Words of Faith: Put struggles into perspective

Why does a loving God allow his people to suffer?

This is a question asked by theologians for centuries. But given the same situation of suffering, we could as, is our love for God conditioned on what we receive from God?

The book of Job addresses these issues. Job was upright and feared God. And he prospered. He had many possessions – camels, oxen, sheep, donkeys, servants. He had a family – sons and daughters. They had a good life.

But then the story cuts away from Job to the presence of the Lord. The Lord is meeting with those in heaven, including Satan. Now you have to understand that at the time of this writing the term Satan did not mean the one who is the source of all evil. Instead, Satan meant something more like a prosecutor or a tester. When the Lord met with Satan, the Lord bragged about Job, how upright and blameless he was.

“There is no one on earth like him,” the Lord said.

But Satan countered, “Does Job fear God for nothing …You have blessed the works of his hands and his possession have increased … But stretch out your hand now and touch all that he has and he will curse you to your face.”

“Very well,” the Lord says, “all that he has is in your power; only do not stretch out your hand against him.”

Then calamity hit the house of Job.

In one day, all his oxen and donkeys were captured, a fire killed all his sheep, an army took his camels, and most of his servants were killed. Then the final blow came when his children were killed in a wind storm. Job mourned his loss but then worshiped God.

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Despite all his suffering, Job did not cry out against God.

But again the Satan came to the Lord and the Lord bragged about Job’s faithfulness despite his suffering. Then Satan answered the LORD, "Skin for skin! All that people have they will give to save their lives. But stretch out your hand now and touch his flesh and bone, and he will curse you to your face."

The LORD said to Satan, "Very well, he is in your power; only spare his life."

So Satan inflicted Job with sores over his entire body. Job scraped his sores with a broken pot as he sat in ashes. Then his wife said, "Do you still persist in your integrity? Curse God, and die."

But he said to her, "You speak as any foolish woman would speak. Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?"

Despite all that he endured, Job refused to cry out against the Lord.

This story asks the question, “Is our relationship with God conditioned on receiving only good things in life?” As we all know, life is filled with blessings as well as tragedy. It’s easy to say that the good comes from God. But what about the bad? There is no right or wrong answer to this question. But I personally do not believe that God causes the bad. In the story, the Satan – the tester – did. I think that the tester represents the conditions of this mortal life.

During the past 10 months I have faced struggles. On Jan. 2, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Recently I had my third surgery in the process of recovery. This should be my last surgery. I am doing well now. As far as I know I am cancer free. But I have struggled with why? Why has this happened to me? I don’t believe that God caused the cancer, but God did not stop the cancer from forming. That is part of what it means to be a living organism.

We are susceptible. We are vulnerable. We are mortal.

The key to faithfulness is to realize that even in the midst of the struggle, we are not alone. God is with us. I believe that God has been with me through my doctors and nurses. I believe that God has been with me through my family and friends. I believe that God has been with me through the prayers of many.

Like Job, we will face struggle, loss and illness. This is part of what it means to be alive. But we can be assured that no matter the struggle, God is still with us. For this we can give thanks. For this we can say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord!”

This story was originally published October 9, 2015 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Words of Faith: Put struggles into perspective."