No authorization

HARRY ATTISON is a FIFA international referee who participated in the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

In a recent interview, this referee from Vanuatu explained: “I trust completely in God's wisdom to make proper decisions, and I try to do the same in every match”.

Referees are talked about a lot because people always find fault with their ability to referee a game.

But there is One who never makes an error; a supreme referee, a judge who is above all things, and to whom we will all one day be accountable: God himself.

Unfortunately, referees are remembered more often for their errors than for their good performances, even though there are usually more good games thanbad. People are like that: one mistake outweighs many good calls.

There is some justification for this. We have all suffered injustices in life, and so we rebel against anything we believe is not just; from the school test grade that was lower than we deserved, to the great catastrophe that took the lives of many innocent people.

We try to find fault, to find who was to blame. When we don't find it...well, here is always God to blame.

We have heard this argument thousands of times: “If God is so good, why did he allow evil in the world?” Thousands of children are dying of hunger, war, natural disasters that hurt the innocent - killings, and discrimination. Do you agree?

There are some things that we forget:

1. God didn't create evil. His creation was perfect. We ruined it with our wrong decisions and rebellion against him.

2. The reason that so many bad things happen in this world is because of us. How can we place the blame for wars on God, when it is we ourselves who start them? How can we say that he is to blame for children dying of hunger, if he provided enough food for us all?

3. God doesn't permit evil; it happens without his permission. We cannot ask for God's permission to hate, lie, cheat or kill, because he wouldn't give it to us. We do all these things against his will.

4. Many blame God so that they don't have to blame themselves. ALL of us are guilty and one day will have to be accountable to God for what we have done. On that day,noone can escape. On that day, God himself, the great judge of history will give each one their due place.

What will become of you?