Lessons From the Book of JobSampel

God Protects the Righteous

The story of Job in the Bible goes something like this: God says to Satan, “Have you seen my servant Job? He is a righteous man – he loves me and rejects evil.”

Satan responds, “Yes, but he’s like that for a reason – because you’ve put a hedge of protection around him and blessed him. Let me have him, and he’ll surely curse you to your face.”

And so the wager begins – God gives Satan permission to disrupt (and even devastate) Job’s life to prove that Job won’t curse God even through hard times.

So what’s the message here for you today? How can an old story written thousands of years ago have any relevance to your life?

Well, this plan is all about the lessons the story of Job holds for life today… so let’s dive right in!

Job 1:10,11: Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has?... But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.

If you strive to put God first in your life, God will surely put a hedge of protection around you.

That doesn’t mean your life will be safe and comfortable all the way through.

But it does mean that only God can allow tragedy or difficult times to beset a righteous person.

So when tragedy appears, you know it’s not random. When tragedy strikes, God is still fully in control.

Hundreds of years after Job, King David seconds those ideas in Psalm 125.

David says that God is your fortress and your protection. So, when you don’t feel like God is surrounding you like the mountains surround Jerusalem – you won’t be the first person to ever feel that way – remember He is always with you.

Rather than wandering away from God’s protection and taking stuff on our own shoulders, we can ask God what He’s doing in and through us – and how we can become a part of what He’s doing in the situation.

Take a moment to pray:

Father, thank you that you are always with me, especially when I’m struggling. Help me remember that nothing happens to me that you can't help me with – and that you are my strength and protection every day.