Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Trusting God”
Our Bible verse for today: “Surely I spoke about things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” Job 42:3 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Trust God to teach you important lessons as you go through tough times.”
When we consider the story of Job we usually conclude by giving him credit for enduring tremendous hardship without losing his faith in God. But while it’s certainly true that Job never lost his faith in God, it’s also true that in the middle of his pain and suffering Job questioned God – a lot. Job wanted to know what he had done to deserve this kind of suffering; he even suggested that God was being unfair and even harsh.
Sounds like me.
I would like to claim that I’m a towering pillar of strength and courage in the face of tough times and pain, but I’m not. I’m actually a lot like you. And like Job. While I never lose my faith in God, I do ask questions – and yes, I do complain. I’ll bet you do too.
And God’s ok with that. I mean, He already knows you feel that way so you might as well admit it and talk to Him about it, right? There is actually great value in being open and honest with God about your questions and complaints. Because when you talk to God about what you are feeling, openly and honestly, He then helps you to think through it and begin to see things from His perspective. That’s what happened to Job.
Now, Job was never told “why” he suffered the way that he did. You and I, the readers of his story, we are told, but even at the end of the story Job was never told the “why” of it all. But through the course of the pain and the suffering, as he asked questions of God and voiced his complaints, Job’s eyes were opened to greater spiritual realities. Through it all Job came to know and appreciate God in ways he never had before.
In verse 42:3 he even spoke about “things too wonderful for me to know.” If you go back and read the unfolding dialogue in the previous 41 chapters you realize that as Job wrestled through this thing, he discovered many wonderful things about God which he had not previously known. Job’s times of trial and struggle ended with him having a much deeper relationship with the Lord than he had before going into that difficult season of life.
And therein lies the lesson for us. God will not only walk with us through our seasons of difficulties, but He will use them to teach us and to grow us – if we will just let Him.
The next time you’re going through tough times I encourage you to use that season of life as an opportunity to learn and to grow. Spend lots of time with God; wrestle with Him; ask questions; voice complaints; seek understanding. Just like was true for Job, you can trust God to teach you valuable lessons through your times of trials.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 