May 3, 2025

If you ever decide to read the Book of Job, know that it is considered wisdom literature and part of the poetry section of the Bible, although only a small portion reads poetically. It is a conversation between Job and his friends. Bildad is the next friend to chime in on Job’s situation. He says a few true things about God, but he is less than consoling to his friend in distress. He weighs accusations against Job’s children, saying that God cast them away because of their transgressions against Him. Can you imagine grieving over your children and having your friends tell you they must have been wicked because of God’s judgment against them? This conversation reminds me of a court proceeding with God being the judge, Job being the defendant, and Job’s friends, a team of lawyers for the prosecution, arguing the case for Satan, the accuser. It seems that Satan was using Job’s friends as a ploy to get him to curse God; we know that, in the end, Satan failed to prove his case. Bildad speaks some truth in his testimony against Job as reflected in the following scriptures:

Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evil doers: Till he fill thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing. They that hate thee shall be clothed with shame; and the dwelling place of the wicked shall come to nought. Job 8:20-22

If you find yourself facing the accusations of the enemy, remember that God is the judge, and Jesus is the one who took the punishment for our sins. We are not guilty in the eyes of God because of Jesus!

May 2, 2025

Depression over our situation causes us to linger within our heads. We contemplate every detail of our circumstances, rolling it over and over again, trying to find comfort only to come up empty. We repent, even if we don’t know of any sin we committed, to see if God will relent and give us a reprieve from our despair. Tears fill our eyes when we try to find an answer for our misery, especially when God seems quiet and the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) doesn’t tell us why we are disquieted. We look for the reason to no avail. We sleep, hoping it will be gone in the morning, but our bed seems full of thorns as we toss and turn, hoping to relax, if only for a moment. It will make you long for Jesus to take us out of our misery, to be in a place where the enemy can no longer taunt us, causing our grief. When will it be over? Only God has the answer. Our time is in His hands; we have no control over it. Affliction and pain are our lot, but it’s not forever. A day will come when the cloud will clear, and just like that, our spirit will be refreshed and renewed, and the sun will shine upon us again. Stay fervent in prayer, and seek God; He is our refuge in times of trouble. He wants us to rely on Him, especially when our heart is troubled. 

When I say, My bed shall comfort me, my couch shall ease my complaint; Then thou scarest me with dreams, and terrifiest me through visions: So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life. Job 7:13-15

Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. Psalms 91:8-10

May 1, 2025

Job’s friends should have been there to comfort him in his calamity, but instead, they added insult to injury. He was quiet until now and rebuked them for their harsh words in his time of need rather than encouraging him in his sorrow. During your trouble, you find out who your friends are. Job knew that the fiery darts he was experiencing were allowed by God, and if He desired, they could pierce the soul. We must remember that the shield of faith extinguishes those flames; I can see God being proud when we use it to combat the enemy. 

When my husband’s dad passed away, and we were mourning his loss, we encountered a different situation; we had people offering us pity with dollar signs in their eyes. We were able to cull out his dad’s friends and acquaintances because we could see right through their intentions. People come out of the woodwork if they think they can benefit from your loss. In Job’s situation, there was nothing for them to gain unless it was to gloat over his misfortune. Our lesson in this is to offer unconditional support for those who are grieving and show compassion for their situation. For goodness sake, don’t avoid them; show them God’s love and comfort them during their time of need.

How forcible are right words! but what doth your arguing reprove? Do ye imagine to reprove words, and the speeches of one that is desperate, which are as wind? Yea, ye overwhelm the fatherless, and ye dig a pit for your friend. Job 6:25-27

April 30, 2025

If we have the breath of life, we will have trouble in this world; we cannot escape it. As Christ-followers, we will encounter demonic entities that cause us trouble; they are why we must stay armored. However, as God’s children, we will also receive correction, and it might feel like trouble, but it comes from His love; no one likes punishment or the fact that God might use His hand to turn us in the right direction, but it’s for our own good. Eliphaz was right in expressing his thoughts about God to Job and gave him a list of promises that we can still count on today. There was no scripture for him to refer back to because Job is thought to be the oldest book in the Bible; Eliphaz seems to know of God and His goodness. Here are some of the promises mentioned:

1. If He wounds you, He will heal you.
2. He will save us from trouble.
3. He will protect us from death during famine or war,
4. We will be at peace with the beasts of the field.
5. We will be in peace in our home.
6. Our offspring will be great.
7. We will live a long life. 

If you are having trouble in any of these areas, you might want to mention these promises to God, but remember, He may be correcting you. If correction is part of your trouble, you will know because He will make it clear in your mind. 

Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty: For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole. He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee. Job 5:17-19

April 29, 2025

Job is sitting with three of his friends, and up to this point, they’ve been quiet and haven’t said anything to comfort him. Then Eliphaz breaks the silence. He starts well by assuring Job that he doesn’t want to grieve him further or hurt his feelings, but he can’t help himself, and rather than correct him for loathing the day he was born, he goes into a discourse about how Job could console and comfort those who grieve but couldn’t take it when it came upon him. However, God had visited Eliphaz in a vision or dream, whether for Job or for his own haughtiness, the Bible doesn’t say, giving him words to counsel with. The jest of Eliphaz’s vision was to assure Job that even though he was a great man, he was not greater than God, and God puts no trust in His servants, and He even charges His angels with folly, so how much less are we who are mere mortals, who are made of dust and clay, which are easily crushed. Maybe Job needed to hear what was said, but I don’t want or need friends like these. I’ll take my counsel, correction, and comfort from the Holy Spirit. If you can’t help your friend with comforting words, it’s best to say quiet. 

Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees. But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled. Job 4:4-5

Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker? Job 4:17

April 28, 2025

Poor Job lamented his life. His misery was so much that he cursed the day he was born and wished he had died at birth. Job was not the only person in the Bible who lamented his birth; Jeremiah and King David also wished they hadn’t been born. We may be under such pain and torment that we either want our death or reminisce that we were never born, but neither is possible without God’s permission. He gave us life and is in charge of the time of our return to Him in our death; we have no absolute control over either. My heart goes out to Job and his situation, and I understand why he may have wanted to die rather than live a tormented life. He was mourning the death of his children and all his wealth vanishing but also dealing with the pain of disease, so, understandably, he might have wanted to be relieved of his misery. Job’s friends didn’t say a word at this point in the scripture; they listened. Sometimes, the best thing we can do is listen without speaking when someone is in pain, but if words are needed, we must use consoling language to help ease their pain and not add to their burden. 

For my sighing cometh before I eat, and my roarings are poured out like the waters. For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me. Job 3:24-25

April 27, 2025

Satan goes back before God a second time after destroying everything Job had, including his children and all his wealth. He convinces God to let him destroy Job's health because he is sure Job will curse Him because of his deplorable physical condition. You've got to have sympathy for what he went through, especially when boils overtook his body. However, his wife, who lived through it all, seems nasty and encourages Job to curse God and die. We all say things out of anger that we should keep to ourselves, but she didn't, and her words ring out throughout every generation. However, she was living Job's torment, too. Everything he lost, she lost. She must have been grieving her children and the loss of her lifestyle, and now Job was sick. It wasn't easy for her either, but Job must have forgiven her because we know further in the story that they had more children together. At this point, Job's friends were better to him than his wife; when they saw his condition, they tore their garments, put dust on their heads, and sat down to grieve with him for seven days, not saying a word. 

It is hard when we come under attack by the enemy; we want to give up and go into hiding, but we have the power to overcome his assault by invoking the name of Jesus. Call out his name: Jesus, Jesus, Jesus! Then wait; you will feel a peace come over you. This peace will allow you to withstand the enemy's attack, and you will persevere through every adversity God permits. Stay armored up, and you will be able to stand when the enemy attacks.

But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips. Job 2:10