10Then I would still have this consolation—my joy in unrelenting pain—that I had not denied the words of the Holy One.
Many who read the book of Job start to buy into his friends arguments. They start to think that Job must have done something wrong, something to deserve what happened. But at the end of the book the Lord Himself says that Job did not sin in what he said. In all Job’s complaining and answering the charges of his friends, he did not cross the line into sin or error. Remember this as you read the words of this book. Job got it right and his friends got it wrong. In the middle of his pain and suffering he did not lose his integrity. He did not change his character or actions because of those with whom he was spending time. He didn’t blend in with the crowd. He did not become ‘one of the guys.’ Just because everyone around us is using profanity does not mean we need to use it. Others may be making inappropriate remarks about others, but we don’t need to. Others may be passing along juicy morsels of gossip, but we can walk away. Others may be viewing inappropriate movies, but we don’t have to. We can stay pure in an impure world. We can live differently. We can live lives that honor who we are and whose we are. Other people would have excused Job for slipping into sin, but Job would not excuse himself. He wanted his integrity more than the satisfaction of letting it all out. Are you choosing integrity over momentary satisfaction? Are you standing against the stream of sin, or yielding to its pull? Are you joining the crowd or speaking up and walking away?
The Arnold Journey 