How can God allow wars?

This is one of the questions welife faces the most, and it's a good one: If God is all-powerful, why are there wars?

Many people who want God to stop all the bad stuff in the world don’t take the time to consider that they themselves might be part of the problem. You might want God to take others’ free will away and control them by His power, but do you want him to take control of your life and make you do His will? First, I have to say that this question is in no way easy to answer, and that I’m not sure that I’m able to give a really good answer. There are some questions God hasn’t given us the answer to. The Bible says that what’s been revealed belongs to people and that what’s hidden belongs to God. Having rock-solid faith in God and living with questions isn’t a problem. If you’ve got to know God, you’ve experienced that He’s good and only good. God’s given you an inner security. The Bible says we believe with our hearts. The questions and doubts are in your head. You can have rock-solid faith in your heart, and at the same time have some unanswered questions in your head. 

I myself have been a Christian for over 30 years, and still think sometimes that God should take charge of what’s going on in the world more than He does. I talk to God about these things all the time. I’d like to highlight some of the answers we find in His word: 

The Bible tells us that God will one day take charge of what’s happening in the world. He will stop all evil acts and bring his will into force completely. In the meantime, he allows all people great freedom and is waiting patiently for us to start looking for his solutions to problems. It’s a bit like what sometimes happens in the case of conflicts and wars between different groups of people. The UN and other organisations send in peacemakers in order to try and solve problems and conflicts in a peaceful way. Sometimes, if all peaceful means have been tried, but none have succeeded, NATO sorts things out, using force if necessary. 

In the same way, spiritually speaking, God sends his peacemakers – Christians – so that we, through Jesus can enter into a relationship with God. He doesn’t want to force us, but wants us to choose him and his solutions of our own free will. If we decide not to, God will one day sort things out, using force if necessary. 

Many people who want God to stop all the bad stuff in the world, don’t stop to consider that they themselves might be part of the problem. You might want God to take others’ free will away and control them by His power, but do you want him to take control of your life and make you do His will? If you want him to do that, you need to make Jesus lord of your life. Then God’s peace will come into you. Using the peace inside you, you can help make the world a more peaceful place, first of all by helping people to experience a change on the inside, by Jesus coming into their hearts.