Fussing like Job

Recently I've had a few opportunities in my ministry to provide pastoral care to some families going through very difficult situations. Some have experienced loss, others have had major health issues, and others are facing difficult end of life experiences. By all accounts the people I've ministered to have had every right to complain and fuss about their situations. We're not talking a bad day at work here. We're talking about major life change. Some have asked why God would allow this situation to come into their life. As a pastor you want to have the answers your congregation needs, but sometimes you're left at a loss with no answers and unable to do anything other than pray for them.

My personal daily Bible reading has been progressing through the Book of Job during the same time I've been ministering to these families. I would say it was ironic but I feel like it was God working through my own spiritual development while ministering in those

situations. One thing I always find interesting when reading the Book of Job is that Job did not hold back when it came to his complaints or arguments with God. Job, in our country vernacular, "laid into" God and fussed with Him about the raw deal he'd been dealt. Job felt like the terrible things that happened to him (death of children, loss of wealth, loss of health) were all unjustifiable because of his pious life. There is something to be said for the boldness to call God out on the things He allows to come into our life when we feel like it is completely unjustifiable. I think that Job was a spiritually mature person who understood his relationship with God and felt vindicated by his "arguments" against his raw deal. But the reality of the fact is that Job was just like us. He knew God had a hand in what had occurred. Not that God did it but that God allowed it. Still, Job knew who to fuss at. 

In life when you face a situation that you feel is like that of Job, a loss of a child or a spouse, a loss of worldly possessions, or even the deterioration of your health, know that it is okay to fuss at God for what He's allowed to occur in your life. Relationships are opportunities for two parties to express their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the actions of the other. Our relationship with God is no different. We are able to intimately tell Him about our dissatisfaction with the situations He has allowed into our life that has seemingly devastated our life. But remember, once we voice our issues with the way God has done things, God will most likely deal with us like He did with Job. After Job finished ranting at God, we read about how God puts Job in His place. God reminds Job of His sovereignty, His power, and ultimately His love. God shows us in the life of Job, and His response to Job, the truth we read in Romans 8:28. Paul writes, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (NIV). Notice that God uses "all things," not just the things we think are good but all things for the good. It is hard to hang on to the promises of God when you feel like your world is falling apart, but that is when you need to cling all the more tightly to the God who loves you and allowed His Son to die for you.

When those difficult times in life arrive, be sure not to push God away. Draw close to Him, have very candid conversations with Him, and then allow Him to speak to you. When you do you'll find that God is there ready to help you out just like He did Job.


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