Ask for a new lung, not a new car!
Every morning of the work week I take a shuttle bus between the uptown and downtown campus, and every morning the driver is listening to this local radio show. The host of the show always has this “inspirational” moment which usually results in inspiring me to get a stroke. Today, the host went on and on about how you should expect God to give what you ask for. “If you ask God for something, be ready to receive! If you ask Him for a new car, be prepared by cleaning out your garage!” Obviously, this tripe made my blood pressure rise to a four digit mmHg, but it also opened my eyes to an age-old question. Why, if God is all-loving, is there suffering and evil in the world? I now know the answer: because God is too busy handing out new cars!
While little Jimmy is asking God for a new lung in the little spare time he has left between coughing fits caused by his Cystic Fibrosis , God is handing out Camaro’s to a bunch of WGOD listeners. While some poor girl in some war zone is asking God to make him prevent the soldiers of abusing and killing her, our Lord is giving away some SUVs in his Summer Prayer Sweepstakes!
And suddenly Christianity all makes sense: God is a material girl in a material world.