Good morning! Happy first day of classes for the other UGA students! I hope this semester goes well for everyone especially if the last one was rough. Today, I wanted to let you know that God still loves you when He takes from you. It kind of sounds like a paradox, because it can be confusing. If God is a good God, why would he do something "bad" that's out of His nature? First of all, not everything bad that happens on earth is because of God. We live in a fallen world where people make bad choices, because God gives us free will. However, God is always in control, and He lets what happens in your life happen for a reason even if it seems tragic, frustrating, or hurtful on earth. God has shown us in the Bible that He takes things out of our life, so we can have a better relationship with him. This makes sense because if we had everything we ever wanted in our life, would we still seek God? Would we still pray to Him or praise Him for the victories in our life if everything always went our way?
A prime example of this in the Bible is the book, or the life, of Job. Job was described as the greatest man in the east. He had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, many servants, 7 sons, and 3 daughters. One day, Job was approached by messengers one after the other that informed him that all of his cattle, servants, and children have died. I couldn't imagine what I would have done in that moment, but I definitely would not have responded with as much obedience as Job. Immediately after hearing this news, he "arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshipped. And he said 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.'" Wow. When I read this passage, I read it over and over until I could comprehend what Job was saying. He worshipped God right after his life had completely changed and he had nothing. Unfortunately, for the next year or two Satan continued to attack Job and he eventually lost faith in God, but at the end of the book Job returns to the Lord, and the Lord gave back everything He took and multiplied it. What a story! It reminds us that everything good in our life is a gift from God and He can give and take when He wants, but He does that because He loves us. Can you imagine how much more thankful Job was for what he had, how much more he praised God for His goodness, or how much more his faith in God increased? My life is definitely not comparable to Job's, but even the minor changes in my life that I could (and have before) look at as bad, have increased my time spent with God at least twice as much, and I am thankful for how much more I have already learned about Him. It truly is amazing how God can take our messy lives, take some of the mess away, and make our lives more meaningful and fruitful. So, this year, this month, or this week, if something is taken from you that's big or small, I challenge you to thank God and use it as a reason to grow closer to Him. It's not easy, but it is so beneficial!
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