Gratitude is the key to seeing God ∙
The LORD gave me what I had, and the LORD has taken it away. Praise the name of the LORD! – Job 1:21
Job 1:14-22
14 A messenger arrived at Job’s home with this news: “Your oxen were plowing, with the donkeys feeding beside them,
15 when the Sabeans raided us. They stole all the animals and killed all the farmhands. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”
16 While he was still speaking, another messenger arrived with this news: “The fire of God has fallen from heaven and burned up your sheep and all the shepherds. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”
17 While he was still speaking, a third messenger arrived with this news: “Three bands of Chaldean raiders have stolen your camels and killed your servants. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”
18 While he was still speaking, another messenger arrived with this news: “Your sons and daughters were feasting in their oldest brother’s home.
19 Suddenly, a powerful wind swept in from the wilderness and hit the house on all sides. The house collapsed, and all your children are dead. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”
20 Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship.
21 He said, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The LORD gave me what I had, and the LORD has taken it away. Praise the name of the LORD!”
22 In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.
When dreadful things happen, giving thanks is not natural or normal. How can we develop a habit of gratefulness in grievous times of loss? In her inspiring book, One Thousand Gifts, Ann Voskamp invites children of the King to embark on a transformative journey of daily reflection, encouraging them to recognize and cherish the manifold blessings bestowed upon them by the Father. Through her eloquent prose, Voskamp urges us to pause and contemplate each day, identifying the myriad of ways the Father’s goodness and generosity manifest in their lives.
These gifts, both monumental and minute, await recognition and appreciation. Voskamp passionately argues that it is the key to seeing God in every situation, even in our most troubling moments. It is through this lens of thankfulness that children of the King are able to see the Father’s hand at work, weaving beauty and grace into the fabric of their daily experiences.
By embracing gratitude, Voskamp asserts, we unlock the profound ability to see God’s light shining through the darkest of times, transforming our perspective and enriching our walk with the Father as we travel His chosen path for us to spiritual maturity.
Job’s life was filled with troubling moments: loss, grief, physical suffering, pain, poor advice, accusations, and self-doubt. Job 1 opens with successive announcements of immense losses. Job lost most of his material possessions and beloved and valued family members. Indeed, his heart-wrenching losses were deep and many.
But rather than focus on the negative, he expresses gratitude and thankfulness. Gratitude and thankfulness are always a choice for the children of the King.
Job’s reaction provides a model for all children of the King. He feels the loss and grieves. But then he does the unexpected. He praises and acknowledges the Father as the giver of all good things. He expresses gratitude. The “unexpected” was his norm. He had developed the habit of genuinely being grateful to the Father for all things, good and bad. He recognizes that the Father has given him everything he lost (Job 1:21).
The practice of gratitude does not erase the magnitude of pain and grief people feel in seasons of loss. As the rest of the book describes, Job questioned and grappled with his grief. However, recognizing the Father’s goodness to us, in even the smallest of ways, – prepares each child of the King to worship before our all-wise and all-powerful Father in the darkest hours of our earthly lives (Kirsten Holmberg).
Job’s response to adversity serves as a profound model for others, illustrating that gratitude and faith can transform our perspective and sustain us, no matter how daunting the trials we face. His story teaches that while pain is inevitable, it is our choice to embrace gratitude or not. Gratitude enables us to see beyond the immediate suffering to the enduring presence and love of the Father.
REFLECT & PRAY
Many of us are good at making lists. Have you ever considered making a list of things to be grateful for? Using our ever-growing gratitude list, we can express gratitude to the Father in everyday events. Practicing thankfulness is transformational. Gratitude changes attitude.
Father, You are the Giver of all good things. They come to us from You. Help me to recognize Your kindness and generosity in even the most minor ways and to trust You in seasons of loss and hardship.
INSIGHT
Why? Why? Why?
Why do we often find ourselves asking “Why?” in the midst of suffering? The truth is, we don’t always have the answers. We don’t always know why. When Job suffered, he had no idea what was going on. Sometimes, stating the obvious is worthwhile. The Book of Job had not yet been written when he lived through the events recorded. He had not read it. He lacked the perspective that we have. We now know why such sorrow came into his life and, more importantly, how the book ends: “The primary purpose of Job’s suffering, unknown to him, was that he should stand before men and angels as a trophy of the saving might of God . . .” (Klein).
When tragedy strikes, the children of the King are hurt just as much as anyone else. They grieve, but not “as others who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). “We can worship, even in tragedy, because nothing can separate us from the Father and His love” (Stanley).
Job’s troubles are described as coming from multiple directions. The narrative presents each of the tragedies in rapid succession, giving the reader a feeling detailed well by Job’s later words, “He will not let me catch my breath, but fills me instead with bitter sorrows” (Job 9:18). Job suffers the near-complete destruction of what mattered most in life to him. Yet Job has great confidence. Distraught with grief at the calamities that decimated his family and possessions, Job turns to the Father in lament-laden worship.
In response to his losses, Job exhibits both mourning and faith. He tears his robe and shaves his head in grief, yet he falls to the ground in worship. From this place of lament, he declares, “The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.” In doing so, Job exemplifies living by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7) (ESV Notes).
If we only focus on visible things, our perspective on life will be limited. However, there is another way to see. The writer of Hebrews described Moses as someone who persevered as if he could see the invisible (Hebrews 11:27) (Barclay).
Seeing the invisible, or supernatural sight, comes through faith in the One who is Himself invisible. This concept is a paradox. It cannot be validated through scientific experimentation.
Gratitude becomes the lens through which we see the Father, even in the darkest times. Gratitude draws each child of the King closer to Him, offering strength and hope amidst life’s trials.
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© Dr. H 2024
Dr H Reflections 