Devotion 8.15.17

We get angry, and sometimes we direct our anger at God.  Why did you let this happen, to me of all people?  What kind of God allows this to happen?

There is a man in scripture who asks this.  His name is Job.  Job has lost everything but his life.  Job seeks answers.  His friends come and bear poor witness to Job.  Surely it's something you've done, Job, they suggest. 

God finally comes to Job, and He does nothing to answer Job's questions.  Rather, God speaks from a whirlwind and says, "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress of action like a man;  I will question you, and you make it known to me."  (38:2-3)

God eventually restores Job and chastises his friends.  What we learn is that God knows we will or have gotten angry, even at Him, and yet God comes to us.  We see this in Peter's relationship with Christ, who at times is very fond of Peter, and at other times lectures Peter like a child.  Through it all, we know that Christ "pulls Peter out of the water when he's sinking" (Matthew 14) on many occasions.  And so to us, God and Christ pull us from the water from which we sink.

We take our concerns to Christ, and we ask Him to pull us from the water.  Sometimes we may not be in the right frame of mind, but God still hears us and listens.  In the end, as with Job, He may not answer our questions, or as with Paul in 2 Corinthians 12, He may simply say, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." That grace redeems us and gives us everlasting life, for which we lift a prayer of thanksgiving to God.

Hope Men's Ministry