Asking ‘Why’ In Suffering…

The friends of Job have been lauded as the world’s greatest counselors for the first seven days of their ministry to him, seven days spent in silence (Job 2:11-13), but of course they ruined it by opening their mouths. The friends began offering reasons why Job was suffering, which today has caused some to mistakenly believe that it is wrong to ask why in the midst of suffering. However, what we see from scripture is that ‘why’ is a perfectly acceptable question to ask God, as even Jesus finds it appropriate the quote from the hymnal of Israel in Psalm 22, calling out “my God, my God, Why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34).

How many times must a woman, who endured twelve years of chronic bleeding, have asked the question "Why?" Mark 5 tells us she regularly visited doctors, asking why and hoping for answers that never came. She had spent all she had and still found no relief—many with chronic illness can relate, facing the overwhelming costs of endless treatments, only to find that true healing remains just out of reach.

But for this woman, one option was not out of reach, Jesus. She had tried every sensible option, and so now this desperate woman tried what likely made the least sense, reaching through the crowd to grasp a literal thread of hope, the garment of Jesus. Previously she sought answers to why, now she acted in why.

The question "Why?" is one that we see throughout scripture, not as a sign of weak faith, but as a necessary part of growing in relationship with God. Even Job, in the depths of his suffering, asked why in his lament. His friends, however, thought they knew the answers and misinterpreted his questions as a lack of faith. But God does not shy away from our questions—He welcomes them.

The woman in Mark 5, exhausted from years of unanswered "whys," still chose to reach out to Jesus. She didn’t have all the answers, but she found the one who was the answer, even without fully understanding why her suffering had lasted so long. Like Jesus, who cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34), we too can ask why. In doing so, we draw nearer to God, trusting that even when the answers don’t come, He is with us, and that is why he is enough.