Basic Faith: Five-Day Devotional by Sean CurranНамуна

DAY TWO: ALWAYS ALWAYS YOURS

At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head.

Then he fell to the ground in worship and said:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart.

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;

may the name of the Lord be praised.”

Job 1:20-21

“Always Always Yours” is a song that interrogates motives. I know, I know, it’s a bit of a tough topic for a morning devotional, but that’s the point! Take a sip of coffee and let’s dive in. In many ways, this song is a meditation on the book of Job. It asks the questions that keep me up at night. It says the things that haunt me. Questions like:

• If everything was taken from me, would I still bless the Lord?
• Am I in love with God or am I simply in love with the blessings of God?
• Would I still trust God if my life does not go as I've planned?

“If the fires of this world steal all that I have

I wonder what I would do

Would I still call you Lord from the ruins and ash

Would my heart still burn for you?”

On our most honest days, we can all relate to these questions. Even Job asks them, but Job also helps us understand what to do with them. The book of Job is wild. For those of us who need to be reacquainted with this remarkable piece of scripture, it is a book about wisdom. God’s wisdom to be exact. You see, Job was a man blessed by God in every way imaginable, but then something happened. In an instant, he loses everything. He then goes on an emotional rollercoaster of grief and sorrow, fluctuating between two choices…to bless God or curse God. At the end of the story, a tortured and exhausted Job asks God to come explain himself in person, and that's exactly what happens. But, God does something very different than give Job direct answers to all of his questions. Instead, God reminds Job of just how grand the universe is. He helps Job see all of the little details it takes to run such a universe, and Job is overwhelmed. The amount of precision, care, and wisdom needed for this task is beyond Job’s wildest imagination. This perspective brings him to a place of deep reverence and humility before God. Even though his questions are never answered, he learns to live in trust and peace. Eventually, the Lord restores to Job all that he had lost. And Job is now the kind of person that can trust and bless God, no matter what comes.

“It is always always yours. It is always always yours

This worship I bring, I lay at your feet.

It is always always yours.”