Dear God

Why Is There Evil?

There are many things to turn someone away from Christianity. One of them is the concept of God being good and all powerful, or even if there is a god. Now, with that kind of thinking, a conversation might go something like this:
Nonbeliever: So, you believe God is real?
Believer: Yes.
Nonbeliever: And you believe God is all good?
Believer: Yes.
Nonbeliever: and you believe He is all powerful?
Believer: Yes.
Nonbeliever: Then why is there evil in this world?
Believer: *silence*
Nonbeliever: there can only be three options. Either there isn't a God, or there is one but He is not all good, or there is a God but He is not all powerful.
Believer: But, He is real, all good and all powerful.
Nonbeliever: You say God hates sin, but there is sin all around. So why doesn't God destroy it.
Believer: He will.
Nonbeliever: But why not now? There can only be three options. He is not all good, therefore, he allows sin. Or he is not all powerful, therefore, sin is still in this world. The last option is He is not real.
Believer: *silence*
Nonbeliever: Also, you say he is loving. How can a loving God allow for there to be sickness, and disease, and murder, and world hunger, the list goes on?
It might sound something like that. Now, the nonbeliever makes some excellent points. However, we know God is real, all powerful, and all good. So how do we rebuttal this? Well, look back to the fall. God did not create sin or evil. It started in the garden with Adam and Eve. God created everything to be perfect. Remember Genesis 1:31a God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. So He created everything to be good. That shows he is good, because a evil God would not create something good. It also shows he is powerful. How can a weak God create this entire world? So why is there sickness, and hunger and so many other problems? Because of sin. All these world problems are a result of sin, and a minor punishment. I'm not saying the problems are minor, but the wrath that we are facing now is nothing compared to the wrath of God during the rapture. For now, I believe this is our earthly punishment for our sin.
So, we have explained why there is all this suffering. So why is there still sin? Why doesn't God wipe it out? He is all good, meaning he loves us and wants what is best for us. For now, that love means giving us free choice. Let's say you have a toy doll or action figure or whatever. If it kept saying "I love you" would it really love you? It's like that here. If God took away our choice to sin and we just say "I love you, God" would it really be love?
Another thing, he is all powerful. So again he could wipe out all this suffering and sin, but he does not because he loves us enough to give us a choice about whether to follow him or not. But why do so many good people, even Christians get something horrible happen to them? Well, again it goes back to the fall, which is why there is suffering, and God never said it would be easy. But remember, he has a plan for us.  Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future." So even though we may be suffering now, it's all in God's plan. He will not leave us or forsake us, so he will be with us through every step of the trial.
Lastly, he uses sin to show us how great and good he is. We all sin, but if we didn't how could we truly know how perfect God is? It shows us his power, especially in forgiving sins. Only He could forgive us our sin. It shows how much we truly need a savior. So remember, He is all good, powerful, and real, but he leaves sin so we can truly know him and trust him.