Not As Smart As I Think
“Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: ‘Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ (Job 38:2)
My military transfer orders forced my wife and me to tear ourselves from family and friends in Connecticut and move to Washington state. A cloud of loneliness followed us across country, but we determined to make the best of things.
The day after we arrived, we located a real estate agent and set out to find a new home. Although I'd searched online for homes for sale in the area, they looked much better online than in reality. After trudging through several, Nancy and I succumbed to a near-terminal case of sticker shock. We doubted we could afford anything marginally comparable to the home we left. And returning to Connecticut was not an option.
We faced two unhappy choices: Buy a home in a run-down area, or bump our living costs near the ceiling.
Our sudden circumstance shrouded my faith in fear and depression. How could God do this to us? Why did He do this to us? Should I take on a second job? I spiraled downward. Worse, I dragged Nancy, who typically exudes a positive attitude, with me.
I don't know why I doubted. God hadn't left us alone in our despair. He was at work in ways I couldn't have imagined. I realized His involvement in our situation as I read through Job.
You might remember the "woe-is-Job" and "woe-is-me" theme of the book. After 35 chapters during which he and his friends repeatedly declared what God is like and why He does what He does, I could almost hear God thunder in my ear as I skimmed the conclusion of Elihu's rant (chapter 37).
"OK, Elihu," I heard God chide. "Are you done yet? Because if you are, now let ME tell you a few things."
God continued in the Biblical text: 'Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.' (Job 38:2)
His response, which continues through chapter 41, sent me to my knees.
How often do I tell myself -- and others -- what God will do, why He blesses some, and not others? How often do I list criteria we must meet to please Him? And in so doing, I feed doubt -- to myself and to others - while God waits for me to stop talking so He can ask, "OK. Are you done yet? Because if you are, now let Me tell you a few things."
To his credit, Job responded wisely: "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted . . . Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know . . . Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:2-6)
At the end of our house-hunting journey, God provided us with a nice home. But that was anti-climatic for me. I signed the papers, not a little ashamed that I needed to re-learn the lesson again: God is still on His throne, and who am I to whine at Him when things don't go my way? Who am I to expect that He explain Himself to me? Or give me what I want?
If I am really the bond servant I like to think I am, then I should say nothing more than, "Lord, be merciful to me, the sinner."
Lord, please remind me, as often as I forget, that I do not know all things about You. Nor do I need to know them. I do not need to understand what you will do, when You will do it, or why. Help me hold my tongue when my thoughts turn bleak and my faith falters -- so I don't discourage others. Help me ever remember, "Not my will, but thine be done."
Rich
rmaffeo@comcast.net
My military transfer orders forced my wife and me to tear ourselves from family and friends in Connecticut and move to Washington state. A cloud of loneliness followed us across country, but we determined to make the best of things.
The day after we arrived, we located a real estate agent and set out to find a new home. Although I'd searched online for homes for sale in the area, they looked much better online than in reality. After trudging through several, Nancy and I succumbed to a near-terminal case of sticker shock. We doubted we could afford anything marginally comparable to the home we left. And returning to Connecticut was not an option.
We faced two unhappy choices: Buy a home in a run-down area, or bump our living costs near the ceiling.
Our sudden circumstance shrouded my faith in fear and depression. How could God do this to us? Why did He do this to us? Should I take on a second job? I spiraled downward. Worse, I dragged Nancy, who typically exudes a positive attitude, with me.
I don't know why I doubted. God hadn't left us alone in our despair. He was at work in ways I couldn't have imagined. I realized His involvement in our situation as I read through Job.
You might remember the "woe-is-Job" and "woe-is-me" theme of the book. After 35 chapters during which he and his friends repeatedly declared what God is like and why He does what He does, I could almost hear God thunder in my ear as I skimmed the conclusion of Elihu's rant (chapter 37).
"OK, Elihu," I heard God chide. "Are you done yet? Because if you are, now let ME tell you a few things."
God continued in the Biblical text: 'Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.' (Job 38:2)
His response, which continues through chapter 41, sent me to my knees.
