In the New Testament God tells us to “walk by faith not by sight’. I did a bible study by Jennifer Rothschild, who lost her sight as a young adult, and was able to understand this principle through her perspective. Things around me may look like God has left me high and dry, but, if I have faith to understand that God is for me and never leaves me or forsakes me, I can see that God keeps His promises, even if a hurricane is lifting up and twirling my life in a thousand directions. I can lay all my cares at Jesus’ feet and walk away knowing that He’s got me, not matter what happens. I can find peace and rest in Jesus.
Job 24 (The Message):
There are people out here getting by with murder—stealing and lying and cheating. They rip off the poor, exploit the unfortunate. Push the helpless into the ditch, bully the weak so that they fear for their lives.
Homeless, they shiver through cold nights on the street; they’ve no place to lay their heads. Exposed to the weather, wet and frozen, they huddle in makeshift shelters.
They go about patched and threadbare; even the hard workers go hungry. No matter how back-breaking their labor, they can never make ends meet.
People are dying right and left, groaning in torment. The wretched cry out for help and God does nothing, acts like nothing’s wrong.
Like many others, Job was blaming God for his life twirling in a thousand directions. But in actuality it is not God who brings calamity, sickness, disease, and death into the world. This is a fallen world I live in, brought on because of greed, pride and weakness. My life choices, other people’s life choices, all come into play for the events that happen. Being in the wrong place at the right time, choosing to get behind the wheel distracted or intoxicated, making bad food choices, not exercising, choosing to go left, when I know I should go right, all come into play with life circumstances. God gives everyone freedom of choice. Every single day I make choices without even thinking about it. I look around and it seems that more and more that the darkness is winning over the light. I personally hate the dark, I never turn the lights completely out. There is never complete darkness working in this world either. Somewhere, there is light! I may need to search high and low to find it, but it is there somewhere! In the Poltergeist movie, the boy yelled” Carol Ann stay away from the light” I always liked this because that is my name. But this Carol Ann is going to search for the light, and I can apply that towards my everyday life, because I need to always remember to go towards the light, the true Light who some like to call Jesus, Savior, Redeemer, Provider, or Protector.
Job 24 (The Message): Nothing that is evil lasts.
Bildad needed to learn that sometimes it is ok just to sit with someone. Unless your words are to encourage or to build up, they shouldn’t be spoken. But in spite of all of Bildad’s negative words, Job clung to his innocence, to his integrity. Unfortunately, though, he thought God ruined his life. He understood that God would mistreat the wicked, but not someone who had hope in God, or who prayed. Surely not him!! Sadly, Job was still working through the events that had hold of him, sadly, Job thought God was to blame. God will always treat us with patience and understanding as we work through our struggles about His goodness. Yes, God could come to Job’s rescue, but sometimes God lets people struggle so that they can learn more about Him, and understand how much He loves them. God’s desire is to draw them closer to Him, and further away from the evil of this life. Job, please go towards the light, and think positive! Job and I need to know God personally, so that when we think or see something that is foreign, we will recognize it for what it is. It is Satan’s main objective to convince me that God is to blame. He loves to fill my head with doubt. If he gets me to doubt God’s goodness, or to have me believe all the unfair events that happen to me are because God sent them upon me, he has won. I do not want to let Satan even have an inch of success in my life.
Revelation 17 (The Message): The ten horns you saw are ten kings, but they’re not yet in power. They will come to power with the Scarlet Beast but won’t last long—a very brief reign. These kings will agree to turn over their power and authority to the Beast. They will go to war against the Lamb but the Lamb will defeat them, proof that He is Lord over all lords. King over all Kings, and those with Him will be called, chosen, and faithful.
Let us not be like the kings in Revelation 17, who gave their power to the Beast.
It doesn’t matter now who looks like they are winning. If we are God’s faithful and chosen ones, then we have victory over any thing that may seem big now, but in the overall scheme of things is not. The Lamb will defeat all evil once and for all.
O Father God, I exalt you! I believe that no matter what happens in this life You will use it for my good. I believe that You are a good, good God! I believe that You will defeat all evil and that You will never leave my side no matter what. It doesn’t matter if I can feel Your presence or not, what matters is what I believe and I choose to believe You are for me, and You will never leave me or forsake me. Thank you for my faith. You are my hope, now and forevermore. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN!!!
Carol (carolvorwe)
Sixty-six books in a year 