JUST LIKE JOB
“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.” Job 1: 6-12
Job is someone we have either heard about or read about. We know the details of him being a rich man. He was a just man, upright. We also know that Job lost all that he had. But, let’s go back a bit. The Word tells us that Satan went to God and asked that the hedge that surrounded Job with protection be removed. Satan wanted to basically break Job to the point where he would simply walk away from God. The key point is Satan was well aware of how powerless he was in comparison to God. He knew that his tricks didn’t stand a chance, therefore he asked God for permission to test Job. Isn’t that something…? Can you imagine being “handpicked” by the enemy to, in a sense, be a part of an experiment to see just how far you could be pushed? Can you imagine being tormented each day all in an effort to see if you would turn away from God?
Well, guess what…as Christians, the enemy does set traps in an effort to lure us into his deceitful web. He uses all kinds of tricks in order to test our faithfulness. However, nothing gets past God because He is all knowing. God allows certain things to take place in our lives, not to hurt us but to help us. Each and every single time that we encounter an obstacle, we are also faced with making decisions. No matter how great or small our choices appear to be, we must decide for ourselves whether to seek the consult of God or to simply lean toward our own understanding, even though the Word advises not to. And there are other times when He shows us “point blank” the road to take, but we go another way. The enemy loves this because it allows him to “lay and wait”. It gives him an opening to get in and cause havoc in our lives.
Going back to Job and what he suffered through…reflect on the fact that he was an upright man, meaning he had done nothing wrong in the eyes of God. He was obedient and God saw him as “perfect”, without a blemish. Satan was fully aware of this which led him to “hand-pick” Job for his own purpose. Now, Job lost all he had, including his children. I’m sure that he was hurt, and very distraught over all of this. Did Satan care that Job was in agony? No, he didn’t. He wasn’t interested in comforting Job or helping him to heal. He only wanted to drive Job to the point where he cursed God. So, by the time Job’s wife came to him and said that he should curse God and die, Satan was on “cloud nine”. He was enjoying every moment of Job’s suffering. No matter what came against Job, he stood on God’s Word and remained faithful. In the end, he was rewarded because of his obedience. God blessed him with more than he’d had before.
How many of us can honestly say that we’re like Job? If we lost our homes, cars, jobs and families, would we still follow Jesus? Or, would we “jump ship” and take a ride with the enemy? The choices we make are reflective of our faith in God. So, if we believe in God and trust that He will take care of us in the worst of storms then nothing else would matter. It wouldn’t matter how little we were left with because our faith would give us the strength to move forward. Our faith in God and His works would enable us to rest through the storm.
I lost my vehicle in September of last year. It was the only means of transportation my children and I had. I can remember the morning I realized it had been repossessed. I walked outside to start it for work, and it wasn’t there. I looked around and around and around for it, thinking maybe I’d parked it in a different spot. Finally, it hit me that my truck was gone. I came inside and sat down. I cried for a while. I prayed with friends. And that was my process…my process. You see…? God was waiting for me to see what He was trying to show me. Eventually I began to see clearly. I recognized God in my situation, and calmness came over me. The lack of transportation was no longer my focus. The whole thing was a blessing in disguise. I no longer had to wonder or worry about how I would pay my truck note while completing an unpaid internship for graduation. I no longer had to worry about maintenance fees, and other issues relative to the general upkeep of the vehicle. The situation did present a number of issues for me and my children. However, God was there to bring us through each and every obstacle. He’s just that good.
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous…” comes to mind. All of the things I had to suffer through for the sake of righteousness. The loss I endured. Leaving my home and moving into a small apartment. Leaving an abusive marriage but still having love in my heart for my husband. These are all things that have transpired over the past year. And although my life is not free of blemish, God continues to bless my life. And no matter what I face, I’m never alone. God is always with me, providing whatever I stand in need of. I am so thankful to God for all that He’s done in my life. I will forever be grateful.