“Seeing as you’re still alive, I say it was very successful.”—Captain Jack Sparrow
Whenever I start to complain about a problem in my life, I hear this little voice inside me saying, “Have you considered my servant Job?” Job has to be one of my favorite books of the Bible. Job endured such heartache, yet he held on to his faith. We can all learn a valuable lesson from the Book of Job. The whole book of Job shows how close Job was to God.
Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil” (Job 1:8 NIV).
When the Lord said this to Satan, He was giving him permission to test Job. Satan was allowed to take everyone and everything from Job. He was even eventually given permission to attack Job’s physical health. Yet in all this, Job never cursed God.
His wife said to him, “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!” He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said (Job 2:9–10 NIV).
It truly amazes me how much Job endured and suffered—and yet he stayed faithful to God. How many of us are that strong in our faith?
Job is a model of what faith truly looks like. And because of his faith, God blessed the rest of Job’s life. He completely restored Job’s life; even more so than before.
The LORD blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters (Job 42:12–13 NIV).
Now, whenever I hear that voice saying, “Have you considered my servant Job?” it is God reminding me of all that Job endured and how nothing that I am going through comes close to what he went through. So, if Job could suffer all that he suffered and still stand strong in his faith, then I can certainly stand strong in my faith as well.
Debbie Mitchell