebook.com\/mbcpathway","article_published_time":"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1700,"height":1131,"url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Rodney Harrison","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@mbcpathway","twitter_site":"@mbcpathway","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Rodney Harrison","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/","url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/","name":"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg","datePublished":"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00","dateModified":"2020-11-04T15:56:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d405e3c379f355207b902661541a0702"},"description":"\"Suffering is real and one of the many consequences of the fall. No one has felt the pain of suffering more than our Lord Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full brunt of our sin and our rejection in order to become the sinless sacrifice and atonement for our sin. That puts the promise of Romans 8:28 in its proper light.\"","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tbh-green.jpg","width":1700,"height":1131},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/2020\/11\/04\/gods-goodness-amid-an-outbreak\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"God\u2019s goodness amid an outbreak"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/","name":"Pathway","description":"Baptist & Christian News","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d405e3c379f355207b902661541a0702","name":"Rodney Harrison","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7f6285740c50ac92ae1f91ba7fe8b6f8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7f6285740c50ac92ae1f91ba7fe8b6f8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Rodney Harrison"},"url":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/author\/rodney-harrison\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38054"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9192395"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38054"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38054\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38054"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38054"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mbcpathway.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38054"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}