WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE

Have you ever asked, "Why me, Lord?"  I have.  I always feel like the unprofitable servant whenever I do because I know God is not punishing me.  I think it is a fairly common reaction when confronted with an unexpected hardship.

Job, in the Old Testament asked the same question. Basically, he says that if he were wicked, he could understand God's punishing him, but he's not wicked and yet he still suffers. Even Lehi was known to ask, "Why me?"

Not long after Lehi's sons married Ishmael's daughters, Lehi received instructions from the Lord that it was time that they left the Valley of Lemuel and journeyed into the wilderness.

They took down their tents and packed their belongings a began traveling south and east. Without the stability of a semi-permanent camp and known hunting areas, trials began in earnest.

Ancient Egyptian composite bow

One of the major trials came about because of the climate changes between Arabia and Jerusalem.  Nephi and his brothers hunted with bows and arrows. Weather and climate have a big effect on the tensile strength of wooden bows (https://bowandarrowhq.com/weather-affects-archery/) The brothers found that their wooden bows were useless.  However, Nephi had a bow that he likely got from Egypt.  The Egyptians had developed a composite bow made if wood and sinew, but covered on the front by either animal horn or metal.  One of the metals they used was a tempered iron similar to steel.  The Book of Mormon refers to it as a steel-backed bow.

One day, while they were hunting, Nephi pulled his bow to shoot game and the bow broke.  This was a tragedy of monumental proportions because Nephi's bow was the only hunting weapon left, except for slings and stones. Laman and Lemuel began immediately to blame Nephi.  They did what modern psychologist called "awfulizing" by going immediately from broken bow to  starvation.

When the boys returned to camp, even Lehi began to murmur and ask God why He had forsaken them. Nephi later wrote:

. . . I Nephi, went forth to slay food, behold, I did break my bow, which was made of fine steel*; and after I did break my bow, behold, my brethren were angry with me because of the loss of my bow, for we did obtain no food.
. . . Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael did begin to murmur exceedingly, because of their sufferings and affliction in the wilderness; and also my father began to murmur against the Lord his God; yea and they were all exceedingly sorrowful, even that they did murmur against the Lord.
 (1 Nephi 16: 18, 20)

Complaining and blaming were so common with Nephi's brothers that he was not surprised, but when Lehi also spoke against God, Nephi could have rejected his father.  But he did not.  Instead, he found wood and constructed a new wooden bow that would work in the local climate.  Then in an act of great faith and respect, he went to his father as Patriarch and Prophet to ask where he should go to find game.

Nephi was successful and brought food to the family.  Lehi repented of his complaining to God and to his son.

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Many people are like Laman and Lemuel when trials arrive.  All they do is complain and look for someone to blame.   Others are like Nephi.  They look at the problem at hand and turn to the Lord.  Then they get off their knees and onto the feet and do what they can do in the situation.  They endure the test, recognizing, as Nephi did, that trials and tribulations are part of our earthly experience and not a punishment for anything we did. Some even, when they observed someone else in a difficult situation, tend to blame that individual for his own problems.  He didn't pray enough.  He didn't have enough faith.  He must be breaking the commandments.

Instead of asking why bad things happen to good people, perhaps we should be asking how good people respond in difficult trials. Smart people learn from their experiences; wise people learn from others experiences. Wise people recognize their own spiritual growth as they grow through their adversity.

©January 2020, Dr. Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson

* See other ancient mentions of steel bows in 2 Samuel 22: 35 and Psalms 18:22