People often blame God for their suffering. In 2016, one plaintiff even filed a legal request for a restraining order against his Creator. The man, who actually appeared in court for the case, told the judge that over the past three years, God “had been very negative towards him” (no specifics were recorded).
Distraught with grief over the destruction that had decimated his household, Job—who would seem to have every right to file a “restraining order” against the Almighty—initially addressed his suffering differently. Feeling the full force of sorrow from unwelcomed and unexpected calamities, Job tore his robe and shaved his head—customary practices of mourning in the ancient world. Then he fell to the ground, not in despair or anger, but in submission and worship, recognizing God’s sovereign right to give and take away (Job 1:20). Although Job would later bring his “case” of the unjust suffering he experienced to God (Job 13:3,8,24), He also praised Him in the midst of his pain (Job 1:21).
Scripture is realistic about suffering found in the world and in the lives of believers in Jesus. It’s universal and comes in various forms (Genesis 3:16-19; Job 14:1). So we shouldn’t be surprised when adversity comes. And when it does, by God’s strength may we choose to worship, bring our pain and problems to God (Psalm 73:16-17), pray (James 5:13), and believe He can provide victory (Romans 8:37).
In His mercy, God extends comfort and strength through our fellowship with other believers (1 Thessalonians 5:11), helping us to stand together displaying “one spirit and one purpose” (Philippians 1:27). Blame God? No, for He stands with us in our pain (1 Peter 2:21).
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 1 Samuel 18:1-30
More:
Read Job 2:9-10, 23:13-15, 40:2 and Psalm 73:3,13 to see some wrong reactions to suffering.
Next:
How do you feel when your life is interrupted by suffering and adversity? How do you typically respond? How will your faith in God inform your response to adversity this week?
Gary Shultz on March 29, 2017 at 3:10 am
Hi Marvin: How do we respond when punched by life on planet earth? Marvin you were also kind enough to show us some sputtering reactions to the initial punch. Wow guess what, I’m made out of the same putty. I find peace easier as age has rounded off some of the cutting edges. Ah, one of the benefits of getting older, like your picture. After repeated failures we learn that God stands with us in those hard times, He knows they’re coming, he is prepared, and He keeps His word. “All things work together” He has already seen beyond. What a relief even though the ride will not be good, God is still and expert at weaving that together – “good”. As the Psalmist found during his trial, “till I entered the sanctuary of God”. When we become better “friends” with God the world has much less affect. Job really got his gaze down, understandably so, but after some sharp reminders the gaze was up, to a sovereign loving God. Thanks Marvin
marvin williams on March 29, 2017 at 1:49 pm
Gary, I am so grateful for your faithfulness to ODJ. More than that, I am grateful for your authenticity and transparency. I don’t know all about you, Gary, but you model Jesus well. I thank God for you and your voice here. Grace and peace be multiplied to you.
gagirllive on March 29, 2017 at 7:35 am
Marvin, thank you for this encouragement today. I had a lengthier post that I submitted, but it didn’t get through. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve had a difficult time connecting to the blog lately. I always get “Bad Gateway” or “Website Down”. Anyway… I don’t have time to rewrite it because I need to leave my house in a few minutes, but Habakkuk 3: 17-19 is a passage that I turn to over and over. Even though things are turned upside down in my life right now, “still I will rejoice in God my Savoir”. That’s how I’m getting through my present suffering. Thanks, Marvin. Grace and peace to all.
Monica Brands on March 29, 2017 at 10:54 am
So sorry about that, gagirllive! The servers have been struggling the past couple of days, we were shut out temporarily too! Glad it is now working for you. Thanks for sharing – it’s truly amazing the capacity God gives us for joy even when our lives are upside down and full of hurt.
marvin williams on March 29, 2017 at 1:54 pm
gagirllive, sorry about your post being lost somehow. I know it was good and would add value to the conversation. You always have something really good to say. I love Hab. 3:17-19. When we don’t have physical or ocular evidence of God’s presence, the just shall live by their faith alone. It’s easier said than done, but we serve a good who walks through it with us. Blessings on you, my sister.
godlove on March 30, 2017 at 7:30 am
Thanks for sharing that passage of Scripture from Habakkuk, gagirl. I would as well like to share lyrics from the song “Trust in You” by Lauren Daigle which I discovered on here some months ago and has become a regular on my personal playlist:
“When You don’t move the mountains I’m needing You to move
When You don’t part the waters I wish I could walk through
When You don’t give the answers as I cry out to You
I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You!”
May our Good God grant you peace and comfort as you keep trusting in Him. Grace and mercy to you, mum, I have you in my prayers.
hsnpoor on March 30, 2017 at 8:07 pm
I too thank you for that Habakkuk verse, as well as Gary’s verse, which I think was from Psalm 73, one of my favorites! Same problems are going on at ODB, but the Oswald Chambers site seems strangely unaffected. Word is that it’s not an ODB problem, but something to do with WordPress and the whole site is now somehow conjoined with Facebook in some unknown entanglement and some big thing is supposed to happen next week. I hope the “big thing” doesn’t have anything to do with the Turkish crime family of hackers that is trying to collect a ransom from Apple or something terrible will happen on 4/7/17, as reported on LinkedIn, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. It’s just all way above my pay grade and I’m sure it will get sorted one way or the other soon enough and we’ll get through it. Hang in there, GG! Somebody really, really, really big has got your back!