When God Weeps

About the Author Joni Eareckson Tada is founder and CEO of Joni and Friends, an organization that communicates the gospel and mobilizes the global church to evangelize, disciple, and serve people living with disability. Joni is the author of numerous bestselling books, including When God Weeps, Diamonds in the Dust, and her latest award-winning devotional, A Spectacle of Glory. Joni and her husband, Ken,were married in 1982. For more information on Joni and Friends, visit www.joniandfriends.org. Steven Estes holds Masters of Divinity and Masters of Theology degrees from Westminster Theological Seminary and Columbia Bible College. He is the senior pastor of Community Evangelical Church in Elverson, Pennsylvania. With Joni Tada, he co-authored A Step Further and When God Weeps and also wrote Called to Die, the biography of slain missionary linguist Chet Bitterman. A must-read for anyone who has ever asked God, "Why me?"It's easy to trust God when things are going our way and the world makes sense. But when suffering strikes--especially seemingly senseless suffering--we are filled with doubt and stunned by events spiraling beyond our control.In the midst of suffering, we often question the very foundation of our faith--our belief in the God who says he loves us. Since our trust and obedience rest on God's character, the questions that life's tragedies force us to face are difficult, even frightening:Who is God?Can he really be trusted?What are his purposes in the face of suffering?If he can stop suffering, why doesn't he?Joni Eareckson Tada, a woman who has lived in a wheelchair for more than thirty years, and Steve Estes, a pastor and one of Joni's closest friends, explore the answers. When God Weeps is not so much a book about suffering as it is about God. It tackles tough questions about heaven and hell, horrors and hardships, and why God allows suffering in this life.Through a panoramic overview of what the Bible says about suffering, the authors make clear who God is, why he permits so much heartache and pain, and how it is we can trust him. With both a practical edge and heartfelt warmth, When God Weeps offers dependence on his love and mercy in spite of our doubts, fears, longings, and questions. Review 'Trouble has a way of damaging our perception of and appreciation of God. But never again - not after reading this book. By two who have cut through the fog to see God clearly even when it hurts, we are led to know his love, tears, and ultimately, his joy.' -- Dr. Joseph Stowell -- Dr. Joseph Stowell If God is loving, why is there suffering? What's the difference between permitting something and ordaining it? When bad things happen, who's behind them--God or the devil? When suffering touches our lives, questions like these suddenly demand an answer. From our perspective, suffering doesn't make sense, especially when we believe in a loving and just God. After more than thirty years in a wheelchair, Joni Eareckson Tada's intimate experience with suffering gives her a special understanding of God's intentions for us in our pain. In When God Weeps, she and lifelong friend Steven Estes probe beyond glib answers that fail us in our time of deepest need. Instead, with firmness and compassion, they reveal a God big enough to understand our suffering, wise enough to allow it---and powerful enough to use it for a greater good than we can ever imagine