Is He Really Powerful over Everything?

One of the criticisms towards belief in God is that it is merely a result of humans' lack of control over the natural phenomena, and that with the advent of science and technology, there will be no need for a god. But this claim of the atheists does not annihilate God, rather, it only completes the infinite loop in their reasoning. That is, if people are still believing in God, this is because science hasn't progressed enough. It is clear that one would never lose an argument with this kind of claim! Nevertheless, it is true that one thing people seek from God is protection.

Believers know that God continuously communicates with those who talk to Him (you can also read Have You Ever Talked to God?) and He interferes with what is going on, be it in the natural or in the social realm. Yes, He interferes with the creation continuously! Then, wouldn't you like Him to do a favor for you at times?

"Blessed is He in whose hands is the Kingdom and who has power over all things." (67/1)

"Say: "Travel through the earth and see how Allah did originate creation; so will Allah produce a later creation: for Allah has power over all things." (29/20)

"Everyone in the heavens and the earth depends on Him. His task in preserving His creation is continuous." (55/29)

"Say (O Muhammad SAW to the disbelievers): "My Lord pays attention to you only because of your invocation to Him." (25/77)

Well, yes, we all would like to have the Infinite Power on our side. Yes, we all would like a few favors every now and then. Yes, we would expect an immediate intervention especially when we are unfairly and violently treated. But, such favors and interventions, more often than not, don't happen! At least not at the moment we ask for them! And let's admit it, we may have ended up with a few breaks in our hearts towards God!

"Had the truth followed their desires, the heavens and the earth and all that is in them would have been destroyed." (23/71)

"And if Allah were to punish men for that which they earned, He would not leave a moving (living) creature on the surface of the earth, but He gives them respite to an appointed term, and when their term comes, then verily, Allah is Ever All­Seer of His slaves." (35/45)

Sometimes, we eventually realize the ultimate good that was hidden behind those events. Sometimes, even if we don't see a bigger picture, we realize that those events made us stronger and helped to discover ourselves. Sometimes we finally figure out that what befell us was for the improvement of our situation on the Judgment Day. Sometimes, sometimes,...

But sometimes, none of those happen. In fact, some people fall prey to such events and end up with a life-long reproach or heartbreak, which keeps them away from religion in general. They may believe in God and in the value of good ethics, but that's all. Even the loyal believers may have some disappointments because their expectations due to dire needs were not met. The believers in those grim situations may not voice their feelings, and, out of respect for God, they may be suppressing their rebellious instincts. But still, a heartbreak is a heartbreak, and it must be mended.

Let's read some examples from the Quran. Numerous times throughout the Quran, God reminds the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) that he is one of the messengers of God. Why? Doesn't he know it or does he keep forgetting it?

" Indeed you, [O Muhammad], are from among the messengers,..." (36/3)

God reminds the prophet that He is still with him. Why? Isn't God omnipresent, anyway?:

"Your Lord has not forsaken you, nor has He become displeased," (93/3) 

God tells the prophet Muhammad that he received the truth from his Lord. Doesn't the prophet already know that what he has been receiving is the truth?

"And we have come to you with the truth, and we are most surely truthful." (15/64)

The short answer to these questions, at least in one respect, has to do with the point I tried to raise above: mending of a heartbreak. When your prayers for dire needs are not answered as you wished, or when your requests from deep in your heart are disregarded at the time of the need, you feel cast away. And if this state goes on, the discouragements from the outside, be them from the Satan or from the disbelievers, injure your heart. That's exactly when the child in you raises his voice, and asks for special attention.

At this point let's remember that the concept of heart in the Quran is not just about feelings:

"They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear." (7/179)

The heart according to the Quran is a "thinking" faculty. In fact, this approach is very poignant in the context of the modern neurophysiological findings. We know that both our feelings and our thoughts are mostly processed in our brains. So, mending of a broken heart, i.e. a broken mind, needs to be done not only emotionally but also mentally!

Next, let's remember the prophet Zechariah. We conclude from his story in the Quran that he was convinced of his need for a male child who would continue his mission to call to God's path among the Israelites. Nevertheless, his prayers were not answered for years. Yet, Zechariah was firm in his belief in God's power, and he never lost hope of a help from His Lord.

"My Lord, my bones have become feeble and my hair has turned white with age. Yet I have never been deprived in receiving from You the answer to my prayers. And indeed, I fear the successors after me, and my wife has been barren, so give me from Yourself an heir who will inherit me and inherit from the family of Jacob. And make him, my Lord, pleasing [to You]." (19/4-6)

"Zachariah prayed to his Lord there, saying, "Lord, grant me, by Your Grace, virtuous offspring. You hear all prayers"." (3/38)

Interestingly, though, we hear him asking for a sign when he heralded with a son, tailored in character exactly as he wished for:

"[He was told], "O Zechariah, indeed We give you good tidings of a boy whose name will be John. We have not assigned to any before [this] name." He said, "My Lord, how will I have a boy when my wife has been barren and I have reached extreme old age?" He said: So shall it be, your Lord says: It is easy to Me, and indeed I created you before, when you were nothing. He said: My Lord! give me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you will not be able to speak to the people three nights while in sound health." (19/7-9)

Had Zechariah been unhopeful of the help of God, or his belief in God's power was deficient in any way, he wouldn't keep praying at this old age. Then why is he asking for a sign? Short answer, and of course one answer, is that his "thinking heart" has been wearied of "praying and not being answered". This is a kind of hunger or thirst of the brain, where it needs to see something special in order to continue. After all, we humans live with sustenance from our Creator, be it for our body or for our heart. And this special thing is needed to be really special in order to give the conviction that your Lord is watching over you, and is really powerful over everything, even if He is not doing exactly the thing you are asking for.

Messengers of God are chosen from among the humans in order for them to be an example for the rest of us. Accordingly, us too, we are vulnerable to heartbreak towards God, and our brain (a.k.a. our heart) craves for clear signs from time to time in order to sustain under difficult conditions. Whenever we are exposed to unfair treatments and our situation doesn't improve for extended periods, Satan's whispers about the limits of God's power echo in our minds. "Maybe He has forsaken us", we start questioning deep in our hearts. Then our willful thoughts kick in and we see that our situation contradicts with that of a faithful believer. But even then, the prayers lose meaning and become a mechanic ritual, because we know that they are not being answered. That's exactly when the child in us cries out of depths for special and immediate attention:

"Out of the depths, I cry to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy." (Psalms 130/1-2)

It is then that you may see or experience a clear sign, which only you can understand. Only you, because a private conversation is a private conversation, and is not intended for others. When you feel that private line between you and your Guardian, then you are able to continue believing that He is really powerful over everything, even if He does not do exactly what you are asking.

Or like the one who passed by a town and it had tumbled over its roofs. He said: "Oh! How will Allah ever bring it to life after its death?" So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years, then raised him up (again). He said: "How long did you remain (dead)?" He (the man) said: "(Perhaps) I remained (dead) a day or part of a day". He said: "Nay, you have remained (dead) for a hundred years, look at your food and your drink, they show no change; and look at your donkey! And thus We have made of you a sign for the people. Look at the bones, how We bring them together and clothe them with flesh". When this was clearly shown to him, he said, "I know (now) that Allah is Able to do all things." (2/259)