A young traveler stood at the edge of the sea, watching the waves crash against the shore. His heart was weighed down by questions, burdened by the suffering he had witnessed-both his own and that of others. Life’s hardships felt like an endless tide, pulling him under, leaving him gasping for breath. He wondered: Why does God allow suffering?
As the wind swept across the water, carrying with it the timeless wisdom of the ocean, he remembered something a wise sailor had once told him: “The sea holds many secrets, but if you listen closely, it will reveal what you seek.” The traveler thought deeply about this, knowing that his journey was not just about understanding the world but about discovering the hidden meaning behind life’s pain.
Suffering as a Divine Test
The traveler had spoken to many people during his time by the sea- fishermen, sailors, and even mystics who believed that suffering was a divine test. “Much like the sea tempers a ship,” one fisherman had said, “God uses hardship to shape the soul. The storms we endure aren’t meant to destroy us but to teach us how to navigate through life with strength and wisdom.”
The traveler had seen this truth in the lives of those around him. He had watched families rebuild after devastating storms, finding in themselves a resilience that had once been hidden. He had seen individuals lose everything, only to discover something far more valuable–a deep faith, a connection to something greater than themselves.
The traveler began to understand that suffering wasn’t an abandonment by God; it was a crucial for transformation. Just as the sea sculpted the shoreline, wearing away the rough edges suffering shaped the soul, bringing out its true essence.
Free Will and the Choices We Make
Yet, as the traveler walked along the beach, another thought troubled him. Not all suffering came from storms or uncontrollable forces. Much of the pain in the world was caused by the choices people made. Wars, greed, betrayal–these were not acts of nature but of free will.
The wise sailor had spoken to him about this, too. “The sea is wild, but so are we,” he had said. “God gave us the freedom to choose–to sail toward calm waters or into the heart of the storm. Sometimes, we create pur own suffering, and sometimes, we inflict it on others.”
The traveler considered this carefully. If God had denied humanity the ability to choose, life might be free of pain, but it would also be free of love, kindness, and growth. The beauty of life came from its unpredictability, from the choices we made that shaped our destiny.
Just as sailors could choose their course, people could choose how they treated one another. And while this freedom led to suffering, it was also what made the journey meaningful. Without choice, there would be no lessons learned, no inner growth, no discovery of the deeper currents of life.
Finding God in the Depths of Suffering
As the traveler continued along the shore, the waves crashing rhythmically beside him, he realized something profound: suffering often leads to awakening.
There was a tale the old sailor had shared about a pearl diver who sought the rarest pearls in the deepest parts of the ocean. The diver endured the crushing weight of the sea, the darkness, and the cold, but it was only in those depths that the treasure could be found. “The suffering of the diver,” the sailor had said, “is the price of discovering something precious, something beyond the surface.”
The traveler reflected on this story realizing that his own moments of pain and hardship had led him to deeper truths. When he had faced loss, he had been forced to look beyond the material world, beyond his own understanding, and seek comfort in something larger- something eternal.
In those dark moments, he had felt God not as a distant figure but as a quiet presence, like the gentle pull of the tide, unseen yet always there, guiding him. The traveler realized that the storms and waves of life weren’t meant to drown him, but to lead him inward, toward a greater sense of self and a deeper connection to the divine.
Why Do Bad Things Happen? The Sea’s Answer
As the sun began to set over the horizon, casting the sea in shades of gold and crimson, the traveler stood still, watching the waves ebb and flow. The question that had haunted him, why do bad things happen? didn’t feel like a mystery anymore Instead, it felt like a journey-a process of understanding that life’s pain, much like the sea, had a purpose.
The sea, with all its beauty and danger, was a reflection of life itself, It could be calm one moment and violent the next, but within its depths lay treasures and wisdom that could only be discovered through perseverance and faith. Suffering like the ocean, was part of the journey toward something greater- something divine.
He realized now that the question wasn’t about why God allows suffering, but how we respond to it. Suffering was part of the human experience, a call to dive deeper into the mystery of existence. And in that depth, in the darkest waters, we often find the greatest treasures-the strength of our spirit, the resilience of our faith, and the presence of God
As the traveler turned to leave, his heart felt lighter. He knew there would be more storms ahead, more waves that would try to pull him under. But he also knew that within each trial lay an opportunity for growth, a chance to understand the sacred currents that moved beneath the surface of life.
And just like the sea, God was there-quiet, powerful, and ever-present- guiding him closer to his true purpose.