Tag: Job

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Job drops the “L” Word.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

“I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman. For what has God above chosen for us? What is our inheritance from the Almighty on high? Isn’t it calamity for the wicked and misfortune for those who do evil? Doesn’t he see everything I do and every step I take?” ‭‭Job‬ ‭31‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In Job’s autobiographical style, he’s still sifting through the possibilities of where he has sinned, or where he has been unaware of such awful offenses against a holy God that it would warrant a personal plague upon his life. Have you ever felt cursed by God? Like every time you turn around, something is breaking, something is going terribly wrong? It feels difficult to just catch your breath or dig out of financial trouble when some new drama or debt comes along. Again, the Bible Project guys summarize it like this, Job 31 is “where Job makes a final defense of his integrity and righteousness.” He’s listing off his righteous responses, declaring his innocence.

But in this chapter we find Job touching a chromosomal nerve, specifically the “Y” kind. Job says he has made a holy contract with his own eyes. Job made a “berith,” a “barah” a contractural cutting, a promise backed by cutting the flesh, proving by blood. A contract, a promise is only as good as the bond, the word of the keeper.

Job metaphorically describes this promise his heart made with his own eyes. “I will not look…” I will not look at what Job? A virgin. A young woman. Well, that seems a little impossible, even impractical! For one, they are everywhere. Two, how would he know who is a young virgin and who isn’t? One specific note in 2 Samuel 13:18, describes Tamar, the daughter of King David, as wearing a “robe of many colors,” which was a garment typically worn by the king’s virgin daughters. “Now she was wearing a robe of many colors, for this is how the virgin daughters of the king dressed in earlier times,” Indicating that their clothing was not only a mark of virginity but also of royal lineage and privilege.

In the Hebrew, this verse does not have the word, “lust.” This was inserted to help the reader understand the meaning of “looking” at a “virgin,” and it wasn’t to imply someone checking out her swanky apparel choices. Job, declaring his innocence, his high regard for righteousness, sets the moral bar at its highest point- whether the young woman was modest with her wares or not – he wouldn’t gaze-n-gawk!

Just to be absolutely clear about what he’s advocating, Job uncomfortably digs deeper in verse 9 writing, “If my heart has been seduced by a woman, or if I have lusted for my neighbor’s wife…” He’s confessing both his methods and standards of moral purity by which he has lived his life. I have friends that put the Job 31:1 verse in obvious places to remind themselves of what it takes in a very un-modest society, to remind our male brain to make a contract with our own eyes. Looking may be one thing, but pausing to ponder is disrespectful and dangerous for all us “Y’s.” Job reminds us that God sees every glance that gazes longer than it should. It is out of love for God, love for our own wives and a true godly love for God creating women, that we should be on guard with the “L” word.

Years ago, my wife and I went to dinner with two other couples in Balboa Beach, California. It was a beautiful summer evening, so we went to an incredible spot called “little Corona Beach.” It’s quite a walk down to this secluded area that has a stunning view of the ocean. We had no idea there was a photoshoot happening just down the beach with the black rocks in the background. It only took a second to realize the model being photographed was completely naked! Right there on a public beach with the shooter just snapping away without shame. Believe me – we all looked because it’s just that shockingly unexpected. I instantly knew that more than a glance would mean trouble. My two friends gave a few more moments than I did. All six of us did a 180° and headed back up the cliff trail. As we said our goodbyes, our friend’s wives laid into their husbands. “Why did you keep staring?” they asked. Then, they just had to point out the fact that I turned instead of lingering. Boy, did I get the dude-glares then. I just knew better! I knew it was not a good choice for me to look even that little extra moment. My husband friends were so mad at me for making them look bad! I told them, “look, you were the dummies that knew better and didn’t do the right thing, did you want me to join you in the dog-house?” I didn’t even know Job’s meme for doing what is right at the time! Now I do. And, so do you!

Prayer

​Dad,
Job may have been proving his innocence or justifying his righteousness, but that one verse has been so helpful for me and many of my “Y” friends. Thank you, not only for your Word being a light and truth in my life, but also for being ways of protecting me from myself and proclivities of my own disordered desires.

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Eating from a Bitter Spoon

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“And now my life seeps away. Depression haunts my days. At night my bones are filled with pain, which gnaws at me relentlessly. With a strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat. He has thrown me into the mud. I’m nothing more than dust and ashes.” Job‬ ‭30‬:‭16‬-‭19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In chapter 30, Job is not only at his wits end, he is at the finality of his situation and sees no light at the end of the tunnel, no end to his suffering. He now clearly believed that God was THE ONE who grabbed his shirt, chokingly twisting it and had thrown him to the ground. Sleep evades him at night and the hope of sunlight bearing better news turns into a nightmare of a haunting depression every day! He is utterly exhausted and has shooting pains in soul and body. He wonders where God is, fearing that God wants noting to do with him. God seems silent and evasive.

Job even continues to review his role in being judged and disciplined, although he could not perceive that he had done no wrong – it was all a test of will, of faith of grit and determination. The chapter begins with Job being humiliated by those with far less social or financial standing. Young men with so little maturity, they couldn’t even keep up with his own wrangling sheepdogs! Old men, past their prime, with no vigor to even help themselves. Job knows who they are and what they experienced in life: They are gaunt from poverty and hunger, they are driven from human society, nameless fools, and outcasts. These are the people now mocking him, deliberately and delightfully kicking him while he is down.

Yet, even though Job is innocent, he still had to reckon with his own actions towards those believed to be punished by God. In Job’s own words, he believes he saw their struggles and treated them fairly. “Surely no one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble. Did I not weep for those in trouble? Was I not deeply grieved for the needy?” Not to point out the obvious, but did he? Did he turn against the needy? Did he grieve?

If so, then how was he humiliated by their response to his own world falling apart? I am not saying God judged him for his attitude toward the outcast, but it seems obvious that he was oblivious until HE BECAME ONE.

Oh, how careful we must be when we cast assumptions and judgments on the poor, on the fringe who suffer bitterly throughout life. Some may say, “except for the grace of God, there go I.” Job experienced the low-end life IN and WITH God’s grace. I’m sure it changed him. I’m sure it adjusted his views on the haves and the have nots. Job 30 is a lesson on living life among the have nots! Instead of feasting with a silver spoon, Job learned to eat with a bitter spoon.

Prayer

​Dad,
In many ways I lived the life of misery, not by a lack of food or shelter, but of safety, love and peace. I understand family chaos, generational addictions and any sense of normalcy as a child living with a fractured blended family that reeked of alcoholism and violence. But, even then, I look back and see your hand of grace; watching, shielding, even resiliently building faith in me. I am thankful that I may have started as one of those outcasts, but I did not remain as one. My heart and life is now dedicated to brokering hope to the hopeless. It’s all because of You.

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The dilemma of suffering.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Why do the wicked prosper, growing old and powerful? They live to see their children grow up and settle down, and they enjoy their grandchildren. Their homes are safe from every fear, and God does not punish them.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Even with all that had happened to Job – immense loss and excruciating physical anomalies, he somehow held onto his quick wit. This chapter opens with Job wanting to talk to his friends, getting a word in edgewise, because when we are not in pain ourselves, we are just full of unhelpful opinions! Job tells his “comforters,” LISTEN TO ME. It’s the least you can do, “Listen closely to what I am saying. That’s one consolation you can give me. Bear with me, and let me speak. After I have spoken, you may resume mocking me.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭2‬-‭3‬ 🤣🤣🤣.

Job asks the question we all want the answer to, but God will not give it!

WHY?

Sure… why suffering?

But it’s far more than that. Because we are completely and obsessively comparative to others, we want to know about the sense of inequity, the fairness of it all.

Why ME, as opposed to why YOU?

I’ll just say it, “you’ve got to be worse than me, come on admit it!”

Ok, ok, ok – clearly I know I’m not perfect, but there has got to be someone worse than me out there. God… go bless them with suffering.

Job asks a fair, reasonable question, given the limited perspective we have about EVERYTHING. Why do the wicked prosper? Job lists all the incongruities and inconsistencies about suffering. Their livestock breed like rabbits, the kids hop about without a care in the world. They skip, dance and sing with innocent abandonment. Isn’t wealth supposed to be a curse? Aren’t they supposed to be miserable in their miser ways? (I added those last two). The wicked mock God and declare their independence from Him in every way. Plus, they truly believe they made all of it happen by themselves!

Job vomits out his frustration with unfiltered angst. “One person dies in prosperity, completely comfortable and secure, the picture of good health, vigorous and fit. Another person dies in bitter poverty, never having tasted the good life. But both are buried in the same dust, both eaten by the same maggots.” Job‬ ‭21‬:‭23‬-‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬ Job ends this chapter with a clap-back, “Thanks buds, I appreciate all your advice coming from seats of safety.” He writes, “How can your empty clichés comfort me? All your explanations are lies!” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭34‬.

Wow! Job describes his (and our) dilemma but laying out the only thing he can figure out – you’ll find no justice in suffering! In fact, from our angle, our view, our experiences, we only see senselessness. If we think we can find the answer to the disparity of suffering in Job, we will be sorely disappointed. Suffering exists because of our own sin, which results in brokenness. But about the equal distribution of suffering? We just do not know. Only God knows. What we do know and can trust about God knowing all things: He is always right, true and just. Everything – EVERYTHING – He has done, does today and will do tomorrow is forever PERFECT. So we can try to pass the quiz God gave Job in chapters 38 & 39, which I guarantee you will fail. Or, we can have faith and trust the creator of all things, who does all things well. Simple, right?

Prayer

​Dad,
Whew. Every once in a while I get it in my head that I want to know things! Or, even funnier, that I want to control things. My thirst for knowledge of things and my curiosities feel so arrogant and foolish when I read Job. Job’s story helps me not only to be self aware in my lack of wisdom and understanding. It also helps me self correct my thoughts and opinions when going through suffering or being a good friend to someone who is going through suffering. You are so good God! I see it in the ancient text. I feel it in my spirit. Your love and mercy, your justice and goodness are more appreciated and apparent when suffering comes into my view. Thank You!

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The curse of truth.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“If I decided to forget my complaints, to put away my sad face and be cheerful, I would still dread all the pain, for I know you will not find me innocent, O God. Whatever happens, I will be found guilty. So what’s the use of trying? Even if I were to wash myself with soap and clean my hands with lye, you would plunge me into a muddy ditch, and my own filthy clothing would hate me.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭9‬:‭27‬-‭31‬ ‭NLT‬‬

WARNING: NEGATIVE RANT AHEAD

Truth is truth, and it is harsh to face. No wonder most want to wiggle out of it by creating their own versions, seemingly escaping the burden of realty.

Here in Job 9, Job is responding to a long conversation with his friend, Bildad. Bildad’s “advise” is simple. Job’s kids messed up, that’s why they’re dead! “Your children must have sinned against him, so their punishment was well deserved” Job‬ ‭8‬:‭4‬. Clean, cause and effect, right? Job explores this idea and comes to his own conclusion – maybe this whole human existence thing is rigged! “Yes, I know all this is true in principle. But how can a person be declared innocent in God’s sight?” Job‬ ‭9‬:‭2‬.

Ah, there’s the real issue. Job’s reasoning is sound, none of us are innocent. All of us deserve judgement. The hardest truth we will ever face is this; even in my “good” moments, my honorable, self-sacrificing, pure motivation moments, I am still riddled with sin and guilt. Isn’t that wonderful news?

Yes, it seems contrarian to believe, but God’s justice, His ways, are always true and right – so we will NEVER obtain innocence on our own. Granted, we can do good things and even make right,
and wholesome decisions – but it does not, will not, make us righteous without sin. We can never escape the guilt that naturally follows.

In these moments, Job gives us the global dilemma of humans beings who want to be good. Why try? Why suffer? Why shower, if God will just plunge me back into the mud from which I was created? Why fight my disordered desires? Why fight the enemy of soul, whose end game is my obliteration? Is God against me? Is this existence a setup, and everyone is doomed? Job is spot on. This life, this existence is an experience of self-sabotage. How often do we take an honest inventory of our soul? We could stack good deeds on top of each other until it reached skyscraper heights and it would still fall short of perfection, of holiness. We live and breathe in a transactional world, but our sin can never be covered nor the debt erased by our actions. As a the old hymn says, “I owed a debt I could not pay.”

