Hold God's Hand Through Your Confusion

Job 21:22-24 -  "Can anyone teach knowledge to God, since he judges even the highest?  One man dies in full vigor, completely secure and at ease,  his body well nourished, his bones rich with marrow. Another man dies in bitterness of soul, never having enjoyed anything good.  Side by side they lie in the dust, and worms cover them both.

 

Job was struggling with more than his physical pain and empty spirit. He had begun to look around him and see the many wicked people around him who were living better than him.  He was confused that God would allow him to suffer in his righteousness…and other people he had heard denounce God completely prosper.  He was jealous…allowing the familiar pity party to surface once more.

 

I am reminded of David…who struggled with the same feelings in Psalms 73.  He had also let himself have one huge pity party as he suffered and ran from Saul. He watched Saul prosper and go unpunished for trying to kill him.  He did not understand why God would anoint him king as a youth…then allow Saul to treat him so poorly. His confusion almost got the best of him too.

 

Even though Job and David were confused…they never let go of God’s hand.  They invited him to their pity parties…and constantly asked him to explain his reasons for their suffering. They called out to God for help in understanding….they sought his comfort from their pain.  They realized that God was in control…his wisdom would give them an answer in his time. Job asked the wise question in Job21:22…. “Can anyone teach knowledge to God, since he judges even the highest?” just like David realized the only way to survive his pain was to hold on to God’s hand through his season of pain. He said in Psalms 73:26-28…  “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.  But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”

 

Job and David must have sensed in their heart…what we are all told in revelation will happen to all the wicked who are permitted to prosper here on Earth…that mock God…and follow satan’s evil ways. Like the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16….God will pull the saved to his side in Heaven for all eternity…and lock the wicked away in eternal torment.   Revelation 20:11-15 says… “ Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.  The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.  Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.  If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was  Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.  The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.  Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.  If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”

 

Father…thank you for reminding me once again that you are in control…even when my pity parties take over…and I see no purpose for the pain you have allowed in my life.  Help me to draw so close to you…that I invite you to all the pity parties satan tricks me into having….so you can help me find a way to end it…and begin to see that my pain has purpose.  Help me to hold tight to your hand and wait for your will to be revealed.  Help me to study and pray for you to strengthen me in the midst of my storms…so you can get me to the other side….and the blessings that await me there. Amen.

lean Not On YourOwn Understanding...And gain God's peace That Surpasses All Understanding

Job 20:1-5 -  Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:  "My troubled thoughts prompt me to answer because I am greatly disturbed.  I hear a rebuke that dishonors me, and my understanding inspires me to reply.  "Surely you know how it has been from of old, ever since man was placed on the earth,  that the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment.

 

Zophar took his second turn replying to Job’s cries of bitterness and pain. He was upset with his friend for trying to make him feel guilty…and he continued to  berate Job for being a sinner…worthy of nothing less than the consequences he was given.  He maintained that Job’s problem was a direct result of some sin he was hiding.  He called him wicked…and listed all the judgments that God would bring to him in the end.

 

Only problem was that Zophar spoke from his own thoughts and understanding.  He was right is saying that the wicked would be punished and judged someday….but he was wrong for including Job in that group of sinners. He was right is saying that the wicked’s prosperity is but a short while….but he was wrong for including Job in the ranks of the wicked.

 

One of the problems was that Zophar was using his own judgment and understanding of the word of God.  He forgot the wise words of Solomon in Proverbs 3:5-6.  It tells us to… “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. None of Job’s friends ever stopped to pray that God help them know what to say.

 

Another lesson in this chapter is that God will judge us all someday….in his time.  Job’s friends wanted God to come down and prove them right to Job….they wanted God to show Job his great sin that had caused such a horrible penalty.  Job wanted God to come down and prove his innocence…to shout at his friends to leave him alone…to tell them he was telling the truth.

 

God was looking down from Heaven and shaking his head in dismay at all of them...because he was teaching them a lesson about his timing. God’s timing has no Earthly framework…it is not measured in days or hours….or even years.  It is measured in faith and hope and joy and peace…it is measured in persistence and patience and love.  It is understood only when we pray for God’s guidance and peace to endure what he needs us to endure…while he is teaching us about his great love and mercy.

 

I will be the first to say that I still don’t understand God’s timing…but I have gotten better at waiting for him to give me answers.  And I know…that I know….that I know…that if I keep God as close as I can… that I will have peace about his timing…even when I don’t understand it. He will give me that peace that passes all understanding that Paul talked about in Philippians 4:7.  It says… “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

 

Father…help me to hold on when it gets rough…because you are teaching me something really good about your love.  Show me how to have the faith of Job…and know the peace that can help me through any storm.  Help me to pray for your guidance and not lean on my own understanding…as you told the wise Solomon to record for us.  Thank you for reminding me that I need to lean only on you…and wait as long as you ask me to wait on the blessings you promised me. Amen.

