One of the great struggles for people in their spiritual journey is trying to understand why so many bad things happen in the world today. The prevailing thought is that if God is a god of love, then all these bad things should not be happening. But since they are happening, people often conclude one of two things: either (A) God doesn’t exist, or (B) God doesn’t love. Both of these conclusions are wrong because they ignore the foundational teachings from the Word of God. Evil exists in the world today because the first man and woman chose to disobey God. The consequences of their disobedience brought about not only physical and spiritual death, but also pain, suffering and difficulties in life. Without the consequences of sin, we would never look to Him for salvation and reconciliation—we would keep on sinning. Because of the gospel of reconciliation which brings salvation, we can experience joy in the midst of pain, suffering and difficulties. In our text today, the Apostle Paul wrote about some of these difficulties, but not in a negative or complaining manner—he wrote for our comfort and encouragement!