Most people don’t go running to God, praising and worshipping him during stressful situations; it’s unnatural to our human nature. It’s easy to get discouraged in the midst of suffering, and it’s natural to feel frustrated when nothing seems to be going your way. So, I’m sure we all can understand Job’s complete devastation when everything was taken away from him.
Though Job was blameless and walked in righteousness, God allowed Satan to test Job and take all of his property, children, and health from him. We see Job struggle with a rollercoaster of emotions and thoughts: one moment he’s confident that God is still wise and just, and in another he accuses God of being reckless and unfair. Eventually, God answers Job’s cries, but what does God say to him?
God goes on to reveal the complexity of the world — the little details that we may see everyday, but do not understand. He asks Job, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? I spoke the earth into existence and rule over the smallest details of life. Who are you to contend with the Almighty?” As God continues to reveal his infinitely greater perspective, Job’s expectation for God to defend himself seems almost absurd. As a finite being, Job would never be able to understand; God and his ways are beyond comprehension.
What’s strange is that God didn’t necessarily give Job a direct answer. Yet, from a greater understanding of the Lord’s wisdom and righteousness, Job learns humility and is able to live in peace and fear of the Lord. The Lord then restores Job of his fortunes — two-fold.
Cool story. So what?
Living through life – let alone a pandemic – is sure to come with stresses, and oftentimes we find ourselves questioning, why? However, from Job’s story, we learn that we will never know or understand the difficult situations that come up in our lives.
When Jesus came down, many believed him to be the Messiah – promised deliverer of the Jewish nation. They thought Jesus would overturn Roman rule and reign over them as “King of the Jews”. However, this was not at all what happened. We now know that Jesus was sent down to die for our sins and restore our relationship with God, but I’m sure many were questioning God and His promises to them. Though they may have not been able to understand or recognize it then, Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was all according to God’s grand master plan.
Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” When the verse talks about “[working] together for good,” it’s not saying that all of our personal dreams and desires will be met according to the perfect timeline that we have in mind. It means that everything will work out according to the infinite and greater plan that God has.
It’s inevitable that unforeseen circumstances and situations will arise. We’ll experience confusion, anger, sadness, and discouragement. However, we can have hope and trust in who God is and how He is working in the midst of every moment.
