The Appropriate Response
“and said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.’” — Job 1:21
Benjamin Schmolke was a German Lutheran pastor in the 1700s. A fire raged over his parish and laid in ruins his church and the homes of his people. A Counter-Reformation occurred in Germany and Lutherans were allowed only one church to minister to a population scattered over some thirty-six villages, Then God’s angel of death took his wife and children, leaving him alone. Then he suffered a series of strokes, leaving him paralyzed in his right hand. Then cataracts caused blindness. It was under all this avalanche of ills and calamity that Schmolke dictated the sweet hymn beginning with the verse —
“My Jesus, as Thou wilt!
Oh, may Thy will be mine;
Into Thy hand of love
My all I would resign.”
The Lord is the giver of all good things, and it is naturally difficult when someone or something is taken away from us. Today in prayer, if you are wrestling after a loss, praise the Lord that He is near to you during difficult times.
“In almost everything that touches our everyday life on earth, God is pleased when we’re pleased. He wills that we be as free as birds to soar and sing our maker’s praise without anxiety.” — A.W. Tozer
God’s Word: “always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” — Ephesians 5:20
By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2023, Devotional E-Mail
DEVOTIONS IN JOB. †
