Doing some research on this question.
1. Does God cause suffering or does He allow it? http://ericcarp.blogspot.com/2007/04/question-4-does-god-cause-or-allow.html
2. In the Midst of Pain - http://thegodjourney.com/2012/02/17/in-the-midst-of-pain/
Do we have to go through suffering to be shaped by God? Prompted by a question on a blog comment, Brad and Wayne talk about the tension between finding God’s presence in the midst of our troubles and difficulties, and thinking God brings suffering in our lives to teach us something. While God does not orchestrate our sufferings to help us grow, he does promise to be in them when they come to teach us how to live beyond the realities of this age by living deeply in his love. Rather than live in fear of future sufferings to come, we can simply live in his love every day, whether that is in easy times or painful ones. Suffering on the outside does not have to destroy us on the inside.
3. "THE PROBLEM OF SUFFERING" - Who Or What Causes It? http://executableoutlines.com/suf/suf_02.htm
4. Why Is There Suffering? -- http://bible.org/article/why-there-suffering
5. Does God directly cause suffering... http://kenschenck.blogspot.com/2011/05/does-god-directly-cause-suffering.html
6. Thoughts from my conversation with two brothers in Christ:
We often tie our suffering to God’s judgement on us. And the two are not related. Our sin and our life here on earth have consequences. But the bad things that happen to us, the diseases and such are not God’s judgement against us, they just are what they are. They happen. Sh*t happens. But God does not do it to us as a judgement against us and our sin.
And just because we are Christians does not mean that our physical and earthly life will be perfect/pain free/all wonderful. God protects our soul, the spiritual part of our self but the physical part of us is subject to earthly matters. If we sin, there are consequences. If we live on earth, there will be pain, disease and suffering, it is a fact/a reality that cannot be escaped. But as a child of God, God walks with us through our pain and suffering.
