By Chuck Swindoll in a letter to a friend who wanted to know where God was.
A good place to begin is this: A great deal depends on one's perspective, derived from one's theological/philosophical position. Life can be viewed horizontally or vertically, that is, strictly from a human point of view (the horizontal), or strictly from a divine vantage point (the vertical).
Viewed Horizontally
I find it noteworthy that God gets blamed by critics who see everything from the horizontal. This humanistic position makes mankind the center of attention and the heart and soul of existence. We see/hear this from every corner, expressed succinctly in the statement "It's all about me." From that perspective, should someone say, "God has nothing to do with any of these disasters"—then God is severely criticized for His passivity, being aloof and uninvolved in human suffering and indifferent to earthly tragedies. Being a God of love, He is supposed to guard us from all harm, always make us happy, and certainly keep us comfortable. From that same horizontal perspective, should someone else say, "God is absolutely involved, active, and wholly engaged, concerned about each heartbreak, each tragedy, every disaster"—then the humanistic public really has a field day. They would then see Him as cruel, even sadistic, since He could stop all of it, but chooses not to. Viewed strictly from a horizontal perspective, basing the logic on human reasoning, God is portrayed at fault either way. It was this kind of thinking that caused Elie Wiesel, one of the better-known WW II holocaust survivors, to depart forever from his traditional Jewish roots at a tender young age, as he describes his disillusionment with God's silence and absence amidst the horrors he witnessed in the death camps, recorded in his Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Night.
Viewed Vertically
However, when one's perspective is vertical and based on a biblical frame of reference, then He is seen as Sovereign over this universe and fully responsible for the unfolding of His plan on earth. Mankind is not the center of attention nor does life revolve around us. I should add that holding to this position means there must be room left for "the mystery of His will" as it relates to good and evil. Let me address that briefly. In the beginning of all life, God made all things good—everything remained in that perfect condition until sin entered, polluting and corrupting not only individual lives but this earth as well. The curse that fell on humanity as well as nature was devastating in its extent. As a result of sin's universal impact, our sovereign God established specific laws and principles that remain to this day. Among them, certain realities were set in motion: such as consequences following wrongdoing, human struggles and sicknesses, international conflicts and wars, tragedies and disasters, grief and loss and death, to name only a few. Had sin never entered, none of those things would have existed or been of concern. But because it has, an unending litany of problems have and always will accompany life on this planet. In fact, according to prophetic Scripture, they will increase and intensify until the Son of God returns and takes up His rightful place as King and kings and Lord of Lords on planet earth.
Finally, let me go back to my earlier comment regarding "the mystery of His will." Though some theologians would not justify my doing so, I find it helpful to divide His will into at least two categories ... for lack of better terms, His permissive will and His directive will. Without going into both, I'll summarize by saying that tragic events like this Tsunami disaster, the Holocaust, an enormous earthquake, or a flood or even a 9/11 event would fall under the heading of His permissive will. Being sovereign, God was neither surprised by nor absent from anything that occurred. For reasons beyond our understanding, He permitted them to occur. Being outside the realm of humanity's logical ability to explain (that's why I use the word, "mystery"), it is common to misinterpret such permission, rush to judgment (based on the horizontal mentality) and cast blame on God, not comprehending that He does so because all of it fits into the overall plan He has devised. That plan is moving inexorably toward the final climax where mankind will ultimately realize that He, in fact, is the reason we exist and He, in fact, is Lord, not we. Cruel and unfair and even sadistic as it may seem, all of it "works together for good" in the grand scheme of things—from His [God’s] perspective, not ours. For His glory, not ours. In the final analysis, like it or not, "It's all about God."
Taken From ACTS International
