Many of us have read the story of Job many times. It always raises a lot of questions, doesn't it. We may wonder why a righteous man has to go through such terrible time. I've asked why God allowed it in the first place. Yet it says that Job was righteous and never blamed or accused God during his struggles. I know loss, most caregivers do. But I can't imagine losing literally everything in a day. Job lost his family - all of his children and all of his wealth. Yet it was going to get a lot worse before it would get better.
Last week, in my Facebook Live devotions, "Peace Out," I talked about the last chapter in Job, and how he blessed God before he was healed. In Chapter 42 verse 2, Job acknowledges that God's plans and purposes cannot be redirected, avoided, or changed. To trust that God still had purpose and a plan for him in his dire circumstances is quite a huge step of faith. That really got ahold of me last week.
But this morning, as I was thinking about it again, I thought about how Job reacted when his circumstances changed. His response, I believe, was what anchored his heart to God's. It may very well be what helped him come through the difficult season in his life still trusting God.
In chapter 2, right after his whole life came crashing down around Job, he says, blessed be the name of the Lord. Praising God in that moment, may have been a natural response for Job, but I can say it's not always that way for me. Oh, I always work back around to it - but in the moment with emotions flaring - I usually falter first. But when our hearts are anchored to God's - we will come back to trusting Him. We do it all the time - every day for most of us.
Staying anchored to God in the good times helps us stay closer to Him in the more difficult times. We know times change, right? Circumstances can change on a dime. The moment we are in right now (good or bad) can be totally different in just a few minutes. But God remains the same. When we anchor our hearts to His, we cannot be moved no matter what comes. That's what keeps me going, really. It is all about coming back to that anchor of hope all day long every day.
Today, my meditations will be on anchoring my heart to His - and how He has wrapped my heart up in His. I'll remind myself that He did not change when I became a caregiver, and He's not going to start changing today! My thoughts will be on how His grace continues to be enough to carry me through each day. So, I'll commit to trusting Him for one more day. Will you join me?
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Just Released and Published on Amazon!
I finished publishing Affirmations for Caregivers last night! It contains an affirmation, a verse or two to read, and a prompt for a very short response for each day. You can download the eBook from the Dove's Fire Ministries Bookstore right now and print it and and start today! The print version is also now available on Amazon! Check it out!
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