We understand that life is full of ups and downs, and sometimes we face losses and difficulties. The Holy Bible shows us the story of Job, an upright, upright and God-fearing man, who experienced the ups and downs of life. He overcame losses and faced the pain of grief, to live God’s purposes.
Job, on his journey, teaches us that even in the face of adversity and trials, it is possible to maintain faith and hope. Like him, we can find the strength to move forward, trusting that there is a greater purpose behind each challenge.
No matter how careful we are, losses are part of life and it is essential to learn how to deal with them. When we face difficult times and negative experiences, we have the opportunity to grow and become stronger. The key is to seek learning in each situation, transforming pain into wisdom. Instead of dwelling on suffering, we can look forward with hope and determination, ready to face new challenges with courage and resilience. Remember, adversities can be transformed into opportunities for growth and overcoming.
The story of Job reminds us that, even in the darkest moments, the light of overcoming and renewal can shine. We live in this world with just one goal: we are looking to achieve something every day. We live for countless things, such as well-being, success, health, purposes. And at the same time as we are looking to achieve something, along the way, we also lose every day. We are winning and losing. And this is exactly where we must reflect on what we have lost.
The Bible tells us the story of a man named Job, who had many possessions, a blessed family and every day he made sacrifices to God. However, at a point in his life, Job begins to lose everything he had achieved, even to the point of losing his children and his health.
Despite all the difficulties Job faced, he maintained his unshakable faith in God. Even in his darkest moments, Job remained firm in his belief that everything happened for a greater reason and that God would guide him beyond his trials. His story teaches us about resilience, faith and perseverance, showing that, even in the face of the greatest adversity, it is possible to find strength and hope in the divine.
How to understand that overcoming is necessary?
Overcoming is a process that is part of each of us’s life journey. To understand that overcoming is necessary, it is important to accept that we will face challenges and adversities along the way. It is natural to come across difficult situations that test us, but it is essential to remember that we are capable of overcoming them.
To achieve this, it is essential to cultivate resilience, patience and self-confidence. Learning from obstacles, seeking emotional support and maintaining a positive mindset are also essential aspects of overcoming difficulties. With each challenge overcome, we grow and become stronger, prepared to face new challenges that come our way.
Therefore, understanding that overcoming is necessary involves accepting difficulties as opportunities for growth, believing in our potential and maintaining hope for better days. Always remember that you are capable of overcoming any obstacle that comes your way.
Job’s losses and what does Job teach us?
The book of Job begins by presenting us with a righteous man, fearful of God and separated from evil. Job was very rich in livestock, owning 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yokes of oxen, and 500 female donkeys (Job 1:3).
- The first calamity that hits Job is the loss of his oxen and donkeys, while they were plowing and grazing. The Sabeans attacked and stole all the animals, leaving Job without his main source of sustenance and sacrifices to God.
- The second calamity to befall Job is the loss of his 7,000 sheep. Lightning falls from the sky and sets the sheep and shepherds on fire, consuming them completely. Again, Job does not blame God, but recognizes His sovereignty and remains steadfast in his faith.
- The third calamity is the loss of Job’s 3,000 camels. The Chaldeans attack and steal all the animals, leaving Job even more impoverished. Again, Job does not rebel against God, but remains firm in his faith.
- The fourth and final calamity is the most devastating for Job: the loss of all ten of his children. While they were eating and drinking at their older brother’s house, a great wind came from the desert and blew down the house, killing all of Job’s children.
Here we can understand that, in the midst of all the trials described here, Job lost everything, he does not blame God or rebel against Him. Instead, Job threw himself to the ground, and worshiped saying: “ Naked came I from the womb from my mother and naked I will return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord.” In this passage, Job recognizes that everything he has comes from God and that He has the right to give and take as He wills (Job 1:21).
These events remind us that although we may experience hardships and lose valuable things, our true security and sustenance come from God, not our material possessions.
Dealing with difficult times is an inevitable part of the human journey. Instead of giving in to revolt and questioning, it is essential to remember that adversity is part of God’s plan. The passage in Romans 8:28 reminds us that all things, whether good or bad, happen with divine permission and are designed to work for our good, especially for those who love God. By maintaining this perspective, we can find strength and wisdom to face life’s challenges with faith and hope. May we always seek to understand the divine purpose in the midst of tribulations, trusting that everything contributes to our spiritual growth and strengthening.
