In the name of GOD, Most Gracious, Most Merciful There is no other god beside GOD

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Why do Children Suffer? How can I give the message of Submission to someone with suffering in their past?

Questions:
Why is there suffering and misery?
Why are children allowed to suffer and what does God say about it in the Quran?
How do I give the message of Submission to someone who has suffered in the past?

Part 1: Why is there suffering (main article: Why do Children Suffer )?

This is a common question posed  by  atheists, as well as multitudes of people who confess belief in God: "If God is just and merciful, why does he afflict innocent children?" Obviously, these people do not understand that Satan is solely responsible for such calamities; they reflect Satan's incompetence as a designated temporary ruler of this world. Satan is trying very hard to make his kingdom, this world, perfect, but he just can't do it. And this is the whole idea. His ancient claim that he can be an independent “god" is exposed as a lie. God never inflicts an atom's weight of injustice (Quran 4:40).

The Great Feud: Humans choose to come here and experience Satan's (in)abilities first-hand

To comprehend the role of deformed, retarded, and/or children who starve to death, we must go back in history all the way to "The Great Feud in the Heavenly Society" (Quran 38:69). Billions of years ago, there was God and His creatures. Death had not yet been created (Quran 67:2), and everything was just perfect. Then, one creature became infatuated with his God-given powers and entertained the thought that he can run a dominion as an independent "god." This triggered varied opinions among God's creatures. As illustrated in Figure 1, the vast vast majority of God's creatures knew that Satan's supercilious thought was blasphemous, that it was due to arrogance, ego, and ignorance. [Source: Introduction, from Quran The Final Testament]

Figure 1: The white area on the left represents the creatures who disagreed with Satan. The small box on the right represents the creatures who agreed with Satan.

Figure 2: The area on the left represents the creatures who repented and submitted. The small box on the right represents humans and jinns, who still did not make up their minds to worship God Alone, or continued to agree with Satan.

God's Mercy encompasses all things (Quran 7:156), humans are given one more chance

God, in His infinite Mercy, gave the rebels another chance to reconsider. And the majority did (Figure 2). We humans were of the tiny minority that could not make up their mind that only God can be a god. We wanted an opportunity to see first hand, and then make up our minds on Satan's competence to be a god. We asked for, and received free will to make this choice (Quran 33:72). This life represents the test we asked to be in. For More information on the Great Feud in the Heavenly Society, please visit the Introduction (from Quran, The Final Testament by Dr. Rashad Khalifa).

God's mercy encompasses all things (Quran 7:156). He gave us this life as yet another a chance for redemption. He could have exiled us from His kingdom (hell) after we failed to make the right choice twice (Quran 20:115).

Free Will: You GET what you CHOOSE

We chose to be here. And, Satan's incompetence as a god ensures that evil, bloodshed and misery are spread through the earth (Quran 2:30). When parents choose Satan as their lord, they choose to walk away from God's Kingdom. They remove their families from God's protection (Quran 14:28) and place it in Satan's care. Satan's incompetence guarantees large number of people remain in suffering.

Free will is a double-edged sword. You GET what you CHOOSE.

Should the parents choices affect their children? (for better or for worse)

The design of the human being is that the parents nurture children till they are strong enough to take care of themselves (Quran 31:14, 30:54). It is beyond the scope of this article to discuss why human beings nurture their kids, while other species the young fend for themselves. In any case, this design means that the children share the circumstances of their parents. So if the parents choose to be out of God's protection, the children suffer. On the other hand, if parents are in God's protection, the children benefit.

Inviting someone who has suffered, to Submission

For someone whose soul has gone hungry in Satan's domain—the happiness and nourishment of God's kingdom should be a welcome refuge.

Guaranteed Happiness Now and Forever

[Quran 16:97-100] Anyone who works righteousness, male or female, while believing, we will surely grant them a happy life in this world, and we will surely pay them their full recompense (on the Day of Judgment) for their righteous works. When you read the Quran, you shall seek refuge in GOD from Satan the rejected. He has no power over those who believe and trust in their Lord. His power is limited to those who choose him as their master; those who choose him as their god.

We should also remember that we cannot guide anyone (Quran 28:56). All we can do is invite with wisdom & kind enlightenment (Quran 16:125). Only God guides, and the person must freely choose to be in God's kingdom (Quran 19:76).

If we choose God's kingdom and worship Him alone, we can be assured of protection from harm and suffering night and day (Quran 13:11). And of guaranteed happiness, now and forever (Quran 10:62-64).

[Quran 13:11] Shifts (of angels) take turns, staying with each one of you―they are in front of you and behind you. They stay with you, and guard you in accordance with GOD's commands. Thus, GOD does not change the condition of any people unless they themselves make the decision to change. If GOD wills any hardship for any people, no force can stop it. For they have none beside Him as Lord and Master.

Happiness: Now and Forever*

[Quran 10:62-64] Absolutely, GOD's allies have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve. They are those who believe and lead a righteous life. For them, joy and happiness in this world, as well as in the Hereafter. This is GOD's unchangeable law. Such is the greatest triumph.

*10:62-64 Most people think that they have to wait until the Day of Resurrection before they receive their rewards for righteousness, or the retribution for wickedness. But the Quran repeatedly assures the believers that they are guaranteed perfect happiness here in this world, now and forever. At the end of their interim here, they go directly to Paradise (see Appendix 17).

Part 2 Related Topics

Satan: King of Chaos

Deformed, Retarded, Famine-stricken Children

More on the Great Feud

Why were we Created?

Peace

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