You’ve brought up important points. Why does suffering exist? How do people face it differently if they know God personally?

God intended for us to live forever in a paradise with Him. Instead, people wanted to be their own gods, lie, lust, steal, kidnap, etc. Even if warned, all have sinned and continue to choose evil. Suffering is God’s wrath on sin, often through our own decisions but not always. He wants people to repent whereupon they will eventually see a world restored.

(Essentially, everyone who commits evil was the cause of the dead children, etc. A collective responsibility. They won’t stop doing evil either. Not even to save children.)

Parent also tell me how the Spirit of God and prayer help. So many situations go better than they would have. That’s by good teaching (character), a disaster avoided by an unlikely event answered in prayer, more calm during it, or increased wisdom on the way out of it. The peace God gives to believers in all circumstances, an inner peace, helps facing chaos and uncertainty. Like sending kids to college knowing God is with them.

I interviewed tons of people as a hardcore atheist. I’ve listened to many as a Christian. My friends lost children, had their sisters kidnapped (two murdered), etc. I had PTSD, etc. The difference between how people experience these events in Christ vs on their own is very evident. Also, God’s interventions for those that pray can be huge.

Here’s a recent one. A couple I met in a store told me why they appreciate Christ more that week. Their son’s car was smashed into a tree (looked like it was compacted) with driver leaving his body in a ditch to die. A relative, devout Christian, felt an overwhelming urge to take a different road which they thought was from God. They saw his body in a chance event. In the hospital, after more prayer, he had a swollen eye and a rod in his leg instead of dead which the EMT’s said happened to everyone else they saw in that situation.

Likewise, my friend whose sisters were kidnapped wasn’t close to Christ. Situation made the news. Two girls were killed. Many people prayed for God to intervene. Between the attacker’s decision and a bystander’s presence, an unlikely tip happened that led police to where the other two were held. That could’ve gone very differently.

Two more. Another friend lost her daughter to a hit and run by a texting teenager. While depressing, she’s been highly impactful to others thanks to a strong relationship with Christ. Didn’t go back to hard drugs she had just kicked. Also, love of Christ motivated her to worry about the driver’s emotional health so much she contacted her to counsel her. She and the woman who killed her daughter are on good terms despite the tragedy.

In another case, baby Silas was dying in the hospital. Pictures showed him a gray color with holes in his neck. Eyes rolled back in his head. They were praying as a group for him. He’s alive and well today.

Better than all of this, our experiences with Christ just point to the greater truth that one day all who believe will be in heaven with Him. There will be no pain. He will wipe away ever tear from every eye. If they were in Christ, we didn’t lose any loved ones cuz we’ll see them again. Even those who sadly weren’t born. :)