“In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing” (Job 1:22).
Talk show host Larry King patiently listening as his guest, a well know celebrity, told about her husband’s infidelity, her fight with cancer, and her battle to stay financially solvent. “Did all of this shake your faith?” asked Larry, fully expecting a “Yes” answer. I am sure that most of his guests, telling of difficulties in life, would point a finger at heaven accusing, “God, let me down.” Or, “Where was God when I needed Him?”
That reaction isn’t a new one. Essentially it is the same reaction that men and women have had from the days God drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden to the present. Difficulties come and we think God let us down.
Question: Why blame God for everything? Should we take no credit for our own blunders, for evil in the world, for things happening –the result of living in an imperfect, broken world? If we also credited Him with the good things that happen, it, at least, might balance the scale somewhat. But, as you know, if things are good, we assume responsibility for them.
Making God our whipping boy for what we dislike is something I have never fully been able to comprehend. The harsh reality is that most of our difficulties in life—though certainly not all—are the result of our own failures, not God’s.
At least one man knew that when trouble knocked at the door God had not sent it. His name, Job, and you read about him in the Old Testament book that bears his name. Take time to read the first chapter of that book, and there you will read about one calamity after another which befell him. In a matter of days, he lost his wealth, his sons and daughters, save one, his dignity, and the respect of his wife. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart,” he cried, then adding, “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.” The writer of Scripture then adds, “In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrong-doing” (Job 1:22).
His attitude gives us a model and provides guidelines for our handling difficulty when we are tempted to say, “God, where are you?” First, notice He acknowledged that God is sovereign, that He is in control, that what happens to us is “Father filtered,” as someone put it. Of course, he didn’t understand, nor do we, yet Job chose to trust God through His difficulties as he said, “May the name of the LORD be praised!”
Attitude is everything. You either turn on God, or turn to Him with trembling heart, with shattered dreams, and broken hopes.
William Law was an Anglican who was often described as a mystic. His writings had a profound influence on Charles Wesley and George Whitefield along with William Wilberforce and Thomas Scott, all of whom said what he wrote was a turning point in his personal life.
Speaking of difficulty and where God is, Law wrote, “Whenever… you find yourself disposed to uneasiness or murmuring at any thing that is the effect of God’s providence over you, you must look upon yourself as denying either the wisdom or the goodness of God.” (William Law, Daily Strength for Daily Needs, ed. Mary Tileston, p. 287).
A final thought. It’s OK to turn to the Lord, to throw yourself before Him, as you cry out, “God, I’m hurting. I don’t understand why you allowed this, but I throw myself on your mercy and say, “You are my refuge, my strength, and my hope! Give me your grace and strength to go through this dark hour, and bring me through it stronger, richer, and with the certainty that You’re in control.”
Resource reading: Job 1
Yes, who knows? God may have allowed your difficulty to show you how great is His strength. Our hindsight is always 20-20, but walking by faith requires trusting Him when you cannot see beyond your next step.
