You Can Lose Your Equilibrium Trying to Find a Reason for Everything

Daily writing prompt

Do you think everything happens for a reason?

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Not everything has a reason. Sometimes, things just happen! We struggle to make sense out of the horrors in the land of the living, needing to understand the whys of this life. I think of the story of Job in the Bible, and how his friends try to convince him to repent and ask forgiveness for his supposed sins, so that he can be renewed into the life he once had. But Job tries to explain to them that he has done nothing wrong, and that his ordeal is not because he has been faithless or sinned against God.

As I read it, I remembered thinking like Job’s friends, even in 2008, questioning why I had colon cancer when I was a good person and treated everyone right. Then, the lady who shared my hospital room asked if I was better than the little children at St. Jude’s Hospital who had cancer. Did they do anything to deserve it? I knew she was right, and the question became, “Why not me?” I think we need to believe that there is a reason for suffering beyond the fact that it happens to everyone at moments in their lives. Sickness and death are the great equalizers, for they happen to us all.

Like Job’s friends, I think we search for a reason because if being good, honest, kind, compassionate, and trusting in a loving God can’t protect us from hardships and trials, then why be upstanding, faithful, and do what is right? If there is no benefit to living uprightly, then why are we taught the Golden Rule or the other doctrines of one’s faith?

I don’t have the answer. As I deal with an illness now that keeps me from my love of blogging and answering prompts, I don’t think there is a reason why it’s happening to me and not someone else. I do what I can to change the situation by following the doctor’s orders, getting the tests done, and yes, praying for victory over this most recent setback. But I also realize that this sickness doesn’t define the kind of person I am or deny all that I believe about the goodness of God. I remember that the old people used to say that if you live long enough, you will experience some problems in this world.

Now, I am the old person, and I see that they are right. Trying to determine why things happen, except for the obvious, like speeding get you a ticket or overeating the wrong foods may lead to diabetes, will stress you to the point where you could lose your hope and faith. It’s one of the mysteries of the land of the living that is unexplainable. The Serenity Prayer states that wisdom helps us to know what we can change and accept what we cannot. You will be happier and less stressed out if you don’t try to find a reason for everything in your life.

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