Job 8

“Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:  ‘How long will you speak these things, and the words of your mouth be like a strong wind?  Does God subvert judgment? Or does the Almighty pervert justice?  If your sons have sinned against Him, He has cast them away for their transgression. If you would earnestly seek God and make your supplication to the Almighty, if you were pure and upright, surely now He would awake for you, and prosper your rightful dwelling place. Though your beginning was small, yet your latter end would increase abundantly.” Job 8:1-7 (NKJV)

Several years ago, I received a phone call from a friend who was considering placing his mom in an asylum. “Her dementia has become too much to handle,” he explained. His mom’s symptoms were textbook dementia and borderline Alzheimer’s. For instance, she would wear two or three outfits on top of each other, insist they had doctor appointments in the middle of the night, and call the police because she was convinced family members were trying to kill her. In her mid-70s, she displayed the behavior of women in their late 80’s. There was only one problem. She did not have dementia. She had a urinary tract infection. Thank the Lord that one doctor suggested an antibiotic because she was back to normal within a few days.

When the diagnosis is wrong, the treatment and expectations for healing are wrong, and sometimes with devastating consequences! This was the case with Job’s friends. Each was convinced God was judging Job for some secret sin, to the point where they became indignant whenever Job defended his character. Never mind Job’s testimony about himself; let’s consider Job from God’s testimony.

“Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?’” Job 1:8 (NKJV)

Have you ever been wrongly judged? I have. Between the years 2008-2010, there was a massive financial downturn. One-in-four homes in Southern California were in danger of foreclosure. I know because I lost my home in that downturn. So, there I was, a minister of the gospel who had left Middle America to follow God’s call to Southern California. I firmly believe that God provides whenever He guides, so it was a major blow to my faith paradigm when we lost our home, so I had a serious decision to make. Was I going to curse God and die, as Job’s wife recommended, or was I going to hold on to God’s Word that EVERYTHING works together for the good (Romans 8:28)?  My wife and I chose to hold on. Other people chose to judge us.

If you are ever in foreclosure, you can’t qualify for another mortgage for three more years. Three years later, a pastor offered me a job outside of California. Had we saved our CA home with its pre-collapse mortgage, we may not have been able to heed God’s new call in another state. Sometimes He provides long-term by not providing short-term. Hard times may be unrelated to our personal righteousness and more related to His plan!