The horrific events of 9-11-2001 have no doubt caused many to ask questions like this one. “Where you asleep God, or on vacation or did you just not pay attention?”

Interestingly enough, these questions seem to be asked mostly by people who may not think or care about God when things run smoothly in their lives. Some who ask may not even believe there is a God or that he can be known.

Others may have a notion of what God is like and events like the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001 seem to rattle what little trust they may have had in him.

Somehow we feel that God, who is all-powerful has the obligation to protect us from evil. Many may ask: “Can the all-powerful God, let evil happen to our lives and at the same time claim to be the God of Love?”

Here are some answers, that Lee Strobel, an investigative reporter was given by Peter John Kreeft, a first rate philosophical thinker with a PhD. from Fordham University, who has been a philosophy professor at Boston College since 1965.

To say that God is all-powerful means that he can do everything that is meaningful, everything that is possible and everything that makes sense at all. But precisely because God is all-powerful he can’t do some things. He can’t make himself to cease to exist. He can’t make good evil. He can’t make mistakes. In order to have mankind, created in his image to have a free will, God had to allow for the possibility of evil.

Even all-powerful God could not have created a world in which people had genuine freedom without the possibility of evil. To be free means having a choice!

“Then why didn’t God create a world without human freedom?” Such a world would have been a world without hate and suffering but it also would have been a world without love. Real love-our love of God and our love of each other-must involve a choice.

Does that mean then that evil people get away with killing and hurting others? No, people are not getting away with it! God is also a God of Justice! There will be a day of reckoning, when God will hold everyone responsible for the evil they’ve perpetrated. Justice delayed is not justice denied! Criticizing God for not doing it right now is like reading half a novel and criticizing the author for not resolving the plot. God will bring accountability at the right time-in fact; the Bible says one reason why he’s delaying is because some people have yet to find him.

During the time immediately following the terrible terrorist attacks, we saw how people came together. They assembled for prayer, mutual support, encouragement and assessment of what is really important in their lives. What was all-consuming before September 11 suddenly didn’t seem to be so important anymore.

One purpose of suffering in history has been that it leads to repentance! Only after suffering, only after disaster did Old Testament Israel, do nations, do individual people turn back to God. We learn the hard way. C.S. Lewis said: “God whispers to us in our pleasures, but shouts in our pains.”

Although what occurred on that infamous day may have been the worst thing we saw in our life, we can let it become something that will lead us to repentance and positive change.

© 2001 Volkhard Graf, YWAM Native Ministries

(Permission to reproduce this material is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, will not be sold, and will be distributed for the sole purpose of expanding the Gospel.)

Recently, (June 21, 2009) our local area newspaper, the Lewiston Morning Tribune published a great article on the Picard family (Nez Perce) from Lapwai. They share how Jesus helped them through the tragic events in which they lost two of their sons within a year, and how he continues to use them to bring wholeness to their sons friends. If you like to find out more about their journey see this document:

Father, Faith –

Rider with the cross

Foundational Values

Statement of Faith
Basic affirmation of beliefs

Christian Magna Charta
Affirms basic rights as implicit in the Gospel

Lausanne Covenant
(Not a YWAM Document but one that YWAM is a signatory to). It is a covenant that was formulated during an historic evangelistic congress in 1974. It was signed by Christian leaders from many nations.

Reconciliation & Conflict Resolution
Provides guidelines for working toward justice, reconciliation and restoration in the event of grievances within the YWAM family of ministries (Sept 2002)

Colin assumed that all religions are equally valid and that contradictions between the different belief systems are fully acceptable, because to him absolute truth does not exist. To him, exclusive truth about Jesus was a result of a rationalistic Western worldview. In contrast, Paul pointed out that the idea of one God and exclusive truth came from Middle Eastern thinking:

• God will not tolerate other gods (Exodus 20:3)
• God will not share his glory with another (not because God is egomaniacal, but because he is Truth, and giving glory to anything or anyone other than the one true God would be a lie (Isaiah 42:8)
• Apart from him there is no savior (Isaiah 43:11)

Colin’s view reflects the pluralism of this age, which holds that any belief system is valid-except a belief system that affirms anything as absolute truth.

“But isn’t believing in Jesus as the only truth a little belligerent-or at least arrogant? Doesn’t it promote a type of cultural imperialism?” Colin asked. Paul agreed that it could and added that Christians have abused this truth, taking it as liberty to mistreat other cultures and ridicule other religions. He explained that our belief in Jesus as the only Savior should never be a license to repeat these mistakes. But Christians are committed to a person who said: “I am the way and the truth an the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s truth! He made this statement coming into the culture of the Greco-Roman world, which was tolerant and accepting of any number of beliefs.

