22In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
When disaster strikes, it can be very hard not to try to find someone to blame. We want to understand, to explain, to make sense of sometimes senseless events. We are created to put the pieces together, to solve the mysteries, to ask hard questions. Job is about tragedy and one man’s response to those events. It is also about God’s grace in the midst of the tragedy. This chapter has recounted the worst day in anyone’s life. Job has lost all is liquid assets, all his business fortune, and his ten children in one day, a bad day by anyone’s standards! But his heart stays pure. He does not blame God for the tragedy. Before we get too far, I want you to know it is OK to ask God why. Jesus did! “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” In moments of extreme pain we are created to cry out to our Creator. Pain asks that why question as part of its design. Everything in life is designed as an opportunity for us to draw in closer to our Creator. In good times we can draw near in gratitude and thanksgiving. In tough times we come in humility and sorrow. The point is that we draw near no matter the circumstance. That is exactly what Job does; he draws near in submission. His heart is breaking and he brings that brokenness into God’s presence. God is not afraid of our brokenness; He will not reject us. But we are often afraid of our own brokenness; we are afraid God will reject us if we are not perfect, so we try to hide our nakedness, our brokenness. The Lord wants us to bring it all to Him, just a Job did.
The Arnold Journey 