Trouble can slam into your life so suddenly. Think of those celebrating a stunning spring day on the day of the Boston Marathon. They’re either glad they’re pushing their body to the limits, or glad they’re not the one whose been running for the past 26 miles. One way or another, most folks are just sharing the afternoon with friends and family.

The marathon of life doesn’t get much better than this. The day could be pretty close to your personal best. Then, BOOM. Tragedy. Terror. Suddenly it seems like the whole of life has become one long heartbreak hill. What happened on Patriot’s Day is not only tragic, it’s personal. It’s Boston. It’s our family. Our friends. It’s us.

We’ve all asked it, one way or another. “Why? Why does God let this happen? I am pretty skeptical of anybody who comes up with a simple answer to the problem of human suffering, the problem of evil. I sure don’t have an answer. But I think the bible does give us some pointers, some ideas, some suggestions, some insights into this part of life.

First, it’s clear that God is not behind evil -- it’s the Devil who is to blame. Don’t forget that!

We also know today that some kinds of suffering are tied to a person’s sins. If you smoke a small fortune’s worth of cigarettes every day from back when you were a teenager don’t be surprised when you get lung cancer. Don’t even think of blaming your problem on God, for it is your fault. If you drink whiskey like it’s water, it’s not God’s fault if you end up a drunk. You reap what you sow.

It gets a little more complicated, though, for sometimes we reap what we have not sown. Why did Martin Richard lose his life when at 8 years old he hadn’t lived long enough to sow much of anything beside love and joy? And Krystle Campbell, Lu Lingzi, Sean Collier? What about all the injured who will be scared for life, physically and emotionally?

We haven’t always had problems like this, you know. When Adam and Eve walked in the garden, at the very beginning, problems like these simply did not exist. There was no sickness, hate, death, jealousy, selfishness, terror or other evils. The garden of Eden was a beautiful place, a perfect place. Then sin entered our world and tore it apart. The jarring presence of sin infected creation, and all kinds of evil began to thrive.

But the Creator God became the Redeemer God and embedded himself in our broken world. Jesus by his atoning death on the cross opened the way for people who trust him to be saved, to find wholeness, life. God has provided a way for us to live, to thrive in relationship with him, and to be significant as repairers of a broken world. It all happens as we live out the good news of Jesus Christ.

Our Christian response is to trust God and know that God’s will shall ultimately be done.When you really believe and live this way, the “why”question loses it power, and becomes less and less a focus of our attention. We realize that we won’t ever be able to fully answer it this side of heaven. The more pressing questions become asking what good can come from our response to the heartbreak hills of life. How can we give God glory? How can we help others in Jesus’ name?

I won’t go into detail about the well intentioned resolutions I made for the new year and how successfully I’ve kept them. Let’s just say it’s a pretty sad story, since it’s still the beginning of the year and I’ve already messed up. At this point, I usually just forget the whole thing and wait until next year to begin loosing weight, exercising, witnessing, reading the Bible, etc.

Happily, I have come up with a brilliant new idea that should work even for someone like me. Instead of making resolutions I try to keep for a whole year, how about doing it in bite sized one hour bits? Welcome to the world of -- are you ready? -- One Hour Resolutions! As I go through the year, why not make a promise that can be kept for just one hour? That way, I can make the resolution, successfully do it, and be on my way to another One Hour Resolution before I have the chance to mess up. Anybody can keep a resolution for one hour, can’t they?

Do you want to join me as we test this new sure-fire way of keeping resolutions? Are you ready? Welcome to the world of One Hour Resolutions. Here’s a few I’m going to try over and over again in the coming year, and I offer them to you, also. Maybe you can come up with some inspiring ideas on your own to add to this list!

-- Do something that feeds your soul. Listen to music. Sing. Paint. Walk. Crochet. Work out. Read. Run. You know what to do. As you do it, know that God is right there with you.

-- Memorize a passage of scripture. Here’s where to start when you haven’t opened a Bible in -- oh well, never mind. Just pick it up now, find John 3:16 and get it memorized. Then try 1 John 3:16. (Yes, that’s a different book.) Then ask God what passage to memorize next. Do this now, and you’ll be glad when you’re old and can’t see to read the book. Having God’s Word memorized will make a difference in how you live right now, too.

-- List out the pros and cons of how you make First Baptist Arlington stronger. If you don’t like how the list turns out, you’ve got an hour to begin making a difference.

-- Do something kind for somebody. Don’t go out of your way, don’t make a big deal, just do it!

-- Do something kind for somebody. DO go out of your way, do something that stretches you, that is totally out of your comfort zone. Don’t make a big deal about it. Just do it!

-- Make and keep a new One Hour Resolution. Then plan on doing it again tomorrow.

-- Write a check to the church. Now I realize this won’t take a whole hour, unless you write a really big check. Spend the rest of the time thinking about how else you can support God’s work, either by financial arrangements or just rolling up your sleeves and putting in some sweat-equity.

-- Try praying for an hour. OK, that’s probably impossible. So set aside a reasonable time where you won’t be interrupted, take some of that time to quiet down mind and body, then tell the Lord you are ready to talk, and (if you’re like most of us) you don’t know how to do serious praying. Be quiet and listen. If all that ends up taking only 6 minutes, God understands. Tell him you’re not too good at this and that you need practice. Then do it again in a couple of days.

-- Visit someone you don’t really know. Before you go, pray for them. Tell them Jesus loves them. (Note: This is easier if you start with somebody who is lonely and not able to get around much. Don’t stop there. Work your way up until you call on the neighbor you’ve avoided, your boss, your teacher, that person you really admire from afar, and who knows? Bill Belichick?)

-- Tell your wife, husband, son, daughter, brother, sister, mom, dad, grandparent or 2nd cousin by marriage to your 1st spouse that you want to be more Christian in your relationship to them.

--Spend an hour figuring out some other good One Hour Resolutions you can make and keep -- God willing and the creek don’t rise. It’s a whole lot better than aiming for a whole year!