The Bible describes Job as blameless, upright, and God-fearing. He was not a perfect man, but he was good enough that God called him “My servant Job.” Job was a great and wealthy man, but Satan told God that Job was good only because God had put a hedge around his life. Satan claimed that if God sent adversity, Job would curse Him to His face.
So God allowed Satan to hurt Job in many ways. He lost his family, his wealth, and his children. Job’s wife, seeing the painful boils and other things afflicting Job, told him to curse God and die. Job’s answer to her was that she was being foolish.
He asked her, “Should we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” (Job 2:10). Job also said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). The Bible adds that in all this, Job never sinned nor charged God with wrong. What a great, great man!
Later, Job displayed his great faith in God by declaring, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him” (Job 13:15). God never explained to Job why all his troubles occurred. You may wonder why, but God does not owe anyone any explanation for anything He chooses to do. Our job is simply to trust Him. Proverbs 3:5 is a great verse to memorize, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.” Why? We don’t have the mentality to understand many spiritual or even physical things. God does.
The problem with society today is that far too many people are trusting their own very limited understanding. That is never wise. Our Creator is also our Counselor, Comforter, Helper, and many other things for our good. He should be our All-in-all.
Jesus gave us His model prayer. We call it the Lord’s Prayer. But He also gave us Himself as a wonderful model to emulate. The night before His arrest, Jesus prayed that, if possible, God might remove the cup He was dreading. But He ended His prayer in a way that every Christian should copy. He ended by praying, “Nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).
As our Father, God encourages us to ask what we need and even what we just want. However, we need to remember that He always answers our prayers in ways that are best for us. The Apostle Paul told us, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).
So, let us love God first and foremost and always live to give Him glory. May we be good children of God and as obedient as we possibly can. Let us make known our petitions and end every prayer with “Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done.” Blessed be the name of the Lord. Amen.
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Ralph Fudge is the pastor of Big Ochlocknee Baptist Church in Coolidge, Ga., and has a Master’s degree in theology from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
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