My point: Job knew enough about God AND enough about himself that he understood that he did not deserve what he had previously managed (his children) – one cannot own another’s soul. And in his loss, he also discovered it was never his to begin with. One of his friends, Zophar, asked great questions, “Can you solve the mysteries of God? Can you discover everything about the Almighty?” Job‬ ‭11‬:‭7‬. But Zophar is still off, he still believes Job should repent for his sins, just in case. Job asked God a really hard question. One we so desperately want the answer to; “Why doesn’t the Almighty bring the wicked to judgment? Job‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬. BTW, God does not tell him, nor us.

The truth is we don’t know much about anything! Science is so arrogant to believe they have answers to all realms of existence, both physical and spiritual. And, except for our own decisions and behaviors, we DO NOT control anything. We certainly do not control others! We can’t make someone good. We can’t make someone live right. Even though we currently live in the redemption of Christ, who has paid the ultimate price for our sin, we will not see the final outcome of perfection or righteousness until the end of all things.

Prayer

​Dad,
Wow! I really like Job and I am so glad you included his story in Your living Word for us to learn and begin to understand the depths of our brokenness and the grandeur of Your grace. Thank for the gritty truth of both who we are and who You are.

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A blameless man gets blamed.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“There once was a man named Job who lived in the land of Uz. He was blameless—a man of complete integrity. He feared God and stayed away from evil. He had seven sons and three daughters. He owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 teams of oxen, and 500 female donkeys. He also had many servants. He was, in fact, the richest person in that entire area.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Let’s be honest, God is certainly not overly concerned about creating mystery and tension in our human experience! The book of Job is one of those proofs. Job is the oldest written book in the Bible, from an unknown author about an unknown man. Job presents more questions than it does answers, but it is a fascinating read!

We are introduced to Job in poetic storytelling fashion – “There was once a man…” But remember, this is no fairytale! He lived in the land of Uz. Where is Uz and why does it sound so similar to Oz? Uz is a bit of a mystery as well. It is believed to be ancient Edom, and was located in the northwest corner of Arabia, southeast of Israel. Today it would possibly be Uzbekistan. When was Job alive? Many scholars place Job in the patriarchal period, around the same time that Abraham lived (Genesis 11:28–29). Even though we know very little about Job, he was noted to be blameless (“tam” perfect), a man known for absolute integrity (“yashar” refers to living in accordance with God’s laws and principles, embodying integrity and righteousness). Additionally, he stayed clear of evil in his dealings with others.

Not only was he a straight up solid, honest man – he was really wealthy. Not just wealthy in the currency of the day (animal stock), but also in the amount of ranch-hands he employed. And, he and his wife had 10 kids! Wow, Mrs. Job must have been a very busy woman as well. It is noted that he was the richest guy in the region. It doesn’t take much of a stretch to realize this, the people who knew Job and saw what he had would have completely believed this guy was BLESSED by someone. I would say he was blessed by God, the creator of all things. Others, may have thought he was blessed by nonexistent little g-gods. Some may have even thought that Job was such the richly righteous guy that he was PERFECT and deserved the wealth, massive land ownership and large family. This is just the kind of setup to tell us what ended up happening to Job and it would rattle everyone’s ideology AND theology!

The story shifts from a scene on earth to a scene that takes place in the heavens. “One day the members of the heavenly court came to present themselves before the Lord, and the Accuser, Satan, came with them.” Job‬ ‭1‬:‭6‬. Read the story for yourself, but be warned, it’s a rough ride to figure out the one thing we all want to know – WHY? Lots of Biblical scholars try to explain Job as though it were simple and clear. I have some thoughts, but I enjoy the mystery more than clarity at this stage of my life.

