"If God is so loving, why does He allow evil and suffering?"

I'm reading a great little book by Charlie H. Campbell that has a great answer to the question above. I recommend this little book for believers that feel unprepared to answer the simple questions of skeptics:

"If God is so loving, why does He allow evil and suffering?"

"This is the most common question people have regarding God. Here is an interesting question for you to consider. What do you propose God should do about it? To stop evil and suffering, God would have to stop every act that causes any suffering. To do that, He would have to stop those who cause the suffering (adulterers, liars, murderers, criminals, fornicators, and so on). Wouldn't that mean He would have to put a stop to you and me too? Haven't we, by our own actions, caused some of the suffering that exists in the world? Haven't we hurt people's feelings? My friend, God has not destroyed evil because He would have to destroy us. By permitting evil and suffering to continue, God is actually showing the world mercy."

Charlie H. Campbell, One Minute Answers to Skeptics: Concise Responses to the Top 40 Questions (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2010), 27.

Lee Reese