Last week I shared about the beautiful life lessons while observing my daughter’s Taekwondo class, and the breakthrough the Lord wants us to experience in our lives. Are you feeling a little banged up this week? Month, year? Life can be so hard. But it doesn’t have to be without meaning and purpose.
I have been reading in the book of Job this week… soooooo fun, right? I needed encouragement so I turned to the book of Job. *Ha*
And yet, I do find something deeply healing about it.
Job was real. He didn’t buy into the spiritual clichés of his companions. He longed for a deeper understanding of God. In the midst of Job’s agonizing cries of suffering, God spoke to him and did not hold back revealing Himself to Job.
I have to admit though, God’s reply to Job sounds a little blustery at first. Like a chastising father, shaking his finger saying, “How dare you doubt and question me?”
But we know that God’s character never changes, and that He is who He says He is: Gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in love. Wickedness is indeed punished, but when it comes to questioning God, it’s the heart that counts.
I remember a sermon our pastor gave several years ago about the difference between questioning God, and questioning God. In Psalm 13, David writes, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?” David wasn’t condemned for his honest grief. His questions overflowed from a genuine heart. He questioned God not to test or reprove Him, but to lean in and be vulnerable. Vastly different than a heart of bitterness, disbelief, and pride.
Only a few verses later, David’s true motives are exposed. “But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.”
I think that was also the heart of Job. And God responded not in fiery rebuke, but in loving assurance. He reminded Job of His sovereignty: That He has laid the foundations of the earth, placed the massive stars in place, created storehouses of snow, directed the lighting, and formed every living creature.
He then said to Job’s companions, “You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” The Lord asked Job to make a sacrifice for his friends, and lavished even greater blessings on him than before. God the Father was still pleased with Job.
In considering the life of Job, I think the first place we can start when we are struggling for a breakthrough is to lay our soul bare before the Lord and be real, and trust that God will be compassionate in our pain. I have experienced the Lord’s compassion in my pain in profound ways. A loving Father leaning in close and filling up empty places of my heart. When we invite God into our woundedness, He will grieve with us, and start the tender process of healing.
We also need the right kind of weapons. Our battle is not against flesh and blood, so we need to fight in prayer, and hold up our shield of faith-faith that He who began a good work in us will carry it to completion.
What comes next will be different for everyone. We can ask God to search our hearts, and be humble in hearing from Him. In Christ, we can demolish every stronghold and renew our minds in the light of His Word.
Like Job, we can’t give up in our pursuit of seeking God in our trials. There is too much at stake. Our breakthrough is dependent upon a heart yielded to God. Victory will look like a life transformed by perseverance, resulting a harvest of joy.