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    When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus' Response to a World Gone Wrong
    When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus' Response to a World Gone Wrong
    When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus' Response to a World Gone Wrong
    Ebook117 pages1 hour

    When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus' Response to a World Gone Wrong

    By Mark Ashton

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    About this ebook

    The Reality Check series makes just one assumption: that you’re serious enough about your spiritual journey to investigate Christianity with an open mind. This isn’t about joining anyone’s religious club—it’s about being real with yourself and with the others in your group. Since no one has all the answers, there’s plenty of room for discussion. After all, if there is any truth to the Bible’s stories about Jesus, then one thing he’d welcome are questions and opinions that come from honest, earnest hearts.

    If there is a God and he’s good, then why doesn’t he do something about the evil and suffering in this world? Where was he when the Twin Towers fell? Where is he in the midst of your own tragedy? Questions like these are hardly academic—they’re the gut-wrenching cry of a world consumed with unendurable pain and ugliness. Something about this life is so terribly broken that only God can fix it. So why doesn’t he—or has he . . . is he . . . and will he?

    When Tragedy Strikes includes these sessions:
    Where Is God When Tragedy Strikes?
    Is God to Blame?
    How Should You Respond to Evil?
    Is War the Solution?
    What Has God Done About Evil?
    Will Evil Win in the Long Run?

    For the Group Leader
    Reality Check is for spiritual seekers of every persuasion. Uncompromisingly Christian in its perspective, it steers wide of pat answers and aims at honesty. This innovative and thought-provoking series will challenge you and those in your group to connect heart to heart as together you explore the interface between Jesus, the Bible, and the realities of this world in which we live.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherZondervan
    Release dateFeb 23, 2010
    ISBN9780310868002
    When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus' Response to a World Gone Wrong
    Author

    Mark Ashton

    Mark Ashton is the director of seeker small groups at Willow Creek Community Church. In addition, he supervises the staff for more than 40 new believer groups, 80 seeker groups, and Willow's Internationals ministry. He is also the director of TruthQuest - Willow's ministry that answers tough questions about Jesus and Christianity. Mark is a frequent speaker at conferences and is the author of Absolute Truth?

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      Book preview

      When Tragedy Strikes - Mark Ashton

      half

      Reality Check Series

      Clear Evidence: Eyewitness Reports of Jesus

      Future Shock: Jesus and the End of the World

      Hot Issues: Jesus Confronts Today’s Controversies

      Jesus’ Greatest Moments: The Week That Changed Everything

      Leadership Jesus Style: The Master and His Mission

      Sudden Impact: Powerful Encounters with the Real Jesus

      When Tragedy Strikes: Jesus’ Response to a World Gone Wrong

      Winning at Life: Jesus’ Secrets Revealed

      ZONDERVAN

      When Tragedy Strikes

      Copyright © 2002 by Willow Creek Association

      All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Zondervan.

      ePub Edition August 2009 ISBN: 978-0-310-86800-2

      Requests for information should be addressed to:

      Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

      ISBN: 978-0-310-31141-6

      All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

      Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

      All rights reserved. The original purchaser of this product shall have the right to make unlimited print-form copies here of, provided such copies are not resold or distributed to the general public.

      Interior design by Sherri L. Hoffman

      To those who investigated Christianity

      in my small groups—

      thank you for teaching me

      about myself, the truth, and Jesus

      CONTENTS

      Title Page

      Copyright Page

      Is Pain Inevitable?

      Discussion 1   Where Is God When Tragedy Strikes?

      Discussion 2   Is God to Blame?

      Discussion 3   How Should You Respond to Evil?

      Discussion 4   Is War the Solution?

      Discussion 5   What Has God Done about Evil?

      Discussion 6   Will Evil Win in the Long Run?

      The Healing Bridge

      Leader’s Guide

      Introduction

      How to Lead a Great Discussion

      Notes for Each Discussion

      Acknowledgments

      About the Publisher

      Share Your Thoughts

      INTRODUCTION

      IS PAIN INEVITABLE?

      Is pain inevitable in your life? In mine?

      The answer is a resounding yes! In every culture, in every family, in every government, in every era, in every person’s life there is one single constant. Everybody experiences pain. Everybody suffers. Everybody faces tragedy.

      Terrorists attack. Volcanoes erupt. Gangs battle. Spouses cheat. Armies invade. Diseases impair. Drug lords push. Relationships fail. Corporations fire. Loved ones die. The IRS inquires. Parents divorce. Police enforce. Racists oppress. Injuries wound. Politicians deceive. Dreams perish. Businesses crumble. Earthquakes rumble. Thieves steal. Age deteriorates. Automobiles crash.

      The crucial question facing us is not, "How should we respond if tragedy strikes? but, How should we respond when tragedy strikes?" Whether it’s now or in the near future, every human being must answer this question.

      Who can we look to as a model of someone who was acquainted with pain, yet responded with even-headed dignity? Who best taught about why evil exists and what can be done about it? Who points the way for other people to live by principle when the world is spinning out of control? Who has a special connection with God to answer the tough questions about his involvement in a suffering planet? Who epitomizes grace under pressure?

      Only Jesus.

      Jesus’ life, teachings, and even death show us how to approach difficult times. He gives us a framework for wrestling with God in the midst of our existence on a warped planet. He paves the way for us to respond to enemies, tragedies, wars, and the horrible curveballs life sometimes throws at us.

      Whether you’re in the midst of tragedy now or are anticipating the day you’ll be in the throes of pain, some key questions emerge:

      • Where is God when tragedy strikes?

      • Is God to blame?

      • How should you respond to evil?

      • Is war the answer?

      • What has God done about evil?

      • Will evil win in the long run?

      These are the questions raised during the discussions outlined in this guide—questions so common to the human experience that they beg for an answer.

      In this guide, every discussion about the pain and evil of our world begins with an Icebreaker—a question or two that will stimulate your thoughts and also make it easy for you to share your ideas and opinions, even with people you may not know very well or at all. You’ll read words from the Bible that reveal Jesus’ response to a world gone wrong and then have the opportunity to discuss them with others. Each topic ends with a Reality Check—a few questions that will help you apply what you’ve learned to your life situation. And you won’t want to miss the summary of Jesus’ message in The Bridge of Healing!

      As you journey through this discussion guide, Jesus’ compassion and clarity about tragedy, pain, and evil will be revealed. You’ll learn how to handle difficult people and situations and also see afresh God’s role in your life personally—and how it can be heightened in difficult times. You’ll discuss if and when it’s a good idea for nations to go to war. And when the present looks very bleak, you’ll discover a vibrant hope for the future.

      As you find answers for your own life, you’ll get a bonus too. You’ll also discover fascinating things about Jesus himself—how he helps people in pain and offers forgiveness. You’ll meet a man of amazing kindness who has deep insights into the human experience and who invites you to a quality of life once thought unimaginable!

      Jesus offers healing from the past, principles for living in the present, and hope for

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