The Lesson of Job
When we face trouble, we have one focus
We all face trouble in life. It is something we can all agree upon. No matter who you are, something bad will eventually come to cause you trouble. Something will break your heart. Something will break you down. Something will make you crazy, concerned or confused.
When we look at the story of Job in the Bible. We see a lot of spiritual truth that we can apply to our lives.
Now, understand that trouble is relative to you. Just because someone on the other side of the Earth is in extreme poverty with nothing. Doesn’t make your problems any less concerning. Just because someone else is dying of some terrible disease, doesn’t make your troubles any less destructive to your life.
Evil is evil, in whatever form it manifests. We need to stop belittling peoples troubles and start solving problems. It’s very possible that if we solved the petty problems, they would not become the huge problems. If we cared about the person who can’t afford simple things, we might also care about the person in total poverty and solve the problem. If we care about the person with a flu bug, we might also care about the dying man, or even prevent disease from growing.
I say this because Job, faced terrible tribulation. He lost everything he owned, His children were all killed, and his health was attacked. On top of that, his wife was against him.
Just because Job’s troubles were really bad, doesn’t mean yours are not concerning to you. The Bible often gives us the most extreme vision of things so that we will see that our troubles are also able to be overcome. The same faith can overcome all of it. The same God is with us in all of it, no matter how big or small.
In the book of Job, Satan comes to God and asks to test Job. He claims that if Job is mistreated he will turn from God.
That is the focus of the story and that is our focus. Nothing else matters.
It doesn’t matter how bad the trouble was. It doesn’t matter if God allowed it. It doesn’t matter if Satan did it, or God did it. None of it matters.
Because Job had no clue. He just knows he is having trouble. His whole life has been upended. We even see toward the end of the book that Job is confused and has questions. It’s ok to have questions, doubts and confusion. But, Job turned to God. Job stayed with God. That’s the point.
When we face trouble, we often have no clue what’s going on. We might think it’s nature. Or God is punishing us or the devil is attacking us. We might know exactly what we did or didn’t do. We might be suffering because of something done to us by people who claim to love us.
None of it matters.
The answer for all of it is the same. Turn to God.
Pray to Him, ask Him to save you and help you. Listen to His guidance.
Job said, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him” (Job 13:15)
He turned to God and trusted Him. Even if God chose to kill him, Job knew God was good and had good reasons. He trusted God, and continued walking in the way that he was walking in his life, because he did not see that he had done anything wrong. And he hadn’t. God will let you know.
The whole point of the story is that Job turned to God and stayed with Him. No matter how bad. No matter what philosophies, or good intentions from friends. No matter how much a friend called him a sinner. No matter how much pain and humiliation. Even when his wife, was led by Satan to say, “Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.”
Job stayed with God. He trusted God and turned to God.
Now understand that I am not talking about going to church. You can go to church all you want and still not know God. You can be the greatest member of your church and still be lost.
Do you know Him? Do you trust Him? Turn to Him.
This can be seen in the Garden when Satan through the Serpent, tempted Eve. He caused her to doubt God’s promises and His goodness. (Gen. 3)
That is the the devil’s favorite tactic. To get us to stop trusting God and to not reach out to Him. Once that’s done, we have no real hope or real help. We are defenseless and powerless.
This is why God brought the curse. It is designed to cause us to turn to God.
When Adam ate of the fruit all humanity gained a corrupted nature through him. The only solution is to turn to God for salvation and help. The Curse causes us to seek that help, if we are willing.
Always turn to God. Turn to Him in everything, and He will save you, lead you, grow you and know you.
You have a choice. Do not let trouble or the enemy drive you away from God. Turn to Him and let Him work.
Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“ a collection of dystopian short stories.“The Future is Coming” and his latest book “The Latter Days‘ is a book on Bible Prophecy and avoiding the deceptions to come.
Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/
Follow Him on Free Life Blog: https://myfreelifeblog.com/
Read His Spiritual Writings on Blogger: https://chrisbunton.blogspot.com/
Support the work for the cost of a Coffee
Support the work through Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=13514235&fan_landing=true&view_as=public
Photos by the pexels/edited by author.
