Why Me Lord?

"My ears had heard of You but now my eyes have seen You"

Job 42:5

 

Suffering... Oh! Lord, why must we suffer? Haven't we all cried these same words before? There was a man in the Old Testament named Job who's journey into despair would make most of ours look mild! Job was a very righteous man who faithfully loved God deeply and he lived a life of obedience. This caught Satan's attention because he was jealous of Job's loyalty to God. Satan tried to convince God that Job was only righteous because of his comfortable life. God trusted Job's heart so He allowed Satan to bring utter disaster upon Job.

 

Job's troubles began. He lost his considerable wealth, all ten of his children. Jobs wife told him to curse God and die. His health failed miserably and his friends berated him and accused him of bringing his woes upon himself due sin. Job eventually lost everything and he cursed the day he was born. However, in spite of his losses, his grumblings and deep despair, Job, remained faithful to God.

 

 When God gave Satan permission to tempt Job, God already knew He trusted Job's heart. He knew that his love for Him was never based on his riches, his love, his family, or his health. God knew Job would remain faithful and that his story would inspire multitudes of faithful Christians to preserve them in the midst of their trials.

 

All of Job's life he had been a good man. All his life he believed in God. Yet trials came to his door. So why did he have to suffer so greatly to prove his love to God? In the midst of Job's storm he learned a valuable lesson that we should all take notice from. Job sees hope. It was through his suffering that he learned of the greatness of God. If you underline any passage in the Book of Job, be sure to underline Job 42:5

 

"My ears had heard of You but now my eyes have seen You"

 

Job's suffering was never about his love for God. His loyalties were misplaced. His friends loyalties were misplaced. Sometimes God uses our trials to teach others. It is about where we will spend Eternity. He loves us enough to teach us that this world can never compare to the riches He has prepared for us in glory. God opened up the Heavens and revealed His Magnificent Glory and power.

 

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, the things that enter into the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him." 2 Corinthians 2:9.

 

Despite all of the trials in Jobs life, he held firmly to his faith in God. God will allow Satan to test us to reveal our faith and to refine us. He will not tempt us to sin. That is Satan's domain. Satan will tempt you to sin in order to make you fail. The same God who allowed Job to suffer ends up blessing him doubly. God returned all that Job had lost and so much more then he could have ever dreamed. He replaced his material things in abundance and gave him a brand new family.

 

"Now the Lord blessed the later days of Job more than his beginning." Job 42:12.

 

My personal testimony...

 

Don't ever let it be enough to just hear about God. Get to know Him in a personal way.The reason this story touches my heart so deeply is because my husband and I have lived a similar journey. Certainly not to the point of losing our loved ones, but it effected our health, our finances and our ability to live the same lifestyle that we had dreamed of. That well planned life that we once knew disappeared and in it's place joy's unspeakable.

 

My husband and I had a great testing of our faith over an extended period of time. Leaving the details out, our lesson was never about what we lost or how different our life looked. None-the-less, it was life changing. It was in the midst of this season that we looked up and saw our Lord looking back with His arm outstretched. We learned what life could be like having a personal relationship with Him. We learned to live and breathe and move in His presence. We learned that He is ever faithful to His Word. He learned to live by this Word.

 

God began to reveal to us things that we could have never imagined. There has not been a day that we don't put God at the head of our day, our home, our family, and our life. He replaced everything we thought we had lost and so much more. Our marriage is richer and we love others with a deeper love. We learned what to hold close and what to let go. Spending Eternity in Heaven with our Lord and all that we hold dear became our heartbeat and our mission.

 

Not one of us will ever leave this world unscathed. Often by our own decisions or taking our eyes off of God. God may allow trouble and tribulations to come into our life, but He will never be the cause of them. He is just being a good, good Father that loves His children too much to allow us to destroy our chances to spend Eternity in Heaven with Him. A place that is more beautiful then we can ever imagine... and yes, with our loved ones. Job had an opportunity to reunite with the family in Heaven that he had lost.

 

As hard as your sufferings may seem, you need to remain ever faithful in trusting that God is using your trials for your good and His glory. He loves you with an everlasting love and He knows what He is doing in your life is to bring you to a better place. When you can't see His hand in your situation... TRUST HIS HEART!

 

"Consider it pure joy, my brother and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

 

Sweetest Blessing,

Jo