Guest Post stolen from Stuff Christians Like

This is stolen, er..., borrowed...., well it's completely copied from the Stuff Christians Like blog.  It's a guest post dealing with Job.  Thought it fit the flow of what we're reading right now.  Enjoy.

Comparing our situations to Job.

January 7, 2011 in Uncategorized with 18 Comments

(I’m doing a chronological read through the Bible plan right now and we’re in Job. So when I got this guest post from John Crist, it felt like perfect timing. Someday I hope to share the stage with this guy. Why? So I can take notes and learn. He’s a hilarious writer, a tremendous guest poster as exhibited last month and a great comedian. Hope you dig the post as much as I did!)
It’s hard to meet girls in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
If New York City is the City That Never Sleeps, Colorado Springs is the city that gets eight hours of sleep on a tempurpedic mattress…and a pillow with extra lumbar support.
So when you do find a girl in church that’s everything you’ve ever dreamed of, you gotta make a good first impression. That’s why I lead with the perfect question:
“What’s your stance on premarital spooning?”
Yep, that was my intro line. That got me a first date.
On our second date, or as Christians like to call it ‘getting engaged’, I went to pick her up at her house. She opened the door and I said confidently, “Baby, Let’s go to Jared’s.” she freaked out and started calling all her friends in the familiar “He. Went. To. Jared’s!” tone.
Not gonna lie, she was pretty upset when we pulled into subway.
She dumped me after I told her my five-year plan was to Eat Fresh.
I found myself sitting on the curb outside of Subway, single, lonely and heartbroken. And you know what I did next? I made an even bigger mistake. A mistake that undoubtedly ever Christian has made.
I started to compare my situation to Job.
Let’s get one thing clear. Job lost all his family, his house, his livestock, his wealth and his own health. My girlfriend of two weeks dumped me. Those are not comparable situations.
Job is one of the saints of our faith. He sits right next to Jesus when the secretary brings in the prayer requests everyday. (The secretary is probably Esther, we all know she’s confrontational and she demands to be called an administrative assistant, not a secretary). I digress. When Jesus shows Job these types of prayer requests, he probably just laughs.
Also, as Christians, let’s remember…we’re gonna meet this guy Job one day. Are you gonna introduce yourself and say, “Hey, your story really encouraged me when I picked up some coffee, drove ALL THE WAY HOME and realized it was a single pump, not double. I was crushed, I read your story and felt better.” I hope not.
For me, the breakup has been hard. Sometimes I feel like there’s only one set of footprints in the sand.
But I think some good can come of it. Please help me and call out your Christian brothers and sisters when you hear any variation of the following sentences:
“My flight was delayed for 20 MINUTES!!! I totally understand what Job was going through.”
“They could only give me store credit and not a refund, I instantly thought of Job.”
“After I got a flat tire last week and had to wait for AAA for 30 minutes, I read the book of Job with a new sense of understanding now.”
As for me and the girl, you ask? We eventually worked through it. I just sent her grandparents a save the date…to when the new meatball sub comes out.
They’re Italian. I figured they’d like to know.
(John Crist is a standup comedian. Visit his YouTube page.)

A Game Changer

Still moving through Job, hitting 14-16 today.  Job cries out and asks God again what is going on.  His friends?  They continue to lay into him, getting a little angry now at how arrogant they think he is being.  They started well, sitting silently with him for seven days, not speaking, just hurting with him.  But now, they are letting him know what they think.  They are giving him their best wisdom, and they are wrong.  They think Job has sinned, and hidden it, and that is why he is being punished so.  In their minds, that is all it can be.  They are letting their theology (what they think they know about God) rule their actions.  That isn't always bad.  But in this case, they are wrong.

I guess if you have a trusted friend, who you know loves God, and they tell you they honestly don't know what is going on, why things are like they are, then don't play God in their life.  The one thing I notice is that none of Job's friends offer to pray for him.  Back at the beginning of the story, we are told that Job regularly prayed for his family and others.  His friends never offer that.  They don't take Job to God.  They tell Job what they think about God.

