Hello friends! Welcome to the moment you've all been waiting for with Job....God's reply to Job. And oh boy, does God not hold back with the sass. It's easy to find fault in Job and laugh along with God but remember, this is not a work of history, but a fable. God is not only lashing out at Job, but at you and me as well. Today is a day of personal growth as God so beautifully reminds us (and Job) through His rebuttal about how complex the world is. Center yourself with a word of prayer and a deep breath each for God, for Son, and Holy Ghost and join me in reading scripture.
Scripture to Read
Audio Bible
Questions to Consider
What does this teach me about God?
What does this teach me about humanity?
What challenges me? What inspires me?
Does this refute science or agree with science?
- My Thoughts -
Today I don't really have a collected thought that tells a single story but rather a few mini thoughts that either made me go "hmm" or chuckle. I hope you enjoy this rapid fire "mini thought"
How did people of ancient Israel know about snow and hail? I mean they write about it here in Job which makes me either think that climate change has affected the conditions of Israel over the last 1,500 years OR Job was written by a jewish community from another region of the world that had been influenced by their trade with Jerusalem. Literally no idea and we may never know but still fun to consider.
Man have horses changed. God talks about how He made horses these mighty warriors that know no fear. Psh, okkkaaayyyyy. Ya'll ever seen a horse? They freak out over EVERYTHING. Sure, some horses are bred and trained to not be skittish but your average horse has changed since our time of domestication and sport training.
God speaks uniquely to people. I've always kinda believed this but having scriptural evidence to support it is pretty fun. The very opening words of this section is God speaking to Job "from the whirlwind." But that's quite different to how God spoke to Moses "from the fiery bush" and from how God spoke to Elijah "in a the form of a whisper." I like the idea that God speaks to each person individually and it humbles me to not be so quick to judge whether or not someones time with God was valid based on theology alone.
What sticks out to you?
Prayer
Our prayer for today is inspired by hymn 150 in our United Methodist Hymnal - God, who Stretched the Spangled Heavens (fitting title for today's reading, huh?) As usual, I encourage you to pray by humming, singing, or praying the words of the hymn.
Few hymns so perfectly address our present climate - are we inventing too quickly that it will lead us to our self destruction?
God, who stretched the spangled heavens, infinite in time and place, flung the suns in burning radiance through the silent fields of space, we, your children, in your likeness,
share inventive powers with you. Great Creator, still creating, show us what we yet may do. Proudly rise our modern cities, stately buildings row on row; yet their windows, blank, unfeeling, stare on canyoned streets below, where the lonely drift unnoticed in the city's ebb and flow, lost to purpose and to meaning, scarcely caring where they go. We have ventured worlds undreamed of since the childhood of our race; known the ecstasy of winging through uncharted realms of space; probed the secrets of the atom, yielding unimagined power, facing us with life's destruction or our most triumphant hour. As each far horizon beckons, may it challenge us anew, children of creative purpose, serving others, honoring you. May our dreams prove rich with promise, each endeavor well begun. Great Creator, give us guidance till our goals and yours are one.
Comments