"Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.
Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding."
Job 38:1-4
The story of Job is a good one for helping us understand some of the differences between God's perspective and our own... which I think is a key principle of maintaining our sanity and sense of humor as we go through life.
The story is long, and my brief retelling will definitely not do it justice, but basically there was this super-righteous, super-rich guy named Job. Job goes to present himself to the Lord, and Satan also shows up. God tells Satan about Job, who is pretty great and always does what he should. Satan tells God that it is only because he has an easy life, and if God would let down his protection, that Satan could make him curse God.
So, God lets Satan affect the things around him, just tells him not to harm the man himself. Job loses literally everything all in the same day, but he stays true. So, then Satan says well, you're still protecting him... if you let me affect him physically, THEN he will curse you. So, God allows it. Job's wife even tells him to curse God and die. He doesn't, but he wishes he had never been born. Job's friends come and they have a really long conversation about life and God, part of which addresses whether Job did something evil to bring all of this upon himself. Job says that even if God kills him, he'll still trust him, but he does complain a lot about what he is going through and asks God why he is alive, etc. God doesn't kill him, but he does appear to Job and his friends and has some things to say about their conversation and questioning his wisdom.
Job, still righteous, is immediately humble and repentant, and pleads for his friends, and God forgives everyone, and then blesses Job with double what he had before, and Job has a really long life full of happiness and satisfaction (or at least as happy as you could be back then without sliced bread and indoor plumbing... just saying.).
These verses are from when God talks to Job about his conversation with his friends, and he asks Job why he is talking about things that he doesn't understand, and asks him this question and later a lot of follow up questions, showing him how little he understands. He doesn't do this to ridicule him, but to illustrate the distance between their two levels of understanding and perspective. The whole thing also seems very symbolic of what earth life is for all of us. We're in the middle of the same conflict that we experienced in the premortal existence... the question of free agency. Satan thinks that if he manipulates our circumstances that he can get us all to curse God. God is betting on us, giving us a chance to succeed and become much more than we could ever be if Satan had his way. He protects us and sets limits on how Satan can affect us, so that we have a real chance to choose for ourselves rather than being manipulated.
Today, let's do our best to be as faithful as Job--to trust in God no matter what happens, and to know that God will make it all okay in the end. Let's not give in to Satan's messages of despair or complacency, but keep working and striving for all that God promises us... which is no less than sharing in all that he has.
Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.
Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding."
Job 38:1-4
The story of Job is a good one for helping us understand some of the differences between God's perspective and our own... which I think is a key principle of maintaining our sanity and sense of humor as we go through life.
The story is long, and my brief retelling will definitely not do it justice, but basically there was this super-righteous, super-rich guy named Job. Job goes to present himself to the Lord, and Satan also shows up. God tells Satan about Job, who is pretty great and always does what he should. Satan tells God that it is only because he has an easy life, and if God would let down his protection, that Satan could make him curse God.
So, God lets Satan affect the things around him, just tells him not to harm the man himself. Job loses literally everything all in the same day, but he stays true. So, then Satan says well, you're still protecting him... if you let me affect him physically, THEN he will curse you. So, God allows it. Job's wife even tells him to curse God and die. He doesn't, but he wishes he had never been born. Job's friends come and they have a really long conversation about life and God, part of which addresses whether Job did something evil to bring all of this upon himself. Job says that even if God kills him, he'll still trust him, but he does complain a lot about what he is going through and asks God why he is alive, etc. God doesn't kill him, but he does appear to Job and his friends and has some things to say about their conversation and questioning his wisdom.
Job, still righteous, is immediately humble and repentant, and pleads for his friends, and God forgives everyone, and then blesses Job with double what he had before, and Job has a really long life full of happiness and satisfaction (or at least as happy as you could be back then without sliced bread and indoor plumbing... just saying.).
These verses are from when God talks to Job about his conversation with his friends, and he asks Job why he is talking about things that he doesn't understand, and asks him this question and later a lot of follow up questions, showing him how little he understands. He doesn't do this to ridicule him, but to illustrate the distance between their two levels of understanding and perspective. The whole thing also seems very symbolic of what earth life is for all of us. We're in the middle of the same conflict that we experienced in the premortal existence... the question of free agency. Satan thinks that if he manipulates our circumstances that he can get us all to curse God. God is betting on us, giving us a chance to succeed and become much more than we could ever be if Satan had his way. He protects us and sets limits on how Satan can affect us, so that we have a real chance to choose for ourselves rather than being manipulated.
Today, let's do our best to be as faithful as Job--to trust in God no matter what happens, and to know that God will make it all okay in the end. Let's not give in to Satan's messages of despair or complacency, but keep working and striving for all that God promises us... which is no less than sharing in all that he has.
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