Her son was shot and killed outside her home today. He was a young man in the prime of his life. Naturally, the family was devastated, shocked. When I called her to offer my condolences, she answered the phone, “Praise the Lord.”
Praise the Lord…
With those three words, despite her pain and sadness, she bowed to the sovereign Lord, and acknowledged His control over all.
“You have decided the length of our lives. You know how many months we will live, and we are not given a minute longer.” -Job 14:5
Her son’s life was snuffed out, and hours later she is praising God.
Odd?
Not really.
Not when you live your life with the understanding that nothing can touch you without the Lord of Glory giving permission.
Nothing.
Not death. Not illness. Not job loss. Not earthquakes. Not Tsunami’s. Not divisions. Not strife. Not loss of function, or finances.
Absolutely nothing can press through to you, without first gaining permission from the Almighty God, …as long as you belong to Christ.
Belonging To Christ
When you belong to Christ, you have made the decision to take on His name in baptism, and therefore are under the protecting cover of His blood. (Romans 6:4)
Also, you have put on Christ,(Galatians 3:27)which makes youpart of God’s family. Accordingly, He binds Himself to you, and you then become privy to all of His special protection and favor.
Bad Things Still Happen
That doesn’t mean that horrifying things don’t happen. But it does mean that they are tempered by the loving hand of a Heavenly Father who promises thatHe will ultimately use even the bad things in your life toadd beautyand blessing. (Romans 8:28) He also promises that all of hell must bow before Him on your behalf, and ask permission to touch your life.
That’s what the book of Job was all about. God’s sovereignty, and the devil needing to gain permission from God to touch Job’s life.
“There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters…And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually…Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them. And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.” (Job 1:1-10)
The Faith Test
It is during the times of great turmoil that we find out what our faith is made of.
It isn’t when the sun is shining and the cool breeze is blowing, that we find out what we are made of. Rather it is when we, like Job, have lost all and the sky is pitch-black, that we discover if our faith is pure and able to stand the test.
I am proud of my friend and her faith-filled reaction to the sudden, devastating loss of her son. My hope and prayer is that when my faith-test comes, as I know it will, that I will be found full of confidence and trust in my Lord.
What about you?
How would you react should the Lord allow some tragedy to touch your life?
Is your trust and confidence in God strong enough and deep enough that your faith would remain unshaken?
Let’s Pray:
Oh Heavenly Father who knows all, sees all, and controls all. Thank-you for life. Thank-you for breath. Thank-you for the sun that shines and the rain that falls. Prove us now this day, Oh Lord God. Make our faith strong. Help us to water our prayers with tears that our spiritual roots may grow deep in strong. Because then, and only then, will we be able to stand firm when the inevitable times of testing and brokenness come. In Jesus name, Amen.