Perseverance

Perseverance

Job is an example of a man who endured patiently. From his experience we see how the Lord’s plan finally ended in good, for he is full of tenderness and mercy.

James 5:11

Can you imagine having ten children, and then losing all of them the same day? Job did.

Job was a prosperous man in every way. He was healthy and wealthy, and he feared God. Satan thought that Job would remain faithful to God only if he prospered financially, and God permitted Job to be tested. Hardship after hardship came to him; he lost his children, his cattle, his servants, and he was left penniless. Yet “in all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God” (Job 1:22).

Although it’s hard to imagine things getting any worse, they did. God allowed Job to be afflicted with painful sores from head to toe, but even when Job’s wife suggested that he give up his faith, Job said, “Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” (Job 2:10).

Satan’s argument about Job’s life (and about all our lives) was that “no one serves God for who he is, but for what he or she can get.”^a But when everything was taken away from Job, he said, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be stripped of everything when I die. The Lord gave me everything I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” (Job 1:21).

In the end, God blessed Job with spiritual humility and abundant physical blessings. But in the middle of a terrible situation, Job persevered with faith even when he didn’t understand the reasoning behind his suffering.

Father,

You know how weak we are. Even when we persevere, we have our moments of tears and questions, just like Job. Please help us to remember that the trials and hardships we experience now are part of a much bigger plan that we don’t always understand. May we see your grace and compassion even in the midst of hard times. Amen.