You feel singled-out - Alone - Confused - Scared. You're asking, "Why me?"

Perhaps you feel that God must be punishing you for some reason. Why else would this be happening to you? Be assured. You are not alone. God has not abandoned you and he has not singled you out, no matter how you feel right now. Whatever you are going through, God's promise is that he will see you through and give you the strength and direction you need. God wants you to know that he understands how you feel, that he knows more about your situation than you do, and that he saw this coming before you did. Above all, he began to work on his resolution for you before you even knew to ask! The reality here is that God is for you. He is not against you.

Your feelings of "Why me?" are real. They are based on real events, but your initial conclusions may not be accurate. While we don't want to minimize the pain you feel in any way, we do want to try to help you look more closely at why you feel singled out and whether or not you've arrived at a valid conclusion. We're here to help you reexamine your individualized system of beliefs. We're here to help you discover the answers. We're here to help you survive and then truly live!

As you probably know, we all absorb our beliefs from our parents, teachers, life experiences, books, etc. Some of what we believe may sound right, but in reality our views might be inaccurate or too narrowly defined. We have bought into many ideas and concepts that distort correct thinking and actually work against us. For example, we have learned untruths that cause us to live the role of the victim -- either of circumstances or our past. These erred beliefs cause us to cry out in pain, "Why me?"

God's answer is that we are not victims but victors. God has said that we can trust him in everything and that every event in our lives should be counted as all joy (James 1:2). He has also told us that he will cause good to come out of every situation for those who love him (Romans 8:28). When we ask "Why me?" it's really because we don't believe God. Our belief system opposes God, so we feel singled out and victimized.

Most of us believe, at least on some level, that we need to understand everything. We need to know WHY. When we don't, we may feel God has betrayed us in some way. In reality, it's not God who is confusing us or betraying us, it is our own belief system. All those inconsistent, partially correct beliefs cause us to question God's fairness in what we're experiencing.

For example, somewhere in our belief system we may have come to believe that we deserve to be blessed because we have been a good person, fed the hungry, or helped our neighbor. We often believe that the things we do should keep us from harm's way. Then when something bad happens, we are confused and ask God why.

Belief systems are changeable. When we discover that something we have believed, even for a long time, is no longer valid, we can simply change our mind and fully embrace the new. If you are crying out "Why me, God?" you must believe there is a God out there who hears you. Maybe there was a time when you didn't believe there was a God at all. Maybe you still don't believe in God, and you're just crying out "Why me?"

As you reflect on your situation, here's a story that might provide guidance.

There was this guy named Augustine who was born in 354 AD. When he was 19, he read an essay by Cicero on the meaning of "truth," and it was then and there that he dedicated himself to pursuing such an intriguing, yet illusive notion.

During his philosophical journey, Augustine experienced a great deal of pain and suffering in his life. He went through phases of severe depression and grief. If there was a God, why was he witnessing things that are contrary to his character? Truth and evil seemed irreconcilable, so Augustine kept jumping from philosophy to philosophy.

In his thirties, Augustine had a supernatural experience "as if a light of relief from all anxiety flooded into [his] heart." It was then that "all the shadows of doubt were dispelled" and he accepted God as part of his life.

Although Augustine would become a great man of faith, he continued to struggle with the pain, suffering, and evil allowed by God in the world. He wrote:

"There is nothing that even the most gifted people desire more than to finally understand how, taking into account the amount of evil in this world, one can still believe that God cares about human affairs."

Augustine grappled with this paradox for decades. He wrote volumes on God's nature in scripture and God's apparent desire for humanity. In the end, he determined that God created us for a relationship with him, and that real relationships are impossible with puppets. Apparently, God wanted us to have the capacity to freely choose or reject him, and this free will gave us the capacity to choose love or hate -- good or evil. Before he died, Augustine concluded that "God judged it better to bring good out of evil than to suffer no evil at all."

So, you're still asking "Why Me?" Fair enough! There's nothing wrong with asking questions. Anselm of Canterbury once used a phrase, " fides quaerens intellectum," which means "faith seeking understanding." One can only seek to grow in understanding by questioning...

However, sometimes the "Why" questions can only go so far. Sometimes thoughts of philosophy and religion leave us hanging for real answers. Sometimes we need to stop and focus on the "What" and the "Who" in life.

The great thinker A.W. Tozer once shared, "When religion has said its last word, there is little that we need other than God Himself."

If there is a God, how do you think He has tried to get close to us? Who do you trust in history to give you the truth about God, about life after death, about how to conquer your internal tendency to do wrong?

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Sources : Randall Niles, www.AllAboutGOD.com , www.GotQuestions.org , and www.AllAboutTheJourney.org .