Where is God When it Hurts?

I do not know where God is when humans suffer, and I don’t think Christians do, either.  I have no great answers for a question of this depth, and I will offer you no platitudes.  If you have been hurt and wonder where God was, let me offer this: I am so sorry you were hurt.  If you were here with me, I would hold you and let you vent your pain.  You are a good person, and you deserved better.  And rather than just offering my apologies, let me offer a possible solution. I believe if there is a God, then He/She lives inside of us.  If people are not experiencing God, maybe it is because we are not letting God out.   Maybe while my parishioners were being abused, God was next door “minding her own business.”  Maybe while a child was starving in Africa, God was eating in a five star restaurant at $250/plate and driving off in his 150,000 dollar sports car.  Maybe while a child was being beaten by his father, we never noticed because we were too busy sitting in church trying to please God rather than serving God’s children.