Year 5, Day 124: Job 30

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Abide

• Abide: This is a moment, day, or even a season when we focus on God.  It is a time when we are rejuvenated by God.  It is the time for us to gather up what we will need for the coming growth after a season of pruning.  However, abiding is not the end.  We abide so that we can grow, bear fruit, prune, and abide again.

Job 30 gives us the perspective of a man who has been beaten down by life.  His life was going along very well with riches, family, and community.  But His wealth was taken away.  His family was lost.  His health declined.  Job went from leading a life of comfort to leading a very difficult life in an incredibly short time period.

It makes sense to hear Job speak as he does in this chapter.  I’m not saying that Job’s words are right, mind you.  But it makes sense.  Job has had everything stripped away from him and even his wife and closest friends come and tell him how wrong he must be.  I can’t blame him for saying that he feels like he’s a brother to jackals.  Job’s alone and living in a dark moment in life.

It is these moments in life when we can use a time for abide most.  When our life is crumbling round us, it is very easy to feel as though we are distant from God, too.  When our life is hard, it is easy to feel as though God has abandoned us.  At times like this we need to pay attention to our abiding.  We need to place special emphasis upon our connection to God.  While it is easy for us to feel distant to God, we must work hard to make sure that we do not feel that way.  God is always here and always present.  Only through our abiding with Him and trusting in His grace and glory will we come through the dark moments of life with strength and relationship intact.

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