Hey SA, first off to study the Bible we need to answer these questions,
Who, When, Where, What and Why,
the verse you have a question about is in the middle of a discourse God is giving, so to understand what it means we have to now the context in which it was given.
Who - God is speaking about Cyrus the Persian King who conquered Babylon Isa 44:28
When - After Cyrus had conquered Babylon
Where - in Babylon
What - to prove to Cyrus He was the True and living God, Yahweh,
Starting in Isa 45:1-7 God is refuting the polytheistic superstition/knowledge of the Persians that believed there was a god of light and a god of darkness, a god of peace and a god of evil, thus He says there is only one God and He, Yahweh is that God, Jewish history tells us that Daniel talked with Cyrus and showed him Isa 44:27 in their Hebrew Scriptures,
who says to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up your rivers;
Which Cyrus understood well, because that is exactly how he entered impenetrable Babylon, he diverted the Euphrates River and his army entered the city;
That got Cyrus' attention and then Daniel showed him Isa 44:28,
who says of Cyrus (He called him by name), He is My shepherd, and shall do all My pleasure; even saying to Jerusalem, You shall be built; and to the temple, Your foundation shall be laid.
Why - the 70 year captivity of the Jewish people was over and they were to return to their land as prophesied, so God stirred up the spirit of Cyrus to let them leave Babylon and return home.
And in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, so that the Word of Yahweh in the mouth of Jeremiah might be done, Yahweh stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also in writing, saying, ...So says Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth have been given to me by Yahweh God. And He has commanded me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is among you of all His people? May Yahweh his God be with him, and let him go up. 2Ch 36:22, 23
So, to answer your question, yes, a loving God does create evil, calamity, disaster, trouble, sorrow not haphazardly, but always with a purpose for the good of the person/people affected by it, before the Babylonian captivity the children of Israel were deep into idolatry, always following the gods of the Canaanites, but they learned their lesson in Babylon and to this day they don't/will not follow any other God but Yahweh.
Where the rub comes in is most people don't see the difference between the evil God creates to bring about a Godly repentance and the evil that comes from the devil who's only objective is to steal, destroy and kill. John 10:10
Blessings,
Gene