“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” Job 38:4-7 (NLT)
Have you ever had something truly traumatic happen in your life?
Has something rocked the foundation of what you thought you understood as your life or way of life? It happened to a man named Job in the bible, and it happened to me as well.
In the spring of 2009 my mom passed away after a battle with cancer. In a single moment, years of regret, shame, and just plain confusion swept over me. I became very angry with God, very depressed, and very lost. Everything that I had built in my life started to come unraveled. One day I heard a preacher refer to reading the book of Job during a time of struggle in your life.
As I read through Job, I found myself taking Job’s side in his arguments and questions regarding God’s decisions. I felt like a fan on the side line cheering on a character in a story. That is, until I reached Chapter 38, when the full force of conviction swept over me.
Where was I when the foundation of the earth was laid? Oh. I was not there, but God was. God goes on like this for two whole chapters in Job.
“Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east? Have you made daylight spread to the ends of the earth, to bring an end to the night’s wickedness? As the light approaches, the earth takes shape like clay pressed beneath a seal; it is robed in brilliant colors.” Job 38:12-14(NLT)
I was convicted. Who was I to challenge God? Did He not create every single thing around me, including me? We have a choice in every moment of our lives. It is a choice to challenge God and turn from Him, or a choice to follow Him, the one who created everything. I may still to this day not understand why my mom had to die from cancer, yet I no longer seek a reason to understand.
Instead I have chosen to put my trust and faith in the creator of all things, my God. I have peace and rest in my soul today because I know God knows what He is doing. In Him I find a cornerstone to rest my life upon. I can choose to be angry, and go back to feeling lost and helpless; or, I can choose to find joy and peace in my Savior, my God.
God in Heaven, when I have questions, when I am angry and in pain, remind me that You are the one who set the Earth on its foundation. Remind me that somehow, miraculously, you also know my name. You are above me and yet you chose to come down to Earth to meet me. Reveal your love to me. Amen
Question: Are you struggling with pain and confusion in your life? Consider the book of Job and his response to God.
by Rev. Daniel Forster
Used by Permission
FURTHER READING
• Your Mundane Matter – A Devotional by Mckenna Vietti
• The Small Stuff – by Thomas Pujol
• He Who Began a Good Work – A Devotional by Phil Ware
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