In our sufferings, we may vacillate between despair and hope, doubt and faith. In the face of adversity, God does not ask us to be dauntless; instead He wants us to bring all kinds of doubts and difficulties to Him. Though our faith may be weak at times, we can still rely on God because He is always faithful.
Our Daily Bread May 9
Doubt and Faith/ By:Poh Fang Chia The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.
Job 1:21
Today's Scripture & Insight:
Job 1:20–22; 2:7–10 (NIV):
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.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 2:7–10 (NIV): 7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. 8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. 9 His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10 He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
MingTeck woke up with a severe headache and thought it was another migraine. But when he got out of bed, he collapsed onto the floor. He was admitted to the hospital where the doctors informed him he’d had a stroke. After four months of rehabilitation, he recovered his ability to think and talk but still walks with a painful limp. He often struggles with despair, but he finds great comfort from the book of Job.
Job lost all his wealth and his children overnight. Despite the harrowing news, he at first looked to God in hope and praised Him for being the source of everything. He acknowledged God’s sovereign hand even in times of calamity (Job 1:21). We marvel at his strong faith, but Job also struggled with despair. After he lost his health too (2:7), he cursed the day he was born (3:1). He was honest with his friends and God about his pain. Eventually, however, he came to accept that both good and bad come from God’s hand (13:15; 19:25–27).
In our sufferings, we too may find ourselves vacillating between despair and hope, doubt and faith. God doesn’t require us to be dauntless in the face of adversity but instead invites us to come to Him with our questions. Though our faith may fail at times, we can trust God to always be faithful.
Today’s Hynms:
The Isaacs
Great is Thy Faithfulness
Scripture to Respond:
Psalm 29:10 (NIV)
The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
2 Corinthians 1:8-10 (NIV)
8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters,[a] about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us,
Reflection:
Today, what kind of doubts will you bring to God? How can you turn Job 1:21 to your prayer?
When you find yourself facing inexplicable and insurmountable circumstances, will you doubt God’s power and mercy? May you hold on to God’s promise, He is still in control. He will strengthen us and go through the adversity with us.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, when I’m overwhelmed with doubts and fears, please help me to remember I am precious in Your eyes. Everything is in Your Hand, You always care and look after me.
Wong Wai Tung
(Chief executive officer of The Great Wall Education Foundation) &
Sam Chow
(Administrative officer of The Great Wall Education Foundation)
Translated by Esther Leung
