Some Practical Suggestions

We will all hear the question one day: Why did God allow this to happen?

How do you answer that question? While the previous post will help you (I hope) and other Christians deal with the question of pain and suffering in their own lives, what about those friends of ours that do not have a foundation of hope and eternal trust? How do we answer their questions? Hopefully you will find a few answers here.

Romans 12:15-Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
The importance of this as a first step cannot be overlooked. We have to be real about the sadness of pain and suffering. Don't be afraid to hold someone and cry with them when their best friend dies, their parents split up or they are ridiculed for the 365th consecutive day.

Right in the middle of a tough situation is not the right time to give the answers to tough questions. Listen and comfort, often without a lot of words. The time for answers will come, but now is not the time.

2 Timothy 4:3-Most people want to hear what will make them feel better, not necessarily the truth.
Understand that people who are not convinced of the goodness and greatness of God or of the reality of sin and its consequences will have a harder time with pain and suffering. A lot of trust is required of us. A lot of faith is required. We have the benefit of looking at this question in a time of personal peace and in context with the rest of God's attributes. Usually, when this question occurs the setting will be pain or doubt and ignorance about the truth of God as revealed in scripture. You have to be aware of this and prepared for this when discussion pain and suffering with people.

Make sure that you do not appease people with false hope or platitudes. Better to just listen and comfort with a soft touch or hug in the moment that tell them what they want to hear just out of hope that it will make them feel better.

Also, when someone asks this question when they are not personally dealing with pain or suffering, their purpose may be just to start a debate, with no real desire to consider real answers or other opinions. Be careful that you are not being drawn into a fruitless argument.

James 1:17; Malachi 3:6-The bible is very clear that God does not change
This is an important point when trying to give answers. If God created the world very good and with us in mind, that has not changed. Something else must have changed. In fact the world has changed because of sin. A discussion of sin and it's impacts is a great starting point for a discussion of pain and suffering, which can lead directly to the most important discussion of all:

Romans 6:23 (and other passages about sin and salvation from Romans)-Jesus is the most important question and answer, far above questions of pain and suffering.

Don't dodge the question on pain and suffering but direct it to the true issue: sin and redemption. The impact of sin (death) and the hope of eternity (in Jesus) must be understood and believed first before pain and suffering will ever make sense.

Once this happens by the power of the holy spirit, then a systematic discussion of the things presented in the previous post can be had.

I know this may seem simplistic, but that's what it can be. Debates with people who have no understanding of sin and it's consequences are often fruitless. Pray that the Holy Spirit will draw them to God in salvation, then you can have a REAL discussion with ETERNAL significance.