CXXI

 Because we are not living for the here and now, because our focus is not on any earthly kingdom but the kingdom to come, the children of God live lives deemed by those of the world to be contrarian to theirs. If our focus, drive, desire, and purpose do not differ from those of the world, if the way we approach adversity and view ourselves is not in diametrical opposition to the way the world does, it is a reason for alarm and an honest self-assessment as to whether or not we are walking in the will of God is warranted.

In the eyes of the world, strength is strength, and weakness is weakness. Seeing life through the prism of the spiritual, the children of God know that in our weakness, His strength is made perfect, and in our moments of trial and hardship, the power of Christ rests upon us. We are not strong in and of ourselves. We are strong in Christ, through Christ, and by Christ; His strength is immutable.

2 Corinthians 2:19, “And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I would rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

This concept of ‘boasting in infirmities’ may seem paradoxical. It does not mean we should revel in our weaknesses, but rather, we should acknowledge them and understand that it is in these moments of weakness that God’s strength is most evident. It is a testament to the power of Christ that we can find strength and hope even in our most challenging times.

It’s rare that we get to acknowledge this reality in the West because, for the most part, unless some tragedy befalls us and some situation comes about for which we have no resolution, we have no need to lean on Him to the level that we know it is He who is carrying us, it is He who is strengthening us, and giving us the wherewithal to persevere.

Job had reached the end of himself. There was nothing he could do and nothing he could say to assuage his condition or make it better. It was either God would intervene on his behalf, or he would slowly degrade to the point of emaciation, then death. The notion of death was not displeasing to him. On the contrary, he yearned for it, seeing it as a blessing, a grace, and a relief.

Anyone looking at Job’s life objectively would likely conclude that there was no coming back from this. They’d written him off and now waited for the inevitable, for surely no one in his condition could be restored to health or have the things he had lost or the children that had been stripped from him returned. To the eyes of flesh, Job’s situation was untenable, impossible, and a foregone conclusion. Little did his friends and contemporaries know that what is impossible to men is more than possible to God.

If men have written you off, let them. If friends have written you off, let them. If family has written you off, let them. As long as God has not written you off, cling to your integrity, cling to your hope, and cling to your faith.

There is a noticeable through-line as we read through Job’s words versus the words of his three friends that while every time Job spoke, his discourse included prayer and supplication to God, none of his friends entreated the Lord, whether on their behalf or his.

Even though he was uncertain as to why this had befallen him, even though the pain and difficulty he was going through was unmatched by anyone of his generation, Job still entreated God, pled with Him, cried out to Him, and made supplication.

While his friends saw their part in this drama as some theological, philosophical, or existential debate between themselves and Job, Job’s singular focus was between himself and God, and trying to parse out the who and the why of his situation.

Looking back on some of the most difficult seasons of life, I can attest to the truth that prayer was a large part of what got me through them. Simply pouring out my heart to God, crying out to Him, had not only a cathartic effect, but a rejuvenating one, giving me strength I was not aware I possessed. The truth of it is that it wasn’t my strength; I didn’t have some long-forgotten stores of endurance that I tapped into, but rather His strength that buoyed me in my time of greatest need.

Acknowledge the presence of God in your life. Acknowledge His strength coursing through you in your weakness, and be grateful for the grace that He has shown you. Rather than boast in ourselves, rather than beat our chests and say we overcame, may we be wise and humble enough to point to Him as the source of our strength and deliverance.

Job 9:25-31, “Now my days are swifter than a runner; they flee away, they see no good. They pass by like swift ships, like an eagle swooping on its prey. If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile,’ I am afraid of all my sufferings; I know that You will not hold me innocent. If I am condemned, why do I labor in vain? If I wash myself with snow water, and cleanse my hands with soap, yet You will plunge me into the pit, and my own clothes will abhor me.”

If I could heal myself, I would. If I could restore myself, I would. If I thought putting on a brave face and smiling through my tears would bring about a resolution, I would do that too, but alas, I know none of these things will work. There would be no benefit in pretending that I am not afraid of my sufferings other than being made a liar. If we all take different roads to the same destination if I am condemned regardless, then why do I labor in vain?

These were the thoughts raging through Job’s mind unbidden, thoughts to which he gave voice, question after question to which he received no answer because the testing of one’s faith demands that we press on even when we don’t see the road ahead, when pieces of the puzzle are missing, and when we do not understand the why of a situation.

It would be easy to have a predetermined resolution to our trials before they’ve begun and foreknowledge of how they will end once they commence. There’s a difference between being stranded in the ocean bobbing upon the waves with no land in sight and swimming laps in an Olympic-sized pool at the local Y. With the latter; your survival is almost guaranteed, save for some infarction or freak accident. With the former, however, your only hope is that someone will come to your rescue because there is no way of rescuing yourself.

A test of one’s faith is being firmly convinced that even though the situation might look hopeless, one way or another, there will be a rescue. Not only that, but you are firmly convinced and know with confidence who your rescuer will be.

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea, Jr.