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"Ow, if God is so powerful, where was he when event X happened? If he's so merciful, why did he let X happen?"
I feel that these questions are very often asked by atheists whenever a Christian person brings up a negative historical event. As I read through the Old Testament, I came across a question that is also a perfect answer to it
"And where are you for your God?"
Let me explain.
I'm basing this mainly on the books of Samuel and Kings. Because this is the most recent part I have read.
The story of the first few kings of Israel is what made me realise why some might say that God is not with us.
The first important figure is David. He was chosen by Samuel (the last of the prophets) when Saul, the first king of Israel, was still alive.
David was kind of blessed. He defeated Goliath, quickly rose through the ranks with many successful military ventures and became the leader of Saul's personal army. He became so famous that Saul felt he was in his shadow.
Very long story short:
Saul tried to kill David twice. David had to flee the city with his trusted men and hide from Saul's soldiers. The important part is when Saul goes to "rest" in a cave where David was hiding. David had the perfect opportunity to kill Saul, but because Saul is considered David's master, David spared his life and followed him out of the cave. He explained himself and begged for mercy.
David did all this - spared his enemy because it was right. He put aside his personal gain.
This and a few other tests of faith proved that David was a worthy king of Israel. That's exactly what happened. He became the new king after Saul's death. David spent the rest of his life ruling over Israel. He led them out of decades of mismanagement and reclaimed all the "promised land" that Israel had lost over the centuries (look up what happened in the book of Judges).
Next in line was his son Salomon. He brought further prosperity to Israel. He built a grand temple in Jerusalem, where he praised God and thanked Him for His help.
Unfortunately, comfort made him forget God's rules. Salomon had several foreign wives. He accepted their gods and joined in their celebrations.
This enraged God, who decided to punish Israel for their sins. He again helped the nations around Israel to become strong and conquer them.
And now think about it.
When Israel was conquered. When people were being slaughtered like cattle, how many people thought, "If God is so powerful, why doesn't he save us?
All the things described in 1 Kings chapter 11 could have been avoided if Israel had been faithful to God. Isn't that the way it is now?
We're creating our own gods and moving away from the one true God. We're an Israel living in comfort, forgetting who made us so comfortable. When some nasty war starts, we will turn our heads to God and ask for help. Most likely we won't hear a thing. Because for the last 40-60 years we have been deaf to His words and pleas.
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