Why Me?

My 17-year-old daughter, who has Rheumatoid Arthritis, posted the following on a RA support site in response to a pastor who claimed that illnesses were somehow a response to our wrongdoing, and could be "prayed away".

The reason why we have illnesses is because they are trials. As in, God gave them to us. It is all part of God's plan for us. Yes, Jesus suffered for our sins, but our illnesses are not punishment. They are to make us, well, tougher in a way. It's like to make a beautiful vase out of glass, you have to put the sand into the fire to make the glass in the first place. It's like we're all grains of sand and we're gonna turn into beautiful, perfect pieces of art. But we have to go in the fire first. :) P.S. I believe in the power of prayer, but I do not believe that if I pray, my RA will go away. Unless, of course, God wants that for me.