
BRIGHTON CHURCH OF CHRIST

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When Trials Come
Michael R. Baggett
When Isaac asked his father: "Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham replied: "My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering…" (Gen. 22:7-8, KJV). God did provide a ram as a sacrifice! (Genesis 22:9-14).
When my mother passed away and my wife 10 weeks apart, I handled the early going by talking a lot to brethren, family and friends either on the phone or in person. I walked a lot and kept busy. I prayed a lot. Most of all, I kept my faith strong knowing through the tears and deep heartache that the Lord who closes windows open doors. I held fast to what Abraham said: "God will provide."
God will provide! I was convinced like Abraham that God would provide all my emotional, physical and spiritual needs. I remember saying this to people when I was very, very upset and in shock. I said it, I mentioned it in prayer, and really believed it. It is during these times in life that your faith in God will pull you through the low moments and the sleepless nights. God will provide!
Job suffered the sudden loss of sons and daughters, cattle, and health. In all this Job never gave up his faith in God. Job accepted God's will in his life regardless of the pain.
"Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said, 'Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.' In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job. 1:20-22, KJV).
Job's wife thought Job should "curse God and die," but Job didn't blame God. Job rebuked his wife's discouraging and very unwise advice.
"But he said unto her, 'Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?' In all this did not Job sin with his lips" (Job 2:10, KJV).
If Job could make it, I can make it, and you can make it! "Submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
The devil wants every one of God's children to lose faith and give up. Job suffered though the emotional and physical pain. Though he never gave up on God or blamed God, he did wish he was never born. It's easy to feel sorry for yourself. Job also had to deal with "friends" who were not very good comforters. They tried to reason that Job was suffering because of his sins. Friend, it is in no way your fault that your loved one passed away...don't blame yourself!
After Job endured his trials, Job was blessed greater than he was before his losses.
"And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also, the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and everyone an earring of gold. So, the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch. And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren. After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations. So Job died, being old and full of days" (Job 42:10-17, KJV).
James writes in the New Testament to encourage us to be patient and keep our faith in the Lord by looking to the suffering prophets and Job's example:
"Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy" (James 5:10-11, KJV).
Notice that we have seen the end of the Lord in the matter that He is pitiful and full of tender mercy. He sees our suffering and our tears. David expressed this by saying that God collected his tears in a bottle and wrote them in His book! (Psalms 56:8). Our God cares!
Everyone is not blessed exactly like Job when the trial is ended, but God will get you through it! During the low moments back when I lost my mother and wife, I felt I could never smile, laugh or feel happiness again, even though I had faith in God that someday He would provide. God did get me through this hardship and blessed me with another wife and a new life. My faith is stronger today than ever. We have seen the end of the Lord in Job's example that He can set your ship back upright to float once again! It might be in a different way than it was for Job, but God has brighter days in your future--hang in there!
God will provide and Jesus cares about you. "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you" (1 Pet. 5:7, KJV).