I’ve seen a lot of conversation about the Cornell Seven on my timeline. People are angry, asking questions, demanding answers, and seeking justice.

I’ll be honest: my immediate reaction was anger too.

As a woman who has experienced sexual abuse at a young age, I know what it feels like to be in a space where you no longer feel you have control over your own body. So when I hear allegations involving sexual violence, there is an emotional response that comes with that.

At the same time, I haven’t deeply researched all the facts of this particular case, so I don’t want to speak as though I know every detail or have reached conclusions I’m not equipped to make.

But I do know that I couldn’t sit in my initial emotional reaction for too long.

Because as a daughter of Christ, my trust in God has to be bigger than my anger.

And that realization led me to a much larger question.

When horrific things happen, one of the first questions people ask is:

Where was God?

If God is all-powerful, why didn’t He stop it?

If He could intervene, why wouldn't He?

And if He sometimes intervenes, why do righteous people have prayers go unanswered while people doing evil appear to prosper?

These are difficult questions. But I think our questions sometimes reveal something deeper: what do we actually believe about the character of God?

Someone asked me recently, “If God has the power to save someone, wouldn't He also have the power to prevent the evil from happening in the first place?”

My answer was yes.

God has the power to stop evil.

But God is also perfectly just, righteous, and merciful.

When we say, “God should immediately remove evil,” we have to consider the full weight of what we're asking. Evil isn't limited to murder, rape, and the horrific acts that immediately come to mind. Sin exists in humanity.

If perfect justice meant God immediately destroying every person the moment they sinned, who among us could stand?

Instead, we see God's mercy and time given for repentance, transformation, and redemption.

That doesn't make evil acceptable.

Mercy is not God's approval of evil, and delayed judgment is not the absence of justice.

That distinction matters.

But Why Does God Intervene Sometimes?

Then someone asked another question that stopped me:

How does God decide when to intervene? I've seen righteous people go unanswered while people doing evil seem to receive miracles.

And that was where I had my aha moment.

Part of the disconnect may be that we assume every favorable outcome is God's endorsement.

But is it?

Scripture doesn't teach us that everything we desire, or everything that appears miraculous, necessarily comes from God.

When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, he offered Him the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

That should tell us something.

Getting what you want is not always evidence that God gave it to you.

Sometimes the thing that looks like a blessing may be the very thing pulling you farther away from Him.

And sometimes the thing that feels like God's rejection may eventually reveal itself as His protection.

We simply don't have the vantage point God has.

Knowing God Changes the Question

And that's when something clicked for me:

It's easy to make God the villain of a story when our understanding of Him is simply “the big guy upstairs controlling everything.”

But knowing God's character changes how we process what we cannot explain.

When I know Him as Father, I don't have to interpret His character through every circumstance. I can interpret my circumstances through what I already know about His character.

That doesn't mean Christians won't suffer.

It doesn't mean every prayer will be answered the way we want.

It doesn't mean everything painful will suddenly make sense.

And it certainly doesn't mean we become passive about injustice.

We should seek truth. We should protect people. We should pursue justice through the appropriate means. People should be held accountable for wrongdoing.

But there is a difference between pursuing justice and allowing the pursuit of justice to consume us.

You Don't Have to Carry the Weight of Vengeance

This is what I'm learning.

I can be angry about evil without allowing anger to own me.

I can desire justice without appointing myself judge.

I can advocate for accountability without surrendering my peace.

I can acknowledge evil without believing that God has somehow lost control.

Scripture says, “Vengeance is Mine.” (Romans 12:19)

That means there is a weight I was never designed to carry.

God sees what I don't see.

God knows what I don't know.

And no person ultimately escapes His judgment simply because justice doesn't happen according to my preferred timeline.

That's where faith becomes more than something we say.

Faith isn't pretending to understand everything God does.

Faith is trusting God's character when I don't understand His actions.

So when I encounter stories that make me angry, grieve me, or leave me asking, “God, where were You?” I can bring those questions to Him.

I can seek justice.

I can care deeply.

I can grieve with those who are hurting.

And then I can release the parts that dont belong to me, to Him.

Because I believe He sees the entire picture. I believe He is just even when I don't understand His timing. And I believe evil will not ultimately escape judgment.

If you struggle to believe that, I wouldn't tell you to stop asking questions.

I'd invite you to go deeper.

Learn who God says He is, not simply who pain, disappointment, culture, or even other Christians have told you He is.

Because the more you understand His character, the more you'll realize that trusting God doesn't require having an explanation for everything.

Sometimes faith is simply saying:

“God, I don't understand what You're doing. But I know who You are.”

And sometimes, that's enough.

 —Ash

Romans 12: 17-21

17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.