After The Crisis

I wish [God] would crush me. . . . At least I can take comfort in this: Despite the pain, I have not denied the words of the Holy One.   Job 6:9-10

The unanswered questions don’t go away after the funeral. (Remember, Job had lost seven sons and three daughters.) Faith may have triumphed yesterday, but there is still today, and then there will be tomorrow.

Those who have walked the path of suffering know that after the moment of crisis there is an ongoing process of living with a new and unwelcome situation. Job made a magnificent confession of faith, but he still had to find a way to get through another day with his mind in turmoil and his body in pain.

Job began to wonder how much longer he could keep this up. Sometimes he felt it would be best if his own life ended immediately; at least he could say, “I have fought the good fight and kept the faith” (see 2 Timothy 4:7). But God kept calling him to face another day, and Job didn’t know how much more he could take!

There are three stages to seasickness. First you think you are going to die, then you are sure you are going to die, and then you are afraid that you might not die. Job may not have been seasick, but he was heartsick, and he had reached stage 3: he was more afraid of the pain of living and denying God than he was of dying.

Job might have looked forward to grandchildren, but his children were gone. He might have looked forward to a comfortable retirement, but his wealth was plundered. What was left for him to look forward to?

In anger, Job cried out to God, “I don’t have the strength to endure. I have nothing to live for. Do I have the strength of a stone? Is my body made of bronze?” (Job 6:11-12).

It’s easy to get the idea that when you’re angry or in pain God must be distant. But you can find God in the middle of your anger and pain. He reaches out to you there. Job did precisely the right thing when he poured out his anger in the presence of God. That’s where the journey from pain to peace begins.

For further reading, see Job 6