Is There a Reason to Continue

Read Job 3:1-26

Have you ever wished it for yourself? Has life ever been so horribly disfigured by tragedy and tribulation that you decided you would be better off dead? If it has not then what would it take? Have you ever taken the time to think about what your limits actually are? My son has taken to this line recently. I cannot begin to imagine what would anger a six year so much that he would invoke these timeless words, but something did. It is a dad’s job to make certain he understands what they mean and persuade him that they are inappropriate at almost any age.

Job is so despondent that he wishes he had never tasted of the joys that have lead him to the sorrows he is now experiencing. I wonder if life ever truly gets that bad? Solomon, the man who wrote the Ecclesiastes, said, “Anyone who is among the living has hope—even a live dog is better off than a dead lion.” So, life is worth living no matter how bad it gets. Even when life seems to be thrusting every possible combination of devastation and destruction our way it is still worth living.

Now, I do not suppose that Job actually wanted to die. We say things like that too sometimes, “Oh, this hurts so bad I wish I were dead.” I finished An Army At Dawn (Rick Atkinson****)the other day. This is a remarkable book about soldiers who fought in North Africa during World War II. You can bet there were many of them who, at times, wished that they were dead. It is kind of hard not to feel that way when you are reduced to holding your own bowels in your hands after enemy shrapnel tears a hole in your gut. Still I am not certain Job literally wanted to be dead. Perhaps he just wanted to vent his frustration for a little while. Perhaps death would have been a better option for Job. Who knows? One thing is for certain: Job does go on living and we know he will because God made the enemy swear that he would not take Job’s life.

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Job’s thoughts at the end of the chapter are sullen, morose and full of sadness. He asks why a man who is longing for death not only lives on but is actually given light as if he were going to continue on in his trial. Job’s guess, with which I agree, is that suffering is bad enough, so do we really need someone to throw light on it so that we and everyone around can see the suffering? Is the pain not enough that there must also be announcements and spotlights pointing at the sufferer?

And what about the man whose way is hidden from God? Why is life even wasted on such a person? In Job’s thinking, if God is not even bothering to find this person (‘whose way is hidden’) then why bother to shower the person with life? For this person whom God has ‘hedged in’ the question Job seems to be asking is ‘if God is against us who can be for us?’ Should not life just be extinguished if God is against us? There are no comforts for Job. No food, only sighs. No water, only groans that pour out of him like water. What a miserable situation Job found himself in that day.

Is there any hope for the person in Job’s position? Is there any hope for the person who has no peace, no rest, but only turmoil and a feverish disquiet? Is there any relief from such a distraction and interruption of life? To the point: When a person finds themselves in such a position, and they go right on lingering near death’s door but never quite crossing the threshold, and God continues to give life to the person even though God seems distant, and the person seems to be in the spotlight, is there a reason to go on? Is there a reason to continue? Do you have any reason to persevere? “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:2-3)

Prayer Thoughts

Pray today about the limits in your life. Talk to God about what you think would push you over the edge. Pray for someone who is at the edge. Help that person see that there is a reason to continue despite appearances to the contrary.