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Written by Peter Gabriel
Humans have incredible creativity and ability. So why do so many things go wrong—and at the worst possible moment? Will there ever be a time when everything works right?
Have you ever wondered aloud why it seems nothing ever works the way it was intended? For instance, take traffic. If your city is like mine, it is forever building multilane highways, freeways, expressways and tollways; and yet you are still stuck in frustrating, stressful traffic jams.
How about that photocopier at work? It works fine all day until it gets close to 5 p.m. when your boss needs several copies to run out of the door with. Then, all of a sudden, you’re hit with endless paper jams.
Or what about waiting for the bus to take you home? You’re waiting and waiting. Everyone’s bus has come and gone twice, three times even, and you’re still waiting. Finally, after more than 45 minutes, not only does your bus arrive, but there are two buses for the same route! “Nothing ever works right,” you think, in frustration.
That new modem that’s supposed to solve your wireless connectivity problem in snap? It doesn’t work as advertised. That bookshelf that was going to be firm and sturdy for years to come if you just follow these six easy steps? Actually, it is quite wobbly and unstable after you’re done assembling it. “Nothing ever seems to work right,” you think as you shake your head in disgust.
Of course, this is an exaggeration. These daily imperfections can be magnified in our minds to seem like nothing works right, when an incredible number of things actually do. God has given man an amazing ability to accomplish very complex tasks—like building and flying an airplane with thousands of parts that must all work perfectly every time and almost always do. Still, many things that should work don’t. And when they don’t, the results can range from frustration to death.
Things don’t work right in this world
The frustration we find in this life is nothing recent. In fact, it’s very ancient. After sin entered into the picture, God explained the consequences. He foretold a life of frustration that would befall Adam and Eve and generations to follow:
“Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:17-19). Sin led to human work becoming burdensome and humanity experiencing futility (Ecclesiastes 2:21-23; Romans 8:20).
Adam and Eve were the crowning jewel of God’s physical creation, but humanity was imperfect because it lacked God’s Spirit and character. That imperfection would become magnified over time, and everything that humanity would devise—politically, economically, industrially and otherwise—would also prove woefully inadequate. The way of greed and selfishness, and the consequences of every sin, bring suffering and broken lives, relationships and societies.
Time and chance, human error and Satan’s role
Besides the natural consequences of sin, I see three other main sources of the mishaps that befall humankind.
Wise King Solomon was inspired to write in Ecclesiastes 9:11: “I returned and saw under the sun that—the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favor to men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all.”
It is evident that many malfunctions and mishaps in our society are accidental or happenstance—just bad timing.
A second cause is sheer human error. Humans are imperfect and will miscalculate, enter in bad data or construct a defective product.
A third source, seldom acknowledged, is Satan the devil. He is a very real and powerful influence over humans and their circumstances. The pages of the Bible reveal he is active in causing mischief in the lives of human beings. For example, consider what he did to Job in Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7.
It is clear from Scripture that Satan will use every method at his disposal to frustrate mankind and lead us to sin and suffering (1 Thessalonians 2:18; 1 Peter 5:8-9; Revelation 12:9). Of course, ultimately, God exercises authority over Satan and the demon realm.
A world where everything works right!
It is through the pages of the Bible that we gain the confidence of knowing why imperfect things occur in our everyday lives. How much more comforting it is to learn God’s solution through those same pages!
Plain and simple, imperfection will cease at an appointed time.
The Bible teaches of a time to come when Satan will be put away and, even though there will be imperfect humans, God’s lawful order and protection will be in place to greatly minimize blind happenstance and human error. This time is often called the Millennium, when the Kingdom of God will rule on the earth.
Even more encouraging, we learn of a time shortly beyond that period when all aspects of life will be perfect (Revelation 21 and 22). The Spirit and presence of God accomplishes this. It is a time well worth the temporary troubles we experience in this world (Romans 8:18). In that world, everything will always work right.
Peter M. Gabriel is a member of the Houston North congregation of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association. He is married and is the coordinator of the local congregation’s newsletter, the Houston North Periodical Pictorial.
For more about dealing with frustrations and imperfections and praying for a better world, see:
