When I read the story of Job I find myself gettting frustrated with God. Why would God allow such a faithful, dedicated servant to endure so much pain and suffering just to prove a point to Satan? Obviously God already knew how Job would respond - "The Lord gave and the Lord taketh away. May the name of the Lord be praised." Honestly, I don't know that I could survive the loss of my children and my livelihood. That scares me. Shouldn't I have better faith and trust God in all things; good and bad? He, of course, knows the circumstances of my life. My prayer is that I will completely trust in God. Currently, God has our family in a place of refining. In the last three years we've had to deal with some issues that are pretty major - death of a beloved family member, health of a child, financial struggles, and others, but in all of this, God is still in control. God never left Job and I am confident that He will continue to walk with me and my family too.
Sweet Lord, please allow us to hear from you today just so that we know that you are still with us through these challenging times. Like Job, I want to praise you in the good and bad times because I know in the end, Your plan for my life will prevail. Thanks for your amazing grace and love.
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I know what you mean Leigh. SUFFERING STINKS!!! I'm sick of it myself, and I haven't suffered near the trageties that Job did. In his devestation, Job blessed God. I noticed that he didn't praise God for the trials, he just praised God. He acknowledged that God is God and can do anything He wants. He had inconceivable faith in the sovereignty of God. He chose to trust God and praise Him no matter what was happening in his life. But, that didn't mean he liked what was happening in his life. Actually he was overwhelmed by sorrow and wished he'd never been born. I've been there. The hardest thing for me is when I see my children suffering, and there is nothing I can do about it. Just like you can't take away Ben's diabetes. Remember a couple of months ago when I was desperate for prayer because I couldn't understand why God was letting our trial go on and on for no reason? I wondered why He seemed to allow injustice to prevail again and again. An evangelist pointed me to the book of Job. He said that I could take comfort in the fact that even the most Godly suffer things they can't understand, and God is big enough to handle it when we question Him. But also, in the end we know God will bless Job again and restore everything he lost. So, I hope in Jesus that He has lots and lots of joy in our futures. He has joy and blessings for us to come that will overshadow all of the suffering we have been through. My prayer is that while my suffering continues God will help me keep from sinning. I especially need to learn to keep my mouth shut and not sin by blaming God. I also have to continually pray against bitterness and hate. I can say though that I am grateful to have my Savior walking through it all with me. I couldn't survive a day without Him, and He is faithful to carry me when I can't walk anymore. Praise Jesus! He is God, and He is good. He knows exactly what He's doing in our lives. I thank God for letting me experience His presence in my life and for the hope he puts in my heart when I'm surrounded by darkness. I also thank Jesus for Godly friends like you who have prayed with me and walked with me through all of my junk. And, thank God for chocolate. My heart is still kinda tender, and I've given my burdens to the Lord. I think this will be a great day to enjoy His blessing of chocolate!
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