Thanks for your response, and please accept my apology for misinterpreting what you said. I think my mistake came from the fact that “also” in this context could mean both “consequently” and “as well”.
I do agree that a lot of Christians seem to be struggling with this idea, but let’s be honest, it IS a tough pill to swallow. While I think there is value in overemphasizing the goodness of God in order not to get depressed by the sometimes overwhelming amount of evil that may present itself, it’s a mistake to lose sight of it, because that’s how it continues to fester and grow.
I think the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matthew 13:24-30) is a helpful metaphor in this regard: to an extent, we have to accept the presence of evil even while focusing on growing the good, but that’s okay as long as we don’t let it get out of hand and we have a plan for dealing with it eventually.
My parents, bless their hearts, were unfortunately not very good at this. My dad in particular focused so much on getting rid of all of my evils that he destroyed pretty much all hope of ever being good enough in eyes, which of course did not exactly motivate me to try to do better. But as much as I’d like to be angry about that, I know it’s of no use because I’ll be the one paying the price for it by becoming bitter and resentful, so all I can do is take it as a lesson learned in what not to do, and try to figure out a way to do better.
I hope that was helpful and I wish you all the best. Depression is an awful condition and it takes a lot of courage and willpower not to give in to that. Keep fighting the good fight!
Thanks for your response, and please accept my apology for misinterpreting what you said. I think my mistake came from the fact that “also” in this context could mean both “consequently” and “as well”.
I do agree that a lot of Christians seem to be struggling with this idea, but let’s be honest, it IS a tough pill to swallow. While I think there is value in overemphasizing the goodness of God in order not to get depressed by the sometimes overwhelming amount of evil that may present itself, it’s a mistake to lose sight of it, because that’s how it continues to fester and grow.
I think the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matthew 13:24-30) is a helpful metaphor in this regard: to an extent, we have to accept the presence of evil even while focusing on growing the good, but that’s okay as long as we don’t let it get out of hand and we have a plan for dealing with it eventually.
My parents, bless their hearts, were unfortunately not very good at this. My dad in particular focused so much on getting rid of all of my evils that he destroyed pretty much all hope of ever being good enough in eyes, which of course did not exactly motivate me to try to do better. But as much as I’d like to be angry about that, I know it’s of no use because I’ll be the one paying the price for it by becoming bitter and resentful, so all I can do is take it as a lesson learned in what not to do, and try to figure out a way to do better.
I hope that was helpful and I wish you all the best. Depression is an awful condition and it takes a lot of courage and willpower not to give in to that. Keep fighting the good fight!