If someone is hurting, step up to the bat and pray with them and for them.  Jesus is the one who heals, not us.  Prayer is so powerful.  How different the book of Job would be if one of his friends had looked at him and said, "Dude, I don't know what's going on.  I don't get it either.  But let's pray and ask God for wisdom and help here."  That would have been a game changer.  It never happens.

Why?!

Reading through Job 10-14 today, and it is so interesting.  You've got Job, who is suffering because God wants to prove Satan wrong.  But Job does not know that.  So, he questions God.  He doesn't doubt God, or accuse God of anything wrong.  But he passionately, desperately questions God.  WHY are you doing this?  What have I done that you would do this?

His friends keep telling him if he will turn to God and seek help, it will all end.  It's his faith that is the problem.  But Job won't hear it.  He tells them it is always easy to judge other people's trials and faith when things are going well for you.  That is so true.  I am so often guilty of it, especially people I respect and hold too high.  I think they are better than me, so when they struggle, I begin to get mad and tear them down.  But I never consider what might actually be happening in their life at the time.

Sometimes hard things happen to us simply because God wants to use them for something, and He doesn't tell us what that something is.  We can ask, we can wonder, we can be unsure.  But we still need to have faith in Him.  The situation may make no sense, and God may not answer our questions, but we need to trust Him.  He is worth that risk.

What are you facing right now that doesn't make sense?  Can you still trust God in the middle of it?  Or is there someone struggling nearby that is disappointing you?  Will you give room for God to work in their life, without feeling the need to convict them for the pain they face?  It's tough, but it's worth it.

He Is Simply Not Afraid. That's Pretty Cool.

It's a new year, and I've been challenged through the actions of a friend of mine in my small group to read through the Bible in a year.  I haven't done it in a while, and I feel like it's about time.  So, I went to YouVersion and poked around.  I love their stuff.  They have chronological schedule that you read through the Bible in the order that we think it happened.  (The Bible is not in chronological order, if you didn't know).  So, I've been cruising through Genesis the first couple of days, and went Adam through Noah to the Tower of Babel.  Now I've hit Job.  Again, it's been awhile since I've spent time in Job.  It's good stuff (like any part of the Bible isn't, but anyway).

I've been reading the first few chapters of Job the last couple of days, and am fascinated by a couple of things.  It's God who points Job out to Satan.  Why?  I mean, He knows it will tick Satan off.  Is that they point?  "Hey Lucifer, you used to be a big time angel for me, but you blew it.  While you are out cruising around the earth aimlessly, have you noticed Job?  He's faithful and he loves me.  He's pretty impressive."  It's cool that God loves Job and is proud of him, but He pokes at Satan with Job.  Of course Satan's gonna get ticked.  God is setting Job up for failure and pain.  What do we expect the Prince of Darkness to do after getting his face shoved in it?

Then a very simple thing settled in with me.  God isn't afraid of Satan.  At all.  Not the least little bit.  I KNOW this in my knowledge, but the experience of it hadn't really settled in before.  He can poke Satan all He wants, because Satan is a 0% threat to Him.  None.  Nada.

I respect Satan's power to make life tough.  I know on my own, Satan is way more powerful than I am.  But he is a nothing in God's arena.  God can take Him down with just the word, or the thought.  And judging from how Satan responds, he knows that too.  God is not afraid of Satan.

And God promises to live in me.  Protect me.  Be my strength and hope.  And He is not afraid. 

So neither am I.

Warrior, Wimp, or What?!

Psalm 35 has David praying for God to fight his battles for him.  His enemies are constantly plotting for his downfall, and he begs God to save him.  He is lied about, has traps set for him, and is made fun of.  So, he prays for his enemies and begs God to protect and save him.

Okay, maybe you've got some people in your life that treat you this way.  Maybe there is a person, or a group of people, who are making life so difficult for you at home, work, or at school.  They push you out, speak poorly of you, and want to see you fail.  What do you do?

