All

 The Lord God sees all, & in reality, has compassion on us.

2 Maccabees 7:6

So a small Japanese lad died in a mudslide this week along with his mom and older brother. An atheist would be quick to regard this as evidence that there is no God. I am convinced that is an emotional reaction rather than a logical one. It is no question hard to watch innocents die. But let's be clear. Heaven where the kids are now is a much better place than this vale of tears. The person who is certainly suffering right now is the poor lad's grandfather, the only survivor in that household. I hope God assures him that the people he loved he can meet again soon. I pray he finds the faith he needs to help him through this ghastly tragedy. Faith can be a consolation at times of grief, as it was for my dad when my mum died of cancer, because it reassures us that our sufferings are not meaningless. And before you are quick to blame the Christian God for anything here, let me remind you that most Japanese houses go through a Shinto ritual before they are completed. Maybe it would be wise to drop that first?