Lessons From Job – Part 1

In 1858 the Illinois legislature, using an obscure statute, sent Stephen A. Douglas to the United States Senate instead of Abraham Lincoln, even though Lincoln had won the popular vote. When a sympathetic friend asked Lincoln how he felt, he said, “Like the boy who stubbed his toe: I am too big to cry and too badly hurt to laugh.” When faced with disappointment, many of us find ourselves in the same position as Abraham Lincoln – unsure of our response. Do we laugh? Do we cry? Or do we simply give up?

C. S. Lewis was once asked the question that eventually appears on every believer’s radar screen, “Why do the righteous suffer?” His reply was, “Why not? They are the only ones who can take it.” From a Christian perspective, dealing with disappointment is a good news/bad news story. The bad news is that a relationship with God does not exclude us from discouragement, tragedy, heartache, pain, or suffering. The good news is that a relationship with God equips us to handle disappointment in positive and constructive ways. Yet, in the midst of distress, many of us wonder if, as C. S. Lewis suggested, we can really take it.

This is precisely why the inspired Word of God includes the story of Job, God’s faithful servant who gained the dubious honor of being the world’s foremost expert on human suffering. In his honest no-holds-barred tug-of-war between faith and suffering, Job teaches us the value of working through our difficulties instead of being dominated by them. His experience accurately reflects the observation of Helen Keller who said, “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.”

Those of us who have read the book of Job know that, despite his candid laments toward God, Job remains faithful and God rewards him by giving Job twice as much as he had before. Because we know the ending, many of us fail to grasp the full impact of Job’s experience. In the midst of his immense emotional and physical anguish, Job does not know how things in his life are going to turn out. He does not know that he will have more sons and daughters and grandchildren. All he knows is the incomprehensible pain of burying all ten of his children. Job does not know that he will be twice as rich as he was before. All he knows it the paralyzing anxiety of financial ruin. Job does not know that his reputation will grow and that his faith will inspire a multitude of generations. All he knows are the callous accusations of his friends who say that his suffering must be the result of some hideous secret sin. Job does not know that his relationship with God will be stronger and deeper and more satisfying than ever before. All he knows is that God seems to be absent and uncaring.

We don’t have God’s eternal perspective in which to view our life’s story. Consequently, all many of us are able to see at this moment in time is a marriage that’s failing, a family divided, a bank statement that exposes debt, an addiction that seems unconquerable, an illness that appears incurable… It has been said that “those who know the path of God can find it in the dark.” Even though Job could not see too far ahead, he did indeed find the path to God through the darkness of disappointment. Along the way, he imparted a valuable lesson to fellow travelers like you and me.

Job learned that trusting God is more important than understanding God.

[Taken from “Night Vision“, an article on “Finding God’s light in the darkness of disappointment” by Rusty Tugman]