20 “I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer; I stand up, but you merely look at me.
It can be very hard to understand when you feel like God is ignoring your pain, the prayers you pray from the depths of despair. When the bottom seems to have fallen out of your life, it can seem almost impossible to look up. Job expresses the feeling that God is indifferent to his suffering, that He just doesn’t care. Have you ever felt that way about anyone? Toward God? This is one of the hardest emotions to experience. When it happens in a relationship, usually one person gets desperate for connection. That desperation raises the emotional temperature in the relationship. Job is being attacked by his earthly friends. Those he thought he could count on have not turned and gone into attack mode. The only one Job has on his side is the LORD, and He seems to have turned His back. He won’t answer. The closeness Job felt in the past has gone. He feels isolated even from God. Often when people go through grief they feel this aloneness. No one around them seems to understand how hard it is to keep going on. They feel alone. The faith they used to count on becomes a silent one way conversation. They pray, but they get no answers. Friends pull back and don’t include them in get togethers. Even when they are invited, they feel out of place, like a third wheel. If you know someone in this situation, reach out to them. Give the opportunity to talk. It might be uncomfortable for you, but it will be a great comfort for them. They need you to reach out. If you are in this situation, feeling all alone, then gather all your strength and reach out to someone. Get dressed, and seek out some other people. It will feel very awkward at first, but relationships with others is what you need.
The Arnold Journey 