Later the Apostles affirmed that: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved”. (Acts 4:12) For there is one God and only one, and one mediator between God and us-Jesus who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free”. (1 Timothy 2:5-6a)

As the saying goes: “There are many ways to get to Rome”-but there is only one way to God! Who do You say Jesus is?

© 1997 Volkhard Graf, YWAM Native Ministries

(Permission to reproduce this material is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, will not be sold, and will be distributed for the sole purpose of expanding the Gospel.)

Some think happiness is found by throwing off all restraints, by letting nobody boss them around. “No one is telling me what to do”! “No other person, organization or even the government has any right to interfere with my pursuit of happiness”, they may announce.

Others may look for happiness by accumulating “toys”. “If I just could have that car, boat, airplane… I know I would be the happiest person”.

Maybe it is a trim, healthy figure or fashionable clothes that would make you truly happy.

Just a brief look around will reveal whether these methods truly bring happiness. There are many people who seem to have it all, health, houses, and more money than they can ever spend – but are they happy? Sometimes it seems, that the more a person owns the unhappier he or she becomes. Ask the man who was stranded on an island all by himself, with everything his heart could desire and no laws and regulations but his own, whether he was happy. At best, his happiness lasted a short while.

Then there are those who do not concentrate on how they can make themselves happy but instead focus on the needs of others. Curiously enough, they have found true happiness! If you don’t believe me, ask someone like Mother Teresa!

One of my personal champions, Jim Elliott, a missionary to Native People in the jungles of South America penned these words:

“He is no fool, who gives what he can not keep, to gain what he can not loose”! Jim gave up a promising career to bring the life-giving Gospel of Jesus to a remote tribe. While pursuing his calling, he and four other sharp, promising young men literally “gave” their lives. Today, the men who killed Jim and his co-workers have come to know Jesus Christ and lead the Christian Church among their people!

By the way, for a manual of principles leading to true happiness read and meditate on Matthew 5:1-12.

© 1996 Volkhard Graf, YWAM Native Ministries

(Permission to reproduce this material is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, will not be sold, and will be distributed for the sole purpose of expanding the Gospel.)

In the Bible, we see God frequently portray himself as Father. We can see his fatherly love in the fact that:

He wants us

We are not biological accidents or illegitimate in God’s sight, even if our parents didn’t want us or our conception was part of an atrocious and sinful act such as rape. God planned your existence!

He loves us

God is neither a “Police-man-God”, waiting to whack us over the head at every misstep we make, nor a senile old “Santa Claus”, who just doles out presents to keep us happy. In Him integrity, justice, compassion and mercy are married in perfect union. His love is seen best in the fact that although our sinfulness required harsh judgment, through his son Jesus, God found a way to both be just and merciful, by placing our punishment on.

He teaches us

Because God loves us, he trains us. This might include difficult things for us, which we may not understand. Consider a human father who “tricks” his young child into taking a bitter tasting medicine. The little child may not understand the fathers reasoning at the time, but the loving father knew it was absolutely necessary for the child to take the medicine to get well. His discipline is often under-appreciated at the time one goes through it-but once the benefits are visible, hurt feelings give way to thankfulness for his insistence and patience with us.

Take some time today and start on a journey to know God more by reading his word and by talking to him! Study the life of Jesus, because the Bible says, that when we have known him, we will also know the Father (John 14:7-9)

© 2000 Volkhard Graf, YWAM Native Ministries

(Permission to reproduce this material is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, will not be sold, and will be distributed for the sole purpose of expanding the Gospel.)

Usually we are so busy with work and activities that we don’t take the time to think through what is really important to us and our unexamined life just dissipates. Do you have a strong sense of purpose and direction? Can you recognize progress and accomplishment in your life or does life “just happen to you?”

To be confronted with these questions can help us bring our lives into focus because it drives us to decide what is valuable and important to us.

Maybe the well being of your family and to be a caring neighbor is an important value to you. To introduce others to Jesus Christ, God’s Son, and to show them that they can have a vital relationship with him should be a value for all true followers of Jesus.

Once we have decided what our values are, we need to consider which changes are necessary to see those values reflected in our daily lives. This will provide us with a goal to aim at and by doing so, our lives will become purposeful and marked by progress and accomplishment.

Jesus taught us to pray: “…Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” It is good to diligently pray this prayer, however, for the result to occur, we are asked to cooperate with God! “He (God) creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing!” (Ephesians 2:10)

I would like to encourage you to find the “good works” God has prepared for you and to pursue achieving them with his empowerment, help and instruction.

One modern day poet said: “Even if you are on the right track-you’ll be run over eventually, if you just sit there!”

It will be hard work and require faith and tenacity but your life won’t lack purpose and direction anymore and your tombstone might say: Good Work! Job well done!

© 1997 Volkhard Graf, YWAM Native Ministries

(Permission to reproduce this material is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, will not be sold, and will be distributed for the sole purpose of expanding the Gospel.)