where is God?

The year began in the aftermath of a horrible disaster in Asia, a tsunami that killed over 150,000 and left many more thousands suffering terribly. This has naturally brought questions about where God is in all of this.

But twice this morning I heard people saying that we should put such questions aside and "do something to help." That such questions were "distractions." And while I agree that mere philosophizing (trying to unravel the tangles of theodicy) can be a distraction, I think it's very important to try to understand where God is in all of this. What God is doing. If we don't, I think it's futile to plunge in and "help" without considering what God's purposes are in this place and time, with these people. Of course, everyone else will just focus on cleaning up the mess and helping people "cope." I'd like to think that those who are more in tune with the deeper meanings of life could see something more than a mess.

I noticed the quote in my last post in December, which seems relevant to this situation somehow. If we can only see physical and emotional pain as an evil, then I think we are very short-sighted.