May the Name of the Lord be Praised

Job 1:20-22 (NIV)
At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 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.

[Author’s Note: This devotional is dedicated to the memory of a very dear member of my church family, Mrs. Margaret Weber. Mrs. Weber celebrated her 90th birthday in April. Instead of gifts, she requested that guests bring canned food items for the local food bank where she still did volunteer work. So much food was collected that the local newspaper featured Mrs. Weber and this gesture of kindness and generosity. On May 15, 2010, Mrs. Weber was called home by the Lord. I gave this devotional in a slightly modified format Sunday, May 23, 2010 to our Senior Assembly. Job 1:8-22 was the Scripture reading. Our church family also said goodbye to Mrs. Lillian Hanna in February of this year. I fondly recall both of these very special ladies. Although we are assured of eternal life through Jesus Christ, the personal loss we as a church family currently feel is the inspiration of this labor of love. - JWP]

When we experience loss, our first response is often to ask why.

In the first chapter of Job, we learn that Job is a righteous man.

We also learn that Job has been blessed by God in many ways... he has many servants, oxen, donkeys, sheep and a large family.

Satan sarcastically tells God that the reason Job is in awe of God is because of the blessings God has bestowed upon Job and the protection God affords Job.

Satan goes as far as to tell God that if these blessings were taken from Job that Job would curse God to His face.

God puts these blessings into Satan’s hand to do with as he wishes.

Job is about to be tested, but I suspect God is testing Satan and his view of Job as well.

When Satan strikes, he strikes hard.

He waits for the day when all Job’s children gather together at the home of the eldest son.

For Job, the day probably seems like any other day until bad news arrives and then keeps coming.

First, a messenger arrives to tell Job the Sabeans have taken away all of his oxen and donkeys and have killed all his servants there.

A second messenger arrives to tell Job that fire from heaven (lightning) has killed all of his sheep and the servants there with them.

A third arrives to tell Job that the Chaldeans have raided and have made off with all of his camels and killed the servants with them.

Just when it appears that things cannot get any worse, a fourth arrives to tell Job that his eldest son’s home has collapsed in a whirlwind and that all of Job’s children are dead.

This was the moment Satan waited for... the moment when Job would curse God to His face.

Instead, Job did what was appropriate.

The book of Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is a time when mourning is appropriate.

In an outward sign of mourning, Job tears his robe and shaves his head.

But, he does not curse God.

Instead, he delivers one of the most beautiful lines in all of scripture.

"The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, may the Name of the Lord be praised."

We are entering that time of year when we will be made abundantly aware of the Lord’s many blessings.

Graduations, weddings and perhaps a birthday or two may already have spots on our calendars.

Yet, these blessings come on the heels of the loss of our loved ones.

No one knows what tomorrow will bring.

Perhaps it will be a blessing; perhaps we will experience yet another personal loss.

Regardless of what tomorrow brings, may we be reminded of Job’s beautiful words and wise counsel.

"May the Name of the Lord be praised."

Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com/ on Friday, June 4, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, June 11, 2010.

Doing the Right Thing

Proverbs 12:22 (NIV)
The Lord detests lying lips, but He delights in men that are truthful.

I neither play golf nor am I a fan of the sport, but in April 2010 a news story by Jay Busbee caught my eye.

The headline read, "Davis Calls Penalty on Himself, Gives Up Shot at First PGA Win".

According to the article, Davis was involved in a playoff with Jim Furyk at the Verizon Heritage. Defeating Furyk in the playoff would have been Davis's first win in the PGA tour.

On his approach shot, Davis's ball bounced off the green and into a thick patch of weeds.

When Davis attempted to punch the golf ball back onto the green, he thought his club grazed a weed during his backswing.

If so, this would have been considered a violation of the rules, a two stroke penalty would have been levied against Davis and Furyk would have been declared the winner.

Davis did the right thing. He summoned a rules official who then consulted with the television replay technicians.

Only after the official reviewed the shot in slow motion was it confirmed that Davis had indeed grazed a weed.

Immediately, Davis conceded the tournament win to Furyk.

Davis did the right thing and I am glad that he did so.

At the same time, I am also saddened.

Has doing the right thing become so rare that it now is considered newsworthy?

Have qualities like honesty, integrity and character become the exception rather than the rule?

I am aware of more than two dozen passages of Scripture that stress the importance of honesty, and yet, the world has chosen to ignore them.

This is just one more reminder of how desperate the world's need of a savior has become.

Blessings,
The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.co.nr on May 21, 2010.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I'll be back here on May 28, 2010.