God wants good for us while here on earth, but His plan revolves around our union with Him later. His purpose is fulfilled only as we receive Christ, and then enter into a lifelong pursuit of God, in spite of our bent toward choosing self in place of Him. This is why God allows sin such power in our decision-making. Our ongoing battle with the flesh, as we’re relentlessly confronted by a world steeped in sin, boils down to just one thing: radical choice—decision with real meaning.
But how could a good God give evil the right to exist at all, much less allow it to have such destructive power over us? Again, choice is the answer to this age-old question. In His eternal wisdom, God ordained that His children choose Him freely. And the more difficult the choice, the better He seems to like it. It makes the value we place on Him all the more meaningful.