There many questions asked and answered in the Bible. Once, trying to understand the workings of good and evil, the apostles asked Jesus who had sinned?
John 9:1-5 (New International Version)
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
We know the world and ourselves as most imperfect. As beautiful as God’s Creations may be, He left much work in the world and in us left to do.
In his Bible commentary Matthew Henry observed the following.
Christ says of uncommon calamities, that they are not always to be looked on as special punishments of sin; sometimes they are for the glory of God, and to manifest his works. Our life is our day, in which it concerns us to do the work of the day. We must be busy, and not waste day-time; it will be time to rest when our day is done, for it is but a day. The approach of death should quicken us to improve all our opportunities of doing and getting good. What good we have an opportunity to do, we should do quickly. And he that will never do a good work till there is nothing to be objected against, will leave many a good work for ever undone, Ecclesiastes 11:4. (from here)
I recently heard it interpreted this way–sometimes we have to hit rock bottom to become stronger than we ever knew we could. And if we use that strength for good, then we start to see true miracles.
I’d like to think that’s the kind of thing God had in mind.
kgotthardt – Although that not the perspective I mentioned here, I think there is truth in what you say. We all see things differently. Such is how we are and something else God apparently had in mind.
Calamities do push us down. Why, when we hit rock bottom, do we become stronger? As I understand it, it is then we humble ourselves and learn the need to rely on a strength greater than our own.
If you read latter in Chapter 9, not everyone could so humble themselves. Human pride is not easily defeated.