Why do bad things happen to me? Wouldn’t I be better off if I didn’t have to go through difficult times?

I’ll confess; I’ve often struggled with the book of Job in the Bible. What is it that God is saying to me in that passage that tells the story of Job? He was a man who suffered great loss and physical pain and yet kept his faith? The story goes something like this:

It was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan came also among them.

God asked him, “Where have you been?”

“I’ve been on the earth, going back and forth, up and down,” he answered.

Satan had been searching for those whom he could devour; the weak, the proud, those whom he might catch off-guard.

God was so pleased with Job and told Satan, “Have you seen Job? He is like no other. He is perfect and upright; he loves me and hates you.”

Satan mocked, “Of course, he loves you. You’ve protected him on all sides. You’ve blessed everything he’s done and you’ve given him everything he could possibly want.”

Now, God knew the strength of Job’s faith, so He countered, “I tell you what, Of all with which I’ve blessed him; everything he has,” God told Satan, “you may do with what you please. Test him and you’ll see that I, alone, am more important to Job than anything I’ve given him.”

And Satan, with all his might and every evil thing he could think of, tried to destroy Job’s faith in God. Satan took his children, his possessions, and even his health. Job experienced excruciating physical pain and deep grief.

Satan tried to destroy Job’s worship and love for the Great I Am. Still, Job did not forget who God was and who he was. God was the Creator and he was a man. Job was a sinner just like you and me, but he knew that everything he possessed had been given to him by God, even the breath in his lungs, came from God and from God alone.

This makes me stop and think. How strong is my faith? Is it strong like Abraham’s, who took his son according to all God had said, and climbed the mountain, ready to sacrifice his son at the will of God. The kind of faith that God had wanted Adam and Eve to have when he placed them in the garden and gave them everything with only one rule: Don’t eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. I hope and pray that God increases my faith daily so that I might be more like Job or Abraham and less like Adam and Eve.

What about you? Have you lost loved ones? Were you once wealthy and not so much anymore? Perhaps you were a person of distinction who has diminished in the eyes of others. Has your health been besieged? Know, that it’s not about what you’ve lost, but rather about the increasing of your faith.

Know that God loves you so much that He sent His Son, the Messiah, the one who came to save us from our sins. Claim this salvation today, for Jesus totally paid it, but you must receive it. All you have to do is see yourself for who you truly are. Then, see Jesus as the Messiah who came to give you everlasting life. If you believe that, call out to him and you will be saved. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except by me.”

So, the answer to my first question is surmised completely in the song, Have Thine Own Way, Lord. “Search me and try me, Master today”. For with each trial, my faith becomes stronger. Please feel free to share your stories below because someone may need to hear them.

References:

Psalm 139 & 147
Job 1-42
I Peter 5:8
Psalm 24
Genesis 22:1-14
Genesis 2:15-16
Zechariah 13:9
John 3:16
Romans 10:9-13
John 14:6