Prayer

​Dad,
Early on in my faith journey I learned a very important lesson. You are God, I am not. You are always right, true and just. When things don’t seem right or make sense this side of eternity, I am 100% sure that it is my human perspective that cannot see nor understand the full scope of your will and your ways while here on earth. I knew then what I am still confident about today – I live on a broken planet among broken people and we all exist in the shadows until the full light of Jesus Christ is revealed at the end of days. Amen.

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The human experiment.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

This truth was given to me in secret, as though whispered in my ear. It came to me in a disturbing vision at night, when people are in a deep sleep. Fear gripped me, and my bones trembled. A spirit swept past my face, and my hair stood on end. The spirit stopped, but I couldn’t see its shape. There was a form before my eyes. In the silence I heard a voice say, ‘Can a mortal be innocent before God? Can anyone be pure before the Creator?’ ‭‭Job‬ ‭4‬:‭12‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Job, the oldest book written in the Bible is full of mystery and presents moral, theological dilemmas that are still wrestled with, even in modern times. Job was written 400 years before the Torah, the first five books of the Law. Job predates the law, and mentions nothing about the eventual covenant with God, the laws of God nor the sacrificial system that God directs Israel to live by.

It is interesting that the first verses in Job chapter one set the stage for us to know that Job was a good guy, a righteous guy. He even offered sacrifices to God for his children, “just in case they sinned against God.” He feared God, loved God and lived a good life! Then, seemingly out nowhere there is a meeting, a checkin with the angels. What follows is a conversation with God and the fallen angel, called the adversary.

God asks Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth.“ Satan replies, yeah, he’s only good because God has blessed him and protected him. Satan challenges God by saying, “take away his stuff and he’ll curse you.” God takes Satan up on the challenge and allows Satan to take Job’s “belongings” away from him. Belongings include his family! The scene repeats, but this time Satan challenges God by asking for permission to make Job’s physical life miserable – horrible diseases, but not allowing to take his life. Job knows nothing about the test, nor God’s faith in him to endure suffering without blaming God.

Job’s friends heard about Job’s suffering and made their way to him. At first the friends do the right thing by Job, they just sit with him and say nothing! “Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words.“ But soon, they just could not take. Not understanding WHY this is happening to Job, they offer their advice.

Eliphaz, possibly the eldest in the group, appears as the representative of the wisdom of the Edomites. Trying to be helpful, he shares about a vision he had. And from this vision, he concludes that there is a good and godly reason for Job’s suffering. Job has obviously sinned! Here’s the creepy part. Eliphaz gives his advice, his wisdom from a “whispering spirit,” that gave him chills in the night asking an accusatory question! Just a well placed question created a logical conclusion for this wise man. The question, “Can a mortal be innocent before God?” I don’t know about you, but this whole “truth” given in “secret” coming in a vision in the night sounds just like SATAN! Whispers, secrets and accusations? Come on. Eliphaz isn’t getting his answers from God, nor whatever experience he has had by walking with God on this fallen planet. His advice has been supplanted in his heart by the sneaky spirit of the dark!

All three of Job’s friends want to help Job, want to console him, and comfort him, but they all go down the same thought- path. Obviously Job has sinned and must repent. Obviously God is judging him and swift justice comes to those who do wrong. In their minds there is no other reason for a human being to suffer! Job’s friends seem unaware that as humans we live on a fallen planet, Satan’s domain.

Let’s answer the spirit-whispered accusation presented to Eliphaz. Can we be innocent before God? No, we’ve sinned, we are not innocent. But does that mean that we face the immediate judgement, the wrath and justice of God by being stripped of all possessions and daily physically tortured for our sin? No, we do not. Who is the one who brought the calamity and destruction into Job’s life? Satan! The good suffer, the bad succeed. The good succeed, the bad suffer. We cannot determine judgement nor eternity based on our comparison of possessions, position or power! Satan challenged God’s wisdom by trying to prove that humans are only capable of loving God back because of blessing! The experiment, give humans free will, a choice, give them autonomy and self determination – they will not choose God, they will always choose evil. The ancient challenge was that humans would not be able to love God in a world filled with evil and the ability to chase after their own lusts and desires leading to their demise and eventual destruction.

