hi Kyle,
in reference to your post below:
http://www.astronomy.net/forums/god/messages/28127.shtml

permitt my quote sir:
"The fact that evil exists independently (and people suffer greatly) says one of two things: either God cannot control it (therefore He is not omnipotent) or God can control it, but He chooses to allow it (therefore He is not omni-benevolent)."

perhaps but then again perhaps not. what you state above appears true for you and i. how God sees it is up for grabs. if God is omni-benevolent and yet allows evil to run its course then that might mean that God perceives some greater good as a result of our struggle with evil.

again sir may i quote:
"With all due respect, shouldn't God be capable of saving every one of His children from eternal damnation? Why should God allow the devil to claim even a single soul? I don't mean to be facetious, but even the marines don't leave a man behind."

yes i'd say an omni-powerfull God should be capable. God i think has some darn good marines in his fold (maybe i'm a little facetious :).
the thing about saving every one of his children boils down to an interesting question. what if some of his children don't want to be saved. if God has given us free will then we could choose to be saved or not. if some choose not then what is God to do? well he should have say an eternity of time to convince those who have choosen damnation, i guess.

again sir may i quote:
"Although I'm trying Tim, I sincerely find it a tremendous struggle to understand. Most religious people I know (including members of my family) imply that one has to ultimately abandon the kind of understanding that I am trying to attain-- thus it really becomes a matter of faith."

Kyle i'm with you in the quest to understand. i like holding forth faith and maintaining the struggle to understand. i believe faith is the key to understanding. my favorite Bible passage goes something like this:
Faith is the substance of things not seen, the essence of things hoped for.

regards, tim