Sometimes Stuff Happens - Day 287 Month 10-12 Week 39-7
Today's Reading (Bible in 1 year)
1 Chronicles 27:16-28:21, Job 6, Hosea 10, 2 Timothy 1
Sometimes Stuff Happens
“Teach me, and I will be silent; and show me how I have erred. How painful are honest words!” (Job 6:24,25 NASB1995)
One of the hardest things to do is to stay silent while someone points out the wrong you have done. It seems Job is willing to listen. Certainly with all the pain and suffering he is feeling, if there is truth that he has sinned to cause it all, he’s willing to accept it.
In my mid thirties, when I was at my lowest, I recognized I had contributed to the place I had ended up. I recognized how I had contributed to the break up of my marriage and my downward spiral. Once I admitted my part, my recovery started.
Job is different. Job did not contribute to the cause of his huge loss and health issues. However, since he did not know why he found himself where he was, if there was something he overlooked, maybe he could start his recovery.
Stuff happens. God never promised we’d have perfect health, and He never promised that we would be successful throughout our lives.
Sometimes we contribute to the mess we find ourselves in. Sometimes other people contribute. And sometimes things happen that we simply cannot explain. The problem comes when we assume that every painful experience must be the result of something we have done wrong.
Job’s friends seem convinced that if he is suffering this much, he must have done something to deserve it. Job is willing to listen if he has done something wrong, but that does not mean his friends are right. There is a difference between being willing to admit our mistakes and accepting blame for things we did not do.
I know I needed to recognize my own part in the mess I was in during my thirties. Facing that truth was painful, but it was also the beginning of recovery. However, I would not want someone who is suffering to assume that they must have done something wrong. I would not want them to carry guilt that does not belong to them. Maybe there are times when we need to ask God to show us where we have gone wrong. There are also times when we need to stop searching ourselves for an explanation that may not be there.
I don't have an answer for every difficult thing that happens in life. I do know that suffering is not proof that God is punishing us, and a life that looks successful is not proof that we have done everything right.
I think there is something to learn from Job here. Be willing to listen when someone points out where we may have gone wrong. Be willing to admit it when they are right. But don't assume that every accusation is true, and don't assume that every hardship is your fault.
Have a great day!
Steve
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