How often do I tell myself -- and others -- what God will do, why He blesses some, and not others? How often do I list criteria we must meet to please Him? And in so doing, I feed doubt -- to myself and to others - while God waits for me to stop talking so He can ask, "OK. Are you done yet? Because if you are, now let Me tell you a few things."
To his credit, Job responded wisely: "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted . . . Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know . . . Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:2-6)
At the end of our house-hunting journey, God provided us with a nice home. But that was anti-climatic for me. I signed the papers, not a little ashamed that I needed to re-learn the lesson again: God is still on His throne, and who am I to whine at Him when things don't go my way? Who am I to expect that He explain Himself to me? Or give me what I want?
If I am really the bond servant I like to think I am, then I should say nothing more than, "Lord, be merciful to me, the sinner."
Lord, please remind me, as often as I forget, that I do not know all things about You. Nor do I need to know them. I do not need to understand what you will do, when You will do it, or why. Help me hold my tongue when my thoughts turn bleak and my faith falters -- so I don't discourage others. Help me ever remember, "Not my will, but thine be done."
Rich
rmaffeo@comcast.net
posted by rich at
1:39 PM
6 Comments:
Powerful story. I've lived much of that "what are you doing, God??" emotion. Praise Him for the beautiful home and provision. Praise Him that He always gives us His love and more than we ever deserve in every area.
By
Paula, at 1:44 AM
To me, the Book of Job means a whole lot more than just humbling yourself before God. In God's speech, he describes the way of the world - it is completely chaotic, yet still under His control. This idea completely negates the view of Job's friends, Elihu, and even Job's wife.
It seems to me that there are two different gods depicted in this book. The first is the god of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. This idea of God puts bounds on who God is - he is a just god who acts by the traditional laws of retribution. He is beyond us and should not even be talked about.
It is clear that Job does not believe in this idea of God because he believes IN God. He believes that God is personal, all-powerful, and just. The problem that Job faces is his approach of all this - he thinks that God is mismanaging the world because it does not make any sense. To me, this is why God responds the way he does.
Think about it, God speaks about how chaotic the world is: take the ostrich for example. The ostrich is a bird... what bird do you know of that DOES NOT FLY?! yes yes, the ostrich and a penguin. But, by our basic thoughts, most birds do, in fact, fly. Ok, that may not be so convincing, but how about this: the ostrich lays its eggs on the ground and tramples them to death. Now I don't know about you, but this thing certainly needs some tips in parenting... that is if it wants young. This exmaple just affirms how the world does not make sense. But, it's not over yet: "yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at horse and rider." [Job 39:18] This world is created chaotic, yet each of us has our own beauty - something that God gives us to make us unique from his other creations. Just because life does not make sense does not mean there is something wrong with creation.
And these examples are what changes Job's mind about life - that God clearly IS in control even through all this chaos. It is also true that Job humbles himself, but at the same time, his encounter with God has also changed his perspective on life.
Also, looking into chapter 42, apparently Job did have a perspective of God that was correct. "After the Lord had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, 'I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." [Job 42:7] I do not find it wrong to speak of God to friends. God would not be a personal God if we could not know Him. And if we know Him, then why would it be wrong to share these revelations with others? The Bible itself was written from God's revelations to its writers. Do you not pray to God that he might reveal Himself through the scriptures - that you might learn about yourself and your God? The only problem I see is if you lose touch with Him and start to make claims based on your own thoughts instead of His revelations.
How do you think you would have reacted if you did not get that salary increase - if things didn't work out the way they did? Would this mean that God was abandoning you? I just don't know how to take that sentence - "But that won't surprise anyone who knows God."
-Lou
By
Anonymous, at 10:02 PM
Unfortunately, I left readers with the (wrong) idea that if we hadn't been able to buy the house we're now living in, that we would have lost our confidence in God.
I did not at all mean to give that impression.
Actually, the point I was TRYING to make was bundled in his response to my grousing -- "Ok, are you done yet?"
Really, that is almost the way I heard him after so many weeks of convincing myself (and Nancy) that God was silent to us.
My point -- made very poorly -- is that we spend a lot of time complaining about how (we think) God acts, or what we think He will do, without giving Him half a chance to prove us wrong.
You'd think I'd be better at communicating that thought. Sorry :(
By
rich, at 12:38 AM
I do not think you made a poor point - rather the contrary. You brought up a very strong argument regarding making (false) claims about how God acts and humility. I do apologize, that last paragraph is a bit strong and offensive. What I wanted to emphasize was the fact that life does not always work out - at least the way we want things to. This is why I brought up the section of the ostrich [Job 39:13-18]. I was just merely posing the question of "what if". Knowing you, I am positive that you would not have turned your back on God if things ended up differently. I suppose I just had a problem with the image that was set up in regard to that sentence I quoted before. Yes, God moves in mysterious ways, but everything isn't always blue skies and calm waters if you believe in God.
Again, I am sorry for being so blunt in my previous post. I do not think your article was poorly written; I just picked off a piece that was distinct in my reading.
Should I be e-mailing you these thoughts rather than posting this online?
-Lou
By
Anonymous, at 11:31 AM
Steve Clark here. I can only quote someone who I think is more wise, at least in some ways, Chris Aable: "The best way, the most honest way to be good and do good is with no expectations of heaven nor hell. If you believe in such invisible, ancient fairy tales that predate even the Old Testament, then you are subconsciously acting mostly on the threat of punishment or the reward of an internal afterlife that nobody has evidence for. Believing in things without evidence is emotionally cheap, mentally weak and all too common. There are 3,000+ World Religions and Gods - and millions of people who think theirs is the only real one. Know the history of your religion, who wrote it and why. Churches filled with praying believers have been blown asunder by tornadoes and cancer wards are filled with pain-filled children who die slow and terrible deaths despite their innocence and their parent's prayers. So clearly dealing with the world's problem with our brains works better than superstitious prayers. I too loved the Pope despite his dishonest belief in ancient fairy-tales. His slow and painful death despite the fact that billions of people prayed to stop his pain long ago, is yet further evidence that prayers reduce our self-reliance and are just a self-deceptive, emotional crutch. If someone "truly believes" that the Pope has gone to heaven, then they need not cry nor pray for him, for he has gone to a better place. But all evidence I have indicates he is dead and gone forever, and that alone makes him and each of us equally precious and irreplaceable. Religions cheapen the value of human life by pretending that death means nothing because they "believe" that life goes on forever. Reality dictates that it does not, and thus death makes our short time of life together far more valuable." Chris Aable, Self-Evolution.org.
By
Anonymous, at 7:44 PM
Steve Clark here. I can only quote someone who I think is more wise, at least in some ways, Chris Aable: "The best way, the most honest way to be good and do good is with no expectations of heaven nor hell. If you believe in such invisible, ancient fairy tales that predate even the Old Testament, then you are subconsciously acting mostly on the threat of punishment or the reward of an internal afterlife that nobody has evidence for. Believing in things without evidence is emotionally cheap, mentally weak and all too common. There are 3,000+ World Religions and Gods - and millions of people who think theirs is the only real one. Know the history of your religion, who wrote it and why. Churches filled with praying believers have been blown asunder by tornadoes and cancer wards are filled with pain-filled children who die slow and terrible deaths despite their innocence and their parent's prayers. So clearly dealing with the world's problem with our brains works better than superstitious prayers. I too loved the Pope despite his dishonest belief in ancient fairy-tales. His slow and painful death despite the fact that billions of people prayed to stop his pain long ago, is yet further evidence that prayers reduce our self-reliance and are just a self-deceptive, emotional crutch. If someone "truly believes" that the Pope has gone to heaven, then they need not cry nor pray for him, for he has gone to a better place. But all evidence I have indicates he is dead and gone forever, and that alone makes him and each of us equally precious and irreplaceable. Religions cheapen the value of human life by pretending that death means nothing because they "believe" that life goes on forever. Reality dictates that it does not, and thus death makes our short time of life together far more valuable." Chris Aable, Self-Evolution.org.
By
Anonymous, at 7:45 PM
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