Read Psalm 35.  David turns to God for protection and help.  And he prays for his enemies.

No, I'm being serious, this is what he does.  Now, remember who David is.  This is the guy who killed a bear and a lion when he was just a kid working as a shepherd.  This is the kid who ran face to face with a giant, dropped him with a rock, and cut off his head.  This is the dude who won more battles than any general before him.  This guy is a warrior among warriors.  He knows how to fight, he knows how to kill, and he is always surrounded by a group of men who would happily kill for him. 

So why in the world is he praying for God to protect him instead of doing it himself??!!  Because it's the right way to handle the conflict in this situation.  It's what God wants.

How are you handling your conflict?  Have you asked God about that plan?  Have you read Psalm 35 yet?

Get to it!

His Face and His Hands

Psalm 27 is a song of courage, that God will protect us and deliver us when things are going south in a hurry.  In it, David says that all He wants is to be with God, and to see His face.  I love it in verse 8 when he says "My heart says of You "Seek His face!  Your face, Lord, I will seek."

See, here's some of what's going on.  Often we want to talk to God and ask for things.  He tells us to do it.  He expects us to ask for His help, and He tells us we should come to Him with our needs.  But other times, we need to just be with Him.  Often times it's discussed as "seeking God's face instead of His hands", meaning we talk to God and spend time with God just to be with Him, as opposed to needing something from Him.

What I love is David's simple determination.  In his heart he knows he needs to spend time with God.  So, He does it.  No debate, no excuses, no "I'm not sure how to do that".  He just does it.  He is confident God will receive him, and that he will see God's goodness here, in this life.

When was the last time you felt a push to spend time with God, and ignored it or put it off?  Today, stop and listen to your heart.  Seek God's face right now.  I am sure He will be thrilled to spend the time with you.  I'm headed that way right now.

A Blueprint for the Worst Day Ever

No matter how many times I read Psalm 22, I am just left with my mouth hanging open.  Read it for yourself, and understand that this is the Psalm Jesus refers back to as He is hanging on the cross.  David wrote it about himself, but it was prophecy about Jesus' death too.  Check it out:

Psalms 22:1-31
¹ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?
² O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent.
³ Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel.
⁴ In you our fathers put their trust; they trusted and you delivered them.
⁵ They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed.
⁶ But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people.
⁷ All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads:
⁸ "He trusts in the LORD; let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him."
⁹ Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust in you even at my mother's breast.
¹⁰ From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother's womb you have been my God.
¹¹ Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.
¹² Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
¹³ Roaring lions tearing their prey open their mouths wide against me.
¹⁴ I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me.
¹⁵ My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.
¹⁶ Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet.
¹⁷ I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me.
¹⁸ They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.
¹⁹ But you, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me.
²⁰ Deliver my life from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dogs.
²¹ Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen.
²² I will declare your name to my brothers; in the congregation I will praise you.
²³ You who fear the LORD, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
²⁴ For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.
²⁵ From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you will I fulfill my vows.
²⁶ The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the LORD will praise him-- may your hearts live forever!
²⁷ All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
²⁸ for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.
²⁹ All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before him-- those who cannot keep themselves alive.
³⁰ Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord.
³¹ They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn-- for he has done it.

All of the highlighted sections are mentioned either in the crucifixion story, or in Jesus' teachings and life.  The phrase at the end "for He has done it" is seen in Jesus last words, "It is finished".  I mean, this Psalm is written hundreds of years before Jesus is born, and so much of what if fulfilled in the Psalm is carried out by other people than Jesus.  The soldiers, the crowd, the Pharisees.  It's just amazing.  

And God goes to such great length to help us understand that He is in charge.  The worst day in the history of the world was completely planned out before time began.  We may not understand it, but He proves it for us so we don't have to doubt.  And when our worst day comes, if we are obedient to Him, He will equally carry us through it.  Never forget it!