July 29 – In Your Trials (Job 1)

“In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.”
(Job 1:22)

IN WORD:
When adversity strikes, our true spiritual maturity comes to the surface. Many of us can play the game of godliness, appearing to be mature while undisciplined attitudes rage within. But when adversity hits, all is exposed. Our true feeling about God come out in the questions we ask and the actions we take.
Job was a genuine saint. His faith surpassed that of all others of his time. Crisis came, and Job guarded his thoughts and his words. He did not sin by accusing God of doing him wrong.
Can we say the same? Often, when we’re in a crisis, we ask God, “Why are you doing this to me?” Sometimes it’s an honest question, but often it has undertones of accusation in it. We’re just sure we don’t deserve the trials that have come upon us, unaware that often trials have nothing to do with what we do or do not deserve. Our trials can be, as they were in Job’s case, an opportunity to demonstrate the validity of our worship. They can develop our character and help us grow closer to God. When we assume that our trial is an unfair judgment or repayment from God, we expose our true feelings about ourselves. It means we were in a quid pro quo relationship with Him based on rights rather than grace.

IN DEED:
Adversity tells us a lot about what we really believe. Perhaps that’s why God allows it to strike us from time to time. It answers the questions we need to have answered. It displays the accurate measure of our growth and the true nature of our relationship with God.
How do you react when you’re in a crisis? Is your first impulse to charge God with unfairness? Go back to the Cross and remember that His righteous judgment against us would have been fair. God gave us grace instead. The crisis means something else. Worship God in the midst of it, and let Him use your trials to draw you closer to Him.

“It is trial that proves one thing weak and another strong.”
-Henry Ward Beecher-