Why Bad ‘Things’ May Be To Show His Glory

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.’ (Isaiah 55:8)

For those of us in southwest Florida, we are of course thankful that 2025 has been a year free from hurricanes coming to our region, and overall avoiding to strike the United States at all.  With the exception of some homes on the Outer Banks in North Carolina falling into the ocean after a storm churned away the beach, we have been unscathed this year.

Though it may be hard to believe, this year is more of the norm for us in terms of averages.  Historically, we are hit with major hurricanes every twelve to fifteen years.  Since Charley, Wilma and several other storms affecting our region in a two-year span in 2004 and 2005, we had that twelve-year gap before Erma in 2017, and then Ian in 2022 and Helene and Michael in 2024.  It is hoped that they stay away from us for another prolonged period (even longer than that twelve-year ‘drought’ of high winds and excessive rain).

What wasn’t normal this year was the US overall didn’t have a hurricane hit anywhere.  While our area may not experience hurricanes in a given year, the likelihood is in that given year one will strike elsewhere, such as the gulf coast of Texas, or along the southern gulf coast of the Mississippi delta region into the panhandle of Florida.  Some strike the central Atlantic coastline from Savannah, Georgia up into the Outer Banks while avoiding Florida all together.  We may not feel the pain, but someone else does.

Although it looked like this year everyone would be spared from the devastation a hurricane brings, it appears the last major storm, Melissa, is going to hit the Caribbean nation of Jamaica as a Category 5 storm, the strongest of all hurricanes.   Jamaica, while one of the more stable island nations in the region, is still poor and not as prepared as the US is to withstand such a blow. 

It appears Melissa will cover the entire island with strong winds and flooding rains that will likely cause mudslides in its central mountain range and storm surge flooding on its coastlines, first on the approach from the south and then its exit from the north.

While we are relieved Melissa will not affect the United States or in particular Florida, we cannot help but wonder why Jamaica is ‘targeted’ for destruction by nature.  Some may speculate (improperly and incorrectly) that God is mad at the Jamaican nation, that it is getting some consequence played out for something it did. 

This line of thought, however, doesn’t take into account that God doesn’t always reap disaster on just the evil or the disobedient.  We can look at the account of Job to see that God sometimes allows tragedies to fall upon people to provide a lesson of His grace and His power, as well as to allow showcasing the Faith of His people in the midst of their suffering.

In context, Isaiah 55:8 is within God telling Isaiah about the coming of the Messiah, more so not to expect what many Israelites of those days were wanting in terms of a warrior king to save them from the servitude of foreign nations and brings riches and prosperity once again to the Jewish nation, but a kingdom that would provide them eternal peace alongside God Himself through a humble and giving Messiah.  Even today, given the popularity of ‘name-it-and-claim-it’ prosperity preachers, many Christians expect that Messiah, Jesus, will enrich them and protect them from all harm. 

However, God’s plan is not one to protect us from all things that are negative or harmful.  Instead, such things are used by Him to build up our Faith and reliance on Him.  We would rather life be squeaky clean and our efforts minimal, but thanks to the fall of man in Genesis 3, it’s not that easy.  There will be turmoil and chaos, thanks to our sin – both individually and collectively that leads to consequences that we must deal with. 

The Jamaican people may not have brought this upon themselves, but mankind over the course of its existence did (hurricanes are likely an after-effect of Noah’s Flood; when the continents separated and the water settled into the oceans – all thanks to everyone but Noah’s family reveling in sin).  There is an expectation form God that we need to respond Righteously and in His love toward the Jamaican people.  Will we respond by praying for them, and helping them afterwards, or will we be greedy – even with our prayers?

Isaiah 55:8 could also read, “God’s Plans are not our plans”.  Why do we run into issues when things seem to be going well?  Why do bad things happen – to others, to you, to our friends – when we are believers in God?  Sometimes we have to realize that a change in our plans, that seem to be bad at first, may turn out to be good. 

That flat tire you woke up to this morning when you had an appointment to go to; it delayed you from hitting the road and may have allowed you to avoid joining in the pile-up on I-75 that happened right when you would have been at that spot had you not been delayed. We should be cognizant that some ‘disasters’ aren’t disasters at all but blessings that God provides to protect us – sometimes from ourselves.

Bad things that happen often have good outcomes – outcomes that we couldn’t have foreseen.  Trust God, trust His plans and His ways.  I’m usually like everyone else, perturbed at first over the initial misfortunate of a situation until God make it apparent that he allowed this misfortunate to protect me from a worse predicament, and to see if my Faith overcomes my carnal, secular instincts.  These episodes make me appreciate that God is looking over us, knowing what it takes to hold us back or prod us forward – if we are in and stay in obedience.