As the world watches war unfold in Ukraine, many may wonder if any good can come out of such a thing. It is important to remember that it is the times of greatest tragedy that point people to the Lord.

From Bible to Life. We are tempted to say that gruesome calamities are always bad while health and happiness are always good. But Jesus told a story that proved that such superficial evaluations can be deceptive. According to the story, a rich man who enjoyed life found himself in torment after he died; whereas, a beggar who suffered in this life found himself in bliss (see Luke 16:19–31). . . . Enjoying life when all is going well might actually blind us to reality.

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In one of his most popular books, The Screwtape Letters, C. S. Lewis imagines a lead demon, Screwtape, writing letters to Wormwood, a demonic underling, to give him advice on how to deceive humans. We would think that war might be a great boon to the strategy of the devil, but Screwtape says that he and the other demons should not expect too much from the war; they can hope for a good deal of cruelty and unchasteness, but if the demons are not careful they might “see thousands turning . . . to the Enemy [God], while tens of thousands who do not go so far as that will nevertheless have their attention diverted from themselves to values and causes which they believe to be higher than the self….”

Lewis believes—and I concur—that “contented worldliness” is one of the demon’s best weapons at times of peace. But when disasters come, this weapon is rendered worthless. He writes, “In wartime not even a human can believe that he is going to live forever….”

This is one of the reasons why we will never know all of God’s purposes in mass disasters—we simply do not know the thousands who turned to God when threatened. Spiritually careless people are forced to take God seriously in a time of crisis….

The reality of imminent death has a way of focusing the mind on eternity.

How are you praying for people during this time of war? Share this article to encourage others to pray.

(Excerpt from Bible to Life. Photo Credit: Dreamstime)