I have been spending some time reading the passages in different versions and I am becoming a big fan of the Message and the Contemporary English Version. It may be because I grew up reading the NIV and I find these versions give a new perspective to verses that I have read many times but not fully understood. (As a Grade 1 teacher, maybe I am just partial to the "Grade 1 version"!) These verses stood out for me:
Job 35:9
9 “People cry out under a load of oppression;
they plead for relief from the arm of the powerful. (NIV)
9-15 "When times get bad, people cry out for help.
They cry for relief from being kicked around,
But never give God a thought when things go well,
when God puts spontaneous songs in their hearts (The Message)
9In times of trouble,
everyone begs the mighty God
to have mercy.
10But after their Creator
helps them through hard times,
they forget about him, (Contemporary English Version)
Isn't it true that in times of trouble that we are acutely reminded about our need for a Saviour? I know that God has used difficult circumstances in my life to draw me closer to Him. I often try to work things out on my own-failing miserably-and then I turn to prayer, instead of leaning on God right from the beginning. Job was a righteous man and that it was this that prompted God to offer him up knowing he could stand against anything Satan would throw at him. Job was out of options. He had lost everything. He had no choice but to lean on God, despite the fact that Job felt God was being distant and unfair. I'm not saying that Job didn't cry out to God during his times of prosperity, but it is clear that in his troubles he cries out to God repeatedly.
When Peter gets out of the boat (pretty amazing-I don't know if that would have been my first reaction to a ghost like figure on the water!) he is fine until he takes his eyes off Jesus and starts to look around at the storm around him. He starts to sink and he cries out for help. Then Jesus reaches out and rescues Peter from the storm. Some storms, like Job's, last a long time. We question, we ask "why?", we struggle and through it all, we are taught to lean on Him and reach for Him. We just need to be sure that when the storm is over that we don't forget about Him and to not wait for the next storm to come before we reach out again. (I wonder what Job's life was like after his storm???)
Dear Lord,
Thank you for being all that we could ever want or need. You know what we need even before we ask and You are there to offer it when we ask. Lord, we fall short. We think we can do it all alone without You and we fail. When things are going well, we often forget to thank you for that. It is during the difficult and trying times that we find ourselves leaning on You. Thank you for not holding this against us and forgiving us for our mistakes. Help us to reach for You through all things, not just the storms, but in everything. Amen.
Tomorrow's passage: Job 36-37 and Matthew 15:1-20
4 comments:
What a good reminder. This is sooo true in my life too! When things are hard in my life I am the closest to God. Interesting thoughts. Thank you for your thoughts, and your prayer!
Thanks, Pam; very good post. I appreciate your sharing the verses in other translations. It definitely provides some added understanding.
So easy to forget about God when things are going well. I'm like you mentioned the other day, Pam - wondering when the shoe is going to drop and something terrible is going to happen. We need to remember to thank God for the good times and to lean on Him during the bad times, especially when we don't see what the purpose in the suffering is.
My Life Application had a great little note that said, "Job's greatest test was not the pain, but that he did not know why he was suffering....We must learn to trust in God who is good and not in the goodness of life.
I'm wondering if anyone experiences the opposite . . . when my life is going well I find it much easier to communicate with God than when I'm in the middle of crisis. I always hear people say that they are more complacent when life is easy and are drawn to God through difficult experiences, but for me it's always the other way around. Not that I feel abandoned or lose faith when I'm hurting, but I just live in a little bubble of turmoil and I keep God at arm's length. I am much more prone to seek after God when my life is normal and easy. It makes me feel very fickle. Just curious if anyone else is like me . . .
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