What is grievous is not only the utter reluctance by supposed evangelicals (who are supposed to be going by the Bible) to allow that God does judges countries for their sins, but their censure of reasonable believers who rightly affirm that.
While bad things can happen to Job type persons, for purposes of refinement, when such happens to them they are to examine their lives as to see if unrepentant sin or a practice of such is the cause, or in the case of David, it is the just fruit of such. And God does judge believers (thus self-judgment is advised) so they they will “not be condemned with the rest of the world.” (1Cor. 11:32)
The fact is that God does judge sin, and “we are sure judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.” (Rm. 2:2)
When a city such as New Orleans, which is known for celebrating iniquity is hit with a Katrina, or a hurricane parks itself on sin-city Cancun for 40 hours or countries which persecute and kill Christians and wrongfully oppressed others, due to idolatry, gets hit with the worst of a tsunami, or a nation which is increasingly forsaking the right ways of God gets hit by terrorists, then it is not unreasonable, and in fact it is Biblically warranted, to understand this as act of judgment. This real problem is not whether this judgment is warranted, but how other places and persons can assume they are not worthy of such, for as Jesus said,
“Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? (3) I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. (Luke 13:2-3)
Notice Jesus did not say this was not because of sin, but that lack of repentance brings such.
God’s eyes are still upon the sinful kingdom to destroy it in His time, (Amo_9:8), and His warnings to that He does send “sore judgments” for sin (Eze 14:21)as well as His exhortations to repent, transcend covenants.
Jeremiah 18:9-10 And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; (10) If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.
Mat 11:21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
And God still looks for men to stand in the gap, like Moses, that, if possible, He should not destroy it. (Ezek 22:30).
What was said to Israel of old applies ot us today:
Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? (32) For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye. (Ezekiel 18:31-32)
Perhaps this is true, but then again, only God knows that. Please don't pretend to know what God knows. Remember that ALL have sinned, so even the smallest sin makes a person worthy of Hell and Hell is WAY worse than any calamity imaginable in this life. No one is worthy of the breath they breath. And furthermore, how do you explain the Christians in N.O. who suffered because of the earthquake? God brings pain to the Christian as well as the Hedonist.