Look Inside. Look Around. What do you see? Show me! #17

Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. 2 There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. 3 He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. 4 His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually. (Job 1)

Many Bible scholars believe that Job lived during the time of the patriarchs, like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The length of life, the description of his wealth in livestock and servants, and the way he served as priest for his family all are like those of the people of that era. The question in my mind then, is why is Job thrown in her at this point, right after the post exile accounts of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther? This is totally out of Chronology.  Well, two reasons. First of all, we are dealing with a totally different kind of record, entering into what is called "the writings", but also because the theme is so close to these last two: what does it mean when God's people, or good people, suffer?  Is God not Sovereign, unable to protect His people? Is He not as good as we thought? Can man  be totally good on his own?  Those are the ways our thoughts can tend to gravitate when we suffer.  The fact is God is Almighty, perfectly just, and that none of us are sinlessly pure - no not even you, or me.  Beginning in the next paragraph, what we see is that Satan is trying to convince us otherwise - that it is God who brings suffering, not him.  We do not need to look far to find suffering: it could start in your toenail, up to your headache, to someone in your home, family, neighborhood, local hospital, and on that screen that screams suffering all around the world.  God is watching too. He does care.  The account of Job proves to him, and to us, that our suffering is not the end of the story, and we will find God to be everything we need, we are not perfect, and God still has a plan that includes us.  Look inside. Look around.  Filter the suffering you see with this: 

“Behold, I go forward, but he is not there,
    and backward, but I do not perceive him;
9 on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him;
    he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him.
10 But he knows the way that I take;
    when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.

(Job 23:8-10)

Take a picture that speaks to you of God taking someone through suffering. Post it or send it, then talk to God about seeing them, or you, through suffering.