Job 1:21 – And he said: “Naked I came from my mothers womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
In this life sometimes we end up in situations that we never thought we would be in. These situations have the ability to steal our joy, cause us to lose hope, or develop a negative attitude within us that simply gives up or says “Oh well”. Beloved, In the midst of it all, be encouraged. Please take a minute to read about a man who endured, maintained a right attitude and triumphed.
In the Word of God there is a man named Job. Job was a man that entered into a time of great trial, hardship, poverty, grief, and sadness. He also entered into a time of great learning. Learning of himself and of God. The bible declares that Job was a man that loved God, that there was none like him in all the earth. Job was a blessed man of 10 children and a wealthy man having 11,000 animals and a large household of servants. Beloved, tragedy and hardships fall on the just and the unjust. In one day Job lost his children, his servants, and his animals (which represented his wealth). His wife suggested that he “curse God and die!” Truly this was a man whose heart was broken, whose mind had to be searching to understand what had happened and was asking the question “What the heck is going on”? After having received the last report Job arose and declared – “Blessed be the name of the Lord!”
Be encouraged today that in spite of all that you’re going through, in spite of all the questions you might have, in spite of your heart that’s grieving lost loved ones, in spite of the cloud of confusion that seems to be hovering over you concerning your future, in spite of financial strains – in the midst of it all God is still in charge. The key to Jobs being able to endure and persevere until His change came was that he never lost His praise. Praise, in the midst of it all, declares to the heavens that my hope is Christ. It’s not in possessions or anything else, but my hope is in Christ. In Job 13:15, Job declares that no matter what happens I’m going to continue to do two things: 1) I’m going to trust Him (read proverbs 3:5-6) and 2) I’m going to maintain my own ways before him. In other words I’m going to continue pray and praise and trust God just like I always have. Job knew that the same God that caused Him to be so blessed loved him and could do it again if He so desired. Does that mean Jobs heart wasn’t grieved or that he wasn’t going through a hard and difficult period, of course not. But, within all of us who are in Christ lies the strength of faith that comes from God which propels us to say; In the midst of it all – Blessed be the name of the Lord for He is my all in all. In the midst of it all, Lord I bless your name because not only do I know you’re going to bring me through this but you’re also going to educate me, show me my heart, and rebuild me along the way so that I will be better, stronger, wiser, humble, more loving, and a greater testimony for your Kingdom purpose. In the midst of it all beloved – Blessed be the name of the LORD. Oh Yea – I forgot to add, if you go to the end of the story of Job, God restored everything that the enemy had stolen. Be encouraged, do not waiver in your faith in God’s faithfulness. Declare with a great shout of praise, “Blessed be the name of the Lord for He is faithful.”
