A WORTHY EXAMPLE

JOB

Read Job 1–2;  Job 42

     Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil." Job 1:8 NIV

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     The story of Job is quite frightening to a believer’s heart. The interaction between God and Satan is something that we really cannot comprehend. But God did not expect Job, or his friends, to understand everything that transpired in Heaven. One thing we know; Job was living righteously and God was proud of him. Those of us, who want to please God, would do well to look at his example.

     Job prayed for his children even into adulthood. He raised them to love each other and enjoy one another's company, but he also maintained a discerning attitude, knowing that they could fall into sin.
     Job maintained his integrity in spite of the most adverse of circumstances, and when it was all over, he prayed for his friends who had completely misjudged him.

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     Lord, I would never ask for the trials that Job and his wife endured, but I do want to be the kind of person who would make You proud. You taught us to pray, do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." (Luke 11:4 NKJV) I am praying this for myself and my family and friends today. Amen

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     "After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before."
     "The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first."
Job 42:10, 12a NIV

FOILED CONSPIRACY

MORDECAI

Read Esther 5–10

     That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him…."What honor and recognition has Mordecai received for this?" the king asked. Esther 6:1, 3

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     The book of Esther contains some similarities to the story of Joseph in Egypt. Esther and her guardian, Mordecai, were captives in Persia, and like Joseph, God’s providence brought them into favor with the King. Esther was crowned Queen, and Mordecai in the end, was second only to King Ahasuerus. He …was great among the Jews and well received by the multitude of his brethren, seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his countrymen. (10:3b NKJV)

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     Mordecai ‘just happened’ to hear about a conspiracy against King Ahasuerus in time to warn Esther, and the king ‘just happened’ to awaken in the middle of the night–calling for the record that Mordecai had saved his life–just in time to foil the conspiracy by Haman to annihilate the Jews. (Esther 6-7)

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     The truth is that nothing ‘just happens’ to God's people. If we truly believe this, we will live with the confidence that God works out everything according to His good plan. Lord, remind me when I forget, that I will never be sorry for trusting in You.

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     "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, "thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV