Job understood that whatever happens down here doesn’t affect who God is up there. He knew that in chapter 1 but he was slipping a little bit by chapter 36. The young man Elihu once again brought much-needed encouragement. He said, “Remember to extol his work, of which men have sung.” Job 36:24 ESV
Don’t stop worshipping now Job! God is still God. He is still good and he hasn’t changed just because your circumstances have.
He’s a good God, even when your mountain doesn’t move. He’s a good God, even when your wife is sick and she isn’t getting any better. He’s a good God, even when the devil’s chain seems suddenly so much longer.
He is God and he is working a plan. Part of that plan involves you loving him even when your world is on fire. Part of that plan involves you persisting in prayer.
I’m not sure I understand how that all works; I just know that I read it in the Bible.
So do like Job.
Shave your head if you need to.
Tear your robe if you must.
Fall down on your face if you have to and we will fall down with you.
We will lay in the ashes and weep and sob like the beasts.
But then we will arise.
And we will worship.
We will lift our faces.
We will look to the Lord.
And we will move mountains.
For the glory of God and the good of all people, this is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God!
Pastor Paul Carter
N.B. To listen to Pastor Paul’s Into The Word devotional podcast on the TGC Canada website see here; to listen on SoundCloud see here. You can also find it on iTunes.
[1] Charles Spurgeon as cited in John Piper, A Camaraderie of Confidence (Wheaton: Crossway, 2016), 54.
