We had another wonderful Bible Study last night. The past couple weeks, we've been studying the 7 churches in Revelations. It's quite interesting. But, as usually happens, we read something in our lesson book which caused us to veer off onto a little tangent.
God tests us.
A couple of us had an issue with this. God tests us... tests our faithfulness. He lets us suffer to test our faithfulness. Why does this bother me?
1) This makes our God seem a bit cruel
2) Why would He need to test us? He already knows us!
One of the ladies who does believe God puts our faith to the test mentioned Job. Now granted, Job is definitely put through the wringer again and again in the Bible. But... God isn't the one testing. Is He? Wouldn't it be more accurate to say Satan was doing the testing?
My guy is better...
A kid is out shooting around on the basketball court. A coach from a rival team watches for a bit, then goes up to the kid's coach. "He ain't bad out there alone. Bet he can't go head to head with my star though." Challenge is issued. The kid's coach has faith in his player and accepts the duel.
A man builds a table out of scrap wood. A neighbor comes along and warns the man that the table doesn't look very sturdy. "I bet if I stand on it, it'll fall apart." The builder has faith in his work and simply smiles, giving the neighbor permission to do his best.
To me, this is how the story of Job seems. This is how a lot of our "trials" seem. Satan says "Hey... I bet I can break him"... and God says "Go ahead and try."
God has faith in us
God built us. He created us. He teaches us and strengthens us and molds us and shapes us. He knows what we're capable of. He knows the very depths of our hearts and souls and minds. When Satan says "I can break her"... maybe God is just accepting that challenge because God has faith in our ability... because He gave us that ability.
Just a random thought... I'd love to hear yours...
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