A Comforting Discovery

Job 42:1-2 “Then Job answered the Lord and said, ‘I know that You can do all things and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.'”

Photo courtesy of Aunt Catherine Meekins

I find it interesting when more than one person in the Bible makes the same discovery. When this happens it causes me to want to investigate and find out how this information can apply to my life. I especially love it when the discovery has something to do with God because the more I get to know Him the more I come to trust Him.

During my recent Bible reading I have read of numerous people coming to the realization that when God makes a plan, there is nothing that can interfere. Regardless of the impossibility of a situation or the opponents that might fight against it, God’s will is always accomplished.

Job was a man of God. The Bible says that he was blameless, upright, a God-fearer, and one who turned away from evil. Because of a challenge brought by Satan, God allowed Job to go through some very difficult testing. In circumstances that were overwhelmingly painful, Job lost his livestock, his servants, his children, and eventually his health. Even his friends turned against him as they sought to discredit him and accused him of sin that they believed brought on these disasters.

Job could not understand what God’s plan was in all of this tragedy. But though he remained strong in his faith declaring, “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him,”  he also sought answers.

Through this difficult physical and mental struggle God was refining Job and revealing even more about Himself to this upright man. At the end of the story God confronted Job with his misunderstanding of God’s purposes and power. The Lord asked him many questions about the working of His mighty power within the realm of creation, nature, and the animal world. He challenged Job on his ability to understand and perform the mighty works that only the Most High can do.

As this godly man considered the humbling words of the Lord, he had only one response. “I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.” Job finally recognized that the reasons for all that had happened to him were too wonderful for his mind to comprehend. God’s plan was so great and all-encompassing that all he needed to do was trust Him implicitly. So he repented of his pride and sought to wait patiently for God’s instructions.

What a blessing it is to see the whole story! Through the pages of the Bible we can see things that Job did not see and can understand a little more of what Job’s circumstances were all about. We also know that after he had learned his lesson, God commended his faith before his so-called friends and blessed him with even more than he had at the beginning.

Oh, that we would discover what Job did. We would then be able to trust God more fully when our experiences seem confusing and harsh. When we know our powerful God as He is we can experience a peace amidst our difficulties. Then we can confidently say with Job, “I know that You can do all things and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.” Take comfort in this wonderful God-Fact!