I Know That My Redeemer Lives

Job 19:23-27 -  "Oh, that my words were recorded, that they were written on a scroll,  that they were inscribed with an iron tool on lead, or engraved in rock forever!  I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.  And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God;  I myself will see him with my own eyes--I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!

 

Job took his next turn speaking after Bildad’s harsh words.  His friend had not given him any comfort…and he felt God had deserted him too. He had no one in his life who understood his deep confusion....and God had remained silent this whole time.

 

Job’s great words were recorded though…for all of us to read about his great faith.  No matter how hard it got…Job was not giving up on God.  He was clinging to his savior …longing for him with every fiber of his being. He knew that somehow…he would be reconnected to God...no matter how distant he felt in this moment.

 

Perhaps he had read the great prophecies of Isaiah… beginning in Isaiah 7. The many scriptures that foretold a great kinsman redeemer coming…born of a virgin...the very seed of God himself.  He was coming to save his people from all their suffering and hardship.  He would make a way for all to come to see God face to face…just as Job wanted.

 

Jesus came as a baby…grew to be a man…and gave his entire life to ministry.  He worked tirelessly to spread the gospel and try to help us understand the meaning of service to others. He gave his very life for all of us on that cross…so that we could all be transformed in his love. And we should follow in his footsteps…giving  up our Earthly claims to the world…and drinking in his great love…letting it change us into servants as well.

 

Father…thank you for reminding me that you came to die for my sins…so that I could be saved and connected with you in Heaven someday.   Thank you for the great words of Job…whose faith allowed him to speak from his heart…and claim the father’s salvation…even before it was possible. Be my redeemer…for I know that you live in my heart as well.  Let my heart become an even better place for you to dwell…enlarge it …so that I can become your servant…..and spread the gospel to those that do not know about your great love and care. Amen.

Arrogance Blocks God's Peace In Your Life

Job 18:1-4 -  Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:  "When will you end these speeches? Be sensible, and then we can talk.  Why are we regarded as cattle and considered stupid in your sight?  You who tear yourself to pieces in your anger, is the earth to be abandoned for your sake? Or must the rocks be moved from their place?

 

Bildad speaks for the second time.  His harsh words mimic those of his friend. He doesn’t understand why Job will not listen to their wisdom and repent of the sin that he thinks is causing the problem. He shouts a long list of harsh punishments that God reserves for the most wicked of people…insinuating that Job is on his way to being that wicked.

 

It reminds me of one of those arguments that one wins. Both sides are so locked in their way that no real compromise is made by either party.  A mediator has to be called in to even suggest what options might be available to settle the dispute. The problem with Job and Bildad is that the ultimate mediator…God…has not decided to intervene yet.

 

Bildad spoke from his arrogance and pride. He used his It was more important for him to prove he was right…than to truly look into the heart of his hurting friend…and help him search for answers that might solve his problem. He knew the penalty for sin…and was right in saying the wages of sin was death…but he forgot to ask God about Job’s case.  He became defensive…and let the anger he felt at Job control the words that came from his mouth.

 

I understand all too well Bildad’s problem…I used to be just like him.  I always insisted that I was right…and never even considered letting God help me decide a decision. My defensive arrogance played a huge part in the divorce from my first husband.  We used to fight so hard to prove we were right…and never once stopped to pray together…and ask God to settle the arguments we invented to help justify our lack of love we gave each other.

 

How amazing is God’s love…that is can replace that horrible arrogance and defensive anger…with his perfect love and peace and understanding.  It gives me such hope to know that even when I did not ask for help…God was working a big plan to save me from myself…and the decision we both made to give upon 30 years of love. We chose to stop trying…instead of work through the storm.  But even in that…God forgave…and is working in our lives to change us into creatures that love him more than we do ourselves. He is helping us to repair the damage it did to our children…one day at a time.

 

Oh how I plead with those of you that love God to work through your storms….to invite God into the boat with you so he can tell the storm to quiet down around you…and bring peace where there is hostility and hate…just like Jesus did in Mark 4. We have to ask him aboard you know…before he can do anything to help us. Only God can truly help you navigate safely through the mess you have created with your pride.

 

Father…thank you for reminding me that I need you more than I need to be right.  Help me to accept the complete control you need over my heart...so that I can release all the anger…and hate…and bitterness…I feel over the hurts in my life.  Help me to see that my need to be right is keeping me from experiencing the great calming peace that passes understanding…and growing closer to your perfect plan for my life. Give me this morning a new need to always look up and ask you what to do…to always call out to you for guidance in all that I do.  Amen.

God's Way Out

Job 17:1-3 and 9 - My spirit is broken, my days are cut short, the grave awaits me.  Surely mockers surround me; my eyes must dwell on their hostility.  "Give me, O God, the pledge you demand. Who else will put up security for me?

Nevertheless, the righteous will hold to their ways, and those with clean hands will grow stronger.

 

Job knew deep in his heart that he was righteous…but he could not explain what was happening to him.  He was the first righteous man to experience satan’s temptation. He knew his friends were wrong in their assessment of his pain…but he had no way of explaining his deep confusion. He was broken…waiting for death…but was ready…somehow sensing that God would somehow bring strength in that moment…not more pain.

 

In his greatest moments of pain and grief...he continued to cling to God. He must have remembered God’s promise to care for him written in Deuteronomy 31:8 … “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Or maybe it was Joshua’s reminder in Joshua 1:9  “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Or perhaps he had been reading Psalm 27 and could hear David’s sweet verse 1 “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?”

 

When Jesus was tempted …he used the scriptures to rebuke and send away satan.  God placed exactly the right scripture in his mouth that told satan with confidence that he was not falling for his lies and deceitful ways. Job was experiencing the strength Paul wrote about I Corinthians 10:13 which says…  “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”

 

God is always watching and providing for us ways out of our struggles.  It’s like yesterday…when I was driving to see my baby boy play football.  An RV…huge….way bigger than my Rav4 I drive…wasn’t paying attention….and swerved over in my lane. I could have stayed right there…and let it hit me…but there was this convenient shoulder to my right….and God gave me the presence of mind to drive right into it…and no one was hurt. No scratches on either vehicle…I may have a complex about passing something that big ever again...but God was right there….helping me to think my way right out of a disaster satan probably planned to keep me from seeing my boy….or worse.

 

Job’s faith was strengthened by his brokenness…just like Paul says in 2 Corinthians 12:9… “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. ” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses,” God doesn’t call the qualified…he qualifies the called.  Just like Job... David… Moses… Saul… Miriam… Sarah….Zaccheus…and Peter…God exposes our weakness to force us to let him work his supernatural power in our lives…and change us into what he needs us to be.

 

Father…thank you for the reminder that I am weak without your great love…packed so tight in my heart that it bursts out into the space around me…and affects everyone you bring into my life.  Help me to be weak like Job…and let you break me from my desires and selfish worldly needs…so you can fill me up with your strength and power to do the work you called me to do. Give me more of your great spirit in my heart…so that it’s wisdom spills into my simple mind…so that you can show me how to avert all the temptations satan throws in my path to keep me from doing your will. Amen.

Be A Comforter To Others

Job 16:2-5 -  "I have heard all this before. What miserable comforters you are!  Won't you ever stop your flow of foolish words? What have I said that makes you speak so endlessly?  I could say the same things if you were in my place. I could spout off my criticisms against you and shake my head at you.  But that's not what I would do. I would speak in a way that helps you. I would try to take away your grief.

 

Job had listened to the same advice twice now…their accusations and judgment brought him no comfort.  He just wanted them to be quiet…if they were not going to support him and try to make him feel better. Deep down he knew that he had done nothing to provoke such harshness form his friends or God. The words of his friends stirred a deep longing in his heart for God…but he was afraid that God hated him now.

 

Job’s advice to those of us that go to comfort others in loss and tragedy has two don’ts….and two do’s. Don’t talk for the sake of talking.  Sometimes words can be exchanged for a tender hug…a shared tear….or a smile of understanding.  Don’t sermonize.  God will do the judging later….they just need to know you love them…and will be there through the pain.  Do put yourself in their place.  Wear their shoes just long enough to empathize with what they are going through. Do offer help and encouragement.  And that does not always mean a tray of food or a cake the first few days.  That means calling and checking on them….weeks and months after the event has passed.

 

It is true that the best comforters are those that have been through the same pain.  God teaches us with our own pain how to best help others.  That is why Jesus is the best comforter we can find.  He suffered more agony and pain than anyone ever will…and triumphed over death.  He walked in our shoes…and even sent us the Holy Spirit to remind us of all the advice he gave us while he was here.  John 14:26 says…. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” What a great reminder to me that all the help I need is just a request away…one prayer to the holy father and all I need is there waiting.

 

Father…thank you for the reminder that you are all that I need when I am hurting.  Thank you for the pain that has helped to teach me how to help others. Show me how to use Job’s advice …and be the kind of friend that supports and helps those that are going through pain and trials.  Help me remember to pray and invite the Holy Spirit to come with me…and show me what to do. Amen.

Seek God's Wisdom When Storms Are Blowing

Job 15:1-3 and 14 -   Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:  "Would a wise man answer with empty notions or fill his belly with the hot east wind?  Would he argue with useless words, with speeches that have no value?

 "What is man, that he could be pure, or one born of woman, that he could be righteous?

 

Round two of the debate between Job and his friends begins with Eliphaz’s words of distaste for what he saw as Job’s arrogance. He is incredulous that Job cannot see his sin.  He sees Job’s cries of pain and questions to God as disrespectful and pious.  He compares Job’s insistence of innocence to the most wretched of wicked men…and said that God would judge him harshly for it.

 

How ironic that Eliphaz spoke so boldly to Job…but did not consider his own words for himself. It was his own arrogance …depending on the words of the older men in the area…that led him to consider himself more righteous than Job.  He had not been told to say any of these things to Job…he just assumed to have all the answers.

 

His words were true of man in general.  Man is lower than God. Man is corruptible. God will judge and punish the wicked.  But these words had no bearing on his friend Job. Not once did he just take Job’s hand and lift his face to the sky and ask God to help him and bless him with healing and comfort.  Not once did Eliphaz go to God in prayer and ask for his guidance in what to say to help ease Job’s frustrations with life.

 

I reminded of Paul…who found himself one time on a boat…in a very harsh wind. The harshest wind the people of the day called a ‘kadim’…had caused the crew taking him to Rome for trial to crash the boat and strand the whole crew on an island.  He spoke these words from Acts 27:25 to them after the crash…and what must have been a sleepless night for them all. … “So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.” I have no doubt in my mind that Paul spent his night praying…and God’s angel came to comfort him…and give him a message of hope.

 

I can’t remember when I first heard the question… “Do You know what happens when you assume?” The answer they gave … “You make a donkey’s behind out of yourself”….sure fits Eliphaz in this moment…and reminds me how important it is to seek God’s wisdom when friends need our help. None of us can preconceive the mind of God in our own lives…let alone our friends…especially if we don’t ask God what to do first.  When God blows harsh winds in our direction…that throw our normal routines for a loop….we must stop and look for his direction.  When friends ask us our opinion…we had better be sure that we have God’s permission to speak…the judgment for leading someone astray is heavy in Mark 9:42… “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

 

Father ….thank you for the reminder that I must never consider myself to know the answers to life. Help me to constantly check in with you…especially when life is hard…to see if you have some special words of advice or comfort for me. Let my attitude be one of seeking your direction in all that I do. Help me to remember that I must always seek your will when friends need my ear to vent.  Keep my mouth shut tightly …if I have not been told by you to give them advice. Seal any words up from being spoken that are not in keeping with your scriptures. Amen.

Grow Your Roots Deeper In Times Of Drought

Job 14:7-9 and 14-15  -   "At least there is hope for a tree: If it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail.  Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil,  yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant.

 If a man dies, will he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come.  You will call and I will answer you; you will long for the creature your hands have made.

 

Job was in torment…he had let himself enter into a grand pity party.  His theme for the party was …my life is so unfair….God has treated the tree better than he has me. The attitude of pity trapped him in a moment of hopelessness…wishing for death once again. But even in his weakness…he had the deep trust that God loved him more than that old tree…and surely there was some hope of reconnection to God after he died.

 

Job was more like that old tree than he realized. He had grown deep roots in his drought period of trial.  They searched for God’s living water to nourish his dry soul….because he thought that he had been separated from God. Job never gave up seeking for a connection…some way to reconnect what he thought he had lost. Job didn’t know it t the time…but his searching was deepening his relationship with the father…making God even prouder than he was when he first showed him off to satan.

 

King David knew what Job was talking about…as he hid in the caves trying to figure out why God anointed him king…then let Saul try to kill him. He let himself have a huge pity party too…but wrote these words as he was growing his roots back toward God…. “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? “

 

Jesus met a woman at a well one day...who was having her own pity party.  She had been married 5 times searching for the Earthly love that could not satisfy he need to be cared for. She had even chosen to live with a man without marrying him.  Jesus was so tender and forgiving as he spoke to her about his living water…that would be provided to all after he died to save our sins. His words in John 4:14 must have brought a wonderful hope to her heart… “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

 

How cool that Job sensed the concept of eternal life way before it was even possible.  In his deep pity and hopelessness….God must have visited him…but kept him from knowing he was there…just like a mom goes to the door of her sleeping child to check before they go to sleep themselves.  God stood at Job’s door…just out of sight…and planted the living water that all would be able to drink after he sent his son.  It gave Job just enough courage and hope to continue to search for God.

 

Father….thank you for reminding me that you are always there…even when I can’t see or feel you.  Help me to be like the tree…and grow my roots deep enough to tap into your living water.  Show me how to be like the deer…that runs and pants after you…so I will never run out of the support I need to do what you need me to do. Sit down with me when I mess up like that woman at the well…and tell me gently that you alone can love me unconditionally…and help me find the things I need to be who you want me to be.  Amen.

No Matter What...I Will Hope In God

Job 13:1-3 and 15-16 -  "My eyes have seen all this, my ears have heard and understood it.  What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you.  But I desire to speak to the Almighty and to argue my case with God.

 Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.  Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance, for no godless man would dare come before him!

 

Job knew deep in his heart that no human friend could answer his questions.  He called his friends worthless doctors…and told them to just be silent if they could not support his innocence. He longed to hear God speak to him…he wanted to meet with him face to face…and ask him why he tormented him so…even if it meant death.

 

Even though Job felt like a rotten tree…fallen and decaying….or a moth eaten coat…he clung to his faith in God.  If he was going down…he wanted to be holding God’s hand the whole way. He wanted so bad for God to just appear to him and explain all the pain. 

 

One of Job’s problems was that he hadn’t heard anything from God since his pain started. He wanted desperately for God to explain all this mess…and thought God’s silence meant he had rejected him. The possible rejection of God bothered him more than the physical pain and grief he felt at all his losses. He would rather be gone from this world…than live without the love and care of God.

 

Paul felt the same way close to the end of his ministry.  He suffered in ways that Job might understand…but that I have never experienced. In Philippians 1:20-21 he wrote  …. “ I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.  For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  

 

My life should be a reflection of God…every moment I am left here on this Earth. I should long for time to speak with God like Job…and courage to live for Christ like Paul…no matter what he allows satan to tempt me with. I should see every moment as an opportunity to serve God…and every trial as a way to develop strength and courage to do more rigorous work for him.

 

Father…thank you for reminding me that I fall so short of your perfect plan for me.  Help me to long for time to spend talking and listening to you give me directions for this life…and see my disappointments and pain as a way to grow closer to you.  Turn my pity parties into appreciation parties.  Turn my tears into living water that will reveal your love to others around me. Turn my fears into courage.  Turn my doubts into confidence that you somehow have a purpose for all that you ask me to endure.  Amen.

God Holds All Wisdom And Power

Job 12:13 and 22 -  "To God belong wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are his.

He reveals the deep things of darkness and brings deep shadows into the light.

 

Job’s reply to Zophar was dripping with sarcasm.  He had reached his limit of advice from friends who thought they knew more than he did.  They had not told him anything he had not already considered…and he was hurt to the core that they could not see his innocence.

 

In his deep frustration and pain…trying to process the hurt his friends inflicted on his heart… the physical pain of the boils that covered his body….and the mental anguish of grief ...he managed to speak a great truth…Only God holds the key to true wisdom and power.

 

The truth of the matter was that none of them understood…because God had simply not revealed it to them yet. Job held fast to the knowledge that God loved him…and if he needed to know…it would be revealed in God’s own timing.

 

Perhaps Job had heard the words of Solomon in Proverbs 25:2…. “ It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” Or maybe he had read the visions Daniel recorded in Daniel 12:9… “He replied, "Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end.”

 

Sometimes God makes us wait…and holds back knowledge that we might not be able to process fully in his love.  We were told in Genesis 2:17… “ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." ….but Eve ate it anyway.  She convinced Adam…and they both saw their nakedness and hid from God.  That knowledge got them kicked out of the perfect place for them to live…and separated them for God till he could send his son to save us all.

 

Deuteronomy 29:29 says… “ The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” Jesus pretty much summed it up in John 14: 31… “ but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me. "Come now; let us leave.” Job simply did not need to know that God was proving to satan  …that Job loved him more than anything….and nothing he could inflict on him could make that change.

 

How awesome that God knows us better than we know ourselves.  He gives us just the right amount of knowledge to process what we need to do what he called us to do….and nothing more.  Even though Eve and Adam messed up in that garden and bit off more than they could handle…God sent his son to fix it and make it all right. He made a way for us to be joined together once again…and feeds us daily with all that we need to prosper and grow in his love.

 

Father…thank you for hiding the things from me that you know my human heart can’t deal with.  And thank you for letting me ask why…even though I know in my heart that the answer will be hidden until we meet face to face.  Help me to wait on your perfect timing…and accept the things you have revealed…and embrace them to do the work you need me to do. Help me to invite the Holy Spirit into my life full force…so that it can strengthen me in the times I do not understand.  Amen.

Escape From Temptations

Job 11:7-11 -  "Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?  They are higher than the heavens--what can you do? They are deeper than the depths of the grave--what can you know?  Their measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea.  "If he comes along and confines you in prison and convenes a court, who can oppose him?  Surely he recognizes deceitful men; and when he sees evil, does he not take note?

 

Job’s friend Zophar had no clue of Job’s innocence.  He sat in agreement with Job’s other friends that he must be hiding some sin for God to bring such harsh judgment against him. His words would have been true…if Job had been guilty of some sin. God does see all that we do…nothing can be hidden from him.

 

The reason Job was suffering was because God had seen all that he had done…and he was proud of Job. He knew just how strong his faith was…and just what he could handle from satan. Job just did not have a friend like Paul to explain it to him yet.  He wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:13… “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.”

 

These friends of Job’s...they knew their Bible well…but they did not know the heart of the God who had it recorded.  And they did not know their friend Job as well as they thought they did.  They falsely interpreted Job’s suffering…because they assumed they knew the only reason for suffering. They never stopped to ask God what to do…just based their answers and advice on what they thought they already knew.

 

It is a reminder to me to never assume that I know all there is to know about God. I may be privy to the deepest secrets of God when I meet him face to face…but while he still allows me life and breath on the Earth…I must always assume there is something new to learn about his ways. I need to think about that the next time a friend asks me for advice….because they have suffering and pain to endure.

 

Father…thank you for the story of Job…and the reminder that I will never know all the mysteries of your love until I meet you face to face in Heaven.  Help me to keep an open mind…and heart…to pray for your spirit to guide me to the open doors you placed there to help me escape the temptations satan throws in front of me. Amen.

Cry Out For Strength....Not Answers!

Job 10:1-3 -  "I am disgusted with my life. Let me complain freely. I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.  I will say to God, 'Don't simply condemn me -- tell me the charge you are bringing against me.  What do you gain by oppressing me? Why do you reject me, the work of your own hands, while sending joy and prosperity to the wicked?

 

Job was so frustrated…he had shared his heart with the friends who came to comfort him…and got nothing but more confusion and pain.  He had reached the point in his pain that he needed answers…and he just did not see the point in living life anymore. He was one straw away from giving in…one emotion shy of blaming God and believing that God was out to get him.

 

His speech reminded me of David’s many Psalms…crying out to God in his hiding from king Saul.  Oh how he must have shared Job’s deep frustration and grief.  He had been anointed as a young teen to be king…and found himself running and hiding from his enemies. Psalm 102:1-5 paints much the same pain as Job’s… “ A prayer of one overwhelmed with trouble, pouring out problems before the LORD. LORD, hear my prayer! Listen to my plea!  Don't turn away from me in my time of distress. Bend down your ear and answer me quickly when I call to you,  for my days disappear like smoke, and my bones burn like red-hot coals.  My heart is sick, withered like grass, and I have lost my appetite.  Because of my groaning, I am reduced to skin and bones.”

 

The big difference in those two cries to God are simple.  Job called out to God in pain and wanted answers.  Job cried out from his pain and wanted to give up.  Job cried out from his massive pity party…and told God what he wanted.  David cried out to God in his deep confusion and pain too…but his prayer was a plead to stay close to him.  David’s cry called for God to wrap him even tighter in his arms and protect him from whatever came next. Job wanted to give up…David wanted strength to keep fighting.

 

What is really cool is that God loves us either way….he put up with Job’s pity party…and loved him just the same. And he listened to David’s cry for help…and comforted him in those caves. And now their stories are a great reminder for me…for I am way to much like Job when things get tough.  I want answers…and call out from the pity party I formed around me…even if it is just me and God. I need to be more like David…and call out to God to give me the strength I need to keep going. I am very sure of one thing… we will gain more strength from God’s love when we have the right attitude.

 

Father…thank you for loving me despite the mistakes and pity parties I seem to attend way to often.  Help me to remember David’s prayer of strength the next time I send myself an invitation to wallow in my own problems too long. Show me how to pray like David did in those caves…so you will come and comfort me. Amen.

Let Patience have Its Perfect Work

Job 9:1-4 -  Then Job spoke again:  "Yes, I know this is all true in principle. But how can a person be declared innocent in the eyes of God?  If someone wanted to take God to court, would it be possible to answer him even once in a thousand times?  For God is so wise and so mighty. Who has ever challenged him successfully?

 

Bildad had not told Job anything he did not already know. Job clung to the deep knowledge that he was innocent…but continued to be frustrated. He knew he had no strength or knowledge that would explain his plight. He knew that God was the only one who understood and could explain this storm he was experiencing.  He just had to accept the confusion…until God saw fit to explain it to him.

 

Job’s disadvantage was that God had not sent his son to Earth to die for our sins. Job did not get to hear the sweet words that Jesus spoke to the blind man in John 9:3... “Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’  Then Jesus spat on the ground…made some mud…and rubbed it on this man’s eyes….to show the power of the father who sent him.

 

Job had no way of knowing that God was using him to prove a point to satan. And God also knew that it wouldn’t help Job be any stronger if he did know.  Job’s strength came from the faith and knowledge he had in a holy God…who was in control of everything in his world. He feared his life without God in it…and was trying to accept what God was asking him to suffer.

 

Sometimes…we suffer at the hand of the world…to prove to others we love God.  We are chosen …like Job ….to suffer for the sake of spreading the gospel to one other person…so Heaven’s population can be increased. We are asked in James 1:2-4… “ My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,  knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

 

God was building a patience and faith in Job that would help his three friends let go of their wrong notions about sin. God allowed satan to throw whatever he wanted at Job…because he knew that Job would pass the test…and be a model for all to come. Job was chosen…to show us how to endure the hardest trails of life…to let go…and let God handle the tough times…especially the ones we don’t understand!

 

Father…thank you for the endurance of Job….whose story helps me to know that sometimes I will be asked to suffer for your sake.  Help me to count it joy…and endure all the bad times…so I can learn the hard lessons…and be a model for others that need to find your love. Thank you for the greatest model of all…your son Jesus Christ…who suffered even death on the cross…to provide for me a way to love you and spend eternity in your arms. Amen.

Follow The Heart God Placed Inside You

Job 8:1-6 -  Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job:  "How long will you go on like this? Your words are a blustering wind.  Does God twist justice? Does the Almighty twist what is right?  Your children obviously sinned against him, so their punishment was well deserved.  But if you pray to God and seek the favor of the Almighty,  if you are pure and live with complete integrity, he will rise up and restore your happy home.

 

The second friend began to speak his thoughts to Job. Bildad was convinced that Job and his children must have sinned to bring such harsh judgment on themselves.  He told Job to stop his useless rants to God of his innocence…and begin to confess his sin and ask God to forgive and restore. Bildad told Job to release his love of the worldly things that had caused his sin. His words of advice were based on his opinion that Job was guilty….and Job’s plight was the result of God’s anger and judgment against him.

 

It must have hurt Job to the core of his heart to have his friend doubt his innocence….to hear him chastise him so harshly.  For none of Bildad’s words were untrue of a guilty man…and Job knew this deep in his soul.   God will judge the sinner…and a world built on Earthly things will crumble. Bildad was correct in saying that God can and will restore….when we come to him in repentance. But none of Bildad’s words helped Job to understand why God had allowed this to happen to him…an innocent …righteous man…who feared God more than anyone else in that day.

 

Job was forced to depend on his own heart…process his pain based on his relationship with God …what he had placed in his heart alone.  Sometimes it is like that.  No one else has gone through exactly what we have…and no one else has the same relationship with the father as anyone else. God asks us all to walk a different path to complete his will.  God asks us all to study for ourselves his great Bible…so he can reveal the perfect words for each situation he asks us to endure.

 

Job knew he had followed the words of Deuteronomy 11:18-23… “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth. For if you will be careful to do all this commandment that I command you to do, loving the Lord your God, walking in all his ways, and holding fast to him.”  We would all do well to do the same.

 

Father…thank you for reminding me that my relationship with you is not a group project. Help me find the strength to walk out in faith…when you ask me to do something that everyone else around me is convinced is wrong.  Help me to search deep down in my own heart for answers to the hard questions…and not depend completely on the advice of others…but instead…. deepen my relationship with you….and study even more to find your will and direction for my life. Amen.

Climb Up In God's Lap

Job 7:1-4 - "Is this not the struggle of all humanity? A person's life is long and hard, like that of a hired hand,  like a worker who longs for the day to end, like a servant waiting to be paid.  I, too, have been assigned months of futility, long and weary nights of misery.  When I go to bed, I think, 'When will it be morning?' But the night drags on, and I toss till dawn.

 

Job had spent some time ranting about the heaviness of his burden.  He was weary from the physical torment of the infected boils and how they prevented him from resting in sleep. He realized that he was not alone in his pain…that he was not the only one to suffer such hard times…not the first to toss and turn in the night with pain and worry…but it did not help him understand why he had been chosen to carry such a heavy burden.

 

He turned his voice from his friend for a moment…and directed his questions directly to God. He questioned God from the deep bitterness of his pain….and the confusion he felt from his once confident heart.  He longed for death once more…and is even beginning to doubt his righteousness…asking God in verse 20… “if I have sinned….please tell me what it was.” He knew that he had offered the sacrifices needed for God to pardon him…and was confused that God had not.

 

I ‘ve been there…right with Job’s frame of mind. I beat the wall of that hospital hallway….and cried out no…no….no….it’s not fair!  I questioned why God would give me such a precious gift ...and take it away only 1 month after we were married. In my selfishness…and pure joy from the gift God had given me….I cried out to God in disbelief that I deserved such great pain and loss. And I bet I am not alone…I bet all who read this post could comment …and share their moment of deepest grief…incredulous that God would even ask us to endure such harsh times.  Like Job…we have called out to God for answers…and have come up empty.

 

We come dangerously close to blaming God for our pain….and becoming so bitter that we can’t feel his love in our wounded heart any more.  Job came close to blaming God…but instead…he just asked why…one more time…and wanted to know if maybe he had sinned in some way that caused it. He climbed up in God’s lap…looked right in his face…and ask him the hard questions. Then he stayed there in the silence of God’s arms…and let him embrace him through the remainder of his pain.

 

That’s what I do every day…I climb up in God’s lap every night and let him read me a new bedtime story.  Then I talk with him about my day…share my pains and joys…and close my eyes while his arms are still wrapped around me tight.  When my eyes open in the morning…and sometimes a couple of times during the night…he is still holding me.  We go to the computer together …and we process that story he told me the night before. He helps me understand …or just accept and wait….like Job. We must all find our strength to go on in deep sorrow and pain from holding the father’s hand. Job wanted to give up….but instead he ask God to help him understand.

 

Father…thank you for reminding me that you are always waiting to hear from me.  Thank you for always having room in your lap for me to come and sit.  Thank you for always listening to every detail of my pain…even though you already knew how I felt.  There’s no place that I would rather be…than here in your love…set a new fire in my soul…to always run to you with all my pain...and let you wrap your arms around me when it is too much for my human heart to bear…until the tears subside …and you can help me accept…even when I don’t understand.  Amen.

 

PS...This song was placed in my spirit this morning! Love it when God uses friends like Janice Baker. Enjoy.. http://youtu.be/-Jzqq4B8H2Q

Justify Your Faith

Job 6:8-11 -  "Oh, that I might have my request, That God would grant me the thing that I long for!  That it would please God to crush me, That He would loose His hand and cut me off!  Then I would still have comfort; Though in anguish, I would exult, He will not spare; For I have not concealed the words of the Holy One.  "What strength do I have, that I should hope? And what is my end, that I should prolong my life?

 

Job finally responded to his friends harsh words. His heart was so heavy …he felt that death would be the only thing that brought him relief.  He could not comprehend why God had punished him so….and now his friend was blaming all his troubles on some unconfessed sin in his life. He longed for sympathy and kindness….but his friend hurled insults and accusations at him instead.

 

Amazingly…this scenario did not cause Job to doubt his faith.  He knew that he knew …that he knew that he was a righteous man…who had been careful to ask God to sanctify him …offering sacrifices as needed so that the blood of an innocent animal would cleanse his heart of any sin. His faith was holding the pieces of God that he was good…so deeply in his heart…that he just couldn’t get it to the surface to process this pain he was in.

 

Job was justified by his faith….just as it is written in Romans 5:1-5 – “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

 

I was distracted in my writing this morning….because I looked down to see that the stone in the engagement ring Mitchell gave me was gone.  My heart is devastated…I want to take the day off and search as the widow did for her lost coin till I find it.  But the present requires that I keep my commitments….and spend my morning time with God…and then go to work. Somehow I will have to keep the missing precious stone out of my mind while I teach today.  I will need to hold on to faith…that there is a reason I don’t need it any more…and God has a plan to help me release the need to still wear it. Oh how hard it is!

 

Father…thank you for this story that helps me understand how important it is to have faith…especially when I am confused…and heavy hearted. Help me to release all my worries and confusions to you this morning.  Show me how to have the faith of that mustard seed…that you told me in Matthew 17…would supply all the power I need to get through all the pain and confusion the world can throw at me. Amen.