There is a quote that when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. What if life gives you so much lemons than your capacity to make lemonade of that value? Challenges are an inevitable part of life and we face diverse challenges in different ways. At the time of the challenges, it almost always feel like it shall consume you but after you come through, you learn valuable lessons that help you succeed in other areas of your life. How do you navigate challenges that you cannot control? What if you got to know that God is so proud of you that He had a challenge with Satan that no matter the arrows Satan throws at you, you shall be able to stand? In the Bible Job went through a similar challenge because God recommended him to Satan and even allowed Satan to attack all that Job had. This conversation was unknown to Job and his family. Back on earth, calamity upon calamity befell Job and he moved from a rich influential man to a poor miserable sick man (read Job 1-2).
His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9)
In these difficult times, Job’s wife came up with a ridiculous suggestion. She said to Job, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9). Before you condemn her for loose words, remember she had lost everything including all her children. She spoke from a position of extreme pain. Job on the other hand replied to her, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said. (Job 2:10). How do we deal with the challenges of life while still maintaining our integrity before God? Let’s consider some few lessons:
Understand that life is spiritual: When we perceive life just as we see it and approach it, we miss the spiritual dimension of it. We are spirit-beings living in a body. We need to know that if there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:4). That is why it is an error to feed your natural body and starve your spiritual body. Our relationship with God is all-encompassing but we connect with Him in the spiritual realm. It is important for us to build a relationship that allows us access to speak to God and hear Him. No one on this planet is without a spiritual connection. Even those who claim not to believe in anything are controlled by the dark spirits that have blinded their minds from the truth. Job was on earth trying to be a better person, but in the spiritual realm, his name was mentioned and transactions took place on his behalf. Just as God is meticulous about his own, Satan doesn’t waste his time on those who are already his. Satan’s focus is to make life difficult for those who trust in God. Don’t leave your life anyhow. Be involved with God just as He seeks to be involved with you. Our Advocate the Holy Spirit should be your daily partner. Speak with Him, relate to Him and hear Him guide you on what to do.
Trust in God: In the midst of challenging situations, we need to be grounded in God. We need to trust Him to bring us out of the mess. Trusting in God is not a passive initiative. When we claim to trust Him, our lifestyle should demonstrate it. For Job’s wife, she was so overwhelmed by her situation that her solution was to curse God and die. That is not trust. On the other hand, her husband Job kept his integrity and did not sin in what he said. Proverbs 3:5-6 states that “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Trust comes with obedience and submission. For Job, he said, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face. Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance, for no godless person would dare come before him!” (Job 13:15-16). Indeed, after hoping and trusting in God, Job received his deliverance.
Consistency: Job’s wife might have been a lover of God prior to all the calamities that befell them. She would have loved, honoured and served God together with her husband. However, the magnitude of her predicament caused her to lose faith. She wasn’t an evil woman per se. She was around Job in all his struggles and she saw him move from grace to grass. What was missing was her consistency in her relationship with God. She was so overwhelmed with pain, grief and suffering that she thought death would be a better solution. Her husband had a different position. Job was consistent in his unwavering faith. He knew that his redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth (Job 19:25). Those who are inconsistent with their faith in God are like infants tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming (Ephesians 4:14).
Have a support system/ Burden bearers: The challenge of Job and his wife was that in the time of their pain and grief, the friends they trusted in all turned against them. After mourning with Job for seven days, Job’s friends accused him of reaping from his sins and admonished him to repent. Instead of helping Job bear his burden, they rather heaped on him more pain. Job could not believe that his comforters rather became his accusers. In Job 16:2, Job said this: “I have heard many things like these; you are miserable comforters, all of you!” Are there times we become miserable comforters? Have you gone to accuse someone in pain other than comfort them? For example, blaming a Christian couple who are childless for their evil lifestyles as youths even when you don’t know their story. Instead of opening our mouth to spew more pain, it is better to keep quiet. Every believer needs a support system or burden bearers, these are men and women who will stand in the gap with you in prayer, in comfort and in faith. It is advisable to pray before choosing anyone as a burden bearer. Be ready to also bear with them in their own struggles.
The challenges of Job and his family teaches us that life can be messy sometimes. However, instead of running away from God in the midst of pain, we should cast our burdens on Him and trust Him to pull us out. Remember, Jesus was in the boat with His disciples but they still encountered a storm. It was when they called Jesus into the situation that He calmed the storm for them. Don’t allow the storm to rage on before you Call on Him. Call Him in the morning, call Him in the afternoon, call Him in the evening and at night. Our Redeemer lives!
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