Letting Go

O. T. #1118 "Letting Go"
Dec. 19, 2017
Job 3

LET IT GLOW

Is there something you need to let go of today so peace and joy can be in your heart today? There is for me, friends. I'm tired of carrying round all those hurts. Like a backpack full of rocks, they weigh me down, robbing me of joy. It's time for me to let them go. Stop questioning why the situation happened. Just forgive, and carry on. Job's situation was a bit more serious than mine, though. Let's see how he handled it in this chapter.

Job and his three friends have been sitting together in silence at the city dump for seven days now. There was no party going on, no feast, no long discussions or debates, no catching up on the latest. We aren't even told how much time had passed since Job spoke to his wife.

During this silent time, God is silent, too. He seems to be absent to Job. They had enjoyed fellowship during  the years of prosperity Job experienced. Job didn't have the reassurance that God was right there beside him, in there with him. There was no explanation as to why he lost everything. Job didn't know it was Satan's doings, tempting Job to curse God. He didn't know for quite some time later.

If we only know why this thing happened in our life, it would help us through, help us find healing. For reasons known only to God, we may not find answers until we reach heaven.

Well, here we are, at one of the most depressing chapters in the Bible. Though Job lost his wealth and health, he didn't loose his faith in the Lord. Job's faith was not in his possessions. He did not sin with his lips. He accepted good and bad from God. No where in this book does Job deny the Lord or question His holiness or His power. He did question how such a holy God could permit such awful calamity.

Let's not be so hard on Job until we have experienced such things as he did. Some of you may have already-lost a child, a job, a marriage, a house, relationships. If only we know the purpose of our suffering, we could pick up the pieces and carry on. It's when it doesn't make sense that the pain is hard to accept. Isn't that where trust comes in? We trust that God has a purpose.

Does suffering/misery accomplish anything? When we yield to God, yes it does. Suffering works for us, not against us. Read 2 Corinthians 3:7-5:9.  Even when there is no relief for pain, we must hold onto our faith in God.

LET IT GROW

After all that had happened to Job, then he speaks. His former buoyance has turned to bitterness, his patience to self-pity, and his integrity to ingratitude. At this point, Job seems to be talking to himself, not his friends or God. He is verbalizing his most innermost thoughts and feelings in a spontaneous outburst of anguish, misery, and despair. In a way, it as a cry for help. (Falwell)

Swindoll gives us a simple outline of the third chapter:

• Job regrets his birth. (verses 1-10)
• Job wishes he'd died at birth. (verses 11-19)
• Job now longs to die. (verses 20-26)

Take a minute and count how many times Job uses the word let in verses3-9. Did you count 15?
What is he thinking? Let is a wish verb. It represent what Job is wishing. Let those things occur.
It's not uncommon for a person with a terminal illness to wish he had never been born, forgetting all the good years.

With less than a week until we celebrate Christmas, the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, can we let all those hurts be put at the foot of the cross and find peace, love, joy from the Lord? Can we let His purpose be for our good and His glory? Shall we take time to focus on Jesus and not our problems?


LET IT GO
     
                              ... and let God...
                               ... and thank Him for all the blessings this year.
                               ... and let God take my case, bring justice, and restore my reputation.