Job, our illustrious, even after remaining firm and faithful to God, was only experiencing the first part of the ordeal, as in chapter 2 of Job we find the narrative of the second stage of Job’s ordeal.
And another day came, when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them, to present himself before the LORD . Notice that God testifies to Job’s faithfulness: Then the Lord asked, “And the Lord said to Satan, Have you observed my servant Job? For there is no one like him on earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil, and who still retains his sincerity, even though you incited me against him to consume him without cause. (Job 2:3) “ . The Enemy sees that in the midst of material, emotional and children’s losses, Job stood firm. So now the enemy requests God’s permission to touch Job’s health, as the enemy believed that Job would blaspheme God.
Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, and all that a man hath he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bones and flesh, and you will see if he does not blaspheme you to your face! And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but he guards his life. Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and struck Job with evil sores, from the sole of his foot to the top of his head.Job 2:4-7
We can reflect that there are moments in life when everything seems to go wrong and only gets worse, but we must maintain our faith in God and believe that it is his time and his purpose will be fulfilled. Understand that the faith that Job possessed before these catastrophic events will remain faithful in the midst of and after these catastrophic events. We learned here that even in the midst of adversity we can lose everything, but our faith must be firm in God.
The enemy did not understand that Job, even without knowing God through personal experience, but only through what he heard about God, Job believed and based his faith on God’s purpose for his life. Somehow, Job understood that God’s purpose was above any adverse situation. “Before, I only knew you from hearing about you, but now I see you with my own eyes.” Job 42:5.
Job, the one who had a prosperous and blessed life, was now sitting in the middle of ashes, scraping his skin with a piece of pottery. His wife saw such suffering and anguish to the point of saying to him: “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die!” Job 2:8-9 . This passage demonstrates that Job’s happiness was not in his material possessions, it was not in his livestock, it was not in his good food, it was not in his comfortable home, it was not in the servants at his disposal and it was not in the fact that he had a family. based, but rather, Job’s happiness was in God, who provided everything he experienced.
Job was grateful for everything he had, because he knew that everything came from God. We have proof in Job’s response: “You speak like a foolish woman. Will we accept only good things from God’s hand and never evil?” . In all this Job did not sin with his lips. Job 2:1-10
We must understand that serving God is not just in good times, serving God means facing the fluctuations of life, serving God means having unshakable faith for the day of prosperity and the day of scarcity.
Understand that the entire process that Job faced was within God’s permissive will and his permission only allowed the enemy to touch what Job owned and even his health, but Job’s life, the enemy could not touch.
In our lives it is no different, the enemy often touches several things that are present in our lives, through the permissive will of God so that his purpose is fulfilled. However, our lives and those of our loved ones are kept in the hands of God.
Understand that all the suffering present in Job’s life was not only to prove Job’s faithfulness to the enemy, but the ordeal also generated intimacy and growth in Job. Job lived by hearing what they told him about God, however, after the whole process, Job now has an experience with God lived by himself, “I knew you from hearing, but now my eyes see you. ” Job 42:5 . Experiences lead us to processes and processes lead us deeper with God. The processes of life are painful, they produce pain, but in the end we will be more blessed than we were.
Remember that Job lost everything? In the same way, the Lord blessed Job in the second part of his life even more than in the first, possessing 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1000 yoke of oxen and 1000 donkeys. The children that Job had lost God also gave Job seven sons and three daughters. Understand that in all the land, there were no women as beautiful as Job’s daughters.
Job lived the process, overcame the losses to live the purpose and after that, Job lived 140 years and saw four generations of children and grandchildren. Then he died, after a long and full life.
What God is teaching us is that we have to understand that the process is part of it, that the process brings with it losses, often painful, but necessary to face, so that we can live God’s purpose for our lives. Everything that Job loses, Job receives back doubled, we will never understand the purpose and the process that God wants to pass on to us, but we have to be brothers, face them like Job, believing that everything comes from God and everything is his , believing that God will intervene in our favor.
