Eternal Compass
When harsh or icy winds are always in our faces, we often seek shelter or turn in a more welcoming direction, even if that does not lead to our intended destination. Those who say they’ve had a blessed life, aren’t saying that the winds were always at their backs. Being of Irish heritage, one of my alternative favorite Irish blessings goes like this … “May God give you… For every storm, a rainbow, For every tear, a smile, For every care, a promise, And a blessing in each trial. For every problem life sends, A faithful friend to share, For every sigh, a sweet song, And an answer for each prayer.” Our winds will come and go, but for those of us who are blessed by having the Lord at our backs, we’ll never lose hope, our eternal compass.
Although I’m not going to speculate on why God lifted His protective shield from the life of his dedicated servant Job, I would like to focus on Job’s reaction and God’s conclusion. In the subsequent moments of Job’s life after the winds which he faced were the harshest, he did not turn away but instead worshipped “and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. (Job 1:21, 22 NIV). This verse begins with the critically important attitude of no expectations. Expectations are the over-weighted belts which will one day drown us. They must be abandoned entirely for the Lord to execute his intended purpose with-in our lives. Bad things do happen to good people and it is not our fortune to always understand why. What we can not do, is to let misfortune undermine our faith and convictions. God’s heavenly kingdom is for those who persevere in the face of opposition. Job did not blame God for his misfortunes, quite the contrary he focused on and praised God for those “fortunes” he’d once been granted in His life. The bible tells us that blaming God for anything out of misunderstanding is a sin. Blaming others for those misfortunes we’ve not brought on ourselves isn’t an admirable character trait either, but it’s more likely than blaming God. Holding our faith and trust close to our hearts during the harshest winds is the kind of perseverance which most pleases God. If we’re never offered a challenge, we can not prove our worth. Adversity will always be encountered along the right path. May God then indeed, offer His blessing in each of our trials.
JC Calkins with COMMON SENSE 4 UNCOMMON PEOPLE
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