Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States
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Why did God create us in the first place? Why did he create us with a weak body that would be made to suffer? Why does Christianity have to be so difficult? I don't like how we must struggle so hard. It seems so unfair to me.

God is a loving God, He created us out of love for mankind that we may share with Him His glory. God created the whole universe and all His creation was good "And God saw the light, that it was good" (Gen 1:4), God separated the dry land from the waters, created the grass, the sea animals...etc and in every case "God saw that it was good" (Gen 1:10,12, 18, 21, 25). After preparing the whole earth, God created man to enjoy the creation and have dominion over it "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Gen 1:27). God did not create a weak body but He created man in His own image; and indeed after He had created man, "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good" (Gen 1:31). God gave man the free will to choose life or death "And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Gen 2:16-17). Man, with his own free will, chose to disobey God, to eat from the forbidden fruit, to sin and subsequently to die. God did not intend for us to suffer, it is this sin that brought pain and suffering to the world. If man had not eaten from the forbidden fruit he would not have been sent out of the Garden of Eden. God's punishment was clear "To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you." Then to Adam He said, "Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it': "Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life" (Gen 3:16-17).

Christianity is not hard, because  faith in the Lord will lighten your burden "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light"(Mt 11:29-30). We sometimes do feel we are struggling because we do not want to submit to the Lord but rather we want to follow our desires. We should regard suffering as a blessing; for with suffering comes glory "if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together; for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Rom 8:17-18). Set your eyes on the Lord and pray faithfully that He may help you defeat all temptations and declare victory over the weak body and remember always this verse "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Phil 4:13).
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