“…I will accept his prayer…” Job 42:8c

The five words examined today are proof positive that God does give preferential treatment… to those whose lives are completely abandoned unto Him. God smiles upon those who leave the shallowness of the world to be plunged into the depths of trust in His resources and ways.

Complete trust gets out of the boat and walks on water. Faith believes the rain is coming when there is no cloud in the sky. Resolute belief results in one walking upon feet that have never walked before. Only God is able to instill confidence in one to understand how everything in this dimension bows to the supremacy and authority of the spiritual dimension, knowing that just by a simple spoken command, one may be saved from death’s grip.

Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar complied with God’s command to take seven bulls and seven rams and present them before Job as an atoning sacrifice to God for their folly, and God heard Job’s prayer (vv. 8a; 9a). Do you see what I see hidden between those lines? The three friends had to agree with God about their sin. They had to admit their error, just as Job had admitted his sin before God. And Job prayed for the very ones who had despised him, accusing him of hidden sin and pride! Job had to overcome every human urge or ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to judge them. Job died to self (read Galatians 2:20; 5:24; and Luke 9:23) and allowed his prayer to be a conduit of grace and mercy to the Thone of Heaven.

Perhaps Job’s life influenced the life of Joseph, who cared for his brothers who had sold him into slavery. Indeed, both Job and Joseph are types of Christ who, although mistreated, chose grace over judgment… mercy over revenge… love over hate.

Job’s prayer rescued three friendships from the demise of what could have been an easy choice to make… discarding years of personal investment in the trio – camping together, hunting trips, vacations, family outings, worshiping together and maybe even fighting as comrades in arms. Many today are too quick to discard an investment in mutual caring and sharing between two or more souls. Is it possible one may only reap what is sown through life, when finding loneliness and despair at the closing chapter of life?

How should we then live?

Have a blessed day…