Why?

Daily Reading:  Job 3

Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden? (Job 3:23)

Devotional Thought: My granddaughter, Annabelle, has an inquisitive mind.  She has lots of questions.  Have you ever been followed by a nine year old who wants to know 'Why?' about everything?  Pretty soon you run out of answers!

From the early days of our lives, we know how to ask questions, don't we?  Much of learning is asking the right questions.  Job asked hard questions, didn't he?  And in the end, he learned about God and about the mysteries of life.

Job was in pain - physically sick, emotionally bereft, financially ruined, matrimonially challenged, and spiritually bewildered - and couldn't figure out what he had done wrong.  He had believed all the right things, said all the right things, and done all the right things.  Yet still his life was in shambles, his heart broken, his future bleak.

Job asked why.

Questioning why he had ever been born, Job said, "Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden?"  The answer is found in the question itself.

The way of humanity is 'hidden.'  We don't know the end from the beginning.  We don't understand the complexities and mysteries of the human experience.  In the words of the Apostle Paul, "Now we see in a mirror dimly... Now I know in part" (1 Corinthians 13:12). 

But God has not left us in the dark.  He has sent Jesus, the “Light of the world" to show us the way.  God gives us light because he loves us and wants us to find the truth and in so doing to find him.

Prayer: Jesus, you had your times of questioning - "My God!  My God!  Why have you forsaken me?"  You found your answer in the wisdom and will of the Father.  Help me - when life is falling apart - to trust in your wisdom and to surrender myself in faith to your will.  Amen.

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 119:89-96

89 Forever, O LORD, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.

90 Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast.

91 By your appointment they stand this day, for all things are your servants.

92 If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.

93 I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.

94 I am yours; save me, for I have sought your precepts.

95 The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, but I consider your testimonies.

96 I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad.