Job 31

The words of the Bible have once again opened another door in my heart. Many times the words of Scripture provide a much-needed word of encouragement to press on, to keep up the good work. Often they remind us of the power God has and that he is in control. Other times they shout of the great things God has done, the grace he has given time and time again. And still other times they convict, cause us to ponder and ask hard questions. Such was the case in my reading of Job 31 today.

The passage is a long dialogue of Job in response to his friend Bildad. Jobs response actually starts in Ch. 26, but Ch. 31 is the ending, and what I feel, is the climax of this particular response. Basically, Job goes through all the area of this life recalling the way he carried himself is those situations. Some times we know how Job responded, and other times we are not given that information. But all the while reading this passage I was putting my self in Jobs shoes. Vs. 16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor… “ vs. 17 “If I have kept bread to myself…”  vs. 19 “If I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing…”  vs. 22 “then let his arm fall from the shoulder.” And for someone how has dislocated their shoulder 15 times, reading that makes me cringe. But what is even more painful is being honest in answering all the though questions Job poses through out his reply to Bildad. It’s not easy, no, it’s painful to open a door to your heart that you have closed off or never new existed,  and then start cleaning up the mess in some cases, or just do a light dusting in others. Either way it’s a painful process, but one that is necessary. And in doing so, in discovering where I have fallen SO SHORT of the glory of God, I’m discovering in a new way, everyday what it means to actually live in the grace of God. I would encourage everyone to read these words with a pen in hand and a piece of paper at your side. Give yourself sometime and honestly evaluate how you have carried yourself in the areas you read about. For me, this was not just a, “Oh look, I have failed again and want to change the way I live my life. The passage actually planted a seed that moves me to action. I pray the Lord search our hearts and move us to action in the areas that need to be changed, and grant encouragement in the areas we have been blameless in.

For a cool story of how the words of the Bible convicted and caused Sara to action, see the link below. I saw this on the blog of my old small group leader.
Sara's Stroy