Michelle
The preface says that this book demonstrates God's providence in a believer's suffering and that Satan was challenging God. People talk about this book all the time. Upon reading it though I never knew this was a challenge with Satan. When I was reading ch 1 vs 21 fear came upon me. It was the strangest thing. I kept reading but that stopped me and I cannot explain the fear I felt. Something else that caught me was in ch 2 when his wife says, "Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and Die!". Yet he maintained and responded telling her she sounded like a foolish woman then gave the question, "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?". I think many times we expect only good from God, but we forget about the times that we are challenged and that it is a time that we must turn to God as always. The devotional attached to this reading really points out the trust Job had in God. It says to Know God is to Trust God. It reminds us Job responded to the grief as was traditional in that time as he tore his robe and shaved his head to display his deep sorrow. He had just experienced some devastating blows and lost his family. That would be very difficult. But his very next step was to show his faithfulness to God. He fell to the ground and worshiped. Is this what we think of when we experience grief? I would say not in the slightest. But I strive to be this faithful. Job didn't question God, instead he acknowledged that everything comes from God and he praised him. It says that Job's close communion with God had taught him that God was the only one who could give him real comfort. And while Job did seek understanding and answers following that, his initial response reflected a heart that knew and trusted God.
This psalm seems to be talking about being careful in the life you lead, that you maintain a blameless heart and stay far from evil, shunning those who slander or have a proud heart. That we should be faithful in our actions.
Julie
The story of Job is a very powerful story. He is the type of Godly person that we should all strive to be. We do have to accept the challenges that we are faced with and not just the goodness of God. I think that this is where people have a misconception. They assume that once they are forgiven and have faith and trust in God that they will no longer have any troubles or that they are being punished for something. Job is a good example of the fact that he had done nothing wrong, but was just being tested in his faith. Sometimes that is all it is, we do have to prove our faithfulness.
"I Will Walk With Integrity," is the title of this Psalm. It really spoke to me today. With everything going on I have been tempted to lie about things at work to extend my time there without having to actually do what they are requiring. This is mostly out of fear. Every time I am tempted with those options I am convicted in that moment to not fall and to walk with integrity.
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