All you need to know

“Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 NIV

If Job had a weakness, it was his tongue. He talked excessively. Not that you could blame him. After being hit by calamity, there wasn’t a wall standing in his house or a loved one living. And his wife, empathetic soul that she was, told him to “curse God, and die” (Job 2:9). Then his four friends with the bedside manner of drill sergeants told him he had probably brought all this trouble on himself. We’re thirty-seven chapters into the book of Job before God speaks a word. Chapter 38 begins, “Then the Lord answered Job.” And after God got through speaking, Job said, “I am not worthy; I cannot answer you anything, so I will put my hand over my mouth” (40:4 NCV). Notice, before he heard from God, Job couldn’t talk enough. But after he heard from Him, he couldn’t talk at all. The only thing Job got right was this: “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (13:15 NKJV). Sometimes the best way to handle your problem is to trust and not talk. To submit and not speak. Job didn’t know it at the time, but God’s plan was to give him twice as much in the end as he had lost. And it happened when he stopped focusing on his own problems and started praying for his friends (see 42:10). So be still. Be open and willing. God is still on the throne. He is in control of every detail of your life. Even in the worst of circumstances, He has your best interest at heart. “The Lord will vindicate me” (Psalm 138:8 NIV). That’s all you need to know!

Bible in a year: Esther 1-5