Worship in Your Hardships

As of late, my husband and I have been encouraging one another with the genuine sentiment of "this is just a hard season, it will pass."

While I believe it to be true (some days more than others), I can not help but think of Job, possibly the most infamous sufferer. This is a story I have read more times than I can count, but considering my own bout of recent hardships, I wanted to read it again with fresh eyes and a receptive heart. There is purpose in suffering, but what is it? That's the million dollar question. Something I am coming to realize is that while there is purpose in suffering, the goal is not always to find the purpose. Sometimes, we are just meant to grow closer to the Lord in our trials. There is much we will not know this side of Heaven, sometimes the root of our suffering is one of them.

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In the first chapter of Job, we see him endure a series of heart crushing circumstances simultaneously. This is one of those really important pieces I feel I have sped past too quickly in my previous studies of Job. In chapter 1, we see Job receive the first news of his livestock being stolen and his farmhands killed (v. 15), and then we are told "while he [Job's servant] was still speaking, another messenger arrived" and this time with the news of his sheep and shepherds being burned up with fire from Heaven (v. 16). Again, "while he was still speaking, a third messenger arrived" and delivered the news that his camels had been stolen and more servants killed (v. 17). Finally, "while he was still speaking, another messenger arrived with the news...all your children are dead" (v. 18-19). Job received all of this life shattering and heart wrenching news all at once. Four messengers stood before him with reports of loss and death, none of it seeming to have reason.

How in the world do you keep breathing when you are hit from all sides, everything good stripped from you all at once? Job's response is one I need to practice. He outwardly expressed his anguish as he "stood up and tore his robe in grief", but most importantly he also "fell to the ground in worship" (v. 20). Grief and worship can coexist, it is not all or none.

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All of these events are labeled as Job's First Test. After reading through what he suffered in just this short time, it is hard to imagine anything more. In my own life, whenever there are multiple hardships happening at once, it is extraordinarily difficult not to sit in my sorrows. To clarify, I do not think taking moments to grieve or express lament is wrong, in fact I believe it to be helpful. The dangerous part is staying in that pit of despair. Our worship should lift our eyes to the Father and allow Him to lift us up. So much easier said than done. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 reminds us that, "our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever" (NLT). Don't stay stuck in your pit.

I pray that I may be so attuned to Christ's mercy for me that I can see beyond my sufferings, even when they are great and many. He delivers us, He sustains us, and He truly cares for us. Our savior is no stranger to the cup of suffering. I hope to encourage you in your hard season, whether that be now or in the future, that you are not walking in vain. Tear your robe and fall to the ground with praises on your lips, this too shall pass.