THE ENDURANCE OF JOB

TODAY: Pray this prayer: Heavenly Father, bestow upon me the strength to face those times of distress and suffering that are part of my life. Make me an instrument of Thy love during not just good times, but the more demanding bad times as well. Let me not lash out at You or those who love me. Give me the persistence of Job to place my life in the larger context of doing Your will, especially in those times of distress and difficulty. In Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

Many of us often think of Job when we are facing physical, emotional or spiritual distress. We recall the expression “the patience of Job” when, in fact, a better translation is the “endurance” or “persistence” of Job. Indeed, the character we meet in this book is one who is persistent in claiming that he has suffered undeservedly. Job is not some wimp who just rolls over and lets all these things happen to him. He does not like the suffering and deprivations he faces, but ultimately finds consolation in the final restoration he receives.

No doubt most of us are like Job. We don’t feel we deserve the suffering and pain that we meet in our lives. Deep down, there is little consolation when we tell ourselves that someone is going through much greater anguish or pain than we are, and that this pain is just part of life. Like Job, we find it difficult to be resigned to our pain and suffering. In our own lives, we don’t have the benefit of being able to read to the end of the book of Job to see where our suffering fits into the grand scheme of things.

In my case, I am often in a quandary: Should my prayer be to ask God to lift the pain and suffering from me, or should it be to ask God to give me the strength and resolve to live through the pain and suffering?

My brother-in-law recently had to take his family dog to the vet after the dog had been hit by a car. The dog was terribly hurt and obviously in great pain. As my brother-in-law tried to lift him into the car, the dog bit him severely on the arm. The dog was trying to relieve his own pain by lashing out at someone he loved and who was trying to help him.

While it may seem trivial, I see parallels between my brother-inlaw’s dog and my own life. How often do I lash out at the God who is trying to help me? Do I bite the arm of God when he is in fact giving me an eternal form of care and comfort?

Can I have the longer perspective of “agreeing with the Lord, and being at peace” as I confront my own life storms?

— Tom Stephens

Courtesy of The Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist