Blessed Brokenness
Today’s Bible Reading: JOB 1:1-4:21
Job 1:21
And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord."
We all suffer. For some the degree and duration of their suffering is far greater than others. Our encounters with suffering can elicit a myriad of misconceptions about God, casting doubt on God’s goodness and causing us to question God’s purpose for it. The book of Job outlines the extensive and exhaustive suffering of a Godly man. Yet it is not really the span or the severity of his suffering that is considered, but rather his answer to his anguish.
In the midst of great loss Job makes a profound declaration. He makes a confession that should comfort us in our calamity. He makes three statements that bring help to our hurt. First, he says, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there.” He declares that we live in the in between. Our life exists between our entrance and our exit, between birth and death. We come into this life with nothing and we depart with nothing. He is professing that the things of this life are for this life. They are not transported into the next life. We are to hold our possessions with an open hand knowing that in losing them we have not lost. We cannot take things with us, so we need not fret or be discouraged if they are taken from us. Job acknowledges that the value of what is valuable is not in what vanishes. We came into this world with nothing and we leave with nothing. The beginning and the end of life is the same nakedness.
Second, Job says, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away”. In this affirmation, he is acknowledging that the Lord is the source of all that we have. He gives us all things. It is by His hand that we have and have not. We may accumulate things, but He assigns them to us. He gives. He takes it away. So, when He takes back what He has generously and graciously given to us, we can rejoice that He allowed us to have it so long. All that we have is from Him. Even our family is God’s gift to us. We must proclaim that the Lord gives us all that we have. But even so, we must acknowledge God’s hand in our loss. We must attest to God’s action in taking some things away. We must declare with Job that both what we receive and what is removed is by His hand. We must come to understand and acknowledge His loving providence in all things, even in our deepest loss.
Finally, Job gives a pronouncement of praise when he says, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job blesses God in His bereavement. He praises God in his peril. The evidence of his frustration was clearly seen when he tore his clothes and shaved his head because of his loss. The expression of his faith was seen when he fell to the ground and worship the Lord. He blessed the Lord in his brokenness, so should we.
Today let Job’s example teach you that worship is the right response to your woes and to glorify God is the answer to your grief. Rejoice in both what you have received from God and what has been removed by God. Yet also, recognize His care for you and comfort of you when trouble arises. No matter what befalls you resolve to respond by turning your problems into praise proclaiming that “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Bless Him in your brokenness.
Comments