I'm impressed. After losing his family, his house, his business, his income, his status, his life savings, the respect of the community and also his wife, his health, and his friends Job still says that he is hanging onto his faithfulness and integrity before God. Wow. I get kicked around by a few life circumstances that don't compare in intensity to anything Job experienced and I'm a mess.
Here Job is sitting in an ash heap, covered from head to toe with nasty boils just trying to find relief from his physical misery and he is maintaining his passion for God. Me? I'd be throwing a temper tantrum at best. After all he'd been through and yet his so called friends are hammering Job telling him what a lowlife he really is and that he deserves his plight. I'm afraid I'd lose my integrity at that point. Somebody else would be feeling pain.
Job admits to the bitterness of his plight yet still believes that eventually God will bring him relief. He still trusts God and believes in His justness. He won't give up or give in to his circumstances even though he doesn't understand why he has to suffer so much before God intervenes. It's no wonder that God said to the Devil, "consider my servant Job," in the opening chapters of this book. Job is a standout guy with great love for God and great faith.
I wish I were Job. Not that I'm inviting calamity on or in my life. I don't seem to have to invite it. It just shows up on a regular basis. I wish I had Job's faith and steadfastness. I wish I could endure the hammering by friends and associates, church members and pagans, even family with the integrity of Job. I have God's Holy Spirit in me and I get depressed when someone questions my teaching or motives or actions.
How did Job do it? How did he hang in there through it all? Why didn't he just walk away? Why didn't he just tell everyone where to get off? I think it's because his faith in who God was was greater than his understanding of the circumstances he faced. He really trusted God to ultimately make things right, to rescue him, to redeem him, to restore him. Not just because he was a righteous person and innocent of all accusations being thrown at him. It was because he knew in his heart the character of God.
God, I can't say that I've ever experienced all the Job did in such a short order. I can say that I have experienced many of the things and emotions Job did over the last few years. It's painful and depressing and hard to keep going at times. I guess I need a shot of Job's endurance and faith. I get really tired at times and feel all alone. It's a rough place to be. I'm trusting you to rescue me and redeem me and restore me. Not because I deserve it or have earned it, but because you are a great God of grace and mercy. In fact, I could use a shot of assurance today because I'm sitting here in the ash heap scraping off a few personal, spiritual and emotional boils.
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