How did Job stay so faithful?
It occurred to me this morning on my way into work that
as soon as you commit your life to Christ; your life takes on new meaning and becomes
abundantly more peaceful; but adversity doesn’t go away. Actually, for many of us; adversity just takes
on a new and very purposeful direction; one that dials in directly to your pain
points and to your weaknesses. You see,
the enemy of this world is a crafty fellow; a highly intelligent and ambitious
chap; and with him you can be sure of one thing. That he never lets up, and as The Bible tells
us; he prowls around like a hungry Lion ready to kill and destroy. There is careful
planning and subtlety in his methods; and quite often you don’t even know that it’s
him. Like most recently, when I was
confronted with some major adversity with my oldest son who has Autism. My son is; again; in the Hospital because he has
been unable to control the anger issues associated with his disability; and the
strain that this adversity puts on the entire family is all too familiar. Now, I don’t profess that the enemy gave my
son Autism; that would be giving him way too much credit. I believe he was made special by God and that there is a plan for his life. What that
plan is we are not quite sure of at this time; but I will never give up hope
and faith in God’s plan for him. I do
believe, however, that the enemy stays very “alert” to such matters; and he uses these types of circumstances in
our lives to bring us down. How do I
know? Because I have had first hand
experience, and have fallen prey many, many times to the despair and self-pity
that accompany these trials.
While I was driving from Jacksonville to Orlando this
morning; I was listening to a song by Colton Dixon (of American Idol fame); “Let them see You in me”; and I was
reminded to stay the course and stay focused on who I am in Christ; and NOT who
I am in the eyes of the world. When
adversity hits; and it WILL hit; that is the time to show your true
colors. The enemy wants us to retreat
into self-pity, over-indulgence, and anything else that we can use to ease our
pain. But Christ wants us to seek His face and go through the adversity with
Him. Not around it; but through it. He WILL give us the strength to endure and to
even overcome these obstacles. On the
contrary, when we try and do ourselves; that is when we become very easy
targets for the evil one who lingers below.
He will most assuredly pounce; and once again, we will be drinking,
loathing in self-pity, eating badly, and trying anything we can to ease our
burden.
So, why is it that we sometimes feel that we get more
than our fair share of adversity? After
all, life gets really hard sometimes and makes us doubt and wonder why. Even Job; one of the most persistence and
faithful characters of all time had doubts.
But even with his concerns and doubts, this man whose entire life was
taken from him; still had faith; and he still believed in God’s plan. In the middle of his worst nightmare; he said
this about his Lord and Savior in Job 42:2:
“I know that you can do all things; no plan
of yours can be thwarted”.
You see, Job trusted in the Lords plan for his life; and
in the end; was given everything back and then some. And finally, the ultimate reward for Job;
eternal life in Heaven.
So, next time you are hit with adversity; pick up your
Bible and read from the book of Job.
It’s a tall tale of adversity; downright devastation to one man that is almost
unbearable to comprehend. And while you’re
at it; go ahead and read from any of the 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke or John) about another Bible character named
Jesus. Take a close look in particular
about the part when He had to carry His
own cross to His own death; knowing ALL ALONG that He would be crucified on
that very cross. Think about that the next time you are in question of God’s
plan for your life. Think about The
Cross the next time you’re concerned for a loved one.
I know this is hard at times; I’m dealing with it right
now. At this very moment, my son is in
the Hospital with very little knowledge about what is going on; probably scared
and awaiting what is to come. This very
notion breaks my heart; and it’s a helpless feeling; I’m sure many of you can
relate. But the question is; what am I
going to do about it? It’s easy to
wallow in self-pity, it’s easy to be down and feel helpless when someone you
love is hurting. What’s not easy is to
look up, acknowledge that God is all powerful and knows how everything began
and knows how everything will end.
What’s not easy is to lay down your problem, your loved one, and your
adversity at the foot of The Cross.
If you are able to accomplish this task; you are doing exactly
what God wants you to do. That is to
give IT ALL to Him. Everything is within His POWER AND His will; and His plan
will unfold to all those who are faithful.
This is truth; and this truth will surely set you free. In the end and the middle of my storm; what I
desire most is that I can be more like Him who I know is in me. This song I heard this morning; was a beautiful
reminder; and inspired me to write this piece.
Comments
Post a Comment