Dr. Mike Murphy
They were filled with grief as they left. They had known him for years, but the man they now saw was a shell of his former self. Behind the sores that covered his skin, was a man broken by all this life had recently brought his way. Many a man had claimed to lose everything, but before them stood a man who they thought had lost it all. Within minutes, he had watched as all his wealth was destroyed in front of him, and all his servants had now abandoned him. If that news was not devastating enough, a messenger arrived with even more traumatizing news. All three of his daughters, and all seven of his sons, had lost their lives in a sudden disaster.
This would be more than most men could bear, but they would soon learn their friend was no ordinary man. As his grief and loss filled his mind, boils began to cover his skin. As the pain from his skin began to smother him, his wife began to chide him. She mocked his integrity, and told him he should just curse God so he could die. But he know that all he had he received from God, it was not his. So he praised the Lord through it all.
As his friends came to see him, that sat in grief with him. For days that sat with him quietly, hoping their presence would comfort him. They tried to help him get beyond all that now cursed him, everything that haunted him. They pleaded with him to confess his sins, to turn to God and to make his case before Him. But with each plea, he professed his innocence, assuming no guilt. As their pleas became stronger, his stance remained. One last time they pleaded with him to confess his guilt, warning him that his sins would just cause him greater suffering. But through it all, he remained unchanged.
As they left him, they wondered if that would be the last they would see of their friend. Whether his guilt would completely consume him. But as they walked out the door that day, they could still hear him praising the Lord above. And as they last glanced into his eyes, they saw a man who was waiting patiently to hear His voice.
We all know and love the story of Job. With each word, we read of his devotion and of his patience. And with each word we learn so much about the nature of our Lord. Job shows us how little we really know of that nature. Just how limited our mind is to the nature of our Lord, and all the things He is doing for us that is out of our sight. We have so often heard the age old question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Job shows us the answer will never be found in the logic and the understanding of man, but can only be found when we listen to the Lord above.
Job shows us that our life is not a series of chances, not a matter of coincidences. Our life has a purpose, a purpose that is found in His voice. A purpose that always sees the Lord in control. A purpose when seen, always brings glory to His name, and always brings fulfillment to His will. In His purpose we can find a perfection. A perfection that lead the psalmist to proclaim, “As for God, His ways are perfect”(Psalm 18:30). If we trust that God is perfect, then we must also trust that whatever God does in our lives must also be perfect. Many days our limited minds only lets us see the flaws, not seeing the beauty that we so easily overlook in the perfection. But God sees first those perfections, and the purpose that will one day allow each of us to see them also.
Our job is to trust in His purpose, to allow His eyes to show us what we cannot always see. To trust Him, to obey Him, and to follow His will so we may also see the beauty He sees in the perfection. When we trust His purpose, we soon find that God is present no matter what this life may throw our way. Whether we are standing on the highest of mountains, or we find ourselves in the deepest of valleys, by our side the Lord is always there. Standing with us in all the splendor of His glory. A splendor that would lead Job to proclaim, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; but now my eye sees You”(Job 42:5).
In the midst of the story of Job, we are given a glimpse of God’s purpose, and the perfection that would come from His purpose. As Job is in the grip of his misery, he asked two amazing questions. First, Job asks, “Who can bring what is pure from the impure? No one!?”(Job 14:4). This is a question from a man who not only knows the perfection of God, but sees the imperfection in each of us. An imperfection that separates us from the Lord through our sins. But in Job’s question, the answer would one day come in the midst of God’s purpose, as our Lord would place Himself on the Cross so that we may be made perfect in the Lord’s eyes.
A few verses later, Job asks a second question. “If man dies, will he live again?”(Job 14:14). In the midst of Job’s greatest struggle, he finds hope that the Lord will restore him. That death will hold no strength over him. Again, the answer to Job’s question was found in God’s purpose. As Christ rose, we have His promise that we will also rise, and that we will live with Him forever(John 14:19). A promise that is not only the answer to Job’s question, but is the answer to all our questions. A promise whose purpose holds every answer.
I love reading the story of Job, and often find myself studying it. With each word, I understand a little more of His purpose, I see a clearer picture of His perfection. And with a little more clarity I hear His voice. As so many of you who hear my words already know, I am in the final stages of cancer. With each day, I feel the grip that cancer has on me strengthening. And as Job must of often felt, I can slowly feel this life escaping from me. But each day as this body fails me a little more, I hear His voice a little louder. I see His purpose a little clearer. And my desire for His will to be seen in my life becomes a little stronger.
Each day, His voice whispers to me that my cancer is not a curse, but a blessing when placed in His hands. He so lovingly reminds me , my life is not measured by my number of days, but by what I do with each of those days. Each of my days are measured by His will, not by the selfish concerns of my own. Each day is measured by the opportunities He gives me, and what I do with each of those opportunities. And with each opportunity, I allow His will be to seen, and His glory to be shown.
At the end of each day, His voice softly speaks to me, asking me what I did with the opportunities He gave me that day. My own answer becomes my measure. Each day that I follow His purpose and I remember His perfection, I find I cannot wait to hear His voice that night calling to me. His voice has also taught me that each opportunity He gives me is of equal importance. He may not be able to use me as often now to speak to hundreds, but He smiles just as wide when He sees me speak to one. Just like He did with Job, the Lord has shown me that He can change this world just as quickly when we are willing to speak to one, as He can when we are called to speak to many. Our physical ailments and restrictions are not obstacles in His eyes, nothing more than building blocks that will lay the foundation for His perfect plan, will, and purpose for each of our lives. Just as the Lord showed Job, our limitations are not restrictions of what He can do with us, they are often opportunities in His hands to reach those He so needs to reach. We are putty in His hands, and whether that putty is soft and pliable, or hardened by what this world has thrown at us, it is still a source of beauty and perfection in the hands of the Master. A putty that is designed to reflect His will, and show all the world of His purpose. Putty sculpted into an image so to remind this world of the beauty that is heard in each word of His voice.
I pray that all of you will see the beauty and the purpose in each opportunity the Lord gives you. Each opportunity is an incredible and an amazing gift, just waiting to be opened and shared with all those around you. With each opportunity you fulfill, His will and His purpose become a little clearer, and His glory shines a little brighter. And with each gift you open, I can promise His voice will speak to you a little clearer. And I can also promise, that you will praise our Lord for the blessing He gives you, allowing you each day to open and share another of his precious gifts.
I will also speak to you the words that I believe Job would say to each of you. What this world may see as your greatest curse, can be an incredible blessing in His hands. What may bring you to your knees in despair, may be the one thing, in His hands, that keeps you on your knees in praise. When this world sees you in your weakest or final moments, close your ears to all they are saying, and listen closely for His voice. He will always be there speaking to you, always glad to share with you the plans and purpose He has for you. Plans that no matter how weak He may find you, still has opportunities waiting for you. And when those final moments do come, do not face them with fear and regret. Face them with praise and rejoice, knowing you have made the most of every opportunity He gave you. That you have opened every gift, and shared each of those gifts with all those around you. Face that moment knowing that you have the answers to both the questions that Job once asked. Knowing the purpose and the plans that He will forever have for you. Knowing that in those next moments you will get your first amazing glimpse of the smile that you will forever more see on His face. And as you take your place in the eternity He has lovingly created for you, take comfort in knowing that you recognize the familiarity of His voice!
Praying each of you will be putty in His hands, and as He sculpts each of you, you will hear the beauty in His voice!
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