2 “How long will you go on like this?
You sound like a blustering wind.
3 Does God twist justice?
Does the Almighty twist what is right?
4 Your children must have sinned against him,
so their punishment was well deserved.
5 But if you pray to God
and seek the favor of the Almighty,
6 and if you are pure and live with integrity,
he will surely rise up and restore your happy home.
7 And though you started with little,
you will end with much.
8 “Just ask the previous generation.
Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors.
9 For we were born but yesterday and know nothing.
Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow.
10 But those who came before us will teach you.
They will teach you the wisdom of old.
20 “But look, God will not reject a person of integrity,
nor will he lend a hand to the wicked.
21 He will once again fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with shouts of joy.
22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.”
In the journey of life, there are moments that will come where life will be difficult. Things will not make sense. It could be a hardship season for you. When those seasons come, it is easy to resort back to a place of fear, second guessing our faith, and wondering if God is really alive.
This scripture Job 8:5-8 reveals the power of prayer while seeking God in those difficult life seasons. What does seeking God look like? How do you seek God in a time of trouble?
Do not be afraid to ask Him if you need help. A lot of times, there is a sense of guilt or fear wondering whether God can handle your situation. But the reality is seeking Him reveals He cares and acknowledges the effort you make
Praying and asking for wisdom until you get the assurance that God has heard you. He will provide what you need. Assurance may not automatically come to you in prayer. However, as you seek Him regarding the situation, His peace will manifest that assures you He hears and will attend to you
Be alert as you pray for the instructions that will accompany the prayers. God may impress on you to forgive an offense, or do something that may not seem relevant to what you are inquiring about in prayer, but obey even if it does not make sense to you in the moment.
You should never judge yourself in your expression of pleading with God in prayer. The posture of pleading should not be misconstrued with begging. If you have been begging God to answer your prayers, your viewpoint of Him may be one of trying to convince Him you are worthy of a breakthrough or an answer. Pleading with God is making an earnest appeal to Him from a posture of faith. Your faith in God’s power and sovereignty pushes you to appeal to Him for your breakthrough.
Pleading often pulls from an established testimony with God. You have seen His power and miraculous grace and you are confident in what He is able to do.
This scripture also reveals the power of knowing the history of God’s work in the world. Finding out what God has done from previous generations, allows us to see the continuous integrity of God’s ability to provide and take care of His own. During a time of need, you may pull on the God of your parents or grand-parents or someone who is dear to you, who has walked with the grace and power of God in such a way that it convinced you of His existence. When you know this beautiful history, it can be used to affirm your faith in the moments you need prayers answered.
I have learned that in this life, there will be trials and tribulations that you will go through. Prayer will make it possible for you to live life with hope. When you get to those seasons, may you be reminded that prayer works, a history with God is powerful, and your faith can give you the confidence to make an appeal for what you need from Him.
He is able to restore you to a prosperous state. That is something you should always desire.
Prayer
Dear Father,
I thank you today, for those who came before me, who consistently served you and established a history of faithfulness with you. I know I am an answered prayer for someone else. As I pray, help me to build a history with you, that others will be inspired by, that will make them believers in your Presence. I release any form of guilt that makes me feel afraid to appeal to you. By faith I believe, as I am seeking you earnestly, you will restore me to my prosperous state.
The parable of the Good Samaritan from the Gospel of Luke is one of the most well-known passages of scripture in Christian communities and beyond. Jesus shares this parable in response to a lawyer asking if God requires that we should love our neighbors as ourselves, then who is my neighbor? The parable can be summarized this way: a Judean man is walking down a dangerous road and is robbed and beaten. He is left hurt and in need of help. A priest walks by, sees the man and walks on the side of the road to avoid him. A Levite, or worker from the local Temple also walks by and does nothing to help. Then a Samaritan man, who was a religious, historical, and cultural enemy of this Judean man, sees him in distress. The Samaritan stops, picks up the man off the road, takes him to a local inn and pays to have him rest and recover there. He promises to pay the inn keeper whatever is necessary for the man’s stay beyond what has been paid when he returns. Jesus turns the question back on the lawyer and asks which of the 3 men in the story acted as a neighbor to the injured man? The lawyer responds “the one who has shown mercy.” And Jesus responds “go and do likewise.”
I taught this lesson to my adult Bible Study class a few weeks ago in the context of talking about how we treat people who come from a different religious tradition from us. I pointed out that this was like a white man helping a black man injured on the side of the road in 1920’s Georgia. The parable was meant to be that striking of a reminder to care for people who are different than us. Our Bible study has people who are in the 30s and 90s, black and white, men and women, many liberal and some more conservative, ministers and members, professors and students all on a zoom every week. We are a diverse group to put it bluntly. But whether we agree or disagree we have chosen to be a part of this Christian community and keep showing up to talk, study, and pray together every week.
We decided to talk about faiths beyond Christianity because of an experience a few members shared. They attended an interfaith wedding where I was the celebrant. The experience raised a lot of questions and a desire to learn from one member who wanted to know more about other religions. After asking the group if they were open to it, we agreed and included it in our regular Bible study time. During our second discussion we talked about visiting a Hindu Temple, and one member voiced that she wouldn’t want to do that because she is not Hindu. Another said that she felt very comfortable because God could be there just like God was in our church. I encouraged them that they were both right, that they could respect Hindus that worshipped in a Temple and not have to go themselves. But if they did choose to go, it didn’t make them less Christian, just having a different experience.
Being a good neighbor is not about agreeing on the same things or sharing the same identities. Being a good neighbor is about how we treat each other. Being in a diverse community can sometimes make us more intolerant of people who are intolerant. I have heard it explicitly from some of my members. But the things we practice in well response are curiosity and welcome. When the Hindu man who was dating a Christian woman came to our congregation months before they were married, we didn’t single him out or question why he was there. We hugged him and offered him food. He came because someone he loved, loved us. When a Jewish Rabbi spoke to us about her pain remembering October 7, and a Christian activist talked about his disgust at the suffering by Palestinians in Gaza in the same worship service, my pastor didn’t apologize. He let them both speak. I know our congregation is unusual. But it is a constant reminder and challenge of the possibility to be together despite differences. I can only hope that as we march toward and through this season of deep division in our country around the election, people who are in communities together whether by location or intention would remember on the other side that we all still need to eat. We all still need care when we are hurt. And we can all still be good neighbors by showing compassion.
1 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
12 Do not let sin control the way you live;[a] do not give in to sinful desires. 13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. 14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.
There is great power in what we permit to happen. We do not recognize this power we have because it is invisible and not obvious. But it is present. This scripture offers a viewpoint of self-responsibility, reminding us that we usually have a choice in what we allow to happen to our body.
The language used to describe wickedness is interesting. It can be an instrument. Which means wickedness has a rhythm and can flow like a song to produce a melody that can create memories. By the same token, the scripture describes righteousness as an instrument which means it can flow in our lives like a beautiful song.
When you think of music, it impacts everyone in a different way. There are certain songs that you hear that trigger traumatic memories, moments, or times in your life that you would rather forget. On the other hand, there are certain songs that will motivate you and inspire you to do better and push yourself to do great things.
The scripture likens righteousness to an instrument that can orchestrate appreciation and honor God for what He has done for us. Righteousness is by grace through faith. We can never be perfect or do what is right fully for there is a flesh nature in us that always desires to do what is wrong. However, as we allow the righteousness of Christ to move through our lives, the nature of God becomes appealing to us. By grace, we show our appreciation to God by resisting sin and fulfilling our destiny one day at a time.
Just as wickedness is likened to an instrument, righteousness is also likened to an instrument. I is up to us to choose what type of influence we desire to govern our lives. The scripture is clear, it is wise to choose righteousness, because we are no longer enslaved by sin. We live by the grace of God through faith.
Prayer
Dear Father,
Thank you for the gift of righteous living. I am grateful for the power of willful decision, to make the choice every day to follow you. Help me by faith to resist sin and desire righteousness. Purge the appetite of my soul that may desire to stay enslaved to sin, and arouse a desire of freedom through Christ. Let me please you by how I live, and let righteousness be revealed in my life as a testament of my faith in Jesus Christ.
Lisa Fields speaks to people all over the country about how faith has disappointed them and inspired them as the Founder of the Jude 3 Project. As an apologist she wants to make sure believers are equipped to defend and articulate their faith in Jesus Christ in the midst of the skepticism and difficulties of the world. In her new book When Faith Disappoints, she shares her own struggles with faith and how she has been strengthened in the midst of them as she hopes to strengthen others.
“This was because Ezra had determined to study and obey the Law of the LORD and to teach those decrees and regulations to the people of Israel.” (Ezra 7:10, NLT)
There are moments in everyone’s life when the question of purpose will come up. Discovering, pursuing, and fulfilling purpose is one of the greatest achievements that can happen to a human life.
When you understand and know your purpose, it becomes easy to know what direction you need to take to manifest and walk in it.
In Ezra 7, we are introduced to Ezra who had devoted himself to the study and observance of the law of the Lord and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel. Ezra was a teacher, and he loved teaching. He found his purpose in teaching and learning the law, and sharing that with others.
His commitment to this purpose brought such favor from God which caused King Artaxerxes to write a letter of his approval of him and funded him adequately as he went to Jerusalem.
A lot of times we stress out and worry about where our provision will come from when in reality, the provision is always connected to purpose. It is wise to set time, energy, and focus in discovering and committing ourselves to what we have been destined to do in this life.
Remember:
You have a specific reason for being alive, God has a destiny for you
Your purpose will not be difficult for you because purpose motivates. You are graced for it
Discovering your purpose does not mean you will have all the answers, however, you will sense a strength and confidence to pursue it even if you are not sure how it will end
God will place confirmation and signs on your path to encourage you that you are on the right track. This will come through unexpected provision, favor for open doors, kindness from people with influence who can bless you to fulfill your destiny. Make sure you stay alert and avoid sabotaging yourself through fear or pride
Ezra was a teacher, that was his purpose and he committed to it. God blessed him because he was walking in his purpose. The favor that was bestowed upon him allowed that purpose to come to fruition by touching so many lives by his obedience to his call.
Do not give up on your purpose, do not look down on it. Even if other people do not understand it, your purpose is worth pursuing. You are an answered prayer. Someone is waiting for you to manifest your purpose.
Prayer
Dear God,
This week, reveal to me my purpose. Remind me why I am here. Open my eyes to see clearly what I need to do to fulfill my destiny. Grace me with the courage to receive your favor and provision to pursue my purpose without fear. Let me be a testimony like Ezra by committing to the reason you have created me. I know you will reveal to me and guide me because I desire to leave a great legacy.
The parable of the Good Samaritan from the Gospel of Luke is one of the most well-known passages of scripture in Christian communities and beyond. Jesus shares this parable in response to a lawyer asking if God requires that we should love our neighbors as ourselves, then who is my neighbor? The parable can be summarized this way: a Judean man is walking down a dangerous road and is robbed and beaten. He is left hurt and in need of help. A priest walks by, sees the man and walks on the side of the road to avoid him. A Levite, or worker from the local Temple also walks by and does nothing to help. Then a Samaritan man, who was a religious, historical, and cultural enemy of this Judean man, sees him in distress. The Samaritan stops, picks up the man off the road, takes him to a local inn and pays to have him rest and recover there. He promises to pay the inn keeper whatever is necessary for the man’s stay beyond what has been paid when he returns. Jesus turns the question back on the lawyer and asks which of the 3 men in the story acted as a neighbor to the injured man? The lawyer responds “the one who has shown mercy.” And Jesus responds “go and do likewise.”
