PEOPLE around the earth have serious questions about life. Do you? Many have presented their questions to religious instructors but have not received satisfying answers. Others have pondered these questions privately. Some have prayed for direction. Is it really possible for you to get answers from God about matters that perplex you? Among the questions that many have said they would like to ask God are these;
Who really are you, God?
The way that humans view God is influenced by their culture, by the religion of their parents, and possibly by their own choice. Some people use a name for the Deity; others simply call him God. Does it really matter? Is there just one true God who reveals himself and his name to us?
Why is there so much suffering?
If a person's reckless or immoral way of life has ruined his health or reduced him to poverty, he may complain. But he may well know why he is suffering. However, many others suffer grievously through no fault of their own. Some have chronic illnesses. Others struggle against seemingly insurmountable odds to have a roof over their heads and enough food for their families. Millions are victims of crime, war, indiscriminate violence, natural disasters, or injustice at the hands of people in authority.
Understandably, many ask: 'Why have such conditions become so widespread? Why does God permit all this suffering?'
Why am I here? What is the purpose of life?
These questions often spring from the frustration felt by a person whose daily activity fails to bring real satisfaction—and that is true of many people. Millions of others believe that the life course of each person is somehow foreordained by God. Is that so? If God indeed has some special purpose for you, no doubt you will want to know what it is.
Of all the books in the world, there is one that clearly says that it is inspired of God. As you would expect of a message that is truly from God for all mankind, this book is available in far more languages than any other book ever written. It is the Holy Bible. In it, the Creator of heaven and earth, God himself, reveals who he is and what his name is. Do you know that name? Do you know what the Bible says about the kind of Person God is? Do you know what it says about what God requires of you?
How Some Received Answers
MILLIONS of people pray. Some are convinced that their prayers are answered. Others wonder whether their prayers are ever heard. Still others seek answers but have not thought about presenting their requests in prayer to God.
The Bible identifies the true God as the "Hearer of prayer." (Psalm 65:2) If you pray, are you sure that your prayers are directed to the true God? Are your prayers ones that he will answer?
For many people in all parts of the earth, the answer has proved to be yes! How did they receive answers? What did they learn?
Suffering—Why?
The man Job suffered to an extreme degree. All his children were killed in a storm, and he was reduced to poverty. He also suffered a painful illness and endured pressure from false friends. In the midst of all of this, Job made some rash statements. (Job 6:3) But God considered the circumstances. (Job 35:15) He knew what was in Job's heart and provided the counsel that Job needed. He does that for people today too.
For example in Mozambique, Castro was just ten years old when his mother died. He was devastated. "Why did she have to die and leave us?" he asked. Though he had been raised by God-fearing parents, nothing made sense to him now. What could satisfy his mind and his heart? He found comfort in reading a small Chichewa Bible and discussing it with his older brothers.
Gradually, Castro came to appreciate that his mother had died, not because of injustice on the part of God, but because of inherited imperfection. (Romans 5:12; 6:23) The Bible's promise of a resurrection gave him the greatest comfort because he saw in it the basis for confidence that he would see his mother again. (John 5:28, 29; Acts 24:15) Sadly, just four years later, his father died. But this time Castro was better able to cope with the loss. Today, he loves Jehovah and loyally uses his life in God's service. The joy he has found is evident to all who know him.
Many people who have lost loved ones find comfort in the same Bible truths that brought comfort to Castro. Some who have experienced great hardship because of the actions of wicked people ask, as did Job: "Why is it that the wicked themselves keep living?" (Job 21:7) When people really listen to what God says by way of reply in his Word, they learn that God's way of handling matters actually works out for their own good.—2 Peter 3:9.
In another example, Barbara, who was raised in the United States, did not personally experience the horrors of war. But she grew up in the midst of a world at war. Reports of war atrocities were daily news. During her studies at school, she was puzzled by events of history that unfolded in ways that seemed unpredictable. What accounted for it? Did God care about what was happening? She believed that God exists, but she had mixed feelings about him. However, Barbara's outlook on life gradually changed as a result of association and studying the Bible with the Jehovah Witnesses.
The Witnesses pointed to evidence from the Bible that the world is influenced by Satan the Devil, its ruler, and that it reflects his spirit. (John 14:30; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:1-3; 1 John 5:19) They explained that events that puzzled Barbara were foretold in the Bible. (Daniel, chapters 2, 7, and 8) God foretold us in the Bible because he has the ability to see into the future when he chooses to do so. Some of those events were brought about by God. Others he simply permitted to occur. The Witnesses showed Barbara that the Bible also foretells good and bad events of our day and explains their meaning. (Matthew 24:3-14) They showed her the Bible's promises of a new world in which righteousness will prevail and suffering will be a thing of the past.—2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:3, 4.
Gradually, Barbara began to understand that while Jehovah God is not responsible for human suffering, he does not prevent it by forcing humans to obey his commandments when they choose to do otherwise. (Deuteronomy 30:19, 20) God has made provisions by which we can live forever in happiness, but he is giving us the opportunity now to demonstrate whether we will live in harmony with his righteous ways. (Revelation 14:6, 7) Barbara resolved to learn God's requirements and to live by them.
You too can benefit from the provisions that helped her.
Life That Has Meaning
Even those for whom life seems to be going well may seek answers to questions that perplex them. For instance, Matthew, a young man in Britain, had always felt a deep yearning to find the true God and the purpose of life. His father died when Matthew was 17 years old. Thereafter, Matthew obtained a university degree in music. He then experienced a growing awareness of the futility of his materialistic way of life. He left home to live in London, and there he became involved with drugs, the club scene, astrology, spiritism, and Zen Buddhism and other philosophies—all in a search for a satisfying way of life. In desperation he cried out to God to help him find the truth.
Two days later Matthew met an old friend and explained his predicament. This man had studied the Bible with the Jehovah Witnesses. When Matthew was shown 2 Timothy 3:1-5, he was amazed at how accurately the Bible describes the world around us. When he read the Sermon on the Mount, it touched his heart. (Matthew, chapters 5-7)
Matthew enjoyed what he heard and started to study the Bible. He soon realized that what he was learning was what he had been seeking, the answer to his earlier prayer to God. He experienced benefits as he abandoned practices that are displeasing to Jehovah. As he cultivated a wholesome fear of God, he was moved to bring his life into harmony with God's commandments. Matthew learned that such a life has real meaning.—Ecclesiastes 12:13.
It was not foreordained that Matthew or others mentioned in this article would find a satisfying way of life. Nevertheless, they learned that Jehovah God has a loving purpose that embraces all who gladly choose to obey his commandments. (Acts 10:34, 35) That purpose includes eternal life in a world free from war, liberated from sickness and hunger—free even from death. (Isaiah 2:4; 25:6-8; 33:24; John 3:16) Is that what you want? If so, you can learn more about finding the key to a satisfying life by studying the Bible.
