Day 84: From the 12

Acts 1; Deuteronomy 11-12; Job 9

I cannot imagine the emotional roller coaster that the disciples would have experienced in the span of about 43 days.  They went from losing their closest friend and teacher, feeling hopeless, to fear of the future, to boldness because of Christ’s return.  Jesus tells them that they don’t need to know when all the events of the future will happen, but instead he focuses them on the task at hand.  Sometimes I get so caught up in what the future will bring that I forget about my purpose right now.  My goal is to spread the love and story of Jesus Christ, the Risen Savior.  This is the same purpose that those disciples had long ago.  I think it is awesome that from 12 men, grew the entire body of Christ.  When the Holy Spirit is with a person, it is incredible what they can accomplish for the Lord.

So if I love the Lord with all my heart and soul, he will send…rain?  What good is that for me?  In the story of the Israelites, rain would have been necessary to make their lives simpler, more productive, healthy.  Rain was life to them, their property, and their animals.  So if I apply that concept to my life, that means that if I obey God with all my heart and soul, he will provide me with the very thing I need to help me be spiritually blessed.  I think part of this could be that the exact thing is a relationship with Christ.  That is what God has given me that is more amazing than anything else.  But I think it also could mean that he give me hope in times of distress, peace in times of discomfort, love in times of loneliness, and courage in times of fear.  God is a giving God; it takes just a quick glance at the scriptures to see that.  And if I obey him, he will provide.

But, in the very next verses in Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people that they will be tempted NOT to obey, and if I sin, God will not provide the good things he has in store for me.  I think sin has a way of blocking God’s provision and work in a person’s life.  Maybe it isn’t that God stops blessing, but that sin makes it so that he can’t because when I live a life of sin, I don’t want to accept the love, grace, peace, and joy of the Lord.

Job’s friends are trying to be helpful, and much of what they say is true.  However, Job’s case is different.  He didn’t do anything to deserve the consequences that have been heaped upon him.  The reality is, bad stuff in life can happen to good people.  Being “good” does not mean that a person can avoid problems.  A person may be walking with the Lord and obeying him in every way possible, and still calamity strikes.  The thing to learn from Job is to have faith in the power of God no matter what the circumstances.