Redemption is a recurring theme in the Bible, but in order to receive it humankind must also be willing, I think, to humble themselves and recognize the sovereignty of God. The remarkable thing is that Job, recognizing that he could not resist the sovereign God, did not merely maintain his spiritual composure but even found, in adversity, occasion for praise. Perhaps in measuring the greatness of his losses, Job took stock of the abundance which had all the while been entrusted to his stewardship. Instead, this hour of his desolation was a moment of truth for him. Stripped naked of the things of this world, Job was unusually sensible of God’s confronting presence.
Often I have read the book of Job and wondered why he had to suffer so much loss to prove his steadfastness to his beliefs. God chose a special person in Job and there are probably many others throughout history that could have withstood such hardship and still believed and praised an unfailing Lord. Perhaps we don’t know until we are put to the test with some catastrophic event or just living with an infirmity or handicap forever, with no hope of improvement.
As a nurse, I have seen much human suffering and indeed all of us will eventually face life’s stumbling blocks, whether physical or emotional, that test our faith and ability to overcome. What I believe will sustain us is the ability to not let pride prevent us from recognizing our dependence on God and the example he gave us in Christ Jesus. A simple little story of Adam and Eve in the garden when they were fleeing gives me hope. They stepped on a little clump of tiny flowers – the forget me nots- and the flowers spoke to them not in words, but in wisdom; forget me not! I believe that God is constantly reminding us in all kind of ways (if we look for them) that He is still there for us if we reach out to Him. My patients often remind me that he helped them endure their sufferings and comforted them in their weakness. Like Job, all we can really do is prepare our hearts to receive Him and offer him praise and worship in all that we do.
Written by Anne Wray
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