Facing Hardship
Daily Old Testament Reading: Genesis 11; Job 1-3
Daily Focus Passage: Job 1-2
Difficult dynamics plague every individual. All of us have moments of ease and joy as well as times of grief and pain. We face great adversity and often attempt to navigate why bad things happen to good people—the book of Job centers around this base question. Job is a prime example of a righteous individual who endures hardship and trials. The opening two chapters encourage us today to face difficulties by building a life of integrity, understanding that we will face hardships and that we must face difficulties with integrity.
BUILD A LIFE OF INTEGRITY
The book of Job describes Job as a man of integrity. This statement identifies Job as a man of great character that sought to live a life of righteousness before the Lord and lead his family to live right before the Lord. Job lived a life of integrity by placing the Lord as the main priority in his life. This placement allowed Job to seek the Lord for the truth needed to navigate life. At the same time, Job demonstrated the importance of trusting in the Lord alone and seeking the Lord alone for forgiveness.
Job serves as an example for us today. We need to place the Lord as the main priority in life and seek to live with integrity. Integrity occurs when we seek the Lord for the truth to guide our life and seek him alone for forgiveness. When we take a moment to consider our life, do we seek to live with integrity based on the ways of the Lord?
HARDSHIPS WILL COME
As Job lived before the Lord in righteousness and integrity, we find a scene from heaven that includes an interaction between the Lord and Satan. This interaction leads to Satan gaining permission to bring hardship to the life of Job to cause him to stumble before the Lord. Job faced these hardships through the loss of all his possessions. Thus, his wealth was gone. Job lost people in the death of his sons and daughters. He faced the hardship of grief. Job faced the pain of physical pain. Job endured hardship after hardship even though he trusted in the Lord.
Today, we face hardship because of sin and the effects of a fallen world. Believers do not receive an exemption from difficulty at the moment of salvation, but instead; instead, we must prepare to face these trying moments. When we recognize the reality of hardships, we prepare ourselves for the coming moments of struggle. Do you recognize that hardships occur in the life of both believers and non-believers?
FACE HARDSHIPS WITH INTEGRITY
Job faced difficulties with integrity. He refused to blame the Lord for his pain. Instead, he chose to praise the Lord for the good, the bad, and the ugly. This praise flowed from his sold-out heart for the Lord. Job kept the Lord central and knew that the Lord alone provided for his needs. Thus, Job modeled how to rest in the Lord through trying times. Job trusted in the will, work, and ways of the Lord and knew they were more than enough to endure the trials.
We must follow the example of Job and face the hard times in life with integrity. We must praise the Lord through the highs and lows of life and keep him central at all times. We must seek to rest in his will, work, and ways. We must desire to develop a life of integrity to endure the moment of hardship that comes our way.
How are you preparing to face trials in life? Are you establishing a life of integrity built on a faith-based relationship through Jesus in the Lord? Are you trusting in the Lord to provide the foundation to endure whatever struggles you face? Will you declare Christ through living through difficulties with integrity?
