Job

What has wounded your faith?

you can control your response to wounds and grow closer to Christ through them.

“In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East. His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.”
Job 1:1-4

Satan in Hebrew means “Accuser”.

According to Satan, if the Lord had not put a protective hedge around Job, then he would have cursed his Creator to His face.

God grants Satan permission to test Job’s faith. In one afternoon Job learned that his livestock, servants, and all ten of his children had perished.

“ At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.”
Job 1:20-22

Job 2:7 tells us that Satan afflicted Job with painful boils all over his body.

“His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”
Job 2:9

“He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.”
Job 2:10

Don’t blame God, worship Him.

Embrace the suck.

“I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!”
Job 19:25-27

Grit is courage, not just in the moment but sustained over time, in the ongoing pursuit of challenging objectives.

“The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers. After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so Job died, an old man and full of years.”*
Job 42:12-17

Three insights to help you keep your faith when your world is falling apart.

First, Job worshipped God regardless of what he was experiencing.

Second, Job asked questions. God can handle your questions and complaints.

Third, when you hear from God, listen and respond.