The human experience on the dark planet would seem to be a doomed experiment. Job was not perfect. Yet, without knowing anything about the test he was participating in, he passed. He did not blame God nor curse God for his suffering! God believes in us. God risks that love, mercy, grace and forgiveness will save our lives. God’s plan of redemption from our sin through the sacrifice of His own Son proves that we can and will be capable of loving Him in spite of an adversary and accuser. That we are able to love Him in spite of our brokenness and disordered desires. Our faith, like Job’s, like Abraham’s, is counted as righteousness! We are saved by grace, not of our works. We love because we know God’s goodness. We fear God out of honor and respect, not just because He can obliterate us back to the dust from which we came.

Prayer

Dad,
We were created out of dust, and to dust our bodies will return. But you infused Your Spirit within us. It is that spirit that will choose to love you. That spirit that will live forever. Thank you for loving us first. Thank you for this amazing life in this beautiful world. It is filled with wonder and wickedness, yet I know your plans for me and they are good. I choose you because you first chose me.

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When God quizzes humans

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind: “Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭38‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

​We think we know so much. God created us to be curious and creative, so we think we’re so smart. God quizzed Job with some simple questions… for God that is! Two full chapters of amazing scope and sequence of questions, sixty-eight verses regarding the breadth and depth of Job’s “knowledge.” The tree of knowledge of both good and evil did not give humans a total understanding of how everything works! The tree didn’t make humans know-it-alls. But somehow it made us think we do. God’s questions are breathtaking, like a docudrama from NatGeo. Here’s a few:

° Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
° Who kept the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb?
° Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east?
° Have you explored the springs from which the seas come?
° Do you know where the gates of death are located?
° Do you realize the extent of the earth?
° Where does light come from, and where does darkness go?
° Have you visited the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of hail?
° Where is the path to the source of light?
° Where is the home of the east wind?
° Who created a channel for the torrents of rain?
° Who laid out the path for the lightning?
° Does the rain have a father?
° Who gives birth to the dew?
° Who is the mother of the ice?
° Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens?
° Can you direct the movement of the stars— binding the cluster of the Pleiades or loosening the cords of Orion?
° Can you shout to the clouds and make it rain?
° Can you make lightning appear and cause it to strike as you direct? ° Who is wise enough to count all the clouds?
° Who provides food for the ravens when their young cry out to God and wander about in hunger?
° Have you given the horse its strength or clothed its neck with a flowing mane?
° Is it your wisdom that makes the hawk soar and spread its wings toward the south?

This is just a sampling of the pop quiz God gave to Job. How did you do? It doesn’t take long to realize that explorers and scientists have painstakingly, patiently taken YEARS to find the answer to some of these questions. But not all. The more discoveries reveal more mysteries and more questions. In both micro and macro biology science is still pondering how infinitely small and immensely complicated even one living cell can be. And how massively expansive the yet unexplored multi-universes appear to be. These are still within the physical sciences!

There are even more questions regarding the soul. Where do emotions come from and why do we have them? Understandably Job, like most of us failed the quiz. And, even if we could say we “know” the answer, it is likely that we heard or or learned it from someone who heard it or learned it from someone else! Who actually has firsthand, observational knowledge of any of these questions?

When God asked Job about the “extent” of the earth, do we know who has physically measured the earth? Scientists use mathematical theories that “prove” sizes, ages and dates, but which one of these physically and spatially limited scientists existed in history.

God’s final question to Job is the best! “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?” Job‬ ‭40‬:‭2‬. Job had to apologize for his arrogance by saying this, “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers? I will cover my mouth with my hand. I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say.” The wise person realizes we really know very little! This doesn’t work well for apologetics (defense of religious doctrine), but God’s quiz should spotlight our pride for putting Him on trial for things we have no real understanding of. Read Job 40 when God ask Job more questions about justice! Job final reply to God, “You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’ It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me.”

Prayer

Dad,
All I know is that I know very little. I ask questions out of curiosity, not out of some arrogant critique of how you run things. I have a lot of tough questions, but they are all contained in a complete and total trust that you are always right, true and just. Any confusion or variances are because of my lack of knowledge and wisdom. I have faith and I believe in you.