Take Away

Take Away

I think we are familiar with the scripture “the Lord gives, and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord”. We sometimes tend to quote scripture incorrectly or without context. The full context of the scripture is Job’s response to the loss of family and possessions. He says-

20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 21 and said:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
    and naked I will depart.[c]
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
    may the name of the Lord be praised.”

22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. Job 1:20-22

I went through a period that in my life. Like Job, I daily tore my robe and cried out to God. Why me? Why my son? Where were you God? How can you ever work this tragedy for good? You see, all these responses are completely normal and understandable. Today, we may find ourselves asking the same questions. Any sort of personal loss requires a response that may seem irrational; loss does that. There is pain, fear, suffering and anxiety experienced when one suffers loss. Many people today find themselves at this crossroads. 

You see, once we have played the irrational card, we find ourselves at a crossroads; will we allow bitterness to set in or will we find a way to worship God? Worship always pays dividends. Worship allows us to abandon our irrational response and spiritually discern what our next step should be. 

I know what it’s like to lose a job, suffer financially, lose control of my physical body and loose a son. It’s all loss at the end of the day. Things will recover, things will return to normal; of this you can be assured. God gives and God takes away. This will never change until we are with Him for eternity. 

The key here is Job’s conclusion of the matter; “May the name of the Lord be praised”.

This season calls us to praise the name of the Lord. The name above all names