My favorite month is September. As a child of the Berkshires growing up in New England, how could I not revere this special time of the year when the air is crisp and clean… when the trees display their finery in preparation for the winter.
As September wanes, I reflect on a challenging 2022. As I do, my thoughts frequently return to the Book of Job.
We’ve written about this earlier in the year, but it is worth repeating…
The Book of Job is the 18th book of the Hebrew Bible. It is considered the first of five books of poetry in the Old Testament:
- Job – teaches us how to suffer
- Psalms – teach us how to pray
- Proverbs – teach us how to act
- Ecclesiastes – teaches us how to enjoy life
- The Song of Solomon – teaches us how to love
Job – a good man – loses everything including his health. The narrative acknowledges that bad things happen to good people, and that good things can happen to bad people. Through his adversity, Job maintains his faith in God, but not without questioning why bad things happen to him. The answer to his questions is never clear, but the mystery behind it does not destroy his faith.
God reminds Job that he has no way of knowing the mind of God. Everything that is revealed to him is beyond his understanding. Amidst his challenges, Job accepts God’s explanation. I do too.
When all is said and done, Job’s health is restored, and his final days are more prosperous than those of his youth.
The lesson central to the story is simple: keep the faith… continue to believe in, trust, and support someone or something even when it is difficult to do so. How many times have you offered that simple advice to a friend or family member, “Keep the faith.” The three words are easy to say but challenging to live by. It may not always be easy, but it always works… ALWAYS.
Mitakuye Oyasin
I lived on Cape Cod during my 8th and 9th grade years. My dad was stationed at Otis AFB. I still remember traveling the Mohawk Trail, I think that is the name, during the fall one of those years. I remember how pretty the changing of the color of leaves was.
During the first two months of the Ukraine invasion, I had a hard time trusting God when I saw the destruction that Russia was doing. I asked myself the question and I asked God: “Are You really in control? How can You let this happen?” Since then, though, I have been able to say to God that I do trust Him; even